PepsiCo India won four awards at this year’s Cannes Lions.
Gatorade earned 1 gold and 1 bronze award for its Turf Finder Initiative, recognised in the Creative Data category and Entertainment for Sports under live experience subcategory. Launched earlier this year, the Turf Finder Initiative is designed to ignite a passion for sports among residents of India’s bustling metropolitan areas.
Speaking on the win, Tarun Bhagat, Chief Marketing Officer, India Beverages, said, “We are immensely honored and thrilled by Gatorade’s success at the 71st Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Winning top honors such as the Gold in the Creative Data Lions for Data-enhanced Creativity, and a Bronze in the Entertainment Lions for the Sports category is a significant achievement that highlights our innovative approach and dedication to fostering an active-lifestyle culture in India. Our Turf Finder initiative, leveraging Google Maps data, perfectly aligns with our mission to promote active lifestyles. In bustling metropolitan cities, there is a significant challenge in finding adequate spaces for playing sports. Despite a strong intent to engage in playing sports, individuals often find it difficult to locate suitable spaces due to a lack of adequate play areas.”
He added, “With Turf Finder, Gatorade seeks to solve this issue by leveraging the data from Google Maps to identify potential areas and transform them into playing areas, thereby providing sporting access for everyone. This initiative underscores Gatorade’s commitment to addressing real-world challenges and fostering community engagement in meaningful and impactful ways. We are grateful for the support and collaboration that made this possible and look forward to furthering our mission to promote sports and an active lifestyle.”
Similarly, Lay’s won 2 awards, including one silver and one bronze in categories such as Glass: The Lion for Change and Sustainable Development Goals under live experience subcategory, along with the WARC Creative Effectiveness Grand Prix. The ‘Drops of Joy’ campaign, launched to reclaim water vapour during potato frying to achieve water-positivity, and ‘Farm Equal’, a project empowering over 2,500 women farmers in India with specialized tools in collaboration with USAID, were recognized for their innovation and impact.
Saumya Rathor, category lead, Lay’s India – PepsiCo said, “We’re overjoyed to have our efforts recognized at Cannes. At our core, Lay’s is rooted in agriculture and deeply values the communities we work with and the environment we depend on. Our ‘Drops of Joy’ campaign highlights our efforts in water positivity by reclaiming water during production. Additionally, through Project Farm Equal, we’ve had the privilege of empowering over 2,500 women farmers, providing them with the tools and support they need. Winning Cannes Lions for these initiatives is a humbling reminder that our dedication to making a positive impact is resonating and making a difference.”
Rajdeepak Das, chief creative officer- Publicis Groupe, South Asia & Chairman – Leo Burnett, South Asia adds, “With PepsiCo we have found the right partners who are aligned to our vision of using the power of creativity to make a real difference. All the campaigns from Gatorade Turf Finder, Lays Farm Equal and Drops of Joy use modern-day technology and tools to make a difference to our communities, and we couldn’t be prouder of our partnership with PepsiCo. And we are thrilled that some of the most creative minds from around the world who are part of the prestigious Cannes Jury also resonated with our work, winning us these precious Lions.”
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