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Experts Speak On Key Emerging Trends In Cannes Lions Entries

Leaders of the future have to be outstanding human beings: Nestle MD

In conversation with VMLY&R’s Hari Ramanathan

<strong>MAST</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Oakley

<strong>Campaign:</strong> Be Who You Are

<strong>Agency:</strong> Brandmovers India

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Growing up, we were constantly asked to fit into the mould of societal expectations. Somewhere, amongst the increasing noise, doubts, aspirations and constant chatter, ‘being ourselves’ took a backseat. We forgot to focus on ourselves, be comfortable with making mistakes, and taking risks.

The latest commercial by Oakley stays true to its value of “Be Who You Are.” As the ad film rolls on, right from the hopes of 1.3bn people being shouldered by cricketer Rohit Sharma, to the doubts and noise surrounding him, the commercial shows how Sharma does not let the people’s uncertainties stop him from always giving his best. The ad film conveys the message of being your authentic self, and the importance of knowing “Who you are", where every frame of the film radiates courage and confidence. Overall, the ad film gets a thumbs up for its realism on a crucial subject.

<strong>MEH</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> NutriGlow

<strong>Campaign:</strong> NutriGlow

<strong>Agency:</strong> In-house

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For years, most of the ads that touched upon the subject of beauty have either been explanatory in nature, or had a pair of girls dancing to stress upon the brand, and convey positive effects. NutriGlow’s latest campaign follows the same unsatisfactory pattern. Actor Genelia Deshmukh along with a bunch of girls are portrayed as ‘GlowGirls’ who are moving to a beat to highlight NutriGlow’s varied range of products. However, Deshmukh, who serves as the brand ambassador for the brand and is known for her bubbly and fun loving nature could not save the commercial from being a dull and disappointing one to watch. An engaging and different storyline could have prevented a Meh.

<strong>Mast</strong> 

<strong>Brand</strong> - Thums Up

<strong>Agency</strong> - Ogilvy India

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From sitting on tree-tops, listening to radio commentary to gathering around paan shops, Indians have found many unique ways to tune in to their favourite cricket matches. Cola brand Thums Up, plans to provide cricket fans in India with a never seen before, innovative experience through in its feature. The ad featuring Jasprit Bumrah, Umran Malik and Brett Lee, showcases an option that allows you to experience watching an ICC T20 World Cup match through a camera fitted in a wicket. Fans will have to scan a QR code on the Thums Up bottle to get access to the camera feed and become part of this immersive experience. That is as close as one can get to being present at the actual game. If this works, it is bound to leave all cricket fans stumped!

<strong>Meh</strong>

<strong>Brand</strong> - Casio India

<strong>Agency</strong> - In-house

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Are you an over-thinker? Yes? Then Casio’s latest ad is definitely one for you. The film opens with a student, who asks his father to buy him a Casio calculator. When his father asks if he can get any other calculator if he doesn’t find one by Casio, the son starts to overthink a series of probable events and scenarios that might impact his life, all due to the repercussions of using an ordinary non-Casio calculator. While the concept works well on paper, the execution doesn’t translate well onto screens. A great concept, poorly planned and executed resulted in us providing this spot, a meh. 

<strong>Mast</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Tata Motors

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Festive ads can seem too filmy and over the top with all the songs, dances and unnecessary drama around festivities. However, sometimes there are ads that truly have a feel good factor to it. The Durga Puja TVC from Tata Motors is a perfect example. The ad features the most celebrated actor of Bengali cinema, Prosenjit Chatterjee for the spot but not in a way you’d normally expect. His presence is subtle. His role is of the narrator who acts like a catalyst, adding a slight hint of glamour to the ad without being completely involved in it. The narrative is clean and well packaged with the integration of car features that seamlessly blend in. In true festive fashion, there is a sweet story, a great song and a product that is being rightfully celebrated. All the fun elements work perfectly in unison which makes this new TVC from Tata Motors a good one to watch. A definite Mast in our books. 

