On World No Tobacco Day, Apex Cancer Hospital, Tata Memorial Centre (TMC), in collaboration with Bollywood’s music composer duo Salim-Sulaiman launched a new musical anthem, ‘Aaj Zindagi Jeete Hain’, at the national level, aiming to use the universal language of music to engage youth and promote a healthy lifestyle free from tobacco use. Honourable Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya launched the campaign’s audio-music nationally. The song has been written by celebrated lyricist Irfan Siddiqui and budding actor Arjun Tanwar is featured in the video as a narrator promoting a tobacco-free life. The campaign is directed at youth in India as 8.5% of tobacco users are between the age of 13-15 years.
This campaign was developed with the technical support of global health organization, Vital Strategies, under a partnership with WebRangers Entertainment, a prominent digital marketing and entertainment company. The company uses their expertise in influencer marketing to unite an impressive array of digital personalities to further enrich the campaign.
Sharing his views, Bollywood music composer, Salim Merchant said, “We fully support the #IndiaVsTobaccocampaign, which is a step towards spreading public awareness around the harmful effects of tobacco consumption in India. We have always believed that music has the power to change the world. We are humbled to be part of a campaign that will engage youth in a meaningful way towards choosing a healthy lifestyle free from tobacco use. With the support of Vital Strategies and the innovative approach of WebRangers Entertainment, we are certain our little effort will inspire and potentially create a cadre of young changemakers to help spread awareness about the health hazards of tobacco. Every death from tobacco is preventable and our entertainment industry has the potential to be part of this change”.
Vaishakhi Mallik, Director, Policy Advocacy and Communication Programs, Vital Strategies India, said, “India is the second-largest consumer of tobacco. Nearly 267 million Indians aged 15 years and above, use tobacco products. The ‘Aaj Zindagi Jeete Hain’ campaign will be helpful in engaging youth to prevent tobacco use initiation and protect them from tobacco-related diseases. One of the most effective strategies to protect youth is to ban tobacco advertising, promotions, and sponsorships especially on social media, which children and young people use daily. Through continuous monitoring of tobacco marketing on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, our digital media monitoring system, TERM, has documented instances of tobacco smoking imagery on online movie posters which are not allowed under the “Film rules.” Together, the movie industry and the public health community can make great strides to protect our youth. We congratulate Tata Memorial Centre for launching the campaign on such a significant day, and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India for releasing the audio music.”
The 2:05 minute song “Aaj Zindagi Jeete Hain” will be available across all audio streaming platforms such as Gaana, JioSaavn, Resso, Spotify, Hungama, YouTube Music, Apple Music, Amazon Prime Music, and Wynk Music. The accompanying video will be uploaded to the YouTube channel of Salim-Sulaiman that has a reach of 1.84M subscribers. Additionally, a 15-second promotional audio snippet of the song will be broadcast on Radio City from 31st May to 1st June, targeting audiences in Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, Lucknow, and Jaipur. To further amplify the campaign song’s impact, flash mobs and engagement with youth communities will be organized alongside active promotion on social media throughout the month.
