This week in Our Take: sun-smart safety gets stylish with UV-reactive vests, Mumbai train tickets turn into lottery wins, Gen Z slows down the hustle, and Del Real Foods launches a hotline serving tamales and timeless advice.
All Aboard Jackpot Express
Most people start their commute hoping to enjoy a playlist in peace and a sip on coffee that doesn’t taste like shite. In Mumbai? You’re also hoping you don’t fall off the train. With 22 million people using the local rail network daily, your regular commute can feel like a trip to the Thunderdome. An added problem for Indian rail? It’s nearly impossible to check 22 million tickets, and free-riding is rampant.
Enter ‘Lucky Yatra’, the smartest move Indian Railways has made in years. Created with FCB India, this campaign turns every train ticket into a literal lottery ticket. Buy one, and boom, you’re in the draw to win actual cash. It’s a genius nudge wrapped in joy, tackling the issue of ticketless travel that costs Indian Railways millions annually.
Motivation matters – and nothing motivates like money. Especially in a country where €28 billion is spent on lotteries each year!
‘Lucky Yatra’ taps into an age-old insight: people love the thrill of a win, but they hate inconvenience. This turns compliance into a game, not a chore. It’s also proof that behaviour change doesn’t need to be boring. Sometimes all it takes is a little optimism, some smart design, and the promise of rupees at the other end of the train line.
Suddenly, buying a ticket isn’t just the right thing to do, it might be your lucky break.
25 Is the New 21 And We’re Living for It
Turns out Gen Z isn’t “falling behind”, they’re just taking the scenic route. Why sprint to burnout when you can stroll through your twenties with a latte in one hand and a diploma in the other?
According to Pew, today’s 25-year-olds are only just reaching the life stage 21-year-olds hit in the ’80s. But maybe that’s not a problem. Maybe it’s a conscious uncoupling from the hustle-at-all-costs mindset. Extended education, helicopter parenting, and the realisation that life isn’t a checklist? That’s not slacking, it’s strategy.
So no, they’re not “delayed.” They’re deliberate. Swapping starter homes for shared flats, wedding bells for personal bests, and 9–5s for vibes and values. They’re just living longer and planning smarter.
Who said adulthood had to be on fast-forward? Gen Zs are just pressing play at their own pace.
IN-VESTING IN SUN SAFETY
Pablo London has just pulled off the creative equivalent of a high-vis mic drop. Their UV-U-SEE campaign put large, UV-reactive logos on construction workers’ obligatory hi-vis vests. When the rays get strong, the logo turns red, reminding everyone to slather on the SPF. The innovation turns site safety into something not just seen, but felt, and shared. It’s personal protection with panache, and it makes its point louder and clearer than any health and safety manual ever could.
This campaign quietly burns (no pun intended) into your brain how simple design can drive real world action. Inspired by Joint MD Hannah Penn’s own melanoma experience, this campaign has skin in the game – quite literally.
Abuela Intelligence
Del Real Foods just redefined tech support, and no, it doesn’t involve a chatbot. Instead, the California-based brand is rolling out a hotline staffed by actual abuelas (that’s grandmother in Spanish), offering heartfelt advice on cooking, dating, and life’s bigger questions. It’s part of their new campaign celebrating tradition, flavour, and the kind of wisdom you can’t download.
Dubbed “Abuela Intelligence,” the idea highlights where value comes from. Del Real is doubling down on heritage, with TV spots, social skits, and even a mobile tasting tour dishing up tamales alongside timeless truths. And just in time for Cinco de Mayo, they hunted down the “Ultimate Abuela” to keep the spirit (and the salsa) alive.
Culture isn’t a content strategy, it’s a lived experience. Del Real’s message cuts through precisely because it isn’t just trying to be clever; it’s grounded in something deeper: intergenerational care, humour, and pride.
Abuela Intelligence at its core is a playful jab at the AI zeitgeist and a celebration of something timeless: that people, especially the ones who raised us, still know a thing or two.
And unlike your voice assistant, abuela’s advice comes with leftovers.