<strong>Meh</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Hindware

<strong>Agency:</strong> In-house

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Hindware has a new TV campaign – ‘Go Larger Than Life’  starring actor Tamanna Bhatia and The Great Khali. This is the first ever TVC from Hindware Italian Collection since the company forayed into the tiles segment. The tiles shown in the spot look beautiful and appealing for sure but unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the spot itself. With an inane narrative and an unnecessary objectification of a tall man being compared to huge tiles is unimpressive and doesn’t leave a good lasting impression. A very poor concept and even poorer execution awards this spot a MEH 

<strong>MAST</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Cadbury Dairy Milk

<strong>Campaign:</strong> Cadbury Dairy Milk Bodyguard – Kissi aur ki Khushi mein shaamil hokar dekhiye

<strong>Agency:</strong> Ogilvy India

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Tigmanshu Dhulia never fails to impress viewers with his performances. In this spot, his appearance as a politician paints him as a ‘larger than life’ character. Dhulia, who is seen making his way towards the dais along with his bodyguards amidst the cheering crowd, to celebrate the success of one of his guard’s daughters who cleared the medical entrance exam is warm and comforting to watch. He is seen feeding the daughter a piece of Cadbury Dairy Milk as a token of appreciation and celebration. The ad film stays true to its message “Kissi aur ki Khushi mein shaamil hokar dekhiye.” A ‘Mast’ watch in our opinion. 

<strong>MEH</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Myntra

<strong>Campaign:</strong> Myntra Big Fashion Festival

<strong>Agency:</strong> In-house

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The absence of any fun factor for an ad that aims to be comical is very evident right from the start. The campaign, which aims to promote Myntra’s Big Fashion Festival does not really generate any curiosity to check out how interesting the fashion festival might be. Even the presence of celebrity couple Virat Kohli and  Anushka Sharma, does not seem to add any drama to the dulness. Ironically, Myntra’s idea of using ignorance to draw attention not only tanked on screen but also failed to attract audiences in real life. An interesting build up to the story along with some festive cheer to promote the fashion festival could have prevented a Meh.

<strong>Mast</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Coca Cola

<strong>Agency:</strong> In house

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Durga Puja for Bengalis is like a five-day long party. Like any party, food and soft drinks are an important part of this celebration. So if you are telling a Durga Puja story and you add food and soft drinks to it, you definitely make for a good storyteller. This new puja anthem from Coca Cola is a perfect spot for the pre-festive weeks. Casting the OG cool guys of Bengal (read members of Bengali band Chandrabindoo) and the catchy song add to the festive mood and cheer. The ad comes with its share of glam factor too, with Bengali superstar Dev adding spark and being a part of the 39 second screenplay. Overall, Coca Cola has done a great job with capturing the mood of the Bengal market right now with everyone preparing for the upcoming celebrations. 

<strong>Meh</strong>

<strong>Brand:</strong> Pantaloons

<strong>Agency:</strong> Production: KITCHEN, Concept: Ogilvy

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Rap songs and hip/hop as a genre are very popular with millennials and Gen Z. However, when used in an ad, it resonates only if executed and performed well. Unfortunately, this new Durga Puja spot from Pantaloons banks on a below average rap jingle that pulls down the overall vibe of the piece. Moreover, the Bengali voice overs are heavily accented. It could’ve been done on purpose to go with the background score but doesn’t help the tune in any way. It stands out as  a noticeable blunder. The song, the script and overall performance of the cast makes this a wannabe number desperate for attention. We’re still on the look out for an ad that captures Gen Z mentality correctly and executes it well. 

<strong>MAST</strong>

<strong>Brand</strong> - The Body Shop

<strong>Agency</strong> - In house

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Breaking the popular notion that young citizens are becoming increasingly apathetic towards societal issues, The Body Shop launches a campaign calling upon policy makers to evaluate lowering the age of candidacy in the Lok Sabha from 25 to 21 years of age. The goal is to get greater youth representation in the Lok Sabha. To spread the message, the brands video campaign features young leaders from across the country including Sudhanshu Kaushik, founder, Young India Foundation (27), Jalandhar High Court lawyer Inderpreet Kaur (24) and Sachin Rathod, independent panch ingalangi (29) talking about their efforts in bringing change in society thereby inspiring others. The ‘Be Seen Be Heard’ initiative is being rolled out through a partnership with Young India Foundation. The WHY25 drive has been launched across India at all The Body Shop stores in September 2022 and will run till end 2024 in over 25 states with offline and online petitions to support the cause. Now, that's what you call a brand with a purpose. A mast ad, definitely a great watch. 

<strong>MEH</strong>

<strong>Brand</strong> - Levi’s India

<strong>Agency</strong> - Spring Marketing Capital

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Levi's India’s series of ads with Deepika Padukone follow a pattern that has become repetitive and boring. In the new ad Padukone is seen in a space that needs to be set up and decorated. The camera follows her doing various chores like pushing a sofa into place, sticking a poster on a wall while ambling around with her friends, etc dressed in a new baggy Levi’s jeans of course. The spot ends abruptly leaving viewers confused. While Levi's baggy collection might be in vogue, its advertising seems really last season! It’s time for a refresh. 


