Exploring the evolving brand mandate of KBC via an analysis of its evolving taglines

1. Exploring the evolving
brand mandate of KBC via
an analysis of its evolving
taglines
September 2013

2. The Cadbury Bournvita Quiz Contest was our
standard memory of a question cum
knowledge based show till KBC came along.
It was a show that celebrated knowledge and
appeased Goddess Saraswati..

3. Now does anyone
remember the prize
money offered on the
Bournvita Quiz
programme?
Or wait a minute was
there ever any money
involved?

4. Traditionally knowledge and money have been on opposites sides of the pole- more so in our
culture. We even have two separate Goddesses to appease to these supposedly exclusive human
desires. The advent of KBC on TV for the first time allowed us the possibility of worshipping
both at the same time via the same yagna.

5. With KBC the word “Crorepati” got firmly etched
onto the Indian psyche as the new benchmark of
being rich. “Lakhpati” – the traditional reference in
Hindi movies of being rich was now passé.

6. TAGLINES OVER THE YEARS
Season two – Umeed se dugna
Season three – Kuch sawal zindagi badal sakte hain
Season four – Koi sawal chota nahi hota
Season five – Koi insaan chota nahi hota
Season six –Gyaan hi aapko aapka haq dila sakta hai
Season seven – Seekhna band toh jeetna band

7. In its first year of operation the show was selling a dream. In that year when
Harshwardhan Navate won Rs 1 crore that amount was unheard of. It was almost a distant
reality for most Indians.
The amount of money offered by the game show was far bigger than offered by any show
in the India Television history. It is from the second season, which was aired in 2005, that
the show has a tag line.
The tag line for this season was ‘Umeed se Dugna’. So, essentially the show was selling the
same hope of money to the common man but this time the amount was double. .

8. Pain point addressed: In life mostly you don't
get anything even when you ask leading to a
feeing of dejection and depression
Tagline: umeed se dugna (Getting twice the
amount you desired for)
Overall thematic : HOPE TO WIN
2
Role of the brand : MAGICIAN
Risk & mastery- it can happen

9. The third season of the show, which was on air in
2007, saw a shift in the focus of the communication.
From money the overt cue shifted to. knowledge.
The tag line focused on the fact that it was the
knowledge that could be the key to that money. The
theme of the program for this season was ‘kuch
sawaal zindagi badal sakte hain’ (literal meaning –
some questions can change your life) therefore giving
out the message that no question is insignificant. The
tag line impressed upon the transformational change
that ‘power of knowledge’ can bring in for the
common man. So, a right question posed at the right
time could changed the turn of events. Post this
campaign, ‘power of knowledge’ became the common
thread running across all the following campaigns.

10. Pain point addressed: We are all stuck in a rut seems there is no way out
Tagline : Season 3- kuch sawal zindagi badal
sakte hai (some questions can change your life)
Overall thematic : TAKE A CHANCE
FOR TURNAROUND
3
Role of the brand : GAMBLER

11. Coincidently the third season of KBC was
hosted by the Baazigar (gambler in Hindi)
Shah Rukh Khan

12. ‘Koi bhi sawal chota nahi hota’ was the
tag line for the fourth season and it
celebrated the ‘knowledge of power’ in a
different dimension which was ‘don’t
underestimate’.
The TVCs showed people in the hot seat
stuck up because of a very basic question
such as ‘Akbar ka Baap kaun tha?’. It also
indirectly cued that knowledge does not
discriminate i.e. any one, any age can
throw up a challenging question.
For example in both the TVCs of ‘Akbar ka
baap kaun tha’ and ‘tum mujhe khho do’ a
child was shown asking the question.
Interestingly the tag line also sent the
message of knowledge being an equalizer.
So all people who don’t have answers to a
particular question are in the same boat,
hence are equals in some sense.

