Budget live, Chidu Style
Advertiser: Moneycontrol.com
Baseline: “Budget 2012 Comes Alive”
Agency: Contract Advertising
4Ps B&M Take: So what comes to mind when you think of annual Budget speech and the accompanying analytical blah blah? We bet you have sombre thoughts about inflation, taxes, subsidies, even fiscal deficit. But financial website Moneycontrol.com is turning traditional knowledge on its head and has come up with hilarious promos to promote their Budget 2013 coverage, complete with a Finance Minister P. Chidambaram look-alike mascot doing the disco with a bunch of glamour girls. What’s more, our Chidu mascot does his dance moves wearing the humble lungi – and comes up with rib-tickling dance moves that are populist, can control inflation and even bring back the bull run to the Indian stock market. So there is the Kaichi cut move to slash taxes and bring relief to people reeling under high prices; next, Chidu does the Pump Set – ostensibly to pump up the economy and control inflation; and finally, Chidu pulls up and doubles his lungi to ensure that the stock market does a Bull Walk on budget day. Chidambaram’s shake-a-leg finally comes to an end with a super announcing: ‘The Budget 2013 Comes Alive.’ The humour quotient of this one is up there and is an obvious extension of last year’s ‘Rock the Sabha’ that featured lookalikes of politicians jiving to rock music. If the bid is to hook a new generation of users to get interested in the budget, these guys have got it bang on. And you thought there was no humour in economy and finance?
LUCK BY CHANCE
Advertiser: TATA DOCOMO
Baseline: “NEVER LEAVE SPEED TO LUCK”
Agency: DRAFT FCB ULKA
4Ps B&M Take: This one’s another rib-tickler, totally stands out for unusual storyboard and fantastic expression by the models in question, and therefore highly effective in the extremely cluttered mobile services market. The communication seeks to drive home an oft-repeated message by mobile operators – that their network coverage is the best of the lot. But the big idea is in the out-of-the-box manner that the message is delivered. This one zeros in on what NOT to do when choosing a mobile services brand that promises ‘speed’ i.e. depend on luck. Two separate ads deliver the message. The first – and by far the better executed of the two – narrates the story of a hold-up at knife-point at an ATM counter by a suited-booted, apparently-educated man. The well-dressed goon threatens the man withdrawing cash from the ATM to withdraw a larger sum. The scared chap agrees and punches in his PIN only to be informed that the cash in the machine is over. The expressions on the aces of both the victim and the goon are the high point of this storyboard. The message? ‘Luck works sometimes. Never leave speed to luck’ and goes on graphically explain how Tata Docomo has hi-speed internet network in 99% locations, while other service providers have no Internet coverage in 23% areas. An ingenious take on ‘better network coverage’ that has been claimed by almost every other service provider. There is humour, there is surprise, and there is the big idea to execute it differently. Now that’s what we call a winner!
THE CAULIFLOWER ANGLE
Advertiser: IDEA
Baseline: “An Idea can change your life”
Agency: Lowe Lintas
4Ps B&M Take: There are some concepts that remain evergreen – provided they are executed well. And ‘love’, the growing old variety, is surely one of them. Add a dose of humour to this age-old concept and you are bound to get the bang for your bucks. Lowe Lintas and Idea cellular do exactly that in this very 60s-style-executed commercial to celebrate Valentine’s Day with their TG. Released to coincide with the day of love… this ad juxtaposes the youthfulness associated with puppy love with the companionship that maturity brings to a relationship. It narrates the story for an obviously-in-love elderly couple and their contrarian reactions to Valentine’s Day. The husband, influenced by the younger population, buys his wife a rose on Valentine’s Day. The wife – disturbed from her afternoon siesta – is quite taken aback at this gesture and asks him how he got the idea to get her a rose. The husband then shows her his phone alert from Idea Cellular wishing him a happy Valentine’s Day. The ad ends with the wife mumbling how the husband could have gotten her a cauliflower (to prepare a meal with) with the 20 bucks he spent on the flower. Smart, good execution and overflowing with the emotional connect. More importantly, this one brings a welcome relief from the Abhishek Bachchan ads from the mobile operator – which were really beginning to ham now. The only drawback of this communication – we feel – is the potentially short shelf life given that the message is Valentine’s Day oriented. But then, can you ever restrict love to a month?
