Art and Culture Public Relations / December 12, 2020
Positioned her as a multifaceted personality who has worn multiple hats of an Author, Wildlife Biologist and a Photographer
Context
Latika Nath is one of India’s first female Biologists to have done a study on Tiger Conservation. She had joined hands with Wishbox Studio to promote her maiden coffee table book Hidden India followed by her second book OMO- Where Time Stood Still where the former focused on the wildlife and wilderness spaces of India and the latter showcased n the tribes of the Omo valley in Ethiopia. Latika Nath had to familiarize herself with the media and the public as she was returning after a long hiatus of ten years.
Communication’s narrative
WBS identified a clear roadmap to resurrect Latika Nath’s identity of being “The Tiger Princess of India”. The narrative revolved around positioning her as a seasoned conservationist who had made a mark in a male-dominated industry.
Our Strategy
As a strategic communication partner, we have supported the communication narrative on the pillars of Revive, Enhance and Retain. Our efforts were concentrated towards reviving the commendable work that she had done in the field of conservation, enhancing it by focusing on Hidden India and Omo- Where Time Stood Still and then retaining the received admiration by positioning her as an industry spokesperson. Our approach not only helped us creating “Latika Nath” a separate brand but also brought various opportunities where the industry veterans acknowledged her work.
The “Solution”
The primary challenge was to revive the dormant popularity and achievements of Dr. Latika Nath. Her life and work have been featured on National Geographic television in a documentary called ‘The Tiger Princess’ and on the Discovery Channel in the program ‘Wild Things’. She contributed to films like ‘Sita’s Story’ and a ‘Tale of Two Tigers’ on the BBC, as well as the cover story on tigers for the ‘Year of the Tiger’ special in 2000. The aim was to highlight her forgotten accolades and felicitations which she had received at the beginning of her career. WBS came on board to provide a strategic solution with a strong communication narrative. The constant flow of information to the media supported by in-person meetings to apprise about various verticals helped us to narrate the journey of the brand. Led by lifestyle, travel, corporate and art verticals, the team arranged various meetings to familiarize the media with her works. WBS lined up briefing meetings and in-person interviews with various critics and lifestyle writers. A unique action plan was chalked out to adapt a holistic communication approach for the book launches and other developments of the author. We used the launch party of Hidden India in New Delhi and Mumbai as the first platform to introduce Dr. Nath to the media and the stakeholders. Detailed interviews were conducted to delve deeper into the life and accolades of Latika Nath and to showcase how she was wearing multiple hats of a conservationist, photographer and author. One of the hiccups which we had faced was that the media in India was reticent to write about coffee table books. We indeed took it as an opportunity to promote Dr. Nath as a prolific photographer where the book remained at the periphery and the author at the nucleus of the articles. The images from both the books were distinctive which gave us an opportunity to share the various set of images as exclusive with various publications.
Outcome
Latika Nath’s photography was appreciated by industry experts. Travel & Leisure had hosted India’s Best Awards 2019 where a photograph clicked by Latika Nath had received the highest number of votes in category of the “Photographer with a Cause“. She was also chosen for the prestigious and coveted REX KarmaveerPuraskaarMaharatna Award 2019! On the media front, her detailed interviews had appeared in Femina, Vogue, Conde Nast, Traveller, The Hindu, Society, The Indian Express, Homegrown etc. Latika Nath is now a name to be reckoned with in the field of conservation and art.
