DS Foods betting on regional movie -- Pass Pass to be in-film placement again  ( October '27,2001, HBL)

THE Rs 100-crore DS Foods is at it again. After placing its mouth freshener brand Pass Pass in Subhash Ghai's Hindi flick Yaadein a couple of months ago, the company is now placing its bets on another film. This time round, however, the movie in question is regional, and is titled 123 (One Two Three).

The film, scheduled for release in March next year, will be in three languages -- Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. The film is a family drama, and is based on the real life story of three brothers.

Similar to Yaadein, the regional film produced under the banner of Sidhesh Films too boasts a big star cast. Among the big names starring in the film are Prabhu Deva, Raju Sundaram and Nagendra Prasad, besides popular actress Jyotika.

DS Foods is upbeat about the film, undeterred by the fact that Yaadein, despite being produced under one of the biggest Bollywood banners and a hot star cast, bombed at the box office.

Mr Ashok K. Aggarwal, Vice-President, DS Group, told Business Line, ``We were very happy with the placement of Pass Pass in Yaadein. In fact, we intend to place the brand in at least three films a year. These could be a mix of Hindi and regional movies.''

However, he refused to divulge the budget involved for the in-film placement of Pass Pass fliptops in the forthcoming movie.

According to Mr Aggarwal, the treatment of the product will be the same as it was with Yaadein. ``Pass Pass will be woven into the film's story, and the brand will be an integral part of the movies' script and the protagonists' lives,'' he added.

This is the second film after Yaadein in which the Pass Pass brand has been placed. DS Foods is currently in talks with another Hindi film for in-movie placement. ``The film is being produced under a big Bollywood banner,'' Mr Aggarwal said, even though he declined to divulge the name of the film.

Elaborating on the reason why Pass Pass opted for a South Indian film, Mr Aggarwal said, ``The Pass Pass brand has a tremendous market in the four southern States. Besides, the star cast in the movie we have chosen to place our brand in, is the best there is.''

Pass Pass, launched two years ago, is currently available in four variants -- original mint green, yellow, pan-flavoured red, and a spearmint flavoured blue variant.

A Rs 35-crore brand currently, DS Foods is projecting a growth of 25 per cent for Pass Pass in the current fiscal. Apart from Pass Pass mouth freshener, the other significant brands in DS Foods' kitty include Catch spices and water.