Review Corner

Ajio — The World’s Best Brands Play Here

This 45-second film — essentially a game of cricket in heels and fancy clothing — released during IPL makes a case for Ajio rather stylishly. The pitch is an airstrip, all the players are dressed to the hilt, and the umpire is busy touching up her make-up. The hip soundtrack and unconventional setting conceptualised by Phantom Ideas make it an enjoyable watch.

Rating: 9/10

CashKaro — The Magic of #CashOverCoins

CashKaro hops on the Cred-bashing bandwagon with this TVC made in-house. The first part of the video is a poor spoof of the Cred ad — a wig-sporting man imitating actor Jim Sarbh — while the second part is a monologue about how CashKaro doesn’t just offer points and coins but actual cashback. While the brand promise is compelling, the execution is humdrum, relying solely on the assumption that consumers are familiar with the Cred ads.

Rating: 3/10

Motilal Oswal — Avoid DIY disasters

The team at Motilal Oswal has attempted to create funny scenarios resulting out of people doing things they aren’t good at, on their own. It falls flat because, to do so, the brand resorts to stereotyping — a fat guy, who can’t swim, almost drowns in a pool, a lanky person has a fall trying to deadlift, and such. The digital film ends with happy faces having sought expert advice, but doesn’t quite create an impression.

Rating: 5/10

Finolex Pipes — Motichoor Laddoo

Ogilvy gives a product as dreary as pipes a fun twist in this campaign. An unassuming man outside a sweets shop is drawn into an inane conversation by Virender Sehwag about how nobody knows who created the ever-so-popular motichoor laddoo. Just like the timeless laddoo, he says, things that are long lasting are often forgotten. The ad ends with Sehwag sitting on a throne made of pipes — à la Game of Thrones — telling consumers to instal the product once and forget all about it.

Rating: 8/10

Snapdeal — Brand waali quality, bazaar waali deal

Snapdeal’s attempt to address ‘brand obsession’ among shoppers with a bizarre dinner table conversation fails to elicit any laughs. Actor Riteish Deshmukh, visibly enjoying the food made by his mother-in-law, asks her the brand name of her hands. What follows are pained expressions of family members and a word of advice that product quality matters more than brand names. The ad, created in partnership with All things small and EO2, is underwhelming.

Rating: 5/10

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