Campaign: Ab jo bolna hai, muh pe bol

Brand: Intex

Company: Intex Technologies

Agency: Grey India

The Campaign

To create a buzz around its new GSM mobile phone IN 4470N, Intex has launched a campaign with three different films titled ‘Father’, ‘Boss’ and ‘Husband’. The first film opens with a daughter handing over a mobile phone to her father (who’s doing yoga) for a video chat with her boyfriend. After greeting the father, the boy reveals his desire to marry the girl. He concludes by asking the father if they have his blessings or if they should elope. The commercial ends with the father shocked at the young man’s temerity.

The next ad shows a boss receiving a video call from his employee who is chilling at home to enjoy a rainy day. With loads of attitude, he informs the boss that he is in no mood to come to work. The last commercial opens on a lonely wife, watching television in her living room. She picks up a video call from her husband who is having the time of his life at a party and informs her that he won’t be coming home for the night. In the end, the wife has a sad expression on her face. All the films come to an end with the tagline ‘ Ab jo bolna hai, muh pe bol’.

Our Take

According to industry estimates, the Indian mobile handset market grew by 15% to touch Rs 33,171 crore in 2010-11 from Rs 28,897 crore in fiscal 2010. And along with the big, established brands, there has been a slew of made-in-India or assembled-in-India brands, who have been able to make inroads in the smaller cities. Intex is a homegrown brand that has managed to tickle the viewer’s funny bone with its commercials. With the IN 4470N, the brand is eyeing masses in tier II and III cities.

Humour has been central to the brand’s communication and the new commercials reflect the same. All the three new ads are crisp and capture what the handset has to offer (video calling without 3G) effectively. The ads show how people in three different situations are able to express themselves fearlessly without any attempt to mince their words. While there’s nothing new in the ‘Husband’ film, the ‘Father’ and the ‘Boss’ films get full marks for flawless execution. Also, the sound in each film sets the right mood before we reach the climax. The only grievance, since the ad is about video calling, it would have made sense to hear from the people on the other side.