Advertisements have always been a great way for brands to market their products and services. However, it has always been a hit or miss situation. Not all brands come up with great advertisements. Some have positive lasting impacts and some we would just love to forget. Storyboard18’s weekly ad reviews filter through the past weeks ads, letting you know which ones were the best and which ones weren’t quite up to mark. We provide you with completely unbiased and unfiltered opinions that are fun to read and paint a clear picture. Read on to find out which ads were in our professional opinions, MAST and which were MEH in this week’s Mast & Meh.
MAST
Brand – Hyatt India
Agency – Animal
It’s that time of the year again, when everyone’s social media is flooded with wedding updates. From selfies, BTS photos to pre/during/post wedding shots, they’re all available in abundance for our eyes to feast on, even if many cringe about it. Hyatt India’s latest aesthetic film shows viewers stills and scenes of people who make weddings picture-perfect IRL. It is an ode to all the staff at hotels who are jacks of multiple trades and make sure everything is in place for the wedding party. It’s a refreshing communication piece from the hospitality category. This one is 100 percent a Mast watch.
MEH
Brand – Home Credit India
While the line of thought that this commercial follows is thoughtful, everything else seems like it was executed thoughtlessly. The actors just deliver the lines mechanically. But then again they don’t have much to work with. It all seems forced and falls flat, and does no credit to the brand or its message.
MAST
Brand – 1 Finance
Campaign – #FinancialWellnessMatters
If we look around, we would find various faces who have expressed disappointment over financial schemes and how they have not catered to their interests. 1 Finance, a financial solutions company ironically emphasises upon this very aspect in their latest ad film. As the film opens with Harjot aka Cookie, it is his keen observation of the aspect of commission followed by the film’s obnoxiously loud Punjabi family that really lifts up the entertainment factor of the commercial. Veteran actor Farida Jalal’s role as Cookie’s grandmother is extremely entertaining where certain expressions of hers remind us of DDLJ’s Lajjo and Shararat’s Nani. Every frame of the film has just the right amount of drama to energise a rather “boring” topic such as finance. This ad manages to keep us hooked and you ‘Mast’ watch it.
MEH
Brand – Doritos
Campaign – #ChipsNahiFire
Agency – Leo Burnett
Kartik Aaryan is a versatile actor but his effort to come across as hilarious in Doritos’ #ChipsNahiFire commercial looked forced and overdone. Rohit Shetty and his expressions however, have never failed to stand out. They resonate well when he advises Aaryan to use a stunt double to eat the chips instead. Also, you’d expect an explosion or two whenever Rohit Shetty is involved. However, the commercial failed to have an explosive impact in our minds. Expectations were high that the conclusion would rescue the commercial by adding the required spice. Alas! The ending too could not save the ad film from scoring a Meh.
MAST
Brand – iQOO
Agency – Conceptualized by Dentsu Creative India
This new spot from smartphone brand iQOO is a perfect example of how to create recall with a simple ad. The brand’s ‘What’s In A Name’ campaign starring Vijay Deverakonda and Janhvi Kapoor shows them taking chances at pronouncing the brand’s name correctly. It is a witty one. The film was created in response to a contest run by iQOO on their social media platforms where they asked users to pronounce the brand’s name. Most of them got it wrong. The spot is an extension of the contest that ends with a message that says, ‘While you get our name wrong we get one thing right – user satisfaction’. A very clever advertisement indeed. And more people now know how to pronounce iQOO.
MEH
Brand – Vim
Agency – Conceptualized by Lowe Lintas, implemented by Mindshare and produced by MTV
A moment of silence to begin with. There’s charcoal face wash, there’s special shampoo and body soap available for men in the market and it’s only fair from a product perspective. But what’s with a special limited edition dish washing soap for men? Even if it was all just a marketing gimmick to stir up conversation and get on the trending list. It left people confused and some even angry as they assumed the product was real. And while the jury is still out on the viability of the non-existent product, the new ad campaign promoting #VimBlackForMen that aims to break gender stereotypes is not the best example of sarcasm and humour deployed well. The spot looks like the brand is trying too hard to be clever and to impress with a social message. Moreover, a shirtless Milind Soman in a work apron, selling dishwashing liquid for men and talking about equality according to us, just engages stereotypes and nothing more.
