‘Bura Na Mano Dilli Hai’ – Dabang Delhi KC celebrates the spirit of Delhi

Chiranjibi Pati
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Delhi is the political epicentre of the country and the Dilliwalas are known for their unique attitude. Taking this forward on to the kabaddi mat, Dabang Delhi KC aims to be the “engine that fuels the pride of Delhi with a unique attitude”.

When someone talks about Delhi then what is the first thing that comes to one’s mind? Capital of India, Virat Kohli, Chhole-Kulche, or the city’s unapologetic attitude. Delhi, a place which is the nerve centre of Indian politics and a place which has its own cultural and historical significance, is also a land which accepts people from all regions of the nation and many come here for their livelihood. Delhi is for Dilliwalas and Delhi is also for others. Delhi is the place of hustle, heart and swagger and to take this identity into the sport of kabaddi and to bring the team closer to the people of Delhi, Dabang Delhi KC have come up with the tag line ‘Bura Maano Dilli Hai’.

“’Bura na mano Dilli hai’ celebrates Delhi in a unique, tongue-in cheek manner. When the campaign was being thought of, we realised that there are traits and culture tropes about Delhi that are sometimes misrepresented. It's in the culture of Delhi to be unabashed, to be boisterous, excessive and to show a bravado that pushes the envelope of normal sometimes,” said Sumeet Yadav, Group CEO of DO IT (owners of Dabang Delhi Kabaddi Club).

“While these traits can be misunderstood, there is no reason for them to be. Yes, Delhi can be loud and irrational, but it can also be sweet, brave, and can think, speak and act from the heart. We arrived at a simple guiding principle called Heart + Hustle + Swagger and felt this perfectly captured the spirit of Delhi. This lead us to the campaign line "Bura Na Mano, Dilli Hai". A line that acknowledges the heart, the swagger and the irrational behavior and adopts it as its own. A line that says, ‘No offence, but this is how we are.”

Delhi has always been audacious and proud of itself as well as of its people and the Dabang Delhi players embody this spirit. The sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League was the first year in which the team from the national capital made it to the playoffs. The side was led by Joginder Narwal and had a great outing back then. Coach Krishan Kumar Hooda, earlier this year, decided to go ahead with the same team and the same attitude in the seventh season but to get a different result.

Come 2019, the team retained players like Ravinder Pahal, Vishal Mane, Chandran Ranjit and Naveen Kumar from their last year’s team along with skipper Joginder to go a couple of steps ahead and lay their hands on the trophy. However, the ‘Dabang’ nature of the team remains the same and that is being brave and accepting all the challenges that come their way. It’s a team which has an amazing mix of youth and experience. You see a young Naveen excelling in the raiding department of the team and at the other side, you see an experienced Joginder restricting the opposition raiders with strong ankle holds. That’s the spirit of the team as well as the spirit of Delhi coming and staying together.

Despite the audacious attitude and all the aggression, the people of the national capital have a big heart. This was on display when Anup Kumar had called it a day from playing the sport last year and Joginder and co. decided to give him a fitting tribute by holding a banner for the Captain Cool who had never played for the Delhi franchise. Dabang Delhi is about the swagger of a Dilliwala and at the same time want the opponents not to feel bad about the way they play on the mat and that is where the campaign says – “Bura na mano Dilli hai.”

Adding more about the campaign Yadav mentioned, “We've already invested in creating some wonderful ad films for the campaign. These will be used digitally (on social media) to enable sharing and engagement. On ground, we're extending Bura Na Mano Dilli hai to Outdoor, Cinema and possibly print ads. Our instadia branding will also reflect this campaign. On the BTL front, we've planned a robust community engagement program which will deliver this campaign to the last mile and create more engagement opportunities.”

“We're fortunate to be working with some great partners such as JK Super Cement who are pushing this campaign on their own accord as well. Our ticketing and media partners will also play a pivotal role in establishing this campaign through their channels,” Yadav further added.

In the seventh edition of the tournament, which can be easily termed as the second successful sporting league after the IPL, Dabang Delhi aims to go ahead with the same swagger and same audacious nature. They will go for powerful dashes and strong ankle holds, they will go for some quick running hand touches and intelligent toe touches. However, the Dabang players from the nation’s capital city will always say, “don’t feel bad, this is how we are.” 

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