Know Thy Breaks
Funny Ads
Unlike Damini, Nestle Can’t Wait For ‘Taarikh’
May 31st
Tag line: Khao Bina Taarikh Dekhe
Client: Nestle India
Brand: Munch
Creative Agency: JWT
Creative Director: Anuja Chauhan
Duration: 20 secs
Year: 2009
Story: After the popular ambush marketing by PepsiCo & Coca-Cola India, chocolate majors Cadbury India & Nestle India can be seen at loggerheads in the ad mad world. In most cases it is the small brother taking on the big brother. Likewise, in this spoof, Nestle Munch has challenged CDM’s (Cadbury Dairy Milk) campaign ‘Aaj pehli tarikh hai’ with its tagline ‘Sirf pehli tarikh ko nahin, kabhi bhi kha sakte hai’.
Message: With the tag line ‘Khao Bina Tarikh Dekhe’, Nestle’s ‘combative advertising’ campaign directly mocks Cadbury’s brand proposition. With this ad, Nestle India wants to dilute the brand proposition of Cadbury, tickling its viewers & stealing the sweetness from Dairy Milk. Munch is a vibrant brand with a personality that is clearly associated with fun. Its advertising has always highlighted the ‘fun in consumption’. This ad is to take that message further down. (***)
Insight: Consumers are still fairly basic & in today’s world of complicated lives we all like to witness some free action sequences. Going by its popularity, it’s clear that consumers enjoy collisions, thrive on simple skirmishes & thus absolutely love the war between brands or celebrities. (****)
Goof In The Spoof: The easiest thing to do is to criticize intelligent ideas (seriously). But Munch’s attempt has fallen flat & there isn’t really much to counter the Cadbury campaign, which has proved to be clutter breaking. So before taking head on Punga with CDM’s high-voltage campaign, Munch should have considered that spoofs are about puncturing any pretence, but then the brand character has to be such. That’s certainly not the case with Nestlé Munch. Unlike Sprite, it’s not in the brand’s natural scheme. In other words, this ad war is unlikely to go on forever.
Freshness: The Pehli Tarikh campaign is an easy prey, having focused too sharply on the pay day insight makes it vulnerable. But Munch has wasted a big opportunity to counter it by producing a sloppy spoof. The Munch ad, in this case, looks like a poor mimic of something that stands strong already. Actually the ad language is very edgy-buzzy that excites the youth but the script is poor & the cast even poorer. How could this ad dent the buzz that the Cadbury campaign created amongst consumers? (**)
Verdict: Spoofing, if not executed well, runs the risk of reminding the consumer of the original brand. In this case, it seems to have done just that. But spoofs do make brands come alive which haven’t been able to make much of an impact; they make the whole category much more alive & bring more consumers to it. This advert has certainly livened up the chocolate category.
Have A Sweet Tooth On The First Of Every Month
May 29th
Tag line: Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye
Punchline: Meetha Hai Khana Aaj Pehli Taarikh Hai
Client: Cadbury India
Brand: Cadbury Dairy Milk
Creative Agency: O & M
Exec Creative Director: Piyush Pandey & Abhijit Avasthi
Creative Director: Shekhar Jha & Mahesh Gharat
Music: Ehsan Noorani & Loy Mendonsa
Vocals: Kshitij
Director: Prasoon Pandey
Production House: Corcoise Films
Duration: 50 secs
Year: 2009
Message: Though Cadbury had done a lot around the ‘Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye’ premise that involved large-scale celebrations, small groups and small towns had been kept out. Knowing that the middle class celebrate their happiness on salary day in a very private manner, Cadbury Dairy Milk (CDM) underlines its positioning that it is always around to celebrate one’s joyous occasions even of the adults who had been hitherto shying away from its consumption. It introduces another ‘meetha moment’ in one’s life, to highlight the celebratory occasion of pay day, which is an important event in the life of every middle-class Indian. (****)
Positioning & TG: Pay day emotes feelings like “Yippee! Yo! I am rich again” that are naturally celebratory in nature for many of us. For such people, this indulgent occasion comes 12 times a year & this is the moment that CDM captures in this campaign. The concept of payday itself is rooted in an existing middle class insight. This lends a support of insights and culture to the Cadbury ad. We never mind the slowdown & the salary cuts; the pay day is always a reason for us to celebrate. So Cadbury ‘pays’ a tribute to the salaried employees by giving them another reason to celebrate the payday. (****)
