JioHotstar is using a values-led classroom conversation as opening-weekend fuel. Har Yug Mein Ram: A Conversation with Young Leaders, featuring Ranbir Kapoor, director Nitesh Tiwari, actor Ravie Dubey and producer Namit Malhotra, streams exclusively on the platform from November 1 — four days before Ramayana: Part One opens in cinemas.
The scale of the build-up
Organised with the film’s makers and I.I.M.U.N., the initiative reached nearly 20,000 students from more than 500 schools across 18 cities. Around 150 student leaders attended at I.I.M.U.N.’s Mumbai headquarters; the rest joined virtually. The questions were not softballs: students asked the guests about the true hero of the epic, what they would ask Lord Rama, and whose journey among Rama, Sita and Lakshman felt most challenging.
Why the timing works
The special drops on November 1, and the film opens worldwide on November 5 in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English, including IMAX 3D. For JioHotstar, the asset does double duty: it builds youth awareness before the theatrical window and warms the same audience for the film’s post-theatrical on-demand purchase on the platform.
“As we bring this epic to the big screen, it’s equally important that young people discover these values and find their own connection with them,” Malhotra said.
A repeatable pre-release play
- Let the audience inside the story. Students asked the questions, which turns a promotional appearance into a youth-led conversation that travels further on social.
- Borrow scale, don’t build it. I.I.M.U.N.’s school network supplied 18-city reach without a costly multi-city roadshow.
- Prime the next window early. The same special seeds the on-demand purchase window that follows the theatrical run.
What it means for entertainment marketers
Family-friendly tentpoles live or die on advance awareness across generations. A school-based conversation gives the film a legitimacy halo among parents and teachers, and hands young viewers a reason to feel invested before the ticket window opens. For a title opening across six languages, that kind of owned, values-first content can complement a trailer-led media plan.
The sharper question for planners is whether classroom engagement converts. Opening-weekend numbers will show if a values-led special can do more than build goodwill.
Source: bollywoodHungama.com
