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For decades, a kirana (grocery) shop was a thrilling place for kids. Various glass bottles lined up at the counter containing candies and toffees, individually wrapped, with varied shapes and colours. A gleeful look would brighten up a child’s face as he or she paid a small sum for these delights. Not much has changed at smaller grocery shops. Even today, adults relive their childhood as they gaze at the displayed bottles, often tempted to try one toffee.

<strong>Parle Melody and Competition</strong>

In the highly competitive confectionary space with many established brands and some local ones as well, the confectionary products were price sensitive. Customers felt that getting more quantity of these goodies was more important than of what kind. To differentiate oneself from the competition was a tall task for candy brands.

Tough competition came from behemoths like Cadbury (now Mondelez) with its offerings like Eclairs, a toffee with oozy chocolate filling. Eclairs was a success and had literally created a new space and a dominant position for itself in this sub-category.

Parle’s Melody was somewhat similar. It had a caramel coated, softer exterior, with chocolate filling inside which could be seen from the side, adding to its visual appeal.

Against this background, Parle sought to differentiate Melody from the tough competition.

<strong>The Brief and the Creative</strong>

Everest was the advertising agency given this daunting task to showcase Melody as being better and containing extra chocolate, without actually stating it and creating comparisons with other brands. Haresh Moorjani was leading the creative team and he struck on a brilliant idea. The idea was to show the kind of people that children admired or aspired to be (like a magician), asking a question about Melody and having the child giving a reply. Copywriter Sulekha Bajpai was part of the team and she wrote down a few lines.

Then the day dawned to present the idea to the client, Parle. Like many creative people do, Sulekha kept on refining the lines she had written, as she waited in the reception area of Parle’s office.

She finally struck gold. “Melody ke andar itni chocolate kaise bhari batao?”, the answer to which was the now famous response, “Melody khao, khud jaan jao”. The jingle, “Melody hai chocolatey, Melody hai chocolatey”, added energy, rhythm and helped emphasize the chocolateyness of Melody in the customers’ mind. A pleased Haresh and Sulekha presented this concept.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EdJSuddDfl4" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>


<strong>Makings of the Melody Ad Film</strong>

Since Melody was to be marketed in rural and urban areas, television advertising was a logical choice for the large, dispersed audience. These ad films were done by Sanjeev Sharma of Palette Communications.

The TV commercials primarily targeted children. And each ad film had a familiar setting like a playground, a classroom, or an aspirational one like a magician’s act. One ad showed a sports coach asking “Melody itni chocolatey kaise hai?”, and in another it was the puzzled class teacher who asked that question. The young sportsman, or a school kid, would enthusiastically answer the question “Melody khao, khud jan jao”. The answer was like an invitation, even a challenge, to find out for themselves.

In another ad, a young glamorous film star was asked the same question by someone from the cheering crowd, and she smiled and invited one to eat Melody and find out for themselves. All question how so much chocolate got into a toffee. The answer created a sense of mystery and tantalized the audience to try the product for themselves, “Melody khao, khud jan jao”.

The jingle at the end announced the chocolateyness of Melody, “Melody hai chocolatey, Melody hai chocolatey”.

<strong>Impact of the TV Commercial</strong>

The very different approach of using human curiosity in the television advertising to draw the customers to try the toffee was rewarded. The Melody television commercials were a hit. And it really couldn’t get any chocolatey-er for less than one rupee. 

Even today Melody ads continue to ask the question, how is Melody so chocolatey? 

Decades later, Bollywood movie Chichhore made this classic line contemporary again. The movie character, played by Sushant Singh Rajput, asks a canteen staff member, “Yeh aloo hai yah kaddu?” and the staff member replies, “Melody khao, khud jaan jao”.

Melody today remains a part of the bouquet of other confectioneries that Parle offers, but retains its unique place in the hearts of the customers.

<strong>Subodh Tagare is an Associate Professor at IMT Nagpur, where he teaches courses on marketing. Prior to IMT, Subodh was the marketing director at American Power Conversion/ Schneider Electric for South Asia. </strong>
<strong>
S Vejay Anand consults with organizations on business strategy and marketing. He has also been an entrepreneur in the food and pet care spaces. Earlier he was President at Coffee Day and COO at USPL.  </strong>

Throwback: Melody - very very chocolatey

<strong>MAST
Naukri - #MyKindaNaukri
Agency – In house</strong>

<iframe title="Flopchain | #MyKindaNaukri" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q80lJqv0zX0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

A lot has changed when it comes to the way we work in the post-pandemic world, and Naukri.com’s new campaign reflects the new reality. From flexi work hours and remote work options to opting for a company that allows Mast &amp; Meh logoone to use future technologies, the campaign features all possible scenarios that go through a job seeker’s mind currently. This spot gets into technologies like blockchain, which the myopic manager in the film calls “flopchain”. The campaign scores high on relatability.

