Arbit Thoughts - What advertisement is it?

Seeing an ad on TV, and understanding what product it is trying to highlight, has become a humongous task. Leave alone the brand recognition, i am talking about the product recognition itself.

It is super hard to distinguish an ad for a soap from that of a shampoo. Invariably, the model has great hair to go with shiny skin.

And to distinguish an ad for a shampoo from a skin cream or moisturizer that can leave you with a bright smiling face. Bright faces apparently need to have shiny hair. And when faces and hair are shining so well, can sparkling teeth be far behind?

The whole face package is inevitably splendidly lustrous for all of the above ads.

One product though that is very easy to guess is the fairness cream. In all cases, the model has deliberately applied charcoal on their face. And over a two-week period, they rub the coal off their face. It is so evident as that is the only way someone could transform their skin color so dramatically within a two-week period.

FMCG companies have a reasonable task to make the consumer understand a value proposition within a 20 second ad. If they can supercharge their head and stop the in-the-face advertising (pun intended), that sure helps a lot of viewers to understand ads better!

The Srilankan Cricket team inside a Tamil love story...

Overheard, a proposition, from Sekar (our hero), a pakka namma Chennai youth, trying to seduce Jaya (our heroine), a Madras baashai KD girl from Gummidipoondi...

S: Hi sexy girl, naan thaan sekar... Autokaara Sekar..
J: Vanakkam Ba. Naan thaan jaya, thotti jaya... Matter sollu...
S: Vandhu, ... Adhu Vandhu....
J: Ada, chattu puttu nu sollu da badhil shani yane...
S: Mudhalla... indhaanga poo, mothama arali tharen ungalukku... evalvu poo paarunga...
J: Cha nalla set malliga poo thara maata...
S: Adutha dhaba tharen... Naan vandhu ungala loves pannrenga...
J: Adada, enna loves pannrathukkellam oru thagudhi venum pa... Inna vandi otra nee?
S: Auto... Share auto...
J: Thoo share auto va...
S: Appadi korachu eda podadheenga. Unga mela total feelings nga, neruppu mela sathiyama...
J: Neruppu nu sonna thaan nyabagam vardhu, Kannu dham beedi etha pudippiya...
S: Cha cha, andha bad habits laan kadayaadhu...
J: Cha waste ba nee...
S: Naan waste a irukkalam, aana haste a decision edukkaadheenga...
J: Indha maari dialogue vittu nenjaya soriyariyepa...
S: Karpu god ram oda wife sita mela promise, en love no galeej and tremendous...
J: Cha, indha kosu tholla thaanga mudiyala pa...
S: Aan chellam mat use pannriya...
J: Dei unna thaan da sonnen...
S: Last and final time, kenji ketkaren... Emma, Ela, Jaya, Vardhaane ennoda...
J: Dei kulla sekara, ingendhu joot vidu, illa unna naalu kummu arai En sanga kaarana kudukka solluven...
S: OK saari. Next meet pannren... Vartaa....

And that is how the short love story between Jaya and Sekar ended...

Supporting Cast
dhil shan = Tilakaratne Dilshan
mothama arali tharen = Muthiah Muralitharan
la set malliga = Lasith Malinga
Thoo share = Thilan Thushara
Kannu dham bee = Thillina Kandamby
jaya soriya = Sanath Jayasuriya
Karpu god ra = Chamara Kappugedera
ej and tremendous = Ajantha Mendis
Aan chellam mat use = Angelo Mathews
ma, Ela, Jaya, Vardhaane = Mahela Jayawardane
kulla sekara = Nuwan Kulashekara
kummu arai En sanga kaarana = Kumara Sangakkara, the captain

Arbit thoughts - The earphones / cell charger problem

How many times has this happened to you - you are in the middle of a fantastic song on your earphones and for some reason your one ear has turned deaf.

Of course, it is not your ear but your earphones that are creating the effect of the temporary muteness.

Your analytical mind gets into action to find the specific cause of the earphones not working. It is like being in a dream all gone wrong - instead of pinching yourself to check if you are awake, you start pinching the earphones at various places to check what the cause of the problem is. Is it the point where it connects to the device, or the place where it branches off into two wires or right at the end where the confluence of the earphones with your ears happens.

Immediately after identifying the cause, you try your skills at geo-positioning that part of the phones. Various angles and positions are tried until that one in a million position is conquered.

And you emerge with a sense of great achievement. And a notion of happiness that you don't need to send it for repair...

Only till the person sitting next to you knocks you on your shoulder to check on what song you are listening to. And then the whole process starts again...

The problem also manifests itself when you connect your phone charger to your phone. Similar techniques are followed there as well.

Arbit thoughts - Kids and trains

What is it about kids and trains that defeats all laws of probability - the chance of finding a crying kid in the same train as oneself is always 100 percent!

Crying kids have a knack of shouting at the highest possible pitch, for the longest possible duration and still maintain their sweet innocence. This is certainly not advised for adults though.

A kid's crying has a great social networking effect as well - there is always some other kid that takes its cue from the crying kid and starts off on another track. When they criss-cross each other's path during their crying, various ragas and alapanas can be deciphered.

There is also kumbakarna's third law of sleep intervention that applies here - a crying child will momentarily stop crying to give you a slight belief that you can finally sleep. But right after you do start your nap, the crying is louder than ever before.

Parents of course try their best but they typically add to the kid's reasons for crying! So next time, you should never try to frighten a kid to stop it from crying. Remember the sight of a crying child can frighten a sleepy you much more!

Arbit thoughts - The inseparable mobile phone

What is it with mobile phones that make us always look at them? While talking. While walking. While driving.

It is as though the entire world is calling out to you with the most important of messages. Specially so when you are on the back of a scooter, or talking to a friend at home, or sitting and eating at restaurant.

Why is it that in the middle of any such activity, there seems to be an extra sense of urgency to look longingly at the phone? Maybe people actually have their talking script typed out as a message on it...

Or is it that touching the phone gives people the satisfaction of ensuring that the phone's karma for the next half hour is taken care of? The fast moving hand trying to unlock the phone. Followed by a mildly dejected look at the absence of a message. And the same fast moving hand locking the phone to put it gently back to sleep.

A friend told me the other day that his spouse has started responding to the phone more than him! So if he has to call out to her in the next room, a phone call has a better chance of getting through than his voice!

Mobile payments have replaced the wallet. Wonder when mobile lipstick and mobile combs are going to replace the other accessories that unnecessarily take up pocket and handbag space...

That time is not too long away - when you are mobile, the mobile might be the only thing on you!