 "Dhanush viral: But where's Boost in all this song-and-dance?")
One day, the marketing boffins of Boost say to their advertising agency, “create a viral.”
“Since our contract with Sachin still holds, make the viral focus on Sachin.”
“Oh, by the way, we have no shooting dates with Sachin, so you will have to make do with still images that you can buy.”
[caption id=“attachment_210278” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Screengrab from YouTube”]
[/caption]
“Let the viral be as viral as Kolaveri Di,” they add, further.
“In fact, make sure that Dhanush is in the viral.”
“To play safe, let the viral be a song which is loosely based on Kolaveri Di.”
To which, obviously, the agency has said, “OK, OK, OK, OK, OK and OK.
Okay, so they made a viral, focusing on Sachin, using only his stills, featuring Dhanush, based on Kolaveri Di. Is it truly a viral? Yup. It’s got 1.25 million views and counting.
Here it is, in case you’re not part of the 1.25 million:
The client forgot to tell the agency, however, that they needed to work Boost into the concept.
Because there’s no concept - the viral is based on a list of random statements as listed above.
So Boost is forced into the film, with a couple of shots that show the logo (including one with Sachin), some ‘signage’ at the ‘Vasco da Gama’ station.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHardly any kids in the film, not even as extras. That’s odd, considering they’re the core target for Boost.
And why Vasco da Gama station? Has Goa suddenly become an important market for brown health beverages? And why Goa, if the only ‘feel’ of Goa is a millisecond showing the sea? That could have been done in Tamil Nadu or Karnataka as well, both important markets for Boost.
Dhanush, the visual focus of the ‘viral’, is seen holding a carbonated beverage bottle. Hello? A few youngsters are shown drinking from an unbranded Styrofoam cup. Hello?
Mario Miranda, MRF, Casio, Adidas and Sahara get a free ride because of the stock images used… Even Ferrari makes a presence…
Where’s Boost in the viral?
And a great viral it is. Not good for Boost’s brand health, though.
Watch the song here.
Anant Rangaswami was, until recently, the editor of Campaign India magazine, of which Anant was also the founding editor. Campaign India is now arguably India's most respected publication in the advertising and media space. Anant has over 20 years experience in media and advertising. He began in Madras, for STAR TV, moving on as Regional Manager, South for Sony’s SET and finally as Chief Manager at BCCL’s Times Television and Times FM. He then moved to advertising, rising to the post of Associate Vice President at TBWA India. Anant then made the leap into journalism, taking over as editor of what is now Campaign India's competitive publication, Impact. Anant teaches regularly and is a prolific blogger and author of Watching from the sidelines.