Thirty-two contestants who made it to the national round of the Tycoons 2009 had a chance to show their creativity in ad making for NGO Deepalaya. The round saw the participants coming up in a group of two with their idea for a print, television, radio or internet advertisement for Deepalaya which works for slum children. Every group had a maximum of eight minutes to make the presentation. While some came up with the ideas to create awareness about education, others thought of creating an ad that would help in collecting funds and yet others wanted to achieve both through the same ad.

The punchlines were as interesting for some as some of the concepts. “Paani barabar shiksha” was the catchline of one of the groups that aimed to make anybody who buys a bottle of water realise that if they paid same amount everyday for a year’s time, it could help a slum child get education. While some made very corporate attempt at pitching for an ad, others were little more creative and performed their idea. From miming to singing the lines, there was no limit to the flash of ideas which poured out. The participants also got a chance to visit slums where Deepalaya has made a difference. The hands on experience, they said, was worth giving it their best shot and most of them believed that the children in the slums could be better off in all ways if they get the chance and financial assistance to perform. The participants not only had to come up with creative ideas but also put forth the marketing strategies keeping the target audience in mind which was quite a challenge.