Utterly, butterly Delicious !

Yes, no one is a stranger to this yummy one-liner which immediately prompts us to smack our lips in anticipation of the very tempting butter !!! And, the Amul girl or Amul baby was here to stay.

It is touted to be the longest running ad campaign ! Thanks to Sylvester DaCunha, we had an adorable mascot for the butter.And later, the Amul ads gained mileage for donning the role of a social observer.And are the ads really satirical ? Well, I don't think so ! The catchy lines injected with the right dose of humour dishes out just a lot of fun. And yes, there is an entire collection from 1976, available online !! On the Amul site ! In fact if one scans through them, one can get an insight into the socio-political fabric of those ages. So what are you waiting for ?

Have a look :

To read on the Amul topical story : http://www.amul.com/story.html

To have a look at the topicals : http://www.amul.com/hits.html

I shall leave you with a few samples (so that you might be tempted to have a look!)

On the first test tube baby.

Promoting national integration.

On "Women's Reservation" Bill which created a furore in the Parliament and was stalled- '03.

On the issue of high-level of pesticide residues in colas/soft drinks.

Team India celebrate after winning the inaugural ICC WORLD TWENTY 2007 cricket World Cup in Johannesburg.

CHAKDE! INDIA: the Bollywood movie with focus on women's hockey featuring star-actor Shah Rukh Khan playing coach of the Indian Women's Hockey Team to bring fame to India.

Bollywood film Fanaa release held up in Gujarat due to agitation over star's comments on Narmada Dam Project.

On the ban of Da Vinci Code.

Richard Gere, Hollywood actor and Shilpa Shetty, Bollywood actress in a controversial incident in public at an AIDS function in India.

Indian fast bowler Sreesanth’s aggressive on-field behaviour with Australian batsmen during the second One-day International at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi, India.

Hope that was fun !

Spoof....on Ads?!

I bet you've seen this one.
Ah, we were so touched by the poignant message.
'Save water. Save life'.




And then, this arrived:

Food for thought, eh ?

[P.S. Click on the pics to see an enlarged version]

Diwali Ramzan Ad (Print) - Action Aid India Society

This is one print ad I've been dying to get my hands on.

I wanted to just show this to all of you; or remind you in case you had forgotten. This simple yet hard-hitting ad drives home the point like nothing else. This was an ad by the Action Aid India Society, requesting help for the victims of Gujarat carnage. Why talk on and on about it when I can show it to you ? I'm sure the image will suffice.

And yes, I got it off another site....Thank God for the internet !

(In case you can't read the fine print; it says "Who are we to draw the line?" )

Vodafone Ad

After a hiatus, here I am !

Finally, one ad inspires me to immediately pen my thoughts on it !!!

The ad begins with the 'birth' of a may fly. The narrator begins by saying that the may fly has a life-expectancy of just one day. The may fly doesn't feel miserable about it. Instead, "he fills his day with the things he loves". The ad goes on to show how the may fly swoops and glides and savours every moment it has. And then, the narrator ruminates on this and says, probably there's a lesson in this for "us longer-living creatures". He continues, "Just think; if we embrace life like the may fly.... what a life that would be..."

The ad ends with the punchline: "VODAFONE- Make the most of now."

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What works for me ?

The whole animation! It is eye-catching and simple; aesthetic and interesting. I especially enjoyed how the may fly plays 'tennis' and tries its hands at juggling. And also how it ends up with its 'life-partner' (if you could call it that!) at the end of the ad. What I liked most about the ad is how it makes you think...it conveys its message beautifully without being didactic. And the punchline: "Make the most of now". Couldn't have said it better !

Rating- *****

[P.S: In the process of searching the net for this video, I realised that this very same ad has been released much earlier in other countries. Here, I shall put the video with an Australian voice over.]

JINGLE BELLS...

Before you think that I’m high on some yuletide spirit, let me correct you. This is all about jingles….ad jingles, that is! Often many ads remain fresh in your memory just because they had catchy jingles. So often, you end up humming them more than your favourite song! And indeed, they aid brand recall value. So here’s a list of jingles that are at the top of my mind right now.

* Doodh, doodh, doodh ; doodh hai wonderful,

Pee sakte hai roz glass full; doodh, doodh, doodh…..

Garmi mein daalo doodh mein ice,

Doodh ban gaya very nice;

Pee sakte ho once or twice,

Mil jaayega tasty surprise!

Doodh hai must in every season,

Piyo doodh for healthy reason.

Rahoge phir fit and fine;

Jiyoge past ninety-nine!

Charon aur, mach gaya shor

Give me more, give me more

Gimme gimme gimme gimme wonderful doodh

Piyo glass full doodh ! MOOOOO !

(P.S : that was the cow mooing!)

[An ad promoting milk]

* Zandu balm, zandu balm; peeda haari balm,

Sardi, sar dard peeda ko pal mein door kare...

Zandu balm.... zandu balm.

[Zandu balm].

