Cipla's Achin Gupta on Berok Zindagi Creating a new era in asthma awareness

In this exclusive interview, Adgully delves into the remarkable journey of the ‘Berok Zindagi’ campaign with Achin Gupta, CEO of One India Business at Cipla Ltd. Discover the evolution and impact of one of India’s most influential public health campaigns, aimed at transforming asthma awareness and dispelling myths. Achin Gupta shares insights into the campaign’s unique strategies, collaborations with celebrities, and innovative approaches, as well as key takeaways that can inspire other organisations in their efforts to promote public health awareness and education. Excerpts:

Could you provide an overview of the ‘Berok Zindagi’ campaign and its primary objectives when it was first launched in 2017?

India alone contributes almost 42% of global asthma deaths despite accounting for only 13% of the cases worldwide. Asthma continues to be a high-burden disease in the country, affecting both adults and children. Misconceptions about asthma and inhalers contribute to the imbalance in its prevalence and outcomes, but correcting these can significantly improve patients’ lives.

This change could be achieved through a three-pronged strategy of spreading awareness about the disease, fostering acceptance, and promoting adherence to recommended treatments. And we’ve been driving this ambition through a multidimensional approach championed by our mass awareness campaign – #BerokZindagi. Through this campaign we’ve focused on raising awareness, dispelling myths, reducing stigma, and educating patients about the benefits and proper use of inhalation therapy as advised by their doctors.

How has the ‘Berok Zindagi’ campaign evolved over the years, and what milestones have you achieved in making it one of India's biggest public health campaigns?

The Berok Zindagi campaign has become one of the most significant efforts in raising awareness about asthma. We’ve engaged in social discussions to spread knowledge about this condition that affects approximately 30 million people in the country, while addressing common misconceptions about inhalers. In fact, a study we conducted earlier this year revealed that 64% of individuals accept inhalers as an effective way to manage asthma.

The campaign has engaged with various celebrities and influencers, including Priyanka Chopra. How have these collaborations contributed to the campaign’s success and impact?

Collaborating with celebrities both asthmatic and non-asthmatic, including, Sonali Bendre, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Ayushmannn Khurrana, Radhika Apte, and Vikas Khanna, have played a vital role in breaking down social stigmas surrounding asthma and inhaler use. Leveraging their platform, we have been able to extend the reach of our cause to a wider audience. These associations have served as more than just celebrity endorsements; their connection and dedication to our mission runs deep. In fact, some of them either have personal experience with asthma or are caregivers to those living with the condition.

Furthermore, we have explored a multitude of content formats across digital channels to ensure that we’re reaching and connecting with a diverse audience, embedding our mission into the cultural zeitgeist of the country. All these efforts have helped us accumulate 100 CR+ views across half a decade.

Could you tell us about the strategy behind launching a jingle, a dance Reel challenge, a Kathak dance video, and now, a video partnership with Pocket Aces as part of the campaign? Could you share specific insights into the impact of these adaptations in reaching and engaging the target demographic for the ‘Berok Zindagi’ campaign?

When it comes to our target audience, it is important to remember that asthma cuts across all age groups – from youngsters to working professionals and the elderly. In fact, the social stigma associated with the condition and inhalation therapy meant that our efforts needed to be extended to the general public as well. Our strategy in that regard was to keep it purpose-driven with the patient at its core, while also ensuring it is easy on the eyes and quick to consume.

We’ve harnessed the power of digital and social channels to create content that traverses generational boundaries, while also weaving in culturally important nuances that speak directly to the Indian audience. From heartwarming or witty films, the myth-buster series, social media initiatives, localised content delivery through multilingual adaptations, or an empowering anthem, we’ve gone beyond a formularised strategy, to innovate and differentiate our campaign.

For example, the Kathak dance film that was released last year in five languages, and paired with the heartwarming ‘Asthma Ke Liye, Inhalers Hain Sahi’ song, brought in over 25 crore views. Additionally, as part of the campaign’s social media extensions, we organised challenges on Instagram, including the cover song challenge, featuring popular music creators like Sumonto Mukherjee, Melissa Srivastava, Tanishka Bahl, and Swaroop Pandey, to name a few. These challenges reached an additional 1 crore individuals, with over 3,000 netizens participating. The film released this year, titled ‘Berok Zindagi ke liye bas common sense he kaafi hai’, has already received more than 4 crore views and we anticipate that number to grow exponentially with the collaborations and engagements that we have in store.

What innovative approaches and strategies is Cipla planning for the future to keep the campaign fresh and relevant?

Our partnership with Pocket Aces marks a new era for ‘Berok Zindagi’, where we’ll be leveraging the power of storytelling to integrate our campaign’s messaging into content formats and genres that are natural, organic, and relatable.

We’ve already seen considerable success from the first film released in September, that is, ‘A Monsoon Romance: When Opposites Attract’, which so far has received 8 million+ views across social media channels. The film was also trending in the top 40 in India on YouTube. What’s even more encouraging is the conversations it ignited about asthma and inhalers in the comment sections, which highlighted the common myths and misconceptions about the condition and its treatment, underscoring the need for us to further amp up our efforts.

We still have eight more sketches to release as part of our collaboration with Pocket Aces. The next one, titled ‘Humara Maidan’, is scheduled for release this month. This film, perfectly timed with the Cricket World Cup excitement, tells an underdog story with an atypical ending, focusing on cricket and kabaddi at the core of its narrative.

What are the key takeaways from the ‘Berok Zindagi’ campaign that other organisations or healthcare initiatives could apply to their own efforts in promoting public health awareness and education?

Our films and marketing endeavours are solely dedicated to inspiring individuals with chronic respiratory illnesses, like asthma, to take charge of their health through empowerment, education, and engagement. Utilising every communication channel, we have tried to ensure that message and mission resonates with individuals across the country. In fact, this year, we delved deeper into specific patient cohorts, with the Tuffies campaign directing more targeted awareness on improving respiratory care amongst children, especially those living with asthma.

However, to bring about a substantial shift in how asthma and its treatment are perceived in India, it is crucial to drive awareness efforts with a supportive framework that provides continuous assistance throughout the patient’s journey by means of education. And we have been doing this by complementing one of the largest patient awareness campaigns for asthma, that is, #BerokZindagi with Breathefree, a comprehensive patient support program. Breathefree provides a comprehensive solution to those suffering with OADs (Obstructive airway diseases), covering the complete patient journey from screening, facilitating diagnosis, device technique training, counselling, and ensuring treatment understanding/ adherence.

Through various initiatives like Breathefree clinics, and outreach programmes like Yatras and camps, the programme has reached more than 2.5 million patients across the country. Its digital extension, the Breathefree Digital Educator, that is, India’s 1st digital educator for inhalation device training, trains 30,000 patients every month, is in nine languages.

Though these endeavours have contributed to promoting a better understanding of the disease and its management, we remain committed to expanding and intensifying these initiatives. With ‘Berok Zindagi’, we will continue to engage in multi-media and influencer partnerships so that we can reach out to a diverse audience with more of an emphasis on creative storytelling which will resonate and build recall. Our goal is to further enhance disease management and patient care, ultimately bringing about meaningful improvements in their lives.