Trevoc, the luxury real estate builders and construction company in Gurugram, has roped in Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan as its brand ambassadors.
Said Gurpal Singh Chawla, Managing Director, Trevoc, expressing his enthusiasm about this collaboration: “We are thrilled to welcome Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan to the TREVOC family. Their iconic status and shared values resonate deeply with our brand ethos of blending legacy with luxury. With their association, we aim to elevate the living experience and continue our legacy of excellence in the real estate domain.”
Dollar Industries, hosiery brand has collaborated with Saif Ali Khan as the face of Dollar Lehar,the affordable product segment of the brand. The new ad film conceptualised by Lowe Lintas, Kolkata and directed by Uzer Khan is set in the backdrop of Rajasthan.
Said Vinod Kumar Gupta, Managing Director, Dollar Industries Limited: “The lines of distinction between top metros and the rest of India is fast blurring when it comes to making a fashion statement. Increasing disposable incomes coupled with the aspiration to look as stylish as their metronome brethren cuts across Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities. As India’s homegrown innerwear brand, we decided to create a level playing ground for both our premium and economy segment and therefore we needed a communication which would appeal to these new evolving consumer segment who aspire for value-for-money fashion. The first step in that direction was to rope in Mr Saif Ali Khan to add to the style quotient of Dollar Lehar and then have a communication that would reflect his uber-cool persona through a witty plot and a memorable execution in the campaign Mastiki Lehar.”
Lay’s potato chips has roped in actor Saif Ali Khan as brand ambassador for its premium range slow-cooked kettle chips Lay’s Gourmet. A TVC showcasing Lay’s Gourmet chips as a flavour of the actor’s fine taste has been unveiled. He will continue to be a pivotal part of all future Lay’s Gourmet campaigns.
Said Shailja Joshi, Director-Marketing, Potato Chips Category, PepsiCo India: “We are thrilled to welcome Saif once again as a member of the Lay’s family, this time as the face of our range of slow-cooked premium kettle chips, Lay’s Gourmet. His impeccable taste and refined choices in life make him the perfect partner to showcase the crafted experience of Lay’s Gourmet. Our new TV commercial seamlessly establishes this correlation as it gives a sneak peek into what actually defines Saif as the connoisseur of finer things. We’re confident that our fans will embrace him as the face of Lay’s Gourmet, just like they’ve been savouring the well-deserved experience and rich taste of these delightful chips.”
Added Rajdeepak Das, CEO & Chief Creative Officer, South Asia, Leo Burnett: “When we think of royalty, we often associate it with opulence and grandeur. However, true royalty is characterized by a focus on quality and perfection, which is precisely what makes Lay’s Gourmet stand out. Crafted from fine ingredients, each chip is a testament to the pursuit of the best flavour and experience. And who better than the Nawab of Pataudi himself, Saif Ali Khan, who embodies the spirit of quality and sophistication, to bring alive the experience of Lays Gourmet.”
Posterscope, the location based marketing specialist, location specialist agency from Dentsu India, has launched its latest OOH (out-of-home) campaign for Pepperfry. Titled, ‘A meme perfect experience’, the campaign is India’s first memevertisement on OOH. The campaign has turned brand ambassadors, Saif Ali Khan & Kareena Kapoor Khan into memes on OOH.
Naveen Murali
Speaking on the campaign, Naveen Murali, Head of Marketing, Pepperfry said: “With Diwali right around the corner, we are back to opening up our homes to celebrations and hence, also setting up or upgrading our homes for this occasion. What Pepperfry offers is what the consumer of today seeks in their furniture shopping experience – the true omnichannel shopping experience. It offers the convenience of online shopping with endless choices and the possibility to experience the ones they wish to, up close at the walk-in studios. Outdoor as a medium needed to be treated differently and once the campaign creative was locked, Posterscope helped in crafting a perfect outdoor plan to break the clutter with innovative thinking and creative execution, backed by location-based intelligence.”
Imtiyaz Vilatra
Imtiyaz Vilatra, MD, Posterscope India added: “We got an opportunity to create INDIA’s FIRST OOH Meme campaign and left no stone unturned to create a high-impact campaign for the brand. The idea here remains to create buzz and drive talkability. With Diwali being a highly cluttered environment in OOH space, this MEME campaign truly broke that and made us stand out in minds of TG.”
