Mumbai: Trust Fevicol and Ogilvy and Mather India Ltd to come up with yet another winner. Known for its iconic advertising, the adhesive brand from Pidilite Industries Ltd released its new one, titled Govinda Ek, Dahi Handi Anek, on its YouTube channel two days ago. The story is built around the popular festival of Gokulashtami or Krishna Janamashtami and highlights the dahi-handi ceremony that takes place on the second day of the celebrations. In the ceremony, an earthen pot or handi filled with curd, milk, butter, honey and fruits is tied to a rope hung high, along with the prize money attached to it. Young men then form a human pyramid, by standing over one another’s shoulder, to break the pot.

Fevicol’s new ad showcases a group of men create a human pyramid to reach a handi hung precariously between two buildings. However, this group of men instead of tumbling down and rushing to the next venue, like they traditionally would, maintain the human pyramid and move through the narrow lanes of Mumbai like a giant coloured in vermillion. Swaying occasionally, the pyramid formed by people firmly sticking to each other, makes its way to the next prize. The ad closes with shots of people throwing water on the men referred to as Govindas, and the vermillion washing off their clothes to show the brand (Fevicol) imprinted on their t-shirts. The video ends, with the superimposition of the tagline, “The Ultimate Adhesive" which appears on screen to highlight their basic brand proposition.

The ad (watch here), which was released on YouTube as well as on social media, has already garnered 376,071 views, along with some rave reviews.

Shot by Corcoise Films, the Mumbai-based ad film production house, the shoot for this film served up a stiff challenge. The production house wanted to capture the essence and energy of the festival, a popular occasion in Maharashtra, by shooting the sequence in Mumbai chawls. Unfortunately, over the years, as the number of textile mills dwindled, so did the number of chawls. Many have re-developed or are under litigation, which meant that they would not get permission to shoot there. “We finally managed to find two. It was important to use chawls that looked very different from each other, so as to depict their (the human pyramid’s) journey from one chawl to the other," said Prasoon Pandey, director, Corcoise Films. He added that it was a pleasure to shoot the film as the people who lived there were very cooperative and allowed the crew to go everywhere and make a mess of everything. “If you see the film, you’ll notice that we have shot from inside homes, which is what adds character to the film. At the end of each day, we would leave behind a staff of 40 people and a tanker of water to clean up," he said.

But that wasn’t all. The team also included 160 people who formed the human pyramid, which needed a very wide base, and a crew of 60 people. “Imagine all of us in those narrow lanes! There was no place to sit, and we would all come back completely red," Pandey said. The team also had to take ample precaution to ensure safety on the sets. “We wanted the pyramid to sway, but not dangerously so," he said, adding that beyond other safety measures, an ambulance was always kept on standby at the venue.

While Pandey maintains that the perpetual brief from Fevicol, is “make a film", the team at the film production house as well as the agency is always thinking about the next great idea for the brand. Interestingly, this was an idea that Piyush Pandey, executive chairman and creative director, South Asia, Ogilvy and Mather, had three years ago. “But we didn’t do it as we all felt that something was missing. We were thinking about it again, and this time we thought, ‘what if we make the pyramid move?’ That would be fantastic!" said Prasoon Pandey. And how exactly did they make the pyramid move? “Let’s keep the audiences guessing on that one," he said.

Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter.

Share Via