The British chocolate brand, Cadbury Dairy Milk has announced a partnership with the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) to celebrate and support the Indian Premier league‘s (IPL) often-unnoticed heroes, the ground staff.
This season, the brand has become the official sponsor of the ground crew, taking its generosity narrative a step further by recognising the unacknowledged.
As part of this initiative, the brand has made efforts to treat ground staff on par with cricketers, making them the true stars of the tournament. This includes providing best-in-class travel, accommodations, nutritional support, and customised jerseys designed by the renowned fashion designer Masaba Gupta throughout the season.
The brand has also extended its collaboration with Mumbai Indians (MI) as the initiative’s official goodness partner. As part of the deal, the company will double the total runs scored in all MI matches to provide health insurance to daily wage earners via its NGO partner Nirmana.
Anil Viswanathan, Vice President – Marketing, Mondelez India said, “As a brand, Cadbury Dairy Milk has always believed that a little bit of generosity can go a long way and it is often the small acts of kindness that have the biggest impact. Taking this narrative and purpose a step ahead, our partnership with Mumbai Cricket Association this year celebrates the lesser-known heroes of cricket, the ground staff. Through our initiative, we want to support and bring forth stories of these members who tirelessly work behind the scenes to create magic for the entire nation. We hope our initiative acts as a springboard and spreads the message of acknowledging the unacknowledged.”
Sukesh Nayak, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy India added, “Building further on our generosity platform, this cricketing season we are proud to celebrate an unknown team of superstars, the team of ground staff. We are grateful to have them in our team. As proud sponsors, we hope that this team becomes the most loved team not just for the players but for the entire country.”
Jigar Rambhia, National Director, Sports & Entertainment Partnerships, Wavemaker India, said, “The ground staff are the unsung heroes of cricket, so it was only fair that we now acknowledged the heroes behind this massive event. The biggest challenge for us, however, was to ensure that they get their dues, while cricket & the players continue to be at the centre of this event. To do this we decided to acknowledge their efforts, where they sweat it out the most, their grounds. From recognizing them off-screen to recognizing them on screen, we aim to give the people of India a glimpse into the lives of the ground staff, so that when they watch cricket next, they celebrate, both: on-screen and off-screen heroes.”
MCA-Spokesperson stated, “Acknowledging the real heroes behind the scenes is a very generous gesture. Mumbai Cricket Association is delighted to be a part of this never done before heart-warming activity for the ground staff at Wankhede stadium. Paying special attention to their stay and food, providing them with designer jerseys from Masaba Gupta must be an overwhelming experience for the staff members.”