Dileep Kumar
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Star Sports 2 has released a promotional campaign for Pro Kabaddi League that kicks off tomorrow. A look at the campaign and the sport.
The success of cricket's Indian Premier League (IPL) has not only furthered the popularity of the game, but has also spawned model leagues in other sports with a similar format. Leagues for football, badminton, hockey and now a homegrown sport, kabaddi are the flavour of the day.
The 'Business of Sports', a 2014 report by KPMG-CII (Confederation of Indian Industry), takes note of the phenomenon. It says that the reasonable success of the Indian Badminton League (IBL) and the Hockey India League (HIL) - sports that don't enjoy the same popularity as cricket - has shown that leagues are a good medium for generating interest and driving sports culture besides the potential RoI...
But here is the million-dollar question: is the nation ready to watch a nearly forgotten sport like kabaddi, even if there is a glitzy league - and a glitzier campaign - to prop it up? Ogilvy & Mather's ad campaign for the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) might just help generate interest around the game.
About the league
Mashal Sports, a sports management company, that is focused on bringing the excitement back to traditional Indian sports, plans to take the indigenous sport of kabaddi to levels of new professionalism. The company's board includes names like Anand Mahindra, Charu Sharma and Piyush Pandey. Beginning tomorrow, the PKL will be played on a caravan basis with the eight teams - representing eight cities - in the fray, playing each other twice.
According to the organisers, who call the launch of PKL a "bold step", the league will highlight the "new, modern, international and competitive face of kabaddi throughout the length and breadth of the country, and beyond." The tournament will have 60 matches and will be aired on Star Sports 2 and simulcast on Star India's Hindi movie channel, Star Gold. The tournament will also be streamed live on Starsports.com.
A revolution?
The teams are owned by well-known people like Ronnie Screwvala (Mumbai team - U Mumba), Abhishek Bachchan (Jaipur Pink Panthers), Kishor Biyani (Bengal Warriors), Radha Kapoor (Dubang Delhi), Rajesh Shah (Patna Pirates), Sumanlal Shah (Puneri Paltan), Srinivasan Sreeramaneni (Telugu Titans). The eighth team, Bengaluru Bulls is owned by Kosmik Global Media.
With Star backing it, the league is expected to give the sport some recognition and the right push. According to Shah of Patna Pirates, kabaddi is an Indian game with historical relevance and has the potential to become a global sport. "Kabaddi is appreciated in the rural community in the country. At the same time, it is also played in the Asian Games with well-defined rules. This is the first time the sport is being promoted at this scale," he says.
Darshan M, director at Spoment Ventures, believes that the PKL is a good initiative to revive a dying Indian sport. But having said that, he cautions that the sport will appeal primarily to the population in the hinterland and rural areas.
However, Darshan feels that since kabaddi is not an aspirational sport it is not going to "set TV viewership on fire." He feels that telecasting it on Doordarshan may get a better audience from rural markets. "Women audiences are highly unlikely and SEC B, C and D would be ideal targets. It will remain a niche rural sport and that's it," he asserts.
PKL has the formal backing of the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), the Asian Kabaddi Federation (AKF) and the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI). Kabaddi lovers are in for a good time - the PKL will be followed by another tournament called the World Kabaddi League that will be aired on Sony Six.
Kabaddi, kabaddi... Star Sports ups the ante with Pro Kabaddi League > afaqs! news & features
The success of cricket's Indian Premier League (IPL) has not only furthered the popularity of the game, but has also spawned model leagues in other sports with a similar format. Leagues for football, badminton, hockey and now a homegrown sport, kabaddi are the flavour of the day.
The 'Business of Sports', a 2014 report by KPMG-CII (Confederation of Indian Industry), takes note of the phenomenon. It says that the reasonable success of the Indian Badminton League (IBL) and the Hockey India League (HIL) - sports that don't enjoy the same popularity as cricket - has shown that leagues are a good medium for generating interest and driving sports culture besides the potential RoI...
But here is the million-dollar question: is the nation ready to watch a nearly forgotten sport like kabaddi, even if there is a glitzy league - and a glitzier campaign - to prop it up? Ogilvy & Mather's ad campaign for the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) might just help generate interest around the game.
About the league
Mashal Sports, a sports management company, that is focused on bringing the excitement back to traditional Indian sports, plans to take the indigenous sport of kabaddi to levels of new professionalism. The company's board includes names like Anand Mahindra, Charu Sharma and Piyush Pandey. Beginning tomorrow, the PKL will be played on a caravan basis with the eight teams - representing eight cities - in the fray, playing each other twice.
According to the organisers, who call the launch of PKL a "bold step", the league will highlight the "new, modern, international and competitive face of kabaddi throughout the length and breadth of the country, and beyond." The tournament will have 60 matches and will be aired on Star Sports 2 and simulcast on Star India's Hindi movie channel, Star Gold. The tournament will also be streamed live on Starsports.com.
A revolution?
The teams are owned by well-known people like Ronnie Screwvala (Mumbai team - U Mumba), Abhishek Bachchan (Jaipur Pink Panthers), Kishor Biyani (Bengal Warriors), Radha Kapoor (Dubang Delhi), Rajesh Shah (Patna Pirates), Sumanlal Shah (Puneri Paltan), Srinivasan Sreeramaneni (Telugu Titans). The eighth team, Bengaluru Bulls is owned by Kosmik Global Media.
With Star backing it, the league is expected to give the sport some recognition and the right push. According to Shah of Patna Pirates, kabaddi is an Indian game with historical relevance and has the potential to become a global sport. "Kabaddi is appreciated in the rural community in the country. At the same time, it is also played in the Asian Games with well-defined rules. This is the first time the sport is being promoted at this scale," he says.
Darshan M, director at Spoment Ventures, believes that the PKL is a good initiative to revive a dying Indian sport. But having said that, he cautions that the sport will appeal primarily to the population in the hinterland and rural areas.
However, Darshan feels that since kabaddi is not an aspirational sport it is not going to "set TV viewership on fire." He feels that telecasting it on Doordarshan may get a better audience from rural markets. "Women audiences are highly unlikely and SEC B, C and D would be ideal targets. It will remain a niche rural sport and that's it," he asserts.
PKL has the formal backing of the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), the Asian Kabaddi Federation (AKF) and the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI). Kabaddi lovers are in for a good time - the PKL will be followed by another tournament called the World Kabaddi League that will be aired on Sony Six.
Kabaddi, kabaddi... Star Sports ups the ante with Pro Kabaddi League > afaqs! news & features
