Campaign: IPL carnival
Brand: IPL
Company : BCCL
Agency: Ogilvy & Mather, Mumbai
The Campaign
The TVC opens with two school boys wondering about the noise coming from the other side of a wall. One of them looks through a hole in the wall and sees a colourful carnival taking place inside. Actor Makrand Deshpande, dressed as the host of event whistles out to them and shows them the way through a loose board on the wall. The boys wear their caps and jump to the thrilling rides in excitement. The ad has been picturised on the song ‘Eena Meena Deeka’,which is played as soon as they enter the carnival. The boys dance to the tune and enjoy the wacky rides inspired by cricketers and their pet moves on the field like the ‘Gilly Funda’, ‘Dravid Wall’, ‘Slinga Malinga’, ‘Dhoni Dhamal’, ‘Pathan Pounder’, and Master Blaste, among others. The film ends with one of the boys gesturing to the host in a manner of asking “what is this?”, and he replies, “Yeh IPL hai boss”.
Our Take
The Indian Premier League (IPL) fever is set to strike from April 4 and Ogilvy India has managed to create a fast-paced ad to capture the magic of the game. IPL has attracted the world’s best cricketing talent, celebrities, latest technology, younger fans and has established T20 as an emerging and preferred format of the game. The campaign is based on the consumer insight that IPL is the future of cricket and entertainment. The concept of a carnival is well-executed and it captures the atmosphere of the IPL. The joyrides and players have been used symbolically for the thrill and fun. Each of the IPL matches are a rollercoaster with series of ups and downs and every player leaves viewers with a unique experience as portrayed by the ad. The ad shows a carnival of passion, sheer talent and skill, engaging all our senses, playing the role of a fun-filled family outing. The soundtrack is refreshing but the agency could have composed an original tune rather than sticking to the evergreen track. The tag line conveys the message but lacks depth. Overall, the campaign has been able to grab attention because it comes with a breeze of freshness and portrays IPL as a larger than life event.
