Bald head in a cardboard box….does it ring a bell? Yes, this indeed is the teaser ad which was released last Thursday for the film “Paa”. Since then “Paa” has become the talk of the town. Amitabh Bacchan would be seen in one of the most challenging role. He would be playing a 13 year old child suffering from progeria, a debilitating disease where the child ages rapidly beyond his age.
Big B intends to visit schools with a view to create awareness among children about progeria. Ad veteran R Balki who has directed the film and is also the brainchild of this campaign is thrilled with response generated by the teaser ads. He says that “The story is sensitive, so we have to avoid the usual razzmatazz associated with a Bollywood movie”.
The film has been co-produced by ABCL Ltd and Reliance Entertainment. For the first time Aishwarya Rai would be overseeing the promotion of the film.
Moving away from the traditional method of showing credits, the credits of this film are going to be done in an innovative manner. The cast and crew of the film would be introduced by none other than Jaya Bacchan.
The film is about a unique father-son relationship. Interestingly Big B is playing the role of a son, while his son ‘Abhishek’ is playing the father’s role.
The total budget of the film is Rs 16 crore. Out of which 10% was used just for Amitabh’s make up. Stephen Dupuis who did Robin William’s make up for Mrs Doubtfire is responsible for Big B’s phenomenal look. It took him four good hours to put on the make up and two hours to take it off.
According to analysts, Brand Paa has become bigger than Big B, thanks to the clever campaigning efforts put in by Balki.
Hiren Pandit, Managing Partner of Group M, comments that the production houses know that Bacchan’s character and look is the USP of Paa and therefore the campaign has been tailored accordingly. Also great curiosity has been created thanks to the great PR efforts.
The interactive film website paathefilm.com is also adding to the promotional efforts. Big B for the first time is using his Blog to promote the film.