Categories Name : SPECIAL AWARDS

Sub-Category : Best Media Campaign – Gender Parity

Entry Name (Campaign) : PowerlessQueen

Brand Name : Project Nanhi Kali

Metal : Gold

Covering Note / Overall Experience

Launched for Project Nanhi Kali, an NGO that aims to provide primary education to underprivileged girl children in India, the campaign was based on the insight that chess originated in India in the 6th Century and in the game of Chess, the ‘Queen’ plays a vital role, while in India the women, who are ‘Queens’ are the least powerful. They are not allowed their basic right to education which leads to them being powerless.
We launched world's first digital chess game which was rolled out as a #PowerlessQueen challenge, created awareness about the plight of women in our country and generate donations for the education of underprivileged girls by Nanhi Kali.
The campaign was supported by International Chess players including World Rapid Chess Champion - Viswanathan Anand, Hungarian Woman Grandmaster - Anna Rudolf, Hungarian Woman Grandmaster and Ambassador of Chess and Education UN Planet 50-50 Champion - Judit Polgar, Two-time United States Women Champion - Jennifer Shahade, Four-time Dutch Chess Champion - Anish Giri and Five-time Danish Chess Champion and current coach to World number one Magnus Carlsen - Heine Nielsen. It garnered donations of 40, 000 hours of education for underprivileged girls.

Concept

Innovation

We introduced the world’s first chess game with a powerless queen where the visitors/players played with a powerless queen (no moves allowed) against the computer which had a powerful queen. This game was rolled out as a #PowerlessQueen challenge on the mobile app and our mobile site, challenging people to try and win. As people lost, we prompted them to share the message and also donate to the cause of girl child education so as to empower them.
The idea showcased how difficult it is to win in chess and as a metaphor in society as well when the queen (Women in society) is a powerless one. Hence proving how societies cannot win if its queens (women) are not empowered.

Execution

We created the world's first web and mobile-based game, titled #PowerlessQueen which was launched via a campaign website and a video featuring India's number 2 woman chess player and Grandmaster Tania Sachdev. As the campaign was rolled out as a #PowerlessQueen challenge across the world, she urged the audience and her fellow chess players to take up the challenge and try to win. Global chess champions took the challenge and lost the game and came forward to support #PowerlessQueen. People who lost could take two actions - they could share their experience on Twitter & Facebook and donate to the cause of Nanhi Kali for the education of the girl child.
To take the concept of Powerless Queen into the physical world, The Chess School of India and The Coach Crew came together to organize chess tournaments which were participated in by school students from across schools.

Results

Chess is a game played by the educated and elite in India but watched by millions.
India is among the top 10 chess-playing countries in the world. As of 2017, India has more than 47 chess grandmasters. 80-100 Million Indian viewers watched the 2013 match between Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen.
Through our use of chess, we wanted to reach out to an audience who could not only donate to Nanhi Kali (NGO) but also influence others and attract the attention of a larger audience.
Over 450 Million Indians access the internet via mobile. So to ensure we reached the right audience, we brought in India's #2 Chess Player, Woman Grandmaster 'Tania Sachdev'. She challenged people and fellow chess players to take the Powerless Queen Challenge. Once they played the challenge and lost, they were prompted by a call to action to donate to Nanhi Kali and led to their website