New Delhi, Feb. 25: “India Shining” won’t do, so the BJP has set about selling Brand Atal on whatever platform the party can get hold of.

Phones, TV, radio, cinema, the Internet and even shops tailored for the purpose will be pressed into service.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee blessed the enterprise today by devoting nearly three hours to vetting his minute-long message that will be relayed on phones, cells and radio from tomorrow.

As part of the message, the Prime Minister tells the audience: “We want a self-reliant India with healthy mothers, educated children, secure citizens and no communal or caste ill-feeling… where an India can hold its head high with pride in the world.”

Prepared by BJP brand-equity team chief Pramod Mahajan and Sudheendra Kulkarni of the PMO, the message was recorded by the Prime Minister in his voice. It will be prefixed with his greeting in local languages in the states and will also be re-recorded in English.

The “Atal sandesh” will go on Doordarshan, cable TV and cinemas as a short video. If that’s not enough, dial 3030 or SMS 3030 to hear Brand Atal at work, download his screensaver or that of the lotus symbol, hear PM poetry and his thought for the day. If the surfeit starts to pall, switch to mobile ringtones of Vande Mataram, the “India Shining” jingle and a BJP anthem.

Mahajan and his computer-savvy “war team” won’t spare Generation Y2K4 either for he believes they are sold on “India Shining”. Their favourite music channels MTV, Channel V and others as well as FM radio will be used to reach them. Campus, matrimonial and employment advertisement sites on the web, too, will be roped in. The party’s Mission 2004 website, which will double as its virtual campaign office, is under construction.

Vajpayee will be pitchforked into the league of Hollywood and Bollywood-style merchandising as his mug will be plastered on cups, T-shirts and caps. Merchandising options like setting up Archies-type outlets are being explored, Mahajan said.

If nothing works, Mahajan has an ace up his sleeve: a database of about 2 crore e-mail addresses that will receive the “Atal sandesh” and gush-gush world press articles on India.

The marketing campaign spearhead has the figures worked out. Vajpayee, he believes, can reach voters through the 4.6 crore landline phones and 2.5 crore mobiles in the country. The other mediums would ensure a reach of 10-12 crore voters, Mahajan claimed, and the e-campaign alone would roughly cover 15 crore of the 60 crore Indian voters.