DesiDabba - Boss, Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jaye

Summers are round the corner, and we are again gearing up for one of the most amazing and creative wars on earth - Cola War, which is fought in the battlefield of TV advertising. Every summer Pepsi and Coca Cola come up with new advertising campaigns for their respective array of carbonated drinks available in market and compete fiercely for that grand prize called Market Share. In the process the war sometimes also gets ugly with some below the belt advertising - creating spoofs on rival advertising campaign.

Now, I am no advertising guru, but observing commercials and weighing them on my personal criteria has always been kind of a hobby for me. I have my own personal choice, as a consumer and as a keen observer of advertisements. So here is my countdown on the advertisements of various carbonated drinks aired in summers of 2006 on Indian Television.

# 10. Pepsi TV
With the amazing star lineup that Pepsi has always enjoyed, the first part of this campaign was an immediate eye catcher. The inimitable SRK along with hotties Kareena and Priyanka created that much needed curiosity about Pepsi TV. But after all the hoopla over pepsi TV, came the second part of the campaign - and it was such a huge disappointment. Pepsi was expected to be more creative and much more witty. But alas, Kareena and Priyanka while describing the concept of Pepsi TV, sound dumb bimbos - and nothing more. Also the kind of loose language used - like Kareena commanding SRK ‘Muh khol‘ and the cable guy asserting ‘khula hi to hai‘ - does not help Pepsi’s cause anywhere.
This campaign was built around a loose concept and expectedly sounded too dumb. For the sheer waste of the amazing star power on Pepsi’s side, this campaign earns the lowest spot in my rankings. Pepsi people, Yeh Dil Maange More…

# 9. 7 Up – Sabse cool (??)
Ah! Why would any brand want to get disassociated with sizzling hot, sexy and oh! so glamorous Yana Gupta in the first place? and then even if they do, why in the world would they want to replace Yana with Mallika of all the people? Isn’t entire country already sick enough of her boobs, and she is asking for more curves? Ah! I know, Yana Gupta is not that visible and popular these days, even though she has some class associated with her. But Mallika, though she is crass (and crasser when she opens her mouth), she also is more ‘visible’ and is always in news for one reason for another.
Having said that Mallika looks particularly ugly in the advertisement - and even Fido seems to be wanting to get rid of her by converting her into a bottle.

# 8. Mirinda.. oh! oooh!!
Ah! Aaah!! The ad spotting Zayed Khan, tries hard to sound n look cool and all that. But just like his movies, this commercial too does not cut much ice.

# 7. Fanta – Masti ka Chataka
A trying to act naughty Rani Mukherjee also tries to rhyme pathetically. I am still unable to understand what were the creative minds behind this commercial thinking? (..pun much intended)

# 6. Sprite –Clear Hai!
Now sprite is traditionally known for being the spoof experiment lab of Coke. But this time they bring in Indian Tennis sensation Sania Mirza. A very unglamorous and boring campaign to inform people the same old gyan. My verdict – Failure Hai!

# 5. Mountain Due
Continuing on their unusual adventure theme, this year mountain due dudes are feeling lazy. But even their laziness is no less adventurous. Without any star power at their side - they simply stick to their theme and communicate their message.

# 4. ThumsUp
Akshay Kumar literally tastes the thunder this time around. With Brilliant camera work, cool special effects and the ultimate dude of Bollywood - Akshay Kumar, ThumsUp lives up to its macho image. Thumbs-up to ThumsUp.

# 3. Coke - Thande Ka Tadka
Though there is nothing too special with this ad, and rather squeeky voice of Aishwarya does irritate you - the ad still manages to catch attention. Aishwarya looks different and the rhymings isn’t all that bad. In the absence of any better ad campaigns this year - Thande Ka Tadka manages to sizzle, but just a bit.

# 2. Coke - Japani Amir
Coke ads featuring Amir have always been a class apart. And even this time Amir succeeds in making the viewers smile with his small performance as a Japanese looking Indian guy. In one word - Effective.

# 1. Limca - Boondon mein
The Limca ad this year is the clear front runner among all the commercials aired this year by soft drink industry. A wonderful jingle, nice choreography and an overall very refreshing look does the trick. Even after the ad is finished, the viewer is likely to find himself humming the ‘boondon mein’ jingle. Even without any celebrity Limca proves to be the coolest one.

Special Mention – Appy fizz
Since my countdown was restricted to the cola war, I could not include Appy Fizz in it. Appy fizz, in my opinion, have come up with most interesting ad campaign this summer. Their ad campaign ‘A cool drink to hang out with’ strikes the chord with the young urban of today very easily. The innovative concept of being friends with the drink, and that too with such coolness immediately catches your attention. My personal favorite.

In the end of this countdown I leave you with some Coca Cola India commercials which were aired in previous years. Enjoy these.

There’ll be a follow up post covering the fresh cola advertisements in 2007 shortly. Keep looking for this space.