Unless you are a Tata Sky subscriber or a digital algorithm picks you as a potential lead, you will likely miss out on these short, simple name change films. Additionally, these films talk of the new Tata Binge offer, including the addition of Netflix. The way the scriptwriter and the production team have managed the cast and the location itself with Covid restrictions is worth applauding.
The films feature the flamboyant Saif Ali Khan and beautiful Kareena Kapoor Khan. Saif continues to surprise us with his never acknowledged versatility. Kareena, like him, plays different avatars but with the same expression, smile and trademark pout. But, both deliver memorable short scripts. There are language films with different set of celebrities.
Is there a story there?
When a brand puts so much effort into Name Change, it suggests more than what meets the eye. The earlier name has the potential and most likely will come alive in a different Avatar sometime soon. Why would you otherwise spend so much time, effort, and media money to delink it from entertainment, TV, and Cable.
Is Tata Sky later going to the sky and being an airline. It is the right name for airline by the Tatas. Now, that is a guess and a long shot. However, even if Tata Sky never becomes the Airline it should be, I would still be at peace.
Did they leave the clue somewhere? What do you think?
Back To Tata Play.
SALESMAN- CUSTOMER PLAY
The first set is a customer-salesman interaction. The charming Saif Ali khan delivers for the brand, and Kareena does the rest. The story moves forward, and for a moment, I was taken back to Tata Chota Recharge memories and how successive episodes of TVC took the story further. The recharge advantage is shared in another short clip, and the Tata Binge app offer also gets delivered. Alas, the story shifts totally. Nevertheless, it is smartly done.
TEACHER PLAY
The next set of interplay is between two teachers. The History teacher enacted by Saif Ali Khan comments that Tata Sky ka Tata Play Hona eek historical moment hai. Was that more than necessary or a trap for people to think of Tata taking over Air India. The ad is nice.
The chemistry between the two actors is fabulous. Then it slowly weaves in the Free Service saving in a charming style. And the Netflix offer comes back.
DRIVER- MAID INTERPLAY.
The third set of scripts has the duo playing as Driver and the Maid. The interaction is still meticulously executed, and both actors deliver on the script. However, the series of messages primarily relate to name change, other than bringing alive the solo mobile viewing and the collective family viewing advantage on Tata Binge.
DIGITAL INTERPLAY.
The three different characters suggest selective advertisement placement based on consumer profile data. However, the characters and locations are not so polarized to make the best use of data that the brand and media could have. Maybe I am wrong, and the brand knows something more. However, on the Tata Play channels- all the advertisements continue in a loop.
However, the brand team, creative and production, have done commendable work in keeping it simple, engaging and delivering the message. Love the ads.
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Tata Play films are also made in regional languages with appropriate celebrities from the zone.. Here is one such film.
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JUST FOR CLICKS.
Here is one of my favourite communication from Tata Sky – 10 Rupay ka Chota Recharge. Enjoy.
Tata Sky –DTH and Pay TV platform has announced its new name and identity, Tata Play, as its business interests grow beyond DTH services.
The new identity has been created by Venturethree, London and the campaign has been designed by Ogilvy India. Kareena Kapoor Khan and Saif Ali Khan have been engaged to promote Tata Play in national markets and actors R Madhavan and Priyamani will be the face of the campaign for the South markets.
Said Harit Nagpal, MD & CEO – Tata Play Ltd: “Tata Sky leveraged its market leadership in its core business to create an ecosystem of content delivery by foraying into OTT and Broadband. We believe it is time for a brand identity that resonates beyond our DTH business. I thank Tata Sons and The Walt Disney Company for backing this business, which over the years has expanded to 23 million households and made our content distribution platform a formidable player in the market.”
Explaining the ethos of the new brand identity, Anurag Kumar – Chief Communications Officer, Tata Play Ltd., said, “The Tata Play brand mark and play mark takes inspiration from the “Tata” mark – borrowing and reinforcing the trust, quality and recognition of India’s most valuable brand. The word “Play” adds youthfulness, ease & simplicity to an already trusted brand. The brand colours pink and purple along with dark blue and white are vibrant, youthful and add distinctiveness to the overall identity. With Tata Play, we promise you Fun, Personalisation, Flexibility, Freedom, Quality, Innovation and Connection. With Tata Play, you Play Better. And entertainment becomes aur bhi Jingalala”
Saif Ali Khan has been appointed brand ambassador for Godrej Expert Easy Shampoo Hair Colour. The brand association with Saif Ali Khan will be to drive penetration and awareness of this offering and shampoo hair colour category. Godrej Expert Easy has also unveiled a new TVC campaign featuring Saif conceptualised by Creativeland Asia, to highlight the product features and increase visibility of the category.
