#BharoseKiChoice: The campaign that almost didn’t happen

Let me take you back to where it all started.

Choice was incorporated in 1992. We’ve been around for over three decades. We’re listed as Choice International. We’ve helped thousands with their investments, loans, IPOs, and more. But let’s be honest — ask someone on the street who “Choice” is, and chances are… they won’t know. Not in the way we want. And in finance, that’s a problem. If they don’t know you, they don’t trust you.

This campaign started with a simple, unsettling question: “Why don’t people know us yet?”

We weren't short of products or services. What we were missing was mindshare. Emotion. Recall. Trust.

We did thorough research, spoke with clients, read all our reviews, and everywhere the word ‘trust’ popped up. That’s when we knew what we had to build our campaign around: Trust. But our way.

Now here’s where things got real.

Choice has always been a slightly traditional finance company. We were now shifting towards a modern + traditional approach, but our brand tone had always been serious. We knew humour and relatable content worked, but could we pull it off? When we first pitched the idea — quirky lines, fun characters, a punch of wit — the room went silent. Blank stares. Concerned glances. Because:

1. We’re a finance brand. This is serious stuff. You can’t joke around with money, right?
2. We had never done anything like this. Ever.
3. The fear was real: “Will this make us look like we’re trying too hard? Will it backfire?”

We're not Zomato or Swiggy. People don’t expect memes from their broker. But that’s exactly why this needed to be done. We knew the line we were walking was thin. We wanted to be quirky and not cringe, witty and not wannabe, light but layered. We were clear on this line: “When it comes to financial decisions, it’s all about trust”

We spent 6 months just convincing internal stakeholders. Then another 6 months executing it. We approached a few agencies, but nothing felt right. Either the tone was too textbook-y or too safe. So we went in-house. Jaswinder Kaur (Brand Lead), Yash Patel (Social Media), and I became the writers, planners and sanity holders. 

We wrote over 30 scripts. One made it to production brief and got scrapped the next day because someone said the line sounded like a soap ad from 2005. We fought. We laughed. We panicked.

One night, after weeks of brainstorming, we wrote down “Bharose Ki Choice” on the whiteboard.

Yash looked at me and said:

“Ya toh yeh chalega, ya fir mummy poochegi — beta naukri kyun chhod di?” 😅

The pressure was real. And then came the biggest pitch — to Arun Sir (CEO) and Kamal Sir (MD). This was a make-or-break moment. They’re leaders with serious vision, but this was a new tone for Choice. A big risk. We presented the three strongest scripts. Held our breath. And then Arun Sir smiled and said: “Do it. Let’s go big.”

I told him, filmy style: “Humpe bharosa rakho sir. We’ll build something powerful.”

And we did. #BharoseKiChoice launched in November 2024 with 3 digital films.

TV spots. Social media. Ground activations and pan-India city events.

This campaign wasn’t just about ads. It was about showing the world that even a finance company can connect like a human being. Not preachy. Not robotic. Just real. And here we are, Choice is finally getting the attention and trust it deserves.

This article is penned by Nitin Agarwal, Head of Marketing, Choice.

Disclaimer: The article features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the stance of the publication.