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The picture that says it all

Jyoti Verma

This year, India arrived on the world advertising cine stage. The minute-long dramatic saga of a cut-out character in Chennai, who "began as an action hero, later became a political icon and eventually ended up as a zero" got the world talking. The most celebrated Nakka Mukka campaign at Cannes this year certainly caught the pulse of the city of Chennai. "The campaign had local knowledge, the way people live life in the city and a picturisation that said it all," says celebrated ad filmmaker and director, Corcoise Films, Prasoon Pandey.

According to Pandey, Indian ad makers used to be in the West-oriented ‘me too’ mode till the last decade, but have now become more confident of themselves. And the results are there for all to see! "Today we pick our own issues and present ourselves the way we are. An amazing ad like Happydent showed our problem (of power) and our kind of jugaad (fun solution) to become big hits," Pandey illustrates, adding, "The same thing happened in Fevicol’s Pakde Rehna Chhodna Nahin campaign where people stuck together with Fevicol."

After loads of trial and error, ad filmmaking in India is now at its buzzing best. The number of ad films has grown tremendously over the last couple of years — especially with new businesses, production houses and television channels multiplying. On the one hand there are themes drawn from animation (Vodafone’s Zoo Zoos, etc), a bygone era (Cadbury’s Aaj Pehli Tarikh Hai campaign), and Bollywood (Panasonic’s ad starring Ranbir Kapoor). While on the other hand, there are a few attempts that keep the message straightforward (Vodafone’s Irfan Khan campaign), humorous (Virgin Mobile, etc), social (Idea Cellular) and musical (Airtel, etc)! Apart from executing the theme interestingly — using toddlers to professionals to elders to animals — ad filmmakers take care of the basic details to connect the storyboard to the brand and its consumers.

"The response I got on the Incredible India and Zoo Zoo projects showed how public feedback can be so rewarding even for an ad filmmaker, who otherwise does not enjoy credits, except from people in the industry who are aware of his work," says Prakash Varma, director, Nirvana Films. The best part today, however, remains the space ad filmmakers get from their clients. "Ad agencies are now willing to take risks, think out-of-the-box and create commercials that are relevant to the milieu," adds Varma.

Considering great ad attempts like Happydent, Zoo Zoo, Nakka Mukka in India’s kitty, one wonders what the mantra of a ‘bestselling ad film’ is. While a few filmmakers believe it calls for lots of reading and research, others insist that it’s the theme that should be kept simple. For Varma, the trick is not in showing off one’s creative talent and overpowering a concept, but in doing justice to the idea and capturing only what is essential to communicate a story or mood effectively. For Pandey, the secret lies in the skill of listening! Listening to the client and the consumer — even when there is criticism! "Today, consumers have become more mature and are asking for more. It is dangerous to think that admakers have become sharper in their ideas and execution and that consumers have been left behind. ‘The audience always knows more’, and we’d better keep this in mind," says Pandey.

Vikram Kalra, producer, Good Morning Films, the maker of Nakka Mukka, agrees. "At times, reinventing and keeping up with the times becomes a challenge. Then comes maintaining the good work," he adds.

With creative think tanks trying to get better at home, good global results are bound to follow. Varma believes that the country is doing better than many others in several aspects. "We are probably one country that makes the most number of films, in the least amount of time and with stringent budgets — all these with great quality output and fantastic ideas," he says with pride. And few would disagree with the statement!