Cast & Craft: Set in a retro background, the TVC stars the popular TV artist Varun Badola. The old Hindi filmy ambience is uniquely middle class and the set could belong to any town in India. Its attempt at mass appeal is unmistakable. I think the concept was very appealing and implemented exactly the way it had been visualized. Proving that salary day is a big day even in these times of plastic money, the commercial gives a very warm and homely feeling which most people can relate to. Incidentally, the song is from a Kishore Kumar 50’s movie by the same name i.e., ‘Pehli Tarikh’. (***)
Freshness: Although many people did not like the add… but still the ad keeps one glued to his/her chair during the commercial… it’s something like ‘Love me or hate me but you can’t ignore me’. Although there have been quite a few commercials with this kind of approach, it still stands out… the song takes one down the memory lane & due to its lyrics turns out to be a perfect fit for the communication. The insight of payday has a very universal appeal and the ad is a good example of occasion-based marketing. It seems to be such an obvious choice for celebration but still had been unexploited. (****)
Verdict: Very retro- Bollywoodsy, very quirky, very singable, very fun! It better moved over the rhetorical concepts of a brother stealing his sister’s chocolate, or for that matter, boy gifts a chocolate to a girl. This campaign pretty much drove home well & did position CDM as something that can be a part of this day of happiness, promises and salaries. Beware mithaiwalas, Cadbury’s trying to capture the market of all those local, traditional sweets 
…And He Lived Happily Ever After
May 26th
Tag line: Get Ready To Get Surprised
Client: Tata Motors
Brand: Indica Vista Drivetech4
Creative Agency: DraftFCB+Ulka
National Creative Director: KS Chakravarthy
Director: Amit Sharma
Production House: Chrome Pictures Pvt Ltd
Duration: 40 secs
Year: 2010
Story: Come on, how much creative liberty is one going to take… really can a car have an effect so strong on you as this ad suggests. The ad showcases a man whose face wears a permanent expression of pure delight, which confuses, if not startles, people around him. The ad then traces his first encounter with the Indica Vista, which resulted in this expression.
Cast & Craft: While the ad did manage to amuse, the idea is not terribly new. But what delights you is the way it’s been executed– A guy tries a car and is stuck with the expression of surprise through the next few days. The open-mouth device with the joy in the eyes looks pretty neat. The music is particularly nice. So is the casting. The guy looks like a fresh face and this commercial would fetch him a lot of work in a similar space. The black and white look of the film is not bad either. (***)
Freshness: Exaggeration is every advertiser’s game, but how long are we going to play this TVC for. After a while you just want honest communication about a car. It’s a simple concept but not-so-honest is how the Indica Vista Drivetech4 commercial comes across on television. You may stop and take note a couple of times, but it loses its fizz after a few spots are exhausted. If you miss the end or the beginning you want to know what happened and how the ad pans out, so that’s where the ad scores points. Excellent story telling in just 40 seconds makes the spot memorable and watchable. (***)
Verdict: It is impossible for an individual to be consumed by obsession for a car that is not that alluring. It may be good on mileage, performance and control, but the experience cannot paralyze someone for 5 whole days. Anyways, a good ad that will earn some critique but once again is a case where advertisers exploit simple ideas to create unbelievable communication they know that their no one in their right mind is going to accept.
Yet Another Virgin Idea
May 23rd
Tag line: Think Milke, Think Hatke
Client: Virgin Mobile
Creative Agency: Bates141
Regional Creative Director: Sonal Dabral
Exec Creative Director: Russell Barrett
Copywriter: Riti Hamlai, Karunasagar Sridharan, Nikhil Panjwani
Art Director: Kunal Sawant
Director: Bardroy Barretto
Production House: Brown Skins
Duration: 15, 20, 50 secs
Year: 2010
Story: The mobile brand’s new set of commercials, launched as a part of its GSM launch campaign, adds a dash of glamour to the brand DNA of youthfulness and fun, showing actor Ranbir Kapoor getting naughty-witty with his Virgin Mobile. This campaign communicates various ideas to get more incoming calls to your Virgin Mobile so that one can get more talk time.
