THE MINDFUL BASMATI RICE

India is a country where over 10 million weddings take place every year. Rice is an extremely auspicious part of blessing the newlyweds in every ceremony. Everyone who attends the wedding is given a fistful of rice, leading to approximately 20 to 50 million kilograms used just to shower on the newly wed couples, only to be swept off the floor and thrown right after.

In the very same country, 195 million people are left under nourished.

Given the cultural context,India Gate Basmati Ricedecided to support the tradition of blessing in a more meaningful manner, by creating special packs with rice and a message that seeks to raise social awareness. Under India DegaAashirvad initiative, these packs, distributed at weddings across the nation, give people the choice to merely touch rice instead of showering it, as a token of their blessing. Couples, families and even wedding planners can pre-book these packs on Indiadegaaashirvad.com, where they opt to donate the rice that would otherwise be used at their wedding ceremony. The selected packs are delivered to the wedding venues, and the rice collected is distributed to feed poor people across the country. A few immediate family members can still shower rice on the couple, but with this behavior change, the brand and its mindful audiences are coming a step closer to create a hunger-free India.

The agency behind the mindful rice idea is The Classic Partnership, Dubai.

CREATIVITY NATIONSBEYONDCLICHES INDIA THE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP INDIANWEDDING LOVEANDLOBBY