<strong>MEH
Duroflex - Asli Neend
Agency – Tilt Brand Solutions</strong>

<iframe title="Asli Neend with Duroflex | Ft. Alia Bhatt" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wtCP_zNDaXU" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

If the mattress won’t help you sleep, then this ad might. Alia Bhatt delivers her lines suitably well in this spot that uses the formulaic celebrity advertising codes where it hardly holds the attention of the viewer and belts out product details. At one point, it almost seems like Bhatt is reading from a catalog. Yawn inducing. Perhaps the client and agency could get more creative after a little asli neend.

<strong>MAST
Parle Products
Agency: Thought Blurb Communications
Bungalow Friends:</strong>

<iframe title="Parle Marie Bengali | Bungalow Friends" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FkMZw3Ayt-A" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Brigade Ground Moms:

<iframe title="Parle Marie Bengali | Brigade Ground Moms" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mUg6YY5IBCQ" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

These spots are as comforting as a cup of hot tea and as crisp as a biscuit. A lot happens over tea and Marie biscuit in Bengal. ‘Cha-adda’ (chat over tea) is almost a tradition in the state. These new TVCs from Parle Marie for the Bengali market address this tradition of adda. Full marks for telling a story and not bombarding the viewer with product shots.

<strong>MEH
Licious - Ready-to-Cook Biryani
Agency: In-house</strong>

<iframe title="Enjoy meatier Mutton Biryani at home! | Licious Ready-to-Cook Biryani" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Xrr5ifU2R34" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

All good things take time. Creativity is not an instant mix. Making biryani like instant noodles with ready mixes is a dream come true for some biryani eaters but with such an innovative product, Licious has hardly used any creativity to put together a story. Three people find the biryani they ordered has mainly rice and very little meat. Cut to close up of Licious’ ready-to-cook biryani mix. Let’s hope the biryani doesn’t taste as bland as the ad.

<strong>MAST
Ferns N Petals - Sneh Rakhi
Agency: MediaMonks India</strong>

<iframe title="FNP Sneh Rakhi Ad Film 2022 featuring Adah Sharma" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DJ-8pcyW_Cw" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Ferns N Petals’ new ad might get a tear out of you with its touching storyline. Featuring actor Adah Sharma, it shows the young woman scrolling through the site when she is interrupted by her colleague. Sharma explains that she is looking for a special rakhi gift for her ‘super special brother’. In the next scene we find out who he is. The ad doesn’t forcefully tug at your heartstrings and that’s why it gets a thumbs up from us.

<strong>MEH
Himalaya Purifying Neem Face Wash - For Pimples, Trust Science
Agency: 82.5 Communications</strong>

<iframe title="For Pimples, Trust Science – Himalaya Purifying Neem Face Wash (Hindi)" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/10IOcdRW2mA" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

The eternal battle between regular soap and face wash. Who is the better pimple annihilator? Perhaps there’s too much science and too little creativity at play here. We get it. There’s a short window to tell the viewer about all the product benefits in a comprehensible way. This ad does a fine job of that. But that’s it. The pimple won’t disappear overnight but this spot will go by in a flash into a sea of sameness.

<strong>MAST
Redmi - Duniya Chamkegi
Production House - Momo Media</strong>

<iframe title="Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G - Duniya Chamkegi" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cGC6i7odCRk" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

It’s refreshing to see a smartphone ad one might actually remember. Taking inspiration from detergent powder brand Tide’s safedi swipe, Redmi takes a fun approach to showing viewers its bright and sharp camera functionality. It creates instant connection and is simple and sharp.

<strong>MEH
Redcliffe Labs</strong>

<iframe title="Meet the new Superwoman in town - Sudha, who gets her Full Body Checkup Regularly | Redcliffe Labs" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NX6voPldn3o" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

People who gossip are everywhere - in parks, WhatsApp groups and even ads. This ad features women who live in the same neighborhood gossiping about their neighbour Sudha, a super-energetic, fun-loving, fit and versatile woman who never seems to tire. We find out at the end that the secret to her happiness is regular check-ups. The creators were onto something interesting here but didn't quite land it well.

Mast & Meh: Parle serves a crisp ad, a Licious biryani spot flops; plus Naukri, Duroflex, Redmi ads review

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