The recently released tourism promotional video for West Bengal has faced scathing criticism for highlighting iconic monuments from around the world, such as the Eiffel Tower in France, Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Russia, the Egyptian pyramids, and Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer, but barely mentioning anything about the state.
The production was instantly ridiculed by social media users and politicians, irrespective of party affiliations, over creative choices and the wrong choice of agency. Political criticism : TMC MP Derek O’Brien harshly criticised the promo video on social media,, and TMC leader and former governor Tathagata Roy called the video amateur and asked for immediate withdrawal of the video. Infrastructure needs : The state government has admitted its need for infrastructure improvement for not allowing tourists to travel through northern hill stations directly to the neighbouring state of Sikkim. Creative responsibilities : It is believed that creative mistakes will be against all administrative efforts for revitalizing hospitality economy of the region.
Public criticism : Internet users went viral with comments regarding this controversy as “Where is Bengal?” criticizing the hiring of out-of-state agencies without any elementary oversight of the place.
The blunder has led to a firestorm of public criticism, with politicians and opposition figures questioning how a promotional video for a state could exclude all references to the culture and geography of the state. The brief appearance : While there is an appearance of the famous Howrah Bridge in the first few seconds, heritage monuments like the Victoria Memorial, Bishnupur’s terracotta temples, Darjeeling Himalayan Railway were all omitted. The global tour : Instead of focusing on local monuments, the video showcases a quick tour of various global skyscrapers and monuments unrelated to the local geography. The above case study is an indication of how delicate the whole process of rebranding of the region in terms of tourism can become.
The campaign release : The campaign rollout comes with a new Rs 500-crore investment package to upgrade tourism infrastructure in the region.
The campaign, which has the tagline “West Bengal: Where India feels different,” has been released to replace previous branding initiatives. Criticism of the tagline : People have criticised this tagline in comparison with other successful campaigns like Kerala’s “God’s Own Country” and Rajasthan’s “Padharo Mhare Desh.
