Cannes Lions Scorecard- India Roars Victory On Day 1

India makes proud yet again with its globally acclaimed campaigns screaming success on the first day of Cannes Lions 2021. 

In a spectacular show, the Indian contingent overall clinched 7 metals including 1 gold in the Health & Wellness category under the category description Non-profit / Foundation-led Education & Awareness, 2 Silver, and 4 Bronze Lions for three campaigns in Outdoor and Health & Wellness categories.

FCB India dominated the show with its ‘PUNISHING SIGNAL’ campaign for Mumbai Police, bagging 5 Lions, including the Gold Lion. With the core focus on Purpose, Innovation, and Tech, the Punishing Signal has been awarded a Gold Lion and a Silver Lion in the Health & Wellness category under the category description Non-profit/Foundation-led Education & Awareness.

On the occasion of winning Gold Lion for consecutive three years at Cannes and FCB’s commitment to purposeful creativity, Rohit Ohri, Chairman & CEO, FCB Group India, said, “Once is an accident. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a habit. Our Gold Lion hat-trick at Cannes is testimony to FCB Group India making creative excellence a habit.”

Lowe Lintas Mumbai and Geometry and Encompass also won a bronze each for their work with Lifebuoy on 'H for Handwashing' and 'Hackwashing' campaigns, respectively.  

‘H for Handwashing’, created in partnership by Lowe Lintas Mumbai and Singapore was aimed at enlightening the global community about the act of handwashing in a year that had become all about it. 

The campaign was extended across media, including on TikTok with the #LifebuoyHandWashChallenge. The team also worked with players in the Indian Premier League’s Royal Challengers Bangalore team to create a PSA around the notion of India opening up. 

The campaign was led by Sagar Kapoor and MullenLowe Singapore global business director Vinay Vinayak. The campaign won a bronze in the Health and Wellness category.  

Happy about the win, Lowe Lintas CCO Sagar Kapoor quipped, “Behaviour change cannot get any more critical, given the era we are living in. For that change to happen, something fundamental has to change. Handwashing is pivotal in saving lives in the pandemic yet data shows its rate is still declining. Lifebuoy, having championed behaviour change decided to play a key role, one that goes way beyond just being a soap. 

"We decided to change the letter ‘H’ forever. ‘H’ will not be for HAT or HORSE. Now ‘H is for HANDWASHING’. Making this intervention at a really young age will ensure the hygiene habit is instilled at an age that would never let anyone forget handwashing. Winning a Cannes Bronze for the act just reinstates our faith in real work getting global recognition.” 

‘Hackwashing’ that won a bronze in the Health and Wellness Lions was a smart solution to stop the spread of germs in Kumbh Mela. The devotees' hands were stamped with a special wearable ink made of Lifebuoy formula, which turns into antibacterial soap on coming in contact with water. The hack was based on the insight that over 60% of Indians wash their hands using just water, which was not enough to stop infections and especially in crowded gatherings such as the Kumbh Mela. 

As a result, Kumbh festival 2019 had 30% fewer infections than the festival’s previous 2013 edition. The team behind the campaign included then Managing Partner Shankar Shinde and ECD Arpan Jain of Lowe Lintas Mumbai.  

Speaking about the win, CEO Ranjit Raina said, “Recognition for the work one does is always special and it becomes more so in a year like this. Our teams led by Shankar Shinde and Arpan Jain have done a tremendous job. #Hackwashing is a very relevant and innovative piece of work. I am very glad that it has been recognised. It wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our client HUL.”

The results for Pharma, Print & Publishing, and Design categories were also announced on day one. While there were no shortlists for India in the pharma category; FCB Ulka had been shortlisted in two subcategories under Print & Publishing Lions for ‘Out & Proud Classified’ for The Times Of India. In Design Lions, DDB Mudra Group Mumbai was shortlisted in two subcategories for McDonald’s ‘Eat Equal’ campaign.