13. Pain point addressed: We want big change
but are not able to make the small starts that
lead to the same
Tagline : Season 4- koi bhi sawaal chota
nahin hota ( no question is a small question
to be asked,)
Overall thematic : MAKE A SMALL START
FOR IT TO GROW BIG
4
Role of the brand : CREATOR
provides stability and control – if it can be
created(asked) it can be channelized

14. Going forward in season five, the tag line changed to ‘Koi bhi insaan chota nahi hota’.
The communication took forward the idea of ‘don’t underestimate’ to the next level. So
earlier the underestimation was only around the question but in this campaign the focus
was now on the person who was being asked the question.
This campaign particularly focused on the theme of ‘knowledge as an equalizer’ for which
the seed was embedded in the past communication. Therefore, starting from season three the
campaigns kept on reinforcing the theme of ‘knowledge’ in different dimensions.

15. Pain point addressed: We are all not equal in the
game of life
Tagline : Season 5- Koi bhi insaan chota nahin
hota (Every man is worth something)
Overall thematic : FEEL WORTHY – WE ALL HAVE
SOME POTENTIA:L
5
Role of the brand : LOVER
Makes you feel cherished – I only have eyes for
you and I stand by you

16. "जीवन ऩथ जटिऱ है ये, काऱचक्र कटिन है ये,
ऩग ऩग ऩे भेद -भाव है , रक्त-रॊ जजत ऩाॉव है ,
जन्म से ककसी क सर वॊश की छाॉव है ,
े
झूि क रथ ऩे सवार डाकओॊ का गाॉव है ,
े
ु
ककसी क ऩास है छऱ-कऩि, ककसी को रूऩ का वरदान है ,
े
ये सोच क मत बैि जा कक ये ववधध का ववधान है .
े
बजा रहा मदॊग है , ये कहता अॊग-अॊग है ,
ृ
की प्राण अभी शेष है , मान अभी शेष है ,
उिा ऱे ऻान का धनुष, एक कण भी और कछ म ांग मत
ु
भगव न से.
This is the full copy of the season 6 –
pitch of KBC
ऻान की कमान ऩे ऱगा दे तू ववजय ततऱक,
काऱ क कऩाऱ ऩे लऱख दे तू ये गुऱाऱ से,
े
'की रोक सकता कोई तो रोक क टदखा मुझे,
े
ह़ छीनता आया है जो अब छीन क बता मुझे.'
े
ऻान क मॊच ऩर सब एक सामान हैं,
े
ववधध का ववधान ऩऱि दे , तो ब्रह्मास्त्र ऻान है .
तो आज से ये िान ऱे, ये बात गाॊि बाॉध ऱे,
की कमम क करुऺेर में ,
े ु
ना रूऩ काम आता है , ना झूि काम आता है ,
ना जाती काम आती है , ना बाऩ का नाम काम आता है ,
ससर् ज्ञ न ही आपको आपक हक़ दिल त है .
फ

17. Pain point addressed: We are all in the dark
and victims of social evils, injustice
Tagline : Season 6 - Gyan hi aapko aapka hakk
dialata hai (knowledge ensures true
empowerment)
Overall thematic : EMPOWERMENT COMES
WITH KNOWLEDGE
6
Role of the brand : RULER
Stability and control – ensures rights are not
trampled upon

18. This season the focus is on continuous learning as a path to continued success / victory
with the tagline seekhna bandh to jeetna bandh
With this tagline the program also cues the importance of a certain depth of knowledge as
opposed to just access to knowledge which was the focus in the earlier version of this series.

19. Pain point addressed: After we leave formal
institutions of learning our learning plateaus
and soon we get outdated
Tagline : Season 7 - seekhna bandh to jeetna
bandh (when you stop learning you stop
winning
Overall thematic : CONTINUOUS LEARNING
FOR CONTINUOUS SUCCESS
7
Role of the brand : SAGE Independence and
fulfillment – the truth will set you free

20. Evolving role of knowledge across seasons
2.Hope catalyst
3. Risk minimizer
4.Inclusion agent
5. Measurement of
self worth
6. Key to unlock
entitlements
7. Success Sustainerwisdom cue

21. Evolving brand mandate across seasons
season 2
MAGICIAN
season 3
GAMBLER
season 4
CREATOR
season 5
LOVER
season 6
RULER
season 7
SAGE
season 8
Any guesses?

22. A DOT Think initiative
info@connectingdots.in
www.connectingdots.in
2013