It's that time of the year. The smell of anxiety over exams hangs in the air and the prospect of a great holiday after them dances like a shimmering mirage in every advertisement that tour companies put out inviting you to see the marvelous sights of strange and distant lands. Jostling for mindspace with all those advertisements is an increasing trend where different States within India are competing for the rupee of the Indian tourist. A trend long overdue, and one whose time seems to have come, says Ramesh Narayan, a communications consultant in an article in Hindu Business Line.

Cursed as I am with a good memory, I recall Goa being marketed by the Taj Hotels long before the Government and its Tourism Ministry discovered what a goldmine they were sitting on. And again it was the Taj Hotels which positioned the incessant rains in Goa that traditionally spelt the lean season as “monsoon magic” and invited tourists to soak in the rains on a windswept beach in Goa.

We took a long time to realise that tourism was one of the fastest growing industries in the world and even then, shackled by the lack of infrastructure in terms of airports, airlines, hotels, coaches and the like, we remained very slow starters. One of the earliest States to exploit the potential of tourism was J&K. And after a long and painful hiatus, tourists are returning to the Valley and the Ministry of Tourism must be dusting off old files to crank up its advertising machinery once again. Kerala and two unlikely heroes in the form of IAS officers Ashish Singh and Amitabh Kant really set the tone and the pace for tourism-related advertising in India with the stunning ‘God's Own Country' campaigns. Successive governments have kept up the tempo with magnificent results. Kerala's idyllic backwaters and misty mountains have become a standard holiday destination for Indian and foreign tourists. The latest campaign was a little over-the-top for me both in terms of the almost disturbing visuals and the strange music, and I really don't think it did too much for the increase in tourist foot-falls either. Kerala has a headstart and little speedbreakers need not slow it down.

Rajasthan has had the stark beauty of its sand dunes and its thriving royalty, not to mention its fantastic heritage hotels to propel tourism right into the forefront of the country's destinations. The Palace on Wheels and the big fat Indian weddings have also added to its popularity. Yet, its advertising needs to catch up with its events (the Jaipur Lit Fest being the latest) if it needs to maintain its top-of-the-mind position amongst tourists.

Let's face it, slow time or not, the Indian has decided to move around and see places. Foreign destinations are real competition to our own destinations. Apart from the fading allure of a “phoren” holiday, cheap airline seats and cheaper hotel rooms are the real threat to the Indian destinations. Indian star hotels in particular seem to be hell-bent on burning their own boats with their ridiculous rate structures.

Among the States that are awakening to the reality of the Indian tourist are Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Assam, if one has to go by recent advertising activity. Assam has been active with a set of animated TVCs where a friendly rhino and a tiger extol the virtues of a land that has withstood great invasions and where the Brahmaputra runs deep and wide. Frankly, I am not convinced that the historic narrative (unless backed by monuments) is compelling enough for tourists to visit a distant State. Yes, Kaziranga, and the incredible natural beauty that the State has, should be the magnets and the heroes of the story. And I like the animated rhino and its irritation each time some “Ponnappa” calls on its cell phone.

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