A leading European international airline sought to connect with the South Asian community in the US and turned to Neerja Patel for her expertise in crafting a strategy that would resonate deeply with this audience. She developed a heartfelt campaign titled “Chai Time” to create a meaningful connection. Impressed not only by the creativity behind the campaign but also by Neerja’s remarkable presence, the airline chose to feature her in the TV commercial for that campaign.
Neerja Patel is a trailblazer in the world of marketing and PR, whose passion for South Asian culture has left an indelible mark on the global stage. As the founder of Neerja PR, she has masterfully combined her love for her heritage with her expertise in media and events, orchestrating impactful campaigns for renowned brands such as Google, Shopify NY and Lufthansa Airlines.
What inspired you to launch Neerja PR and combine your passion for South Asian culture with media and events?
I’ve always been very much in love with our culture since I was a kid. I didn’t know that I was going to grow up and be able to have this dream job where I’m able to combine all of my passions. So being able to really put all of that on the main stage has really been a dream come true. PR actually was an accidental career for me. I loved media. When I moved to New York from Minnesota, I wanted to do something in this space. I worked for a television station, and I loved all of the opportunities there and then I started hosting a show on air. So I would go on shoots evenings and weekends. When I had my son, I realized it was not a very conducive lifestyle for a new mom. So I quit the whole TV world altogether. Then one day, Manish Dayal a good friend (the actor who’s right now on The Walking Dead), had landed a role as Raj on the reboot of 90210. He called me and asked, can you write a press release? I had never done anything like this before. And together, we wrote and sent it out, and it was picked up everywhere. The media loved it, because they were just carrying stories straight from India about Bollywood, politics and business, and not really stories of the people here. They were like, well, what else do you have? And that’s how the company really started. It’s been amazing since then. I love it.
Can you share some of the challenges you faced when starting your own PR firm, and how you overcame them?
The biggest challenge when I first started is how much our community just wasn’t heard in the mainstream space. A lot of that rejection makes you doubt yourself, if you can continue. The South Asian media really supported me, which was amazing and I’m always going to be grateful. But when we were pitching to some of the bigger mainstream names, they were just not telling our stories. I wouldn’t say I did it myself; the community has worked hard to really change that narrative. We’ve been able to overcome that and now we have all of these amazing South Asian journalists in mainstream spaces that we can pitch to that understand our story, that know the value of our community. Some of those challenges have been overcome with time and the hard work of our community.
With over 15 years of experience in Marketing and PR, how have you seen the industry evolve, particularly concerning South Asian representation?
I think we’ve arrived, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. A lot of media is welcoming diverse voices, wanting diverse representation and opinions. So I think the door is open. Last year we were able to get Diwali stories on Good Morning America. We have cover stories on all of these big magazines. So we are there.
You’ve worked on a variety of high-profile campaigns, such as those for Lufthansa Airlines and AR Rahman. Which campaign are you most proud of and why?
This question feels like when someone asks about your favorite child. It’s hard to pick one, but I would say Lufthansa airlines. That project came through a multicultural agency, and working with the agency that was not familiar with our community was really fun. It was really fun to tell them all about our people and how we celebrate things, our food, culture, music, all of that stuff. And the Lufthansa campaign was very multi layered. It was digital, print, TV ads, and we decided to do the whole strategy around chai and how it brings people together in our community. It was called chai time. The icing on the cake was that I got to be in their print and TV ads. It was really fun.
Can you describe a particularly challenging campaign and how you navigated it to achieve success?
A few years ago, I was doing PR for a fashion brand during a fashion event, and we had brought on a celebrity to be the showstopper. When we pitched that press release out, I led with that angle, that so and so celebrity walks for this brand, and the press release didn’t get picked up anywhere. So I reached out to a few journalist friends, asking them, what it is about this press release that’s just not working. And one of my friends told me, it’s the celebrity and that she’s not relevant anymore. So I changed the pitch for the brand leading with a sustainability effort that they’re giving back and then redistributed it, and it was a game changer.
How do you ensure that the campaigns you create resonate with multiple generations?
I think keeping the core values of our culture in mind. Yes, there are big differences, but the core values stay the same. So we lead with family, we lead with honesty, togetherness, celebration. I’m a mom and I’m a daughter, I don’t want to put anything out there that my parents would immediately turn off, or my kids would say, I don’t understand that. So keeping those in mind, I try to lead with what immediately resonates with everybody.