Commenting on this announcement, Sunil Kataria CEO – India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, said: “Godrej Expert Easy shampoo hair colour, is an innovation in the hair colour category. Through this offering, we are giving a solution to consumers who have time paucity and want to colour their instantly. Simplifying the entire process and achieving a new coloured hair look in 5 minutes is what makes Godrej Expert Easy an innovation. Our partnership with Saif Ali Khan will help us amplify awareness of the category as well as our product across urban and rural markets.”
Commenting on the new TVC campaign, Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia, added: “Hair colouring has always been a time-consuming, tedious thing, that one needs to plan for. And grey hair has always come in the way of one’s style, when there’s a last minute plan. With Godrej Expert Easy Shampoo hair colour, hair colouring can be just as impromptu as your plans. The film, starring Saif, brings to life this insight in a light, banter-filled story between siblings.”
Recently a new advertisement featuring Vectus and the power couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor was released. The theme was romance and the campaign line said: ‘India ki waterline ‘.
You may not have heard of Vectus before, but now you have with all the talk surrounding this ad. Vectus is a fairly large brand with a range of products in polymer-based water storage and piping solutions. Headquartered at Noida, the brand caters to residential, commercial, industrial, infrastructure and agricultural sectors.
Vectus Industries Limited has three brands of water storage tanks. Ganga and Waterwell with features like micro-ban (no smell), virgin raw material, no heavy metal use and threaded lid!
Vectus, the brand in focus with Saif Kareen Romance claims to be anti-microbial, free of heavy metal usage and made as per European standards.
The Vectus earlier communication is about the importance of water and healing preventing leakage and seepage as the brand feature or purpose. These features and promise have not changed.
Kareena and Saif Ali Khan were announced as Vectus brand ambassadors in March 2020. It was the first time the brand was associating with celebrity. Fair to presume that the scripts were ready by that time. Rajesh Alagh, President-Sales & Marketing joined the group in April 2020. So one assumes he got the campaign in legacy and maybe is not part of the development.
There is a second Saif Kareena film titled Dance and has light flirting between the couple. It is no longer available on the Facebook page. However, one can be accessed on Youtube.
https://youtu.be/lKWMF76SpsY
Look at Instagram post. You see an unmasked crew in behind the scene which was well covered and reported. So, it is a pre-lockdown shoot. One more excuse goes down the drain. Picture from Bollywoodshaadis.com
Water Storage tank and pipes are primarily B2B category with a very regional bias. There is not much TV advertising. Digital media has opened a new window for the category to reach out to a broader audience.
This romance E film of Vectus has got a reaction that the brand was not expecting.
One tweet read, Zenith of advertising has been reached.
People questioned who wrote this? No clue. How this gets approved? Like all ads do, by the person funding making and release. Why did said Kareena agree? She has not shared the reason. They equated it end of advertising.
An industry senior tweeted, ‘Once the celebrity fever enters on Industry, all brands jump in. Chappals to Banyan to Tank/pipes now!’. What’s surprising? Are these categories not authorised to use a celebrity. Another in his style tweeted, ‘Now we are really tanking in ‘Chullu Bhar paani‘ I suppose.
They are right and wrong at the same time. These tweet experts have the right to an opinion, and most may agree with them. And I presume they must not have seen the two films.
Definitely, Vectus could have better used the celebrity couple.
Maybe the script could have been better.
The features of leakage and seepage prevention could have been told differently. Remember the MSEAL ads which were also about leakage and there instead of the MSEAL it could well be the pipe.
Or even SHEETAL tank ad tried making some sense with wordplay.
https://youtu.be/zss6k66-LfU
People presuppose that Vectus Saif Kareena is a client written and produced the film. See the second film, dance, and it does not seem so. But no agency has come forward to take the credit or the blame or to defend it.
Brands like Vectus do not have high exposure to advertising. They are small-town brands ( Vectus registered office- Gwalior), and they are trying to open up, dream big.
