Marketing in politics today

Every elections see new ideas emerging in the way candidates connect with the masses.

This time too is no different.

If we compare the 2014 campaign to the 2019 campaign there are subtle differences between the BJP campaigns.

2014 was more about introducing modi to the masses. Use of technology, leveraging old hands within BJP to supplement his credentials, and Mr Modi's unrelenting hard work and request for support to general populace felt from the heart and people reeling from inaction and ineptitude gave Mr Modi a resounding chance to perform.

This time we see the campaign completely centered around their biggest mascot himself. It's a big risk for Mr Modi, because if he fails it's all on him. He has employed traditional with the digital. Town hall formats, direct issue based conversations and relentless last mile campaign are the tools this time.

Congress on the other hand has changed the approach. They realised that Mr Rahul Gandhi is no match for Mr Modi in traditional speeches. So we  see him using more direct engagement platforms in colleges etc. to connect with youth. Ms priyanka Gandhi who is a more natural speaker and gets instant connect with grassroots people wherever she goes is employing her charms to connect with voters around her.

One thing is clear, whether Congress wins this time or not, she is someone who will bounce back when her time comes. Her easygoing speaking, ability to deliver hard punches in a soft voice are definitely reassuring to the voters she meets. In today's campaign in Assam the way she connected with crowd and put full support on the local candidate is quite different from how Mr Modi is dealing with his campaign. To my mind this will pay off for Congress in time to come and it will be interesting to see how things pan out.

The way things are going time isn't far when all major candidates will have to come for open debates in the format used in America and some other western countries.

It'll definitely be an interesting watch to see Mr Modi and Mr Gandhi take on each other in such a format, not to mention the mahgathbandhan leaders like Ms Banerjee, mr akhilesh yadav and others.

As marketing gets slicker in poll campaigns voters need to become smarter to shift through the makeup and realise the real picture to make an informed choice.

Paris blasts : an attack on the idea of love

Having lived in Paris for a brief period (about 3 months), I had fallen in love with the city.

The sheer history, architecture, weather, way of life, and the highly fashion conscious people (read beautiful) lend an aura around the place found in only a few other cities around the world.

The bombings on the other day made me sad about the sheer brazen-ness with which the bombs were blown in public places.

The attack was to prove a point. If they can...they will!

But the way I perceive ISIS is that they have achieved exactly what they wanted. Blood, mayhem, cries for war, followed by global attention (see how the dark eiffel was a symbol of sadness) and finally a resolution to fight war with war.

Honestly, in my view, the world has played right into their hand on how they wanted the response. This incident will see a bump in ISIS stock. Enrollments will increase, and they have become heroes in eyes of their supporters/sympathisers.

All the talk of war and removing ISIS is quite a lot of bull as ISIS is an organisation, an idea with the face of terror, quite similar to the likes of the MI6, CIA or any other world organisation! It was much easier to kill the idea of Osama than the idea of ISIS!

In my opinion, the response should have been just how we respond to a child throwing a tantrum. Ignore.

Paris is much more than a city.  It is the idea of love. And by hitting Paris ISIS hit the idea of love. Well,love is all pervasive (at the cost of sounding corny), and it should have picked up just where it left off.

Eiffel tower should have been lit brighter than ever before, cafes should have distributed free food and wine! Newspapers should have covered more about the history, greatness of the city and desisted from writing anything about the ISIS.

All the targeting and acts of war should have been behind the scenes with no media mention.

All is not lost yet, and we can still do a lot to redeem the city of love!