You’ve been involved in numerous nonprofit galas and fundraisers. What motivates you to work with not for profit organizations, and what impact do you hope to achieve?
I think at the end of the day, it’s really about the work that they are doing and how they’re changing lives. Two of the things that I love to support are anything to do with women
and education. I used to be on the board of a nonprofit called Veerni, which provided secondary education to delay the marriage of child brides. And then I do a lot of work with the Desai foundation that provides menstrual equity for young girls. Sakhi that works with South Asian domestic violence survivors, Saya, and there are so many wonderful organizations. If I can help these organizations get some more limelight and some more financial support to do more great work, I’m all about that.
You’re on the board of South Asian New York Fashion Week. How did you get involved?
They approached me from the work that I’ve done with a lot of designers as well as New York Fashion Week. They were looking to make their South Asian New York Fashion Week even bigger. So I did PR for them, and I was on their board. And they’ve created this amazing platform to showcase some wonderful designers, everyone from up and coming to big designers. So being able to have that for our community is really special and I loved being a part of it. Besides the glitz and the glam, there’s a lot of hard work that’s done in there
Being honored as one of the ‘100 Women to Know in America’ by JPMorgan Chase is a significant achievement. What does this recognition mean to you personally and professionally?
I was shocked when I first received the email. I thought it was one of those pay to play type of things, but then when they called to follow up, and I actually went through three rounds of interviews. I kind of started realizing that it’s a big deal. It was. It’s a great honor. What I loved about it the most is that it wasn’t just about being an entrepreneur or being successful, it was really about, what difference have you made in your community. So being able to be recognized for that, I thought, was really special.
What advice would you give to young South Asian women aspiring to enter the fields of marketing and PR?
Please do it. We need more and more of us to help amplify our voices and share about our community. But it’s not for the weak. There’s a lot of rejection. You have to be relentless in pitching. I think that the younger generation, at least what I’m seeing right now, doesn’t understand a lot of what marketing is versus PR. They’ll do one event and call themselves a PR agency. There’s a lot more involved. There’s a lot of pitching, a lot of networking, learning how to tell stories, getting interviews done. So that whole holistic approach, all of that stress and strategy needs to be understood, to go into this field. But I think it’s great. I think the more people that are out there, especially for promoting our culture, I’d be happy to be a mentor.
What are your future goals for Neerja PR, and are there any upcoming projects you’re particularly excited about?
A lot of the work that we’ve been doing lately is working with corporations and helping them build more visibility into this community. I’ve been doing a lot of work with Shopify NY and with Google and working with a lot of different firms to help amplify their Diwali events. It’s not just like, let’s order Indian food and call it Diwali. But how do we make it more meaningful? How do we bring in different elements? I like working with communities that don’t know about our community, to really educate them about what it means, and what we’re all about. One of my favorite projects that I’m looking forward to is celebrating Diwali at Walt Disney World. We did that last year. It’s during the Veteran’s Day weekend, and it’s a three day dance fest, with a parade of 400 kids at Disney Springs, and then a whole dance showcase of different dance companies from around the country. It’s really cool to be celebrating Diwali at such an iconic place.
Quick Hits with Neerja Patel
Favorite dish – Vegetable Biryani
One book that you think everyone should read – Padma Lakshmi’s Love, Loss and What We Ate.
Someone who’s had a significant influence on your career – My parents
Favorite place in India – Munnar in Kerala
A piece of advice you would give your younger self – Network all you can. You never know where people end up and can help you in life.
Morning person or a night owl – Morning person
Favorite hobby outside of work – Traveling
Favorite travel destination – Turks and Caicos
Talent you wish you had – To be a singer
Most inspiring person in your life – My husband
Go to comfort food – My mom’s dal chawal
Favorite way to unwind after a busy day – Mindless TV
One thing that’s on your bucket list – To be on the cover of a Magazine. Checked
Favorite movie – Sweet Home Alabama
Favorite song – Mitwa from Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna
PQs
“The biggest challenge when I first started is how much our community just wasn’t heard in the mainstream space.”
“The Lufthansa campaign was very multi layered. It was digital, print, TV ads, and we decided to do the whole strategy around chai and how it brings people together in our community.”
“I like working with communities that don’t know about our community, to really educate them about what it means, and what we’re all about.”
“I’m a mom and I’m a daughter, I don’t want to put anything out there that my parents would immediately turn off, or my kids would say, I don’t understand that.”
