Unpacking DDB Mudra Group’s entries for Cannes Lions 2025

Every June, the global advertising industry converges at Cannes Lions to examine not just the most creatively ambitious work, but also the ideas that reflect the cultural undercurrents of their time. It’s a space where brands are expected to go beyond attention-grabbing ads and demonstrate a deeper understanding of the world they operate in.

From India, DDB Mudra Group is among the agencies putting forward a spectrum of campaigns shaped by different realities, some rooted in social behaviours and family dynamics, others exploring the evolution of digital spaces or the nuances of youth culture. The agency’s 2025 entries span categories as varied as Health & Wellness, Gaming, Music, and Creative Commerce.

Here’s a closer look at the four campaigns the agency is betting on this year.

#BetaStayfreeLeAana 

Stayfree aimed to get men to talk about menstruation, recognising that a woman’s shame around periods often stems from the discomfort of the men around her.

The reason was discovered as conditioning from childhood: as young boys and men are taught to look away from periods. Since 2022, Stayfree has hijacked Daughter’s Day to talk to sons – because if boys can be comfortable about periods, girls will be, too. The team wanted to create lasting behaviour change through interaction and action. 

So, Stayfree encouraged parents to make their sons comfortable with periods by simply adding a pad brand – Stayfree or otherwise – to the shopping list they often handed to boys for a run to the store. Stayfree’s goal is to make boys as comfortable with buying pads as they are with toothpaste or bread – putting India another step closer to breaking generations of period shame. 

The campaign has been entered in the Health & Wellness and Glass: The Lion for Change categories.

Rahul Mathew, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Mudra Group, explained the thinking behind the campaign. He said, "Period inequality is still a big concern in India. This is in spite of sanitary brands and government initiatives investing a lot in the area. But all education is directed at girls and women only. 

Stayfree believes that normalisation of periods cannot happen if we speak to one half of the gender alone. So for the last few years, we’ve been working on bringing more men into the menstruation conversation. We now have extended our campaign to talk to boys, so that they grow up to be men who are sensitive and comfortable about periods.

Beta Stayfree Le Aana, uses the everyday behaviour of asking boys to run errands to start the conversation around periods. By making boys comfortable about buying sanitary pads. Because when boys will be comfortable about periods, girls will be less uncomfortable on their periods. 

It’s the narrative that we hope will resonate with the Glass & Healthcare juries."

Great In-Game Wedding 

As one of India’s largest gaming platforms, BGMI recognised its role in shaping the public perception of gaming. The concern was that its impact on gamers' lives was often viewed through the lens of addiction and violence. However, the reality for BGMI and similar games was that these platforms served as spaces for connection between individuals.

Gamers spend 3X more time in the BGMI lobby than in the game. It’s a place where gamers find friendships, advice, counselling and at times even love. Love has the power to change emotions and opinions. And when love turns into a Great Indian Wedding it can move anyone to join the bandwagon.

The team took an engaged couple and married them where they met. Inside BGMI. And invited India to be a part of the celebrations of the Great In-game Wedding.

The campaign has been entered in the Entertainment Lions For Gaming, PR, and Design categories.

Mathew said, "BGMI is now a regular contender for us at Cannes. In fact, we won India’s first and only Gaming Lion on BGMI.  With The Great In-game Wedding, we’re hoping for a Gaming Lion repeat, and of course in other categories as well. The brief was to show India that BGMI is more than just a First-person-shooter game, it’s a connection platform for gamers. It’s where they meet, discuss, make friends, share feelings. And what better way to talk about connections than a couple who met in the game and got engaged.  So we got them married. In our game. It’s a culturally rich idea that used the gaming platform for something it was never built for – to host an Indian wedding."

Shakashaka 

To rekindle Gen Z’s enthusiasm for McDonald’s fries, the team explored the generation’s affinity for memes and music, noting that they gravitate toward brands that create culturally relevant experiences. This insight, combined with a core consumer truth that shaking the fries is central to enjoying them, informed the strategic approach.

With Gen Z’s appetite for entertainment, humour, and shareable content in mind, the team developed a mockumentary universe, reimagining Shake Shake Fries as Shakashaka, a musical percussion instrument. This concept extended across films and in-store activations, aiming to create a quirky, culturally resonant musical tribe both online and offline.

The campaign has been entered in the Entertainment Lions For Music, and Social & Creator categories.

Mathew said, "Fries are the pride of McDonald’s. And also the hottest selling item on the menu. But over the last few months, Google search data showed the weakening of our fries equity. We needed to put McDonald’s fries back in the minds of consumers.

So we took our popular Shake-shake fries and gave it a shake-over. We turned it into a musical instrument – Shaka Shaka. We created a character who considered himself the inventor of music. And then had everyone rolling with laughter with mockumentaries around the character and his love for fries-music. We totally committed to the entertainment and took the character to McDonald’s across North India. We hope it will have juries laughing as well, especially in the Entertainment categories."

Big Billion Days - The Cover Up Coupon

To win over Gen Z, India’s biggest shopaholics, Flipkart turned its Big Billion Days sale into  its biggest Gen Z sale ever. Still, it wasn’t going to be enough to get Gen Z to order frequently from Flipkart. Why? 

82% of Indian Gen Z lives with parents who see any spending as too much spending. And welcome every Flipkart delivery that comes home with truckloads of taunts. So Flipkart went beyond giving just discounts. They created Cover-up Coupons. A collection of fake scratch & win vouchers for every Gen Z during the sale to make their shopping look like winning. Gen Z could simply order it via Flipkart’s app while shopping, and get it delivered before the actual item. Making parents believe all their shopping was won and not bought.

The campaign has been entered in Brand Activation & Experience, and Creative Commerce categories.

Together, the four campaigns reflect a spectrum of themes from cultural conditioning and gender taboos to evolving digital spaces and youth behaviour. While distinct in subject, they share a common intent: to respond to shifting social realities with ideas tailored to their audience. Whether these entries find favour with the Cannes Lions juries remains to be seen, but they offer a snapshot of the narratives Indian agencies are choosing to spotlight on the global stage.