The water storage and piping category has brands which have in the past tried being creative. These brands are still evolving in their communication. Maybe the category is yet to see the real advantage of investing in advertising agencies and creative product then media. Or perhaps they are happy for having done something that was out of their reach. Maybe in the case of Vectus, this Saif-Kareena Romance and dance is creative enough.
Most of us did not make an excellent piece of creative the first time in our professional life.
We may not have done right in mathematics in our school. However, today we wonder why the fourth standard student is unable to do the simple maths.
Why should every advertisement from every brand be great? Be error-free? Why must they be evaluated on the same parameters? This Industry also follows the bell curve. There will be brands at the outer spectrum. We should not be worried and raise the alarm if the brands do something better every time. We should be encouraging and not laugh at the efforts.
The brands will learn with time and experience.
Yes, it will cost them money and efforts. But then, brands and owner-driven brands rarely gives consultant or the creative agencies complete freedom to start with. Maybe they will now listen to and hire better consultants with experience of working in owner-driven company culture. Perhaps they will re-evaluate three brand strategy against a mother brand and adapt if it fits with their future dreams.
WHY BLAME THE CLIENT?
On seeing an advertisement like the Saif-Kareena Vectus film, why do people presuppose it to be an advertisement written and produced by the client? Why do they think that some crazy agency is not responsible for it? Yes, finally the client is responsible, but the client acts basis the experience, expectation and the advice it gets.
CATEGORY CUES.
Sometimes actions are category -driven. The brands may see the use of celebrity as an easy way out. Or no other way out. Maybe such communication is usually a play for dealer distribution enhancement and confidence buildup.
Look at the other brand PLASTO work here.
And here is PLASTO earlier work from before 2014. You see the change. Good or bad. Evolution part of any brand journey. Yes, they can look at professional help to reduce the mistakes.
And then there are brands which have been category leaders. Sintex is one such example. It originated sometime around the late eighties and joined forces with Mudra. Here is some of their work of. SINTEX WORLD RIVER DAY 2017. SYNTEX WATER STORAGE SOLUTIONS.
https://youtu.be/hNhvPqxLbUM
So, let us not be harsh and accept that in Industry, we will get creative of every nature. Yes, ultimately, the client gets the creative they deserve. They grow and evolve with experience and expectations. Let us hold hands and see how well we can contribute.
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OTHERS ADS IN THE CATEGORY.
And then here are links to more ads. Topline 5 Layer Tanks. Mangalam Water Tank.
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MORE ABOUT VECTUS.
In one of the videos, Vectus claims to be the world’s largest manufacturer of Molded Water Tanks. In 2015, Latinia Limited, an affiliate of Creador II LLC invested Rs 100 crores (USD 16.7 million) for a minority stake. This stake as per shareholder pattern in 2018 was 21% in an otherwise privately held Vectus Industries Limited (Vectus) between Bahetie’s and Ladha’s.
Now the brand has been in the market for the last 20 years. In fact, it has a network of 4300 dealers and distributors, 13 manufacturing plant and 5 depots across the country; thus making it one of the leading and fastest-growing water storage and Piping system company of India.
Sanjeev Kotnala is a senior brand and marketing strategist and educator. An IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, he has more than three decade of experience. He writes every Wednesday on MxMIndia, and sometimes on other days as well. His views here are personal.
Vectus Industries Limited, a leading water storage and piping solutions provider company, has roped in actor couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor as its brand ambassadors.
Commenting on this announcement, Managing Directors of Vectus Group, Ashish Baheti and Atul Ladha said: “We are delighted to have the most popular Bollywood star couple Saif and Kareena onboard as our brand ambassadors. It’s the first time Vectus has been associated with any celebrity couple for brand promotion and it’s rare to see a perfect match between the brand and the brand ambassadors, who share the same attributes of class and sophistication. Obviously it’s a winning association that will take brand Vectus to a higher level of popularity and growth.”
European menswear brand Selected Homme has announced actor Saif Ali Khan as its brand ambassador in India.
Speaking on the announcement, Vineet Gautam, CEO & Country Head, Bestseller India, said: “Selected Homme is a brand that embodies detailed aesthetics and high quality while being at the forefront of sustainability. The premium menswear category in India is on the rise with men desiring to sharpen their personalities with bespoke styling and Selected addresses just that. We are delighted to partner with Saif Ali Khan as the unprecedented Selected Homme man and are excited to see how this relationship unravels.”