Message: This campaign is built on the insight that youth always find new ways to reduce their mobile expense. Every idea is in accordance with its positioning ‘Think Hatke’ (Think Different) and effectively captures the insight. Short, crisp and hatke (different) ideas, not only communicate the message effectively but also give you good reason to laugh. In Virgin Mobile communication, its dedication to its positioning is remarkable. Certainly, these ads will reinforce brand image and also promote its new plan. (****)
Target Group Connect: Targeting to the age group of 15 – 30 years, in a young country like ours– Virgin Mobile has smartly selected the segment. They are early adopters and innovative as they use multiple SIMs so that they can switch SIMs as per their convenience and cut down their mobile expenses. Also, they make longer out bound calls and are significant users of SMS & VAS services. They are not at all brand loyal and turn to operators which give them the best deal. Virgin, with its new product offering, intends to cash in on this behaviour of the youth. (****)
Freshness: Is it something new? Alas no! The campaign has striking similarity with an earlier set of commercials from the Virgin stable. Although entertaining and funny, it seems quite similar to one of its earlier campaigns. That campaign, too, talked about making people call you and making money out of it. The only difference here is Ranbir Kapoor doing things while in those, a bunch of not-so-famous boys were ideating for the same. It seems like they have just extended the idea from there and didn’t push it enough. (**)
Verdict: Ranbir might not be a SRK yet, but he’s one of the most sought after actors in the tinsel town, thus the brand image gets a boost with this association. To the extent of ideas, these ads are successful… the viewer gets the message. But this ain’t the best from the Virgin stable and could have been made sharper and funnier. Virgin Mobile brand has been associated with quirkiness. Somewhere, these ones are a little low on that; the earlier commercials have had better story-lines and humor.
Rocket Singh & Company Acquires A ‘Virgin’
May 21st
Tag line: Think Milke, Think Hatke
Client: Virgin Mobile
Creative Agency: Bates 141
Regional Creative Director: Sonal Dabral
Exec Creative Director: Russell Barrett
Copywriters: Riti Hamlai, Karunasagar Sridharan, Nikhil Panjwani
Art Director: Kunal Sawant
Director: Bardroy Barretto
Production House: Brown Skins
Duration: 50 secs
Year: 2009
Story: As another initiative to inch closer to the youth and take the brand to the next level, Ranbir Kapoor and Genelia D’Souza have been appointed as the new brand ambassadors for Virgin Mobile in India. This new campaign, which celebrates the philosophy of ‘Think Milke, Think Hatke’, exhorts Indian youngsters to ‘make connections and use connections’.
Message: While the youth today is finding the individual within, they are extremely aware that it’s with the push of their friends and extended network that they can make many things happen, which they otherwise can’t. All of them for instance have an extended list of friends on their mobile or Facebook who will come in handy when they need help with an urgent presentation or may be a job recommendation. Today’s Indian youth believes that there is a certain magic in their connections, Virgin Mobile exhorts them to build and take advantage of these connections. (***)
Brand Ambassadors: While looking for brand ambassadors, it is important to see if they fit the bill– whether the brand could build on them and whether they could build the brand. Rationalizing the company’s choice, the duo is an extremely good fit for the brand– both of them are popular, affluent & recognized faces. Kapoor is one of the desired guys today, and similarly, D’Souza is known as a next-door, fun-loving girl. It was a real delight to feast our eyes on Diana Penty (oh baby!) acting in a storyline for the first time, though not as an endorser. (****)
Freshness: Going forward it needs to build on this distinctiveness to help itself stand out in a very heavily advertised category and beat media muscle with cut through creativity. In the GSM space, the canvas is bigger so it is all the more exciting to have engaging stories for the youth in India to make them feel that it’s truly their brand. It has kept up the brand’s tonality with respect to its previous campaign i.e., its whacky advertising. And hopefully this network of friends will soon have many more millions of friends on its network. (***)
Verdict: Virgin Mobile in India continues to be inventive and a partner in crime of the youth 
& has carefully chosen the celebs, who are an exact fit for the brand and will bring it scale and visibility. The brand has now all the ingredients for a successful GSM foray. The brand has exhorted the Indian youth to inventively bypass the sanctions that life and society threw at them. In the course, it gives Indian television its first brush with advertising that was not all white-washed in goodness.
