35-year-old auto rikshaw driver, Palvindar Singh is a resident of Attari, Punjab. As a daily ritual, he starts his auto and spends the whole day earning a livelihood to meet the family's basic needs. He aims to improve the quality of life but is unaware of the RAAHI (Rejuvenation of Auto-rickshaws in Amritsar through Holistic Intervention), project, a scheme, that’s meant to improve the quality of life of thousands of such auto drivers by introducing profitable alternatives for decades-old commercial auto. The project was launched by NIUA - National Institute of Urban Affairs & AFD - Agence Française de Développement but many like Palvindar were unaware of the project and its benefits after the launch.

This landed us on the problem statement and the brief on how to communicate among the ground torch bearer of RAAHI that it’s more profitable for them, and switching to fossil fuel-free autos will positively impact their livelihood as well as improves sustainable mobility.

Curbing carbon emissions is not just a challenge for Amritsar, it’s a world-level problem that needs everyone's attention and action at the same time. RAAHI is a city-level project that needs to implement well to set an example for the world. Through the preliminary research done by Amritsar Smart City and Amritsar Auto Rikshaw Cooperative Society, the loophole was quite evident. It was communication. Cracking this, team Mouse & Cheese decided to take the on-ground route. No communication is effective if it’s not reaching the right target group and if it’s not communicated in a seamless way. Taking this as a learning we went on the ground, with certain questions that lead us to the route cause. Some basic questions around their family background, aspirations, daily earnings, and reason to choose diesel auto over electric one and vice versa.

After talking to several drivers and leaders of Amritsar Auto Rikshaw Cooperative Society, the answer was there. Fossil fuel autos have more passenger capacity, it runs longer with an average expenditure of approx. Rs 300/day and above all this expense to own the electric one.

Keeping the ground reality as the core we mixed the benefits of the RAAHI scheme and took an approach of going hyperlocal in terms of language and came up with six pillars of communication targeting all their problems. We dived deep into understanding their tone, their colour, and their taste. As we wanted to create a campaign that didn't feel like just another campaign, but a thoughtful idea crafted purely for them.

The electric auto saves Rs 300 daily which makes Rs 9000 for a month. This made us to land on our first pillar "Hun Amdan Di Fikar Nahi". We assured the drivers that they don't have to worry about their income anymore, with the benefits provided by RAAHI.

RAAHI scheme offers free skill development for the female family members of the auto drivers and later on this can convert into a job offer if one learns it dedicatedly. This made us reach two pillars approaches  "Hun Main Vi RAAHI" - which highlighted that RAAHI is not just for the drivers, but for their entire family, as it creates opportunities for everyone to be skilled and independent and the other one was  "Mera Ghar Chalda Hai" - which emphasized the economic benefits of RAAHI, showcasing how it can improve the financial well-being of the drivers and their families.

RAAHI offers Rs 1 lakh as a subsidy if one quits his/her fossil fuel auto and goes for an electric one. This made us go for  "Fayde Di Gal" - highlighting the advantages of registering with RAAHI.

RAAHI offers wholesome benefits for the drivers, their families, the passengers, and of course our environment. Now sitting in an auto is not a bad experience, as it has a self-start, and one doesn’t need to pull that roap again and again and struggle anymore. Also, it enhances the passenger experience as it’s noise-free, and hardly anyone knows you have arrived until they see or track you. This lead us to  "RAAHI mere Layi, Te Mere Sawari De Layi" - We highlighted the greener and healthier way to commute. The last pillar was all about where it all started, the world-level problem of curbing carbon emissions. Aspiration always comes after basic needs. When we were done introducing solutions to the basic problems it was time to let them their superpowers. The power that enables them to save the world from carbon emissions. This brought us to  "Navi Raah, Nava Safar" - where we focused on the new path and new journey that RAAHI offers and leads to a greener, brighter, and carbon-free future.

Making the campaign stand on these six pillars all we required was one solo communication that pulls the attention and makes them go through all six pillars.
This made us go with three larger arches of benefits summing up in a tagline that was.
"Kamao, Bachao, Padhao". We showcased how RAAHI can help them earn more, save more, and educate their children for a brighter future.

Along with going with traditional OOH advertising we also chose an ad film to communicate the benefits of the project. This led us to communicate better to auto drivers to enjoy the benefits of RAAHI and convince themfor the greener option in the future.
Even 35-year-old auto rikshaw driver, Palvindar Singh is up for it.