Addendum is a weekly 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.
Napoleon himself couldn’t have said it better. A battle is never won on an empty stomach. And that is the theme for the new TVC for Nature Fresh Sampoorna Chakki Atta. At a typical family meal the visiting parents hint to the young couple that it is time they start a family. The young lady looks to her husband for succour and he provides her with sage counsel when he advises her to fortify herself with some nourishment before taking on anyone in what is labelled as a family battle. This gives FCB Ulka and the production team the opportunity to focus on this chapati that seems to magically fill up with air as the voiceover extols the virtues of the Nature Fresh Sampoorna Chakki Atta. As the young lady takes a bite, she rallies around and declares they would have to wait for a few years for any naming ceremony because she intends doing some ‘career planning”, not “family planning”. Oops! And there the script fumbled. The girl really needs to do family planning if she wants to succeed in her career planning. Anyway, let’s not nitpick. The casting, acting and the general look and feel of the film is spot on. And with so many good-looking people around they still managed to make that puffed up chapati look like the hero. I like it.
The Raymond campaign for the perfect man retains its magic. This time the perfect man is taking his little son to the school dramatics event. And right from the time the kids are being made up, parents are shown recording the event for posterity. There is a lovely scene which pans the audience and all you see is a sea of mobile phones with their videos rolling, and one head – that of the perfect man. So thank God for men who still believe in the real world where what is important is appreciating the tot’s performance instead of already planning which social media this can be posted on. As the performance ends, the kids looking expectantly at the audience, who are still recording every moment till our perfect man begins to applaud and then, bashfully, cameras go down and a standing ovation begins. And thank God you have clients who have the maturity and good sense to persist with a good idea, and find ways to extend the same good idea instead of jumping to discover the next big idea.
Bold and beautiful
The deodorant category is one of the fastest growing and one of the most competitive as well. Wild Stone has stuck to its proposition that it is a great turn-on for the ladies, a trend probably started by Axe, but Wild Stone has differentiated itself by being very intense and very ethnic. Remember the TVC with Dia Mirza? And so the new film from Soho Square directed by Shoojit Sircar has this bold approach where a bride-to-be is getting her mehendi done when she is told that the jewellery designer has arrived. What follows is a smoking hot sequence where the bride-to-be leads the designer to put all the jewellery on her while making her intentions rather clear. In deference to Indian culture, though, she remains the eternal tease as she walks away leaving the designer with nothing more than a great possible experience. Bold, sensuous, well-made. Ila Arun adds to the atmosphere with her earthy rendering of a Rajasthani song.
Vox pop: Reader K Ravishankar responds to whether Volkswagen will take a beating after the emissions controversy. “Yes, I do think they have taken some beating on their brand and that of brand Germany.” However, talking to a technical guy on the implications, his take was that it’s a little overblown. Yes, it has fudged on software but it is neither life threatening stuff nor will it bring climate change. “... car manufacturers are constantly recalling their vehicles for much more serious issues. I am sure Volkswagen can get out of this mess if they handle it well.” Well, Ravi, I’m glad you seem to be in a forgiving mood. To me it is not whether the issue is life-threatening or not. It’s a question of adherence to ethics and values, and VW has failed big time.
As for Nestle’s new commercial, he says: “Nestle has been around forever and its Swiss roots have a feeling of assuredness - like Germany? And Maggi has been such a convenient comfort food for more than a generation that it can surely make a strong comeback. The ad emphasises the long years of connect as also the fact that it isn’t just a one-product company.” Thanks for those letters. Keep them coming!
Ramesh Narayan is a communications consultant. Mail your comments to cat.a.lyst@thehindu.co.in