Whether the book is as racy as an action-packed Rajni film will be known soon, but the pre-launch action on social media certainly has been, with a quirky campaign by Penguin India - a first of sorts for the publishing industry in India.
A Facebook game called 'Find Rajini' operates on the premise that the evil Joker Ravanan has kidnapped the superstar, and only Rajinikanth's legion of fans can save him. The campaign also includes Facebook and Twitter feeds replete with Rajinikanth jokes. And, in true Rajinikanth style, the hype has peaked into a crescendo.
"In a week, the campaign has reached out to more than 5 lakh people," says Hemali Sodhi, vice president, marketing, Penguin India. She claims that the campaign has broken records through "selected targeting" with the Find Rajini campaign.
The publisher has backed the social media campaign with on-ground promotions, tie-ups with retailers and visual merchandising across bookstores.
It's not only Penguin that's furiously using social media to build a strong pitch for its books. Harpen Collins on Independence Day invited bloggers to submit their stories and get a chance to be published.
"A social media strategy for promoting books is a smart move, provided the targeting is sharp," says Smitha Sarma Ranganathan, a brand communication specialist who teaches marketing management at IBS Bangalore.
According to a recent nationwide survey by National Book Trust (NBT), three-fourths of literate youth in India do not read books other than their textbooks, be it classics or best-sellers.
Add to this the onslaught of television and internet on the rapidly dwindling reading habits of youth and it's enough to send chills down the spine of publishers who are already grappling with the challenge of ebooks.
Penguin India for its part is attempting to renew the interest in books by engaging with youth in environs they're most comfortable in.
Earlier this year, it tied up with cafe major Barista Lavazza to launch books at select stores. Penguin also ran a first-of-its-kind marketing initiative, a contest called 'Love Stories That Touched My Heart' with author Ravinder Singh, Penguin's India's highest-selling author last year. The contest asked readers to share their love stories and the best one would get published.
Even better than creating market-driven days for promotions, brands should be more perceptive to naturally occurring special contexts, says Ranganathn of IBS Bangalore. As far as Rajinikanth is concerned, there couldn't be a better context than having a birthday on the 12th day of the 12th month in the 12th year of the third millennium.