VIP Industries has unveiled its latest campaign for its refreshed homegrown brand, VIP. The relaunch includes unveiling a new brand logo and identity, a new consumer proposition and a new collection. And all=new brand ambassadors, Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan.
Commenting on the core idea behind the rebranding, Sudip Ghose, Managing Director, VIP Industries said: “The overall goal was to make the brand relevant and contemporary, whilst retaining its iconic essence. With this relaunch, we aim to grow even more relevant to our ever-evolving consumers. Kareena and Saif Ali Khan are indeed a seamless fit for VIP’s new identity and positioning of Indian modern family. As a unit they represent the ambitious travellers of today’s generation who are always on the hunt for travel luggage/ necessities that truly reflect their personalities. The duo will certainly help strengthen the brand as contemporary, fashionable, reliable and everyone’s first choice for holiday travel. With this endorsement, we are confident that we will sharply position the brand as the country’s best and leading ‘holiday’ luggage brand. If it’s Holiday it has to be VIP.”
Kajol, the actor who once endorsed brands such as Whirlpool and Yakult, now backs a little-known detergent called Woosh. The star of the recently released movie Dilwale is seen in Woosh advertisements on the sides of buses and on non-prime-time television spots.
Priyanka Chopra, who plays the lead role in US television series Quantico, is pushing Hisar-based Marvel tea and DS Group’s Rajnigandha cardamom seeds. Chopra used to be the face of Hindustan Unilever’s Bru coffee. Even Shah Rukh Khan, Bollywood’s king of romance — said to be among the highest paid actors — is endorsing Aqualite footwear.
With mainstream endorsements drying up or restricted to the flush-with-funds ecommerce space, A-listed celebrities are settling for regional or smaller brands, which are among the few options available for them. The trend has evoked mixed responses.
“In many cases, the celebrities and their agents seem to be forgetting that quality matters over quantity,†said Shailendra Singh, joint managing director of entertainment marketing firm Percept. “While the older lot is reaching out to anything, it’s unfortunately setting the tone for the next generation. There’s a sense of what’s okay for Amitabh Bachchan should be okay for Varun Dhawan. But that’s not how popular faces should be building their brand values.â€
In many cases within the consumer goods space, endorsement fees, which used to run into crores, may have dried up because of diminishing marketing spends. In others, the stars are willing to compromise on their fee to stay in circulation. Cricketer Virat Kohli endorses both Red Chief footwear and luxury car Audi. Actors Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan are the faces of Dollar Bigboss and Amul Macho innerwear, respectively and Ajay Devgn is associated with Vimal pan masala.
“If three-fourths of the endorsement market is being taken up by the smaller brands, then for celebrities it is an available option they are willing to dip into,†said Vinita Bangard, founder of celebrity management firm Krossover Entertainment. A top celebrity manager pointed out that Shah Rukh Khan, who has lent his face to luxury brands such as Tag Heuer watches, hiked his fee 150% for a small brand that approached him.
“In cases like Tag, the celebrity wants the name association because the brand adds to his or her value. But if a small brand wants sudden fame, the celebs and their agents leverage the opportunity and charge in excess of market rates too,†the manager said, asking not to be identified.
Varun Gupta, managing director of valuation and advisory services firm American Appraisal, said it’s a misperception that smaller brands pay less to celebrities.
“For the lesser known brands, getting a well-known face to push themselves is near-instant status and mass appeal. They are willing to pay the market price, or at times, even higher, to get a popular face,†Gupta said.
While traditional advertisers including Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and telecom companies Airtel and Aircel are curtailing the use of celebrities, it’s mainly the ecommerce sites that are splurging. In August, online grocery store BigBasket.com named Shah Rukh Khan as its face.
Unless you are a Tata Sky subscriber or a digital algorithm picks you as a potential lead, you will likely miss out on these short, simple name change films. Additionally, these films talk of the new Tata Binge offer, including the addition of Netflix. The way the scriptwriter and the production team have managed the cast and the location itself with Covid restrictions is worth applauding.
Tata Sky –DTH and Pay TV platform has announced its new name and identity, Tata Play, as its business interests grow beyond DTH services.
Vectus Industries Limited, a leading water storage and piping solutions provider company, has roped in actor couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor as its brand ambassadors.
European menswear brand Selected Homme has announced actor Saif Ali Khan as its brand ambassador in India.