MAST
Brand – Jupiter
Agency – Dentsu India
This money management app ad plays on the ‘kaunse planet se ho tum?’ expression, a common reaction for things that sound too good to be true. The idea that one can withdraw salary on any day of the month is no longer an alien concept, pun intended. People literally turning into aliens in this ad is bound to draw the attention of viewers. Thus, increasing the chances of Jupiter being Googled. It makes us want to know more and that keeps it safe from getting a Meh.
MEH
Brand – Clovia
Agency – Dharma 2.0
Direct-to-consumer (D2C) firm Clovia’s first TV spot plays true to the typical category codes of a new age lingerie brand. Women including the brand ambassador Shraddha Kapoor are shown living it up and moving freely donning various types of lingerie. The drawback of this campaign is that it is very repetitive. Clovia could have used a more novel storyline to stand out in a rather cluttered lingerie advertising space.
MAST
Brand – Instagram
Agency – DDB Mudra
There couldn’t have been a better set of reel-sized ads to promote Instagram Reels. Advocating that anyone can make a Reel out of anything in life is as real and true it can get. The next time you are running out of ideas to make a Reel, watch this set of ads. We bet you will get loads of hearts and shares. Maybe we should make a Reel of our reactions watching Mast ads like these. What do you think? Let us know.
MEH
Brand – Nourish
Agency – Leads Brand Connect
Featuring grown up celebrities as children/teenagers is strictly not funny. Brands that use this format try too hard to grab consumers’ attention and it doesn’t always translate well onto screens. This spot is unnecessarily wordy. In a cluttered ad market, categories like dry fruits can do a lot more than this with and without celebrities. Munching on some almonds would help for a better flow of creativity.
MAST
Brand – Iodex
Agency – Leo Burnett
Iodex’s “Har Din Jeet Meri” campaign plays well in the progressive narrative. It features a young female cadet who has set out to achieve her dream of becoming an IPS officer. She is shown undergoing gruelling physical training sessions where she experiences severe backaches. The brand (Ultra Gel) comes to her rescue in this situation. Iodex has come a long way from showing homemakers to women who are willing to take on hardships to achieve their dreams. This one is a winner.
MEH
Brand – Ferrero India
Agency – Big Bang Social
Where do we even start? Is it the cringe ‘Roshans love Rocher’ tagline or the fact that the execution of this Christmas campaign seems like a carbon copy of the brand’s Diwali spot. Ferrero India missed a huge opportunity of creating a heart-warming holiday ad which fits in perfectly in the gifting category. This one missed a golden opportunity to dish out something sweet.
MAST
Brand – MTV India
Campaign – #WorldsGreatestShow
Have you ever imagined what it would be like if Mughal-e-Azam’s Akbar-Salim-Anarkali were bitten by the FIFA World Cup’s bug? How amusing would it be to see them go gaga over football star Lionel Messi? MTV taps on the ongoing fever of the football fans through #WorldsGreatestShow. An interesting storyline, it is the non-pretentious expressions of the characters followed by their apt comic timing which flows easily into the story and makes us watch the ad film on repeat. Would the thought of Anarkali cheering for Messi behind the walls ever cross our imagination? How about the iconic filmy characters speaking in Hinglish? Well, these result in making the commercial a MAST watch.
MEH
Brand – Ferns N Petals
Campaign – Khaas Gifts
Agency – Media.Monks
Mithila Palkar and The Great Khali have a great on-screen presence. There is no doubt about that. But, why aren’t the creative heads going an extra mile in spinning an interesting storyline that does not reduce them to being props? That was the question that popped in our minds after watching the commercials of Ferns N Petals. As the ad films began to roll, interest began to set in. But, the commercial’s abrupt ending fizzled out our interest.
MAST
Brand – Britannia Nutri Choice
Agency – Talented
In which Talented trusted Shayak Roy from Lucifer Circus to launch Britannia Nutrichoice's healthiest cookie yet… with its trippiest commercial yet. #LoveYouRiya @TalentedAgency x Lucifer Circus x @BritanniaIndLtd pic.twitter.com/ZTQ8DJcp4I
— PG (@PGAditiya) December 7, 2022
In this ad we see all the ingredients used in the ‘cookie’ personified as actual human beings carrying out their roles. Chia, one of the ingredients nitpicks and criticises, asking why so many ingredients are required in the cookie. This is when the wise ‘Ashwagandha’ explains how every ingredient is essential in boosting the immunity of the consumer. It’s an entertaining concept.