Did you have a good Divali? Personally, I saw more deyas in the newspaper than I did in actual life.
Here’s a round up of the Top 10 Divali ads. It was more difficult choosing this list than the Eid list. I can’t decide if the difficulty stemmed from so many good ads or that so many of the ads featured deyas. My highly-opinionated, darling of a sister wanted to banish all ads featuring an actual deya. But as you’ll see, some deya ads were quite good.
10th Place:
A smidgen on the grandiose side.
We have a palace, a woman walking towards the light and a deya-lined hallway, I can almost hear a heavenly hum in the air.
The imagery combines the Hindu story of Lord Rama and Sita returning to the kingdom of Ayodhya, and the Christian tradition of God represented as eternal light.
This is miles better than their Eid ad.
9th Place:
Rather refreshing – a water lily.
Mother Lakshmi is closely identified with the lotus or water lily, she is usually depicted standing or sitting on one.
The subtlety of the ad is quite beautiful. It’s radical departure from the yellow, gold and dark tones we would normally associate with Divali.
Their Eid Mubarak ad, had almost made the Top 10 cut.
8th Place:
Damn you, Alutrint!
You’re trying to win us over with your thoughtful, heartfelt ads. Well it won’t work! Another strong showing by Alutrint, their Eid ad was also good.
I appreciate how hard it is to get a clear, high-resolution image of deyas set out in formation. Kudos to the designer.
The model herself is so animated, you can’t help but feel happy yourself.
7th Place:
I included this ad because it highlighted Sissons Paint in an unexpected manner.
If you look closely at the mehndi artwork on the palms, we see a spectrum of colours. A spectrum of colours is visual shorthand for any product that deals with colour – paint, crayons, pens, iPods.
To make sure we don’t miss the connection, the copy reads ‘Light… Release the spectrum within.’
The TT Government, also ran a strong ad that almost filled this 7th position.
6th Place:
Sweet! Sweets!
The product is completely integrated into the message – a box of Divali sweets presumably made with Eve products.
5th Place:
A deya without a deya.
Pretty clever. Saying something without actually saying it. It’s hard work, but when you pull it off, there’s nothing like it.
Added bonus, the hand offering the petal echoes the ‘receive’ in the copy. And just so we make the connection, the copy is placed nearby and we have lots of motion directing the eye to the fingertips.
Not quite as visually spectacular as their award-winning Eid Mubarak ad but undeniably strong work.
4th Place:
What a charming image.
Barfi made from Dairy Dairy and two generations representing the ‘timeless tradition’ mentioned in the copy.
My only argument is that the child’s dress, while white and thus echoing the milk theme, is too Western. It contrasts too much with the mother’s authenticity.
3rd Place:
This is a surefire crowd-pleaser.
The execution is strong, the colours are vivid and eye-catching. Again, we get a deya without a deya. Nice work.
However, yes, there is a however, Maggi ran MUCH stronger press ads in the run-up to Divali, check back for another conversation on this.
2nd Place:
The Fire One team is extraordinarily media savvy.
In the run up to Divali, they ran a series of ads promoting their Divali night fireworks show. Each ad featured YouTube, Facebook and Twitter icons, touting their online offerings in an offline press ad. Each ad promised a ‘Facebook’ photographer would be on hand to photograph their fireworks show.
On Facebook itself, they promoted the fireworks show with targeted Ads. I imagine on Facebook right now, they have a photo album devoted to their Divali Nagar and Divali Night shows.
This ad, a hallmark of theirs, features dramatic use of black in an uncluttered space.
1st Place:
Another deya without a deya!
Complete with bamboo stands! The bamboo is a lovely touch and the shadow behind the mug of coffee underlines the message.
Nescafé also had a strong Eid showing, copping a 3rd place mention.
We look forward to another innovative ad for Christmas.
I should also mention the Divali artwork of The Beacon, and Eid winners NGC & FCB who maintained their visual style.
Join us for the Christmas edition, which will probably very competitive. Comments, observations and stock tips are welcome.