A company which never believed in brand promotions is now making its own road in the world of film promotion. Yes, Tata Engineering has hit the road with its brand Tata Safari, literally.

In Ram Gopal Varma’s latest offering Road, Safari—the four year-old sports utility vehicle from Tata Engineering stable, is used almost through the entire film which is due for release next week.

It is understood from sources close to the company and the film unit that Tata Engineering has spent close to Rs 1 crore for this in-film product placement. However, such deals aren’t entirely new. The novelty aspect of this entire deal is Road and Tata Safari’s cross promotion.

The cross-promotion helps Road getting ads across mainstream channels and Tata Engineering getting a glamorous association at the right time when the SUV segment is getting hot on competition.

On the company’s decision to join hands with Varma Corporation, Rajiv Dube, vice-president (marketing), passenger car business unit, Tata Engineering, said, "Safari market share grew by 20 per cent last year. This year, in the first five months, it has seen a growth in market share by 36 per cent. We do believe that with all these brand salience activities, there will be a positive fall out on the way the brand appeals to the consumers."

"This arrangement has worked out well for both of us. It’s a win-win situation. There are synergies between both our brands," said Madhu Varma, vice-president, marketing, Varma Corporation.

"Most of the publicity done for Road is done in subsidised slots specifically reserved for them. This new promotion will take us into prime time slots, places that we, just as a film, definitely couldn’t have afforded," Varma said.

Cross promotions are not new in the ad world. Three months back, Thums Up signed on the entire star cast of Kaante.

And while all the six stars of the film sip Thums Up in their own special way through the film, the cola company puts out these ads across channels and during commercial breaks in the cricket match telecasts.

Earlier, Coca-Cola had placed Coke in Taal and later Yaadein, for about Rs 4 crore. Most film makers feel that these kind of promotions help their film get into uncharted territory.