Fair & Handsome 'Sharmaji' gets a few tips from SRK
The latest Emami Fare and Handsome TVC is crafted by Situations Advertising; watch the TVC here
Neha Saraiya | Delhi | September 20, 2011
In 2005, Emami was the first in its category to foray into the men's fairness cream market with 'Fair & Handsome'. This was soon followed by a couple of new entrants including the men's variant of Hindustan Unilever's 'Fair & Lovely', Nivea's 'Men Whitening Moisturizer & Facial Foam' and Elder Healthcare's 'Fair One Man Cream'.
The competition became even more intense with the entry of Garnier in 2009 with its 'Men's Powerlight' range of products. Today, with the men's fairness cream market clocking a growth rate of 25-30 per cent per annum, companies are mulling not only new strategies to break through the clutter, but also portray the fair-skinned as 'powerful' and 'successful' with the usage of their products.
Banking on this insight, the latest commercial of 'Fair & Handsome' shows a boy hiding behind an umbrella every time he faces a girl. The TVC created by Situations Advertising features the cream's brand ambassador, Shahrukh Khan, as a mentor, directing the boy towards the application of the cream for a new personality.
The brief given to the creative team was simple: how to make men who use female fairness creams convert to 'Fair and Handsome' which is specially formulated for tough male skin.
Mohan Goenka, Director, Emami, says, “The primary objective for this campaign is to get conversion from those males who use female fairness cream, which will ultimately help us achieve our brand target. Thus, we are planning to spend a large amount to make the campaign successful and impactful.”
The theme of the campaign, “Chupke nahin khulke jiyo Emami Fair & Handsome ke saath”, centres around the low confidence level of the protagonist titled 'Sharmaji'.
Talking about the campaign, Dibyendu Chakraborty, Account Planning Head, Situations Advertising, explains, “The challenge was how interestingly we could show that a man, who relies on a female cream, absolutely lacks in confidence in facing the world, particularly girls. The idea came out of the observation that men who lack in confidence, prefer to hide themselves and not go to the forefront. And to do so they would find any route. The umbrella or even the record covers are metaphors to this tendency of hiding.”
While the earlier commercial (the one in a wrestling bout setting) showed a man being reprimanded by his coach (SRK) for using a female product, this commercial shows a man, who uses a female product and lacks confidence in facing the world. Both the commercials however are based on a single strategy -- that of communicating that men should stop using a female cream and use 'Fair & Handsome', which is specifically made for them.
The 40-second master commercial was shot in Mumbai in two days.
Chakraborty further says, “SRK's presence on the sets inspired all to give their best. He was very involved in the process and provided valuable inputs on making the commercial more effective.”
The company has planned a full campaign, using media like press, outdoor, online together with BTL along with a mega plan on TV and on-ground activation.
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