‘Projecting’ Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority

Authorities carrying out infrastructure projects in the city are at the bottom of popularity ratings these days.

Future benefits notwithstanding, there is probably not a day that goes by when commuting Mumbaikars don’t send out a collective curse in their direction. Which probably explains why those involved with these projects are keen on cultivating a positive image for the public.

A case in point is the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which is behind most of the city’s developmental works.

The authority recently hired a ‘specialised’ public relations agency for a hefty fee to improve the public image of its projects. But, as some events proved, the agency, used to corporate assignments, had no entirely understood what to ‘project’.

The Mumbai head of a top English news channel received a call from the agency recently.

A woman executive said, “I was wondering if your reputed channel can project the MMRDA metropolitan commissioner in one of your programmes?”

Well aware that the MMRDA chief was not one to promote himself, the channel head wondered what she was going on about. Tongue-in-cheek, he told her to organise a meeting between him and the chief. “Once I speak to him, I can come up with some idea to project him,” he told her, hoping this would be relayed to the MMRDA top boss.

To his chagrin, two days later he received another call – this time it was a gentleman from the agency. “I was wondering if you could project the MMRDA commissioner...” he began. Furious, the channel head almost gave the man a piece of his mind.

The agency had completely misunderstood its brief, thinking it was hired to promote the people, when in fact it had been hired to ‘project’
its projects.