It might come as a surprise, but a humble piece of cloth has become a point of contention in several places across the world. In US and Canada, mask mandates have opened debate on whether it is pro-choice or not. Now, imagine the number of lives that will be put to risk, if one such anti-masker decides to take a flight.

In ixigo’s new public service announcement video, the single most iconic video game character, Mario shows that air travel during the pandemic has no place for people without masks. He makes his way through the airport-themed level while wearing a mask and collecting hand sanitisers instead of coins. Before taking the boarding pass, he ensures that his temperature is checked. He dodges the viruses on his way and is rewarded with face shields and PPE kits for the precautionary measures. 

“With travel demand slowly recovering, the need of the hour is to encourage travellers to fly responsibly. Keeping this in mind, we have launched a COVID-19 public awareness campaign on ixigo app, website and social media platforms,” says Aloke Bajpai, co-founder and CEO, ixigo. The online travel aggregator expects travel to bounce back to 50% of pre-Covid levels by the end of 2020.

The video, which is an in-house production, took over three weeks to execute — from detailed research to the final edit. “It is a result of an amazing cross-team collaboration with all members working from home,” says Bajpai. It has garnered millions of views across major social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, and has also been shared countless times by people on WhatsApp groups. “We are hopeful that in these uncertain times, we can come together and redefine air travel to be an enjoyable, yet safe experience for all,” says Bajpai.

Surely, if Mario can wear a mask and take all precautions, it should not be difficult for you too.