ct23_Addendum

Addendum is a column that takes a sometimes hard, sometimes casual, sometimes irreverent, yet never malicious look at some of the new or recent advertisements and comments on them. Write in with either advertisements you wish reviewed or with your comments at addendum.brandline@gmail.com

Beyond the usual

Some TVCs just bring a smile to your lips. Maybe there's no great original big idea, but I guess the last original idea came from God. The rest are all adaptations. Godrej No.1 is a new soap that jumps on the “natural ingredients” or “nature” route to promise a lovely smooth complexion. The film shows a mother and daughter walking through a lovely tree-filled area and lively mother-daughter banter where the mother attributes the secret of her beauty to nature. The daughter, when queried if she had some new contemporary secret, replies that she, too, depended on natural ingredients. And then you are told about Godrej No. 1 and the well-trusted goodness of saffron and milk cream that it comes bursting with. Actually, it's always difficult to make a really nice TVC when all you have are things that have been extolled a million times before. Here, then, lies the beauty of this film by Mudra West. A very simple story line, a nice script, good performances by the mother and the daughter (no celebs here, just nice looking people-next-door) and brings a smile to your face when you see the film. Well, a smile is probably almost surely followed by a purchase …

Stand-up stands out

I like the Ranbir Kapoor series of TVCs from Tata Docomo. The stand-up act is very new to Indian advertising and the script, in most films is crisp and interesting. I was told there are 35 films in this series created by the Draftfcb + Ulka team. I say team, because I am told ideas for the series came from different people in different offices, all enthused by the central idea and theme. “A record?” I wondered aloud, but a very knowledgeable gentleman who should know said there were other series that might have made even more than 35 TVCs. Any which way, this series is more interesting because of the complete lack of unnecessary frills and elements. Just one person, speaking directly into the camera, or should I say directly at the viewer, and in many instances bringing home some very relevant points about the state of the mobile phone industry. That this person is a youth icon certainly helps. His dialogue delivery and sometimes deliberately deadpan way of delivering one-liners is spot-on. Actually, credit for this series should go to the person who came up with the general idea. Developing on that couldn't have been too difficult. Well, whoever that was at Draftfcb + Ulka, take a bow. And thanks for keeping it simple (I won't add the last word).

Axe the idea

I blame Axe for coming out with the arguably sexist and wildly successful series of advertisements for its deo range. Every other deo then thought it had to make ad films on the same lines. You could Indianise the cast, shorten the film, change the way the actors looked, but you had to, just had to show a guy spraying on his deo, and getting instantly transformed into a pied piper who had everything female in the frame running after him. Well, if you thought the complete lack of originality that followed was reprehensible, here's an “original” one. Kustody from Mankind shows Bipasha Basu with her deo being followed by everything male in the frame, except movie directors with offers. No, seriously, when will someone break this mould and come up with a “different” concept for a deodorant? And Bipasha, you really think by throwing your can of deo to the other poor girls the men will stop following you?

Bhale bhale!

The TVC for Castrol Turbo engine oil from O&M has the rugged Punjab da puttar driver taking the emotional route to make his pretty wife blush with pleasure. Well, I'm sure some serious market research showed that the majority of truck drivers are Punjabi, so I will not comment on that. That does not mean I agree with that. Yet, by eschewing the Bhale Bhale Bhangra routine, and showing the driver as a caring human being, the film is lifted up considerably. The fast-paced script nicely fuses the ability of the Castrol Turbo engine oil to ensure long-lasting engine life with the unique capability of demonstrable love to ensure long-lasting marital bliss.

(The writer is a communications consultant.)

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