<strong>MAST</strong>

<strong>Brand</strong> – Bombae Fuzz Off Trimmer | Painless hair removal for women

<strong>Agency/Production House</strong> – Talented, StudioFry

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This 30 seconder is an edgy one. It’s probably the only hair removal brand that has shown body hair before women shave/wax/trim it off. Bombae says #FuzzOff to societal expectations. It shows the pain women go through to go hairless and attempts to normalise never-seen-before body hair imageries. An empowering ad that breaks boundaries. It’s a mast watch because it is changing the narrative of the category.


<strong>MEH</strong>

<strong>Brand</strong> – Manyavar | Taiyaar Hokar Aaiye

<strong>Agency</strong> - Shreyansh Innovations

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The hyperactive actor Ranveer Singh for the new commercial of Manyavar is featured as a spunky wedding photographer. For a change, he is dressed perfectly fine. However, he singles out a suit-clad ‘mausaji’ by saying he is ruining the perfect family photo in his western outfit. Okay, we get it, this was all supposed to be in good fun and maybe for the sake of advertising. However, we think the brand could have picked a better line of thought to stitch the script. After all, isn’t fashion a personal choice? Shouldn’t Singh know that better than anyone else?



Mast & Meh: Oakley, Thums Up, Tata Motors, Myntra, Levi's India

With the ICC T20 Men’s World Cup scheduled to kickstart from 16 October, brands are in overdrive promoting the event. 

Thums Up, Coca-Cola India’s homegrown brand, has unveiled a new ‘StumpCam’ campaign to provide fan with exclusive access to match footage and content. Thums Up says that it will be adopting a digital-first, multi-tech marketing approach to drive consumer engagement for the content-led campaign.

The campaign, which features cricketers and superstar bowlers Jasprit Bumrah, Umran Malik, and Brett Lee, is promoting how fans get access to match moments, straight from the pitch.

After each World Cup match, the Stump Cam video of cricketing moments will be accessible to viewers by scanning a QR code on the Thums Up bottle. 
 
Arnab Roy, vice president & head-marketing, Coca-Cola India & Southwest Asia, says, “Thums Up’s “Stump Cam” will offer audiences the most ‘Toofani’ view of key moments of the tournament - leveraging the Stump Cam footage was a disruptive opportunity that would bring to fans a complete new way of experiencing the game. This is the first time we are doing a content-led campaign, voiced by cricketing stalwarts like Harsha Bhogle."

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The campaign film has been conceptualized by Ogilvy. 

Ritu Sharda, chief creative officer, Ogilvy India- North, says, “From sitting on tree-tops, to gathering around paan shops, India has watched cricket in every possible way. But we wanted to give Thums Up fans an opportunity to get the most toofani ‘view’ in the house and frankly that's where Thums Up Stump Cam found its genesis. We wanted people to really feel the rush of a ball coming right at them at 95 mph. We wanted them to experience cricket, like a cricketer does, right from the middle of the pitch. We are partnering with ICC and Oaktree Sports, for a 24-hour match to pack to screen marathon."
 
Thums Up has been a long standing partner of the ICC (International Cricket Council). The Coca-Cola Company has a long history of partnering with major sporting events around the world, including an eight-decade long association with the Olympics, four decades with the FIFA, and nearly 25 years with World Cup Rugby. 



Thums Up unveils new ad campaign ahead of ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022

Homegrown brand Thums Up was launched in 1977. Nearly five decades after its launch, an acquisition by Coca-Cola Company in 1993 and many ‘Toofans’ later, it became the first home-grown billion dollar beverage brand. Storyboard18 spoke with Arnab Roy, vice president, marketing Coca-Cola India and South West Asia, about the next milestone for the brand. Roy says, "It will be an incremental billion dollars in the next three years."

Homegrown brand Thums Up is close to Indians' hearts in many ways. From a go-to drink with or after a heavy meal to the classic pairing of Old Monk and Thums Up on a rainy day, the brand has found a place in everyday occasions over the past 45 years.

Its strong fizz makes it a leading brand in the Coca-Cola Company’s portfolio, globally, and also one of the leading players in the aerated beverage market in the country.

Just a few months ago Thums Up became the first home-grown billion-dollar Indian beverage brand. James Quincey, CEO of Coca-Cola Company attributed this growth to focused marketing and execution plans for the brand in India.

But there is more opportunity for the brand to grow, feels Roy. He tells Storyboard18, “The overall penetration of the brand is still very small, if you look at India’s opportunity and size. We will have another incremental billion dollars in the next three years. If we have the right strategy then it is absolutely possible.”

