Shagun Ka Lifafa

Winner of a 2023 Clio Grand Award for Cultural Experiences
Winner of a 2023 Clio Gold Award for Acquisition & Retentions
Winner of a 2023 Clio Bronze Award for Experience/Activation

This winning entry titled 'Shagun Ka Lifafa' was entered for Ujjivan Small Finance Bank by McCann Worldgroup India, Mumbai. The advertising agency is part of the agency network: McCann Worldgroup and holding company: Interpublic Group.


In most Indian households, especially in economically weaker sections. Men control the finances, including access to the bank account. As a result, women don’t have financial equality and have accepted their role to not be financially active or independent.

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank champions the financially unserved and underserved. And wanted to intervene in a culturally relevant manner to drive change so that women could have financial equality.

Indian marriages are attended by thousands of guests. Traditionally, most of these guests come bearing cash gifts, called a ‘Shagun’.

As per tradition, the Shagun is never a round figure and is always accompanied by a 1 rupee coin as this signifies prosperity and continuity for the couple.

Before gifting their Shagun to the newly-weds, guests put it in specially-designed envelopes or ‘Shagun Ka Lifafa’ - which for convenience already have a one rupee coin attached.

We wanted to reimagine this culturally relevant device and make it bring financial equality to the women of India.

Our eureka moment was using the age-old lifafa as an account opening form. What’s more women could open an account with just that one rupee coin.