Abu Dhabi Tourism Taps Bollywood’s Deepika Padukone, IndiGo Breaks Into London
Photo Credit: Actor couple Ranveer Singh (L) and Deepika Padukone (R) in campaign promoting Abu Dhabi. DCT Abu Dhabi
Skift Take
Abu Dhabi’s latest move shows that for destinations courting Indian travelers, nothing matches the marketing power of Bollywood.
Experience Abu Dhabi has named Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone as its newest regional brand ambassador, joining her husband, Ranveer Singh, who has represented the destination since 2023. The two become the first Bollywood couple to jointly promote the emirate. Padukone will feature in upcoming campaigns and brand films.
The move mirrors a growing trend of destinations tapping into India’s celebrity power. It follows Dubai’s June campaign, “Dubai, Ready For a Surprise,” featuring Indian power couple Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma.
Abu Dhabi is aggressively targeting Indian travelers as part of its goal to grow annual visitors from 23 million to 40 million by 2030. “India remains our top source market so visitors from India are just incredibly important for us,” said Emma Campbell, sector marketing director at Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, at the Skift India Forum in March.
“The destination has a very high brand awarene