Roy shares three things that are important to make it happen. “We need to continue to make it relevant with everyday culture. This is our largest brand. It needs to be an iconic brand with every generation. So obliviously how well we are able to keep it relevant with the culture is critical." 

Second, he adds, is "how we are able to ensure that we build occasions around the brand. Which honestly we haven’t done a very good job of. I think it is seen as a powerful brand but how well do you make it relevant with everyday occasions? That is a big vertical we are working on." 

Third, how can this brand innovate? "We recently launched our first super soda-Charge by Thums up. And we are excited by its potential. It is not a cola. As we start thinking how big Thums Up can become with the power of what the brand stands for, I think the opportunity is endless.”

As a part of keeping itself relevant to everyday culture, the brand recently unveiled the #HarHaathToofan campaign around the 75 years of India’s Independence. 

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The campaign features inspirational stories of athletes like former Indian national cricket team captain and current President – BCCI, Sourav Ganguly, who instilled self-belief and fearlessness in the Indian cricket team. It also has Avani Lekhara, first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics, firing her way to the top, despite losing her legs in an accident when she was 11 years old. And Nikhat Zareen, Indian Boxer and IBA Women’s World Boxing 2022 gold medalist, who became a world champion by showcasing great endurance and fortitude in a sport, which was traditionally considered masculine. 

The new campaign is an extension of #PalatDe, which was initially unveiled last year during Thums Up’s worldwide partnership with the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020. “This is part two of what we started off last year. We started with the Olympics and the idea of ‘Palat De’ started there. The response was outstanding both from brand equity and the impact on the business. So it was clear that we had to go back and activate this once again. We don’t think there was a better opportunity than the 75th year of India’s independence." 

Besides a TV campaign, there is going to be a lot of activation, content development with people who are making an actual impact in India’s progress so far. "We are working with Sudarshan Patnaik, the famous sand sculptor in Orissa, and other amazing artists. We're also working with chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa. That is the power of the campaign. We have so many people around us who are making an impact and that is what is going to make the difference. It's an infinite number of stories,” says Roy.

But is the challenging economic environment impacting their plans?

“So far we have had a fantastic year,” says Roy. “One of our best Q2 ever. India is the fastest growing operating unit worldwide for the Coca Cola Company and Thums Up has played a big role in it. Are there challenges? Absolutely. After everything that has happened, Covid, what’s happened in Ukraine, the supply chain issues are not small. We were lucky that there was enough demand but on the flip side it was the highest out of stock percentage that we saw across all our brands. We have never seen such high out of stock numbers.”

Roy says that they will continue to be bullish on the India economic opportunity. The company believes that India will be one of the few markets that can ride through any possible recession that may happen in the West.

He does acknowledge that inflation is a challenge. “It is hitting us. But we will have to have a smart plan on the commercial side, working on revenue growth management on how we can still manage to overcome the challenges that inflation poses.”

<blockquote>
"Thums Up is seen as a powerful brand but how well do you make it relevant with everyday occasions? That is a big vertical we are working on." </blockquote>

But, at the same time he is very clear that they have no plans to cut their marketing budget. “We will play with our pack mix instead,” says Roy. “When I say pack mix, it is very critical for us to ensure that we are able to offer affordable price points for our consumers. For Indian consumers, affordability is still critical. As we have a long way to go to recruit more consumers, I think this is going to be critical. We are trying to ensure that on the affordable packs, we are not making big price increases." 

However, he adds that there could be opportunity to increase prices on certain packs and certain channels. "Therefore, how your pack mix allows you to overcome those inflation challenges is what all of us are working on everyday right now.”


Thums Up needs to be an iconic brand with every generation

“We will have another incremental billion dollars in the next three years for the home-grown billion dollar brand Thums Ups,” says Arnab Roy, vice president and head of marketing, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia to Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat. He also talks about the brand’s new advertising campaign #HarHaathToofan.

<iframe title="Coca Cola's Arnab Roy On Thums Up New Campaign 'Har Haath Toofan' | Storyboard 18 | CNBC-TV18" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fXe4to9HL4Q" width="853" height="480" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Coca-Cola's Arnab Roy on Thums Up’s new ad campaign #HarHaathToofan

<strong><span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start">﻿</span>MAST
Tata Steel - Raahi
Agency: Wunderman Thompson</strong>

Mast &amp; Meh logoThemes of diversity and inclusion are always welcome in advertising campaigns when it’s purposeful and not just tokenism. This film shows the story of a transgender woman and her success in corporate life. Simple and realistic storytelling is the essence of this new campaign and sits very well with the overall agenda of ‘#KholoMannKeDwaar. This is one of the many initiatives taken up by the brand to meet its target of creating a 25 percent diverse workforce by 2025.

