Cricket legend MS Dhoni’s retirement announcement immortalized his legacy
On 15th August 2020, as India woke up to 74th Independence Day, the announcement of retirement by cricketing legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni took the world by storm. More so, the style and element of surprise in the announcement through a well-thought video on his Instagram handle can be regarded as his masterstroke that drew the curtains down on a 16-year long illustrious cricketing career. The 4 minutes 7 seconds long video with a 16-word caption has garnered 32 million views, 6,750,000 likes, and 800k comments in merely 5 days.
Dhoni’s retirement video comprises a slideshow of curated photographs with a song ‘Main Pal do Pal Ka Shayar Hoon’ from the film ‘Kabhie Kabhie’ playing in the backdrop. It offers a sneak-peak into the ‘human mind’ of a bubble MS Dhoni. Contrary to the realism of the beautiful lines penned by poet Sahir Ludhianvi, it immortalizes his stature. For communication and marketing professionals, it leaves behind a trail of learnings.
Departing from the conventional style of an elaborate press conference or verbose farewell speech, the carefully chosen slideshow of photographs capture the highs and lows of Dhoni’s cricket journey that evoke bitter-sweet nostalgia. As put by his colleague Ravichandran Ashwin- ‘the legend retires in his style as always’, Dhoni’s indomitable style once again captures the hearts of millions.
The video is well-timed and carefully thought – the hallmark of Dhoni’s style. The timing could not have been more apt – India’s 74th Independence Day celebrations coinciding with MS Dhoni’s farewell. The announcement of the national digital mission by Hon’ble PM Narendra Modi coinciding with this year’s Independence Day reinforces the pervasive impact of communication on digital media with Dhoni’s video as a testimony that will remain etched forever in the hearts of his fans and cricketing fraternity worldwide.
The deeper and elaborate meaning entrenched in the evocative storytelling through the video is perhaps the justification for just a 16 -word caption. The video lingers longest at two specific moments — the moments after the final of 2011 World Cup where he is hoisted on shoulders – indicating the stature of cricket as a religion in India and the run-out by Martin Guptill in the semi-final of the 2019 edition – his last appearance in international cricket that symbolized an end of an era. The choicest photographs include a still from the 109-run partnership between Dhoni and Gambhir that was instrumental in India lifting the World Cup Trophy on home turf.
Also seen is the Dhoni-Yuvi duo – the master-finishers who exemplified the adrenaline rush in the Indian cricket. From former skipper Saurav Ganguly to Anil Kumble who passed on the baton of captaincy- the video dissects what went into the making of the successful Indian captain who rose to join the league of cricketing legends from the nondescript town of Jharkhand. The sequence of photographs giving way to Team India under skipper Virat Kohli with Dhoni in the background subtly reinforce the realism in the verse
Kal aur aayenge, Nagmo ki khilti kaliyan chunne wale
Mujhse behtar kehne wale/Tumse behtar sunne wale
The photograph depicting his burnt effigies after India’s exit from the 2007 World Cup, however, indicates that ‘Captain Cool’ was not detached from professional life as it was made out to be. The video also offers a glimpse of what can be regarded as a life ahead for MS Dhoni by depicting him teeing off a golf course.
Each nuance of the entire retirement announcement- be it video, the timing, the choice of photographs, and the caption- indicate the significance of communication that goes into the making of a brand. It indicates that its uniqueness and the ability to stand out from the clutter combined with the power of storytelling defines a brand.
This approach has gained new currency during an unprecedented time as the COVID-19 pandemic reinforces the need to shift from ‘hard selling’ to story-telling. Equally important is the brand’s ability to strike an emotional chord with the target audience by subtly highlighting how it makes a difference or how it solves a problem in their lives. The end of the video can be regarded as a corollary to the significance of strong brand recall as a key goal of communication.
Through the retirement announcement, once again, Dhoni lives up to the expectations of 130 billion Indians and leaves behind an eternal legacy as summed up in the second part of the song-
‘Rishton ke roop badalta hai, Buniyadein khatam nahi hoti’.
About the author:
Khushboo Solanki Sharma, Founder of Zero Gravity Communications