"When the script of Dream11’s ‘Aapki Team Mein Kaun?’ campaign was first narrated to Aamir Khan, the loudest laugh came at a joke about his own height. This was for one of the shorter ads. Aamir is always a sport, in fact it’s a pattern that played out during an earlier Dream11 campaign, too, when Aamir had urged a reluctant Jasprit Bumrah to crack a joke referencing Laal Singh Chaddha.
What stood out even more, however, was something invisible on screen. For the first time, two creative agencies worked together on the same campaign, a situation we haven’t encountered before in Indian advertising. The decision was taken early in the development phase. Post the launch of Zerofifty Mediaworks by a team that was earlier associated with Tilt Brand Solutions, Dream11 decided not to choose one partner over the other. Instead, the client asked both agencies to continue, believing that the people shaping the campaign mattered more than agency boundaries.
Agencies aren’t naturally cooperative, and this kind of model is rare. It succeeded because of mutual trust and a small, close-knit group. The collaboration between two large agencies is almost unthinkable because once agencies scale up, people begin operating as representatives of institutions rather than as individuals.
Coming back to the campaign, today’s stars are far more comfortable with self-deprecating humour, largely due to constant exposure to online commentary. That confidence translated into a relaxed, collaborative atmosphere on set. Ranbir Kapoor agreed to the idea we had in mind, immediately. When asked if anything was off-limits, he said nothing was; he wanted the film to be funnier. Aamir Khan responded in much the same way and even suggested involving Ranveer Singh in the ad, but we couldn’t fit him in the script.
Creatively, the idea emerged from narrowing options rather than chasing novelty. With Dream11, many formats had already been explored over the years. The teams returned to category basics: rivalry, team selection, and competition. The conflict between Ranbir Kapoor and the fictional ‘Ranbir Singh’ grew out of writer-room discussions rather than a single originating idea.
Practical constraints also shaped the script. Director Nitesh Tiwari pointed out that an extended face-off between the two leads wasn’t feasible logistically. As a result, the narrative placed them in different parts of the same setting, talking about each other while supporting characters amplified the tension.
Several moments that struck a chord with audiences came from the sidelines, Rohit Sharma’s background reactions, fleeting appearances by Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, and Jackie Shroff’s cameo. Shroff, in particular, brought remarkable dedication: at Purple Haze Studios where he rehearsed his single line in multiple ways, treating it almost like a full session for just one moment on screen.
Aamir Khan and Ranbir Kapoor, meanwhile, rehearsed together ahead of the shoot at Khan’s house, an unusual level of involvement that’s rarely seen in advertising. The three-day shoot produced a 2.5-minute film along with seven shorter edits.”
About Adarsh Atal
Adarsh Atal is Chief Creative Officer at Tilt Brand Solutions, part of Quotient Ventures, with over a decade in advertising. Born a Marwari in Nepal, based in Bangalore but working in Mumbai, he spent nearly a decade at MullenLowe Lintas Group (formerly Lowe Lintas), rising from Copywriter to Unit Creative Director on campaigns for Tanishq, Paper Boat, Flipkart, Britannia, and Fastrack. He joined Tilt around its 2019 launch, advancing through Director, Senior Director, Executive Director to Chief Creative Officer in May 2023, and Group Chief Creative Officer for Quotient Ventures in July 2024, overseeing creative at Tilt and Vector Brand Solutions.
About Shriram Iyer
Shriram Iyer is the Co-Founder of ZeroFifty Mediaworks, a Mumbai-based production house launched in 2024. He has over 25 years of experience in advertising, with a big part of it spent at Lintas and then at Tilt Brand Solutions. He has worked on brands including Unilever, Bajaj, Fastrack, Google, Havells, ICICI Bank, Tata Tea, Dream11 etc. He was previously a Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Tilt Brand Solutions under Quotient Ventures, after which he moved on with Rajiv Chatterjee and T Gangadhar to start ZeroFifty Mediaworks.
Advertisements we loved in 2025
• For Shriram
The Whole Truth: ‘Protein ke Peeche Kya Hai?’
- For Adarsh
Cadbury Dairy Milk: ‘New Neighbour’
Best Campaigns
Dream 11: ‘Aapki Team Mein Kaun?’
T20 World Cup for Star Sports: ‘India’s Greatest Love’
Women’s Premier League: ‘Game of Emotions’
Bisleri: ‘Drink it Up’
Kiwi App: ‘Scan Pay Save’
(As told to Neeta Nair)