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<strong>MAST
Mankind - #SearchNahiResearchKiSuno with AcneStar
Agency: SG Dream Media Ventures</strong>

It’s a relief to see that a pimple is not the cause of a woman losing a job, a man and her self-confidence, and a face wash is not the reason she gets it all back. This brand takes a step in the right direction with the spotlight put on the product when it says trust research, not search. We liked the realistic portrayal of the quest to nuke pimples - from drinking bitter, green smoothies to putting the “entire fruit chart on your face”. And the pimple does not stop the young woman from going about her everyday business like taking public transport or working without covering her face in embarrassment.

<iframe title="Pimple problem? #SearchNahiResearchKiSuno with AcneStar" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mLt5QgUsYRc" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>


<strong>MAST
Dezerv - ‘youdezervbetter’
Agency: Dezerv and Light@27</strong>

In this spot we see a news anchor named Shireen Sharma interviewing an influencer whose financial tips resulted in "an entire generation losing its life savings". With the rise of ‘finfluencers’ in the BFSI category, it was only a matter of time before the bubble burst. Recently, the indiscriminate promotion of crypto products and services by influencers has revealed the dangers of influencer marketing and its impact on consumers. Dezerv, however, takes an exaggerated and humorous approach to fire a serious shot at this cult of influencers while pitching itself as a superior and trustworthy wealth management brand.

<iframe title="World record set for investment research | dezerv." src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8wa7Z6C1qac" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>


<strong>MEH
Nivea - #BindaasTryKar
Agency: Publicis One Touch</strong>

The film features Nivea’s brand ambassador, actor Taapsee Pannu, who is seen painting a wall. As her friend hesitates to paint freely due to her rough and patchy underarms, Pannu advises her to ‘bindaas’ roll. We’ll skip the problem of the double entendre in that line and go straight to the real issue. When will we go past the narrative of patchy underarms, pimply skin, skin color, pores, body hair, etc, being the sole reason for a woman’s inability to do things like painting a wall or landing a job. Sure, many women would prefer smooth underarms, but rough ones aren’t stopping her from painting the town red.

<iframe title="NIVEA Pearl &amp; Beauty Deo Roll On | #BindaasTryKar | Hinglish" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MkbjU9veIFE" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>


<strong>MAST
Thums Up - #HarHaathToofan
Agency: Ogilvy India</strong>

Thums Up's new campaign commemorating 75 years of India’s independence presents an ode to inspirational people who’ve helped build India. The spot features inspirational stories of athletes like Sourav Ganguly, Avani Lekhara, first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics, and Nikhat Zareen, Indian Boxer and IBA Women’s World Boxing 2022 gold medalist. What stands out, though, is the captivating animation and creative visualization complimented with a compelling background score and poetry that evokes deep patriotism.

<iframe title="75 years of India’s Independence | Har Haath Toofan" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/32w8igx8zB4" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>


<strong>MEH
Cadbury Dairy Milk - #ConnectedRakhi
Agency: Ogilvy India</strong>

We always appreciate when creativity marries tech to create something truly breakthrough in advertising. We’ve seen Indian agencies set new benchmarks by deploying technology creatively in the work. And Cadbury has been leading that charge along with a few other brands. But its new initiative falters. The brand has its heart in the right place when it comes to the insight of helping brothers spend more quality time with sisters this Rakhi. However, leveraging bluetooth enabled #ConnectedRakhi which needs to be connected with an app with a sign-up for it to work seems tedious. Cadbury says that sisters can upload a voice clip of their brother's promise on the app. The sister ties the connected rakhi on the brother’s arm, while it is paired with her phone. If the brother moves away from her or tries to leave, her phone plays the brother’s audio recording where he promised to spend the day with her. Too complex for its own good. This isn't a case of creativity marrying tech, it’s a case
of technology demolishing creativity.

<iframe title="Cadbury Celebration | #ConnectedRakhi" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b_f1Y-s1ZY0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>


<strong>MAST
WhatsApp - Scam Se Bacho
Agency: BBDO India</strong>

WhatsApp in its biggest market is pinging in lyrical advertising messages. In a music video, the instant messaging app, narrates real-life situations in which we see how individuals are prone to scams. The film further highlights the message of staying safe and exercising caution while making digital payments. The brand’s take on the classic Hindi song ‘Aye Bhai, Zara Dekh Ke Chalo’ from Mera Naam Joker adds the right mix of nostalgia and relatability that cuts across generations. This spot is worthy of a WhatsApp forward at the very least.

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THUMS UP