upGrad launches #AageKiSoch anthem to encourage people to upskill at home during Covid-19 lockdown

In the time of panic, paranoia and uncertainty, upGrad, the online higher education company, and Big Bang Music, the new-age pop culture label, have come together to create what can aptly be called the upskill anthem of the nation. #AageKiSoch encourages the youth to spend this time at home productively and engage in activities that will upskill their existing knowledge base in order to prepare for the new world after Covid-19.

The anthem is written and composed by reality show ‘Dil Hai Hindustani 2’ winner Akshay Dhawan and Shashwat Singh, whose melodies will be featured in AR Rahman's next movie ‘99 Songs’.

The song features singing star Jonita Gandhi, rapping for the first time. The music video consists of an ensemble star cast that includes Radhika Apte, Vikrant Massey, Naveen Polishetty, Anto Philip, Fatima Sana Sheikh, Shantanu Maheshwari, Rohit Raj, Aparshakti Khurana, Karan Tacker, Abish Mathew, Akansha Ranjan, Elnaaz Norouzi, and ‘Jordindian’ Naser and Vineeth.

The three video renditions for the song have been conceptualised, written, shot and edited in all of 72 hours, being directed remotely on video calls.

The music videos:

Video 1:

Video 2:

Video 3:

The anthem is conceptualised by Big Bang Music and Kwan along with upGrad to drive the productive habit of learning from home during the quarantine. The partners have joined forces to bring together this eclectic mix of pop culture icons across film, music, corporate, TV and comedy for the upskill anthem.

As a part of the campaign #AageKiSoch, influencers in the music video will tag their friends and urge them to ‘Bahar Nahi, Ab Tu #AageKiSoch’, epitomising the future-forward thinking that we need during the lockdown. The idea is to create a chain of audience propagating the message of strictly staying at home and using this time to upskill oneself with upGrad's educational programmes in data, technology and management.

Mayank Kumar

“While everyone is adapting to the new normal, it’s time we to be cautiously optimistic and look at the silver lining of the pandemic. With this upskill anthem, we want to encourage people to stay home and use the time meaningfully to enhance their skill set, which otherwise would have parked in their to-do list. Preparedness for the coming economical storm is essential so that the youth and the working professionals can smoothly bounce back in their careers or make a new transition once we resume our regular lives,” said Mayank Kumar, Co-Founder and MD, upGrad.

Dhruv Chitgopekar

“Influencers are an integral part of any campaign, and more so today as they become custodians for keeping the morale high and mindset positive during the pandemic. We have carefully put together renowned and diverse names to be able to reach out to a large cross-section of people and encourage them to be productive while locked down in their homes. It’s been an amazing collaboration where an edtech major has chosen music as their preferred route of disruptive communication,” said Dhruv Chitgopekar, Founding Partner and COO, Kwan.

Gaurav Wadhwa

Gaurav Wadhwa, CEO and Co-Founder, Big Bang Music, said, “These are unprecedented times and while it’s important to keep the spirit alive, it’s more important to gear up for the world to come because we all know there is light at the end of this tunnel. World over, life will now be viewed as before and after the virus — BC and AC will have a new meaning in ‘Before Covid’ and ‘After Covid’ and we need to prepare for that. At Big Bang, we truly believe that music unites like no other and no better time than now to encourage people to use this ‘forced’ time at hand meaningfully.