Maggi Facebook

Maggi, Nestlé’s instant noodles, has teamed up with beloved actress and celebrity mom Madhuri Dixit Nene to promote the idea that ‘health is enjoyable’ with Maggi Atta noodles, the wheat version. Many of us grew up eating these 2-minute instant noodles for breakfast, lunch, or even late-night snacks, ready in just a few tasty minutes. It has become one of India’s favorite convenience foods, especially relied upon by mothers and hostel students. Almost everyone has a Maggi story to tell.

But then Maggi noodles came under the scanner for being unhealthy, low in nutrition and high in salt, MSG and fat. Mothers were left scared while students took other options. In the strife to survive, Nestle then introduced Maggi Atta noodles with the promise of rotis and vegetables, while the brand communication centered around “Taste bhi health bhi.”

The ones addicted to instant Maggi convenience might have switched to the Atta noodles, while a whole segment of society is still unconvinced about the health claims of the noodles. The brand is now on a path to convince the country in its new campaign ‘Health is enjoyable’ where Madhuri plays a key role as a mother.

In a TVC conceptualized by Publicis Capital, the actress tells mothers to get their kids to play outdoor games along with giving them Maggi Veg Atta noodles for a healthy and fun life. Madhuri is seen playing football along with other mothers, much to her son’s amazement who is seen playing video games with his friend at home. When the kids join in, they have a lively game and get hungry. She asks for two minutes and later all of them are having bowls of the Maggi atta noodles, while her voice over emphasizes on the grain shakti and power of 3 rotis in them.

She also says that this is ‘one more way to stay healthy’ implying that outdoor games are a must.

The instant noodles brand is busy promoting the TVC through social media apart from the traditional mediums. The Facebook and newly created Twitter pages of Maggi India have been sharing the TVC with its fans. The communication is now centered around ‘Health is Enjoyable’ where the message has been transformed into a hashtag. Since this morning, Maggi India has also been promoting it on Twitter India trends along with a contest. Twitter users have been asked to share how they enjoy health in everyday situations, for a chance to win vouchers worth Rs. 2000 every hour.

Associating Maggi noodles with healthy fun

Being under tight scrutiny as a junk food is not going well with the brand. How long can the brand communication shoulder on the burden of being an ‘unhealthy’ food? Riding on the popularity of Madhuri Dixit, while emphasizing on outdoor games as a healthy way to life, seems to be the new mantra adopted by the brand. Maggi is now promising to make health fun by including games to the other health option – Veg Atta noodles.

The campaign has leveraged the reach of Twitter to create relevant buzz. By promoting the campaign message as a hashtag on Twitter India trends, Maggi India has caught the attention of social media savvy youth, while triggering conversations on ‘Health is enjoyable’.

‘Health is Enjoyable’ is a clever marketing campaign to associate the brand with health, even if skeptics choose to ignore. What do you say?