The brief for the ad was very precise: It was on how India has changed. “We’re far more confident and daring and focussed on winning now. This is what gutsy cricket is about.”

The energetic soundtrack was sung in Konkani, as “it’s fun and different”, and the ad was shot in Kajrat, near Mumbai, close to the sets of Bigg Boss. Dias recalls how during the shooting, some of the balls even landed in the Bigg Boss set.

Prahlad Kakkar’s verdict: It is every ad filmmaker’s dream film. We all wish we had made this film.

Tata sky’s paape

It’s not easy to upstage Hrithik Roshan. Even Abhishek could not manage it in Dhoom 2, but Paape has done it. Paape or the grassman in the Tata Sky commercial became so popular in his first outing where he disguises himself in grass to watch the matches up close and personal, that he was brought back in the Hrithik Roshan commercial as the star brand ambassador.

Marrying cricket and humour is not that easy. “In India, cricket evokes a lot of passion. And in this season of cricket commercials, where there’s a clutter, we had to be different. The brand is associated with wacky and over-the top humour and so the birth of the grassman,” says Ashish Khanzanchi, executive creative director at Rediffusion DY&R.

The ad highlights multiple camera angles for real viewing experience available in Tata Sky. “We decided to give it a candid feel and so it was shot on high definition video, instead of film, to give it the hidden camera feel.” To make it seem more real, most of the passers-by were just regular people on the street.

... contd.