* Vicko Turmeric, nahi cosmetic,

Vicko turmeric ayurvedic cream.

[Vicko turmeric cream]

* Sunday ho yaa Monday, roz khao ande!

[Ad by the National Egg Co-ordination Committee]

* Hamaaara bajaj…hamaara bajaj….

[I think it was the jingle of Bajaj Chetak]

* Zara si hansi, dulaar zara sa,

Amul- the taste of India.

[For the Amul range of products]

* Zarurat hai, zarurat hai, zarurat hai,

Miss mary cooker ki, jo hai kifayathi,

Khaana pakaaye jaldi-jaldi…

Zarurat hai… haan, haan zarurat hai !!!!!

[Miss Mary Pressure cooker]

* Washing powder Nirma.

Doodh-si safedi Nirma se Aaye.

Rangeen kapda bhi khil-khil jaaye.

Sub ki pasand Nirma!

Washing powder Nirma,

Washing powder Nirma. NIRMA!!

[ Nirma washing powder]

* Yehi hai right choice baby…..Aha !

* Yeh dil maange more…

* Nothing official about it…

[Yes….all Pepsi ads !]

* Nigahen nigahon se mila kar toh dekho.

Naye logon se rishta bana kar toh dekho.

Hasratein dil mein dabane se kya haasil hoga,

Apne honth hila kar toh dekho.

Khamoshi se kab hoti hai khwahishein poori,

Dil ki baat bata kar toh dekho.

Jo hai dil mein use kar do bayaan.

Khud ko ek baar jata kar toh dekho

Aasmaan simat jayega tumhare aaghosh mein,

Chahat ki bahein phaila kar toh dekho

Dil ki baat bata kar toh dekho …

[Airtel- not a jingle….but LOVELY words!]

* Chaar bundon-waala…aaahaa…

* Safedi tujhe salaam….

[Both are Ujala ads ]

* Lifebuoy hai jahaan tandurusti hai wahaan….

LIFEBUOY !

[Lifebuoy bathing soap]

Malayalam ads:

* Penne ninne sundari aakiyathaaru?

Ninte kinavil thangam pooshiyathaaru?

Alukkas....Alukkas…Alukkas…Alukkas…

[P.S: Alukkas Jewellery]

Will add more as and when I think of it....

So long....till then, keep humming !

MOTOROKR ad featuring Abhishek

This one needs no introduction ! It has managed to capture everyone's imagination.

The ad shows many scenes (whilst shooting) in which AB Jr. finds himself shaking his head and 'singing' his dialogues. Sample this:

Scene 1: When the maa prays for his son to return, a fatigued AB walks in and starts rapping, "Dekho maa main aa gaya; maa, maa, maaa...."

Scene 2: The King calls for a battle (jung) and AB sings, " Jung , jung, jung..."

Scene 3: A very worried wife confesses that the child she's bearing is actually his friend's. And he goes, "nahi, nahi...yeh nahi ho sakta."

Scene 4: A cop is beating him up and compelling him to confess to his stash of diamonds...and our man starts shaking a leg again !!! Cuuuuuttt!!! AB, take a break...

And then the ad reveals why AB can't stop shaking his head....the NEW MOTOROKR !!

And then there is a really catchy jingle which goes,

"Wireless music, stores upto 1500 songs;

Real player, MP3,

Music Addiction from MOTOROKR..."

And the ad closes with AB shaking his head in another scene....

when he's playing the corpse !!!!!

*************************************************

The whole thing is well-scripted, well-executed, and crisp. It shows how addictive music can get; and that too WIRELESS. So no messy wires to ruin your music. Very innovative, and creative, I'd say ! And AB is just rocking, and he carries off the whole thing with aplomb. In short, I'm lovin it! ( to borrow another tag line!).

Rating- *****

AIG ad

Of late, this ad is my personal favourite.

It opens with a boy helping an old lady carry her groceries back home. The lady then generously(?) offers the child a Rupee. The child then hitches a ride with an ‘uncle’ to his dad’s office. You see a shot of the small kid, lost in the long passages of the office. He takes a peek through the glass to see his dad in a meeting.

He taps on the window to get his dad’s attention. Dad excuses himself from the meeting….worried…. And asks why are you here? The kid gently opens his palm to reveal a shiny one rupee coin! And he adds, meri pehli ‘shalary’ (salary!).

And the ad ends with a voice over “ We appreciate the value of your money”.

(Not exactly a good version; there's a time lag in the audio and video. This is all I could come up with on You Tube!)

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Now, what do I like most in this ad?

The kid !!!

It’s a smart strategy. Kids are loved by everyone. And this one’s cute and adorable ; especially when he says “shalary” !! Also the metaphor of the Kid (us) who approaches the Dad (AIG Insurance) with his hard-earned money. And here, the agency ‘appreciates’ the value of ‘our money’... interesting...

Because if you consider a pun on the word ‘appreciate’, it could mean ‘to value or regard highly’ AND ‘to increase in value’. Smart move!

In short, a great ad!

Rating- ****