Energy booster

Mohini Bhatnagar
29 August 2003

Mumbai: Just think of any automobile advertisements and what do you remember? Most people recall innumerable visuals of sleek-looking cars shot from all possible angels, zooming up and down accompanied by a jingle or maybe a voice over, music, the works.

A typical lubes ad is likely to be even more uninteresting with the exception of the bizarre Castrol ad featuring David Beckham, which actually made no sense to anyone.

Now think of a petrol additives ad, and what do people think of? Till maybe a few months ago probably no commercial would have come to mind. Now many would say: "Of course, the 'Power' ad."

Power is the petrol additive launched by Hindustan Petroleum last year. It is positioned as a high-octane fuel aimed at enhancing car performance. The Power ad campaign created by Adrian Mendonza, vice-president (creative), Rediffusion DY&R, is probably the first of its kind for a product as uninspiring as petrol additives.

The ad that viewers could mistake for a film trailer is complete with male and female leading characters haring along in a red car followed by the bad guy in a helicopter and the mystical old man with flowing white beard, a la Gandalf straight out of The Lord Of the Rings. The commercial is clearly inspired by Hollywood and the intention is to grab viewers' attention instantly.

Says Mendonza: "The ad is basically a part of a campaign that includes film, radio, outdoor, press and even Internet. It has adopted a Hollywood thriller-style format to differentiate itself from the various automobile/lubes/tyre/auto accessories ads, all of which show cars zipping along roads or highways."