Hello! We are back with another edition of this newsletter where we talk about ordinary things. This time, we are going to talk about Fans and advertisements. The most interesting part of this newsletter as well as the connected podcast is the fact that I and Raj took the word fan in different meanings and what followed was an interesting merge of the three! Do check it out and let us know what you think!

The last edition -

In case you are landing here for the first time, you can check out my previous writings such as Lights and Rejection, Bags and Batman, Washrooms and Cupboards, Driving and Friendship, or Humor and Instant Messaging!

Do subscribe if you like these write-ups of mine.

If you would like to listen us talking on the same topic, here is the podcast version. You can also let it play while you keep reading the newsletter-

Ads and FansBy Blabber DabbersPodcast episode

Fans and Advertisements- Harsh’s ideas

Clack Clack Clack. The fan made these sounds as I tried to concentrate on the work I wanted to do. It takes me away and breaks my concentration. I look up at it to see what it is that makes fans so ordinary and yet so special. I guess it is the hypnotizing effect that it has when you look at it. It is good enough to take you to a train of thoughts if you stare at it for a while. The fan is like a portal to the past which shows you something that goes in your mind. It rotates at such a quick speed.

Deciding the perfect speed is yet a confusion. It is a decision that can make or break houses. Even at the office, there is a shared amount of time that the fan should be at full speed for a good amount of time after which it can go slower. Fans are weird too. The speed at number 4 is too slow and the Speed at number 5 is too fast. Where is 4.5? Fie on thee, fanmakers! Fans can be of various sizes and shapes. I remember sitting under a massive fan that was put in a hall that was powerful enough to circulate air to like 100 people sitting under it at SNK, the school where I taught for a year. And I also have seen cute little ones with four blades that seem like helicopters that did not have enough marks to make it to the sky.

But the point about fans is how they make a sound and become such a part of our lives that we seldom realize the company that it gives us. I switch them off in winter and I can hear Anupamaa shouting in my sleep. Vanraj is still trying to figure out what is happening in his life for the last 2 years. It is really strange how the fans work. And sometimes they stop working.


No wonder how good the fans are, you do need to stop them at times. We switch off fans as we want some peace and a break from the constant noise or the airflow on us. It acts as a perfect break, one in which we experience a mind shift and a break of intensity. This break is rarely found elsewhere. The closest thing that comes to my mind is advertisements.

Ek Pal Ka Jeena Song AnalysisBy Tune ThoughtsPodcast episode

Advertising my own podcast is one way to market ! :P

The best way to describe the impact of ads is to tell you a recent surprising reaction I got from my mother. I switched to online TV and now, it has no ads. My mom started complaining, it is all fine and comes on my demand but where are the ads? I want the ads! I was surprised and shocked. I said that you switch on Youtube and search for the ads that you want to see whenever you miss them. 

Ads are so vast and so subjective. I remember dreading some ads. The Fogg kya Chal Raha hai is the most annoying ad I have ever seen and I remember it even though I do not want to. The short masterpieces of creativity and innovation never stop to amaze me and challenge my notions of storytelling. I also love watching short films. I consider ads as the shortest storytelling method. They go beyond the barriers of literacy and language. Some are so strong that they need no sound too, forget words or language.

I can take a dive into the world of ads and remember the most beautiful ones. Be it the surf excel daag acche hai campaign or the Happydent one where they shine light from the teeth, the idea and the execution make a strong case for supreme excellence in terms of creativity and innovation. Not to forget the Durex ads. Durex and Fevicol ads are fantastic each and every time. The idea is that ads are not the dreaded enemy. They are the source of income for so many people. No. I do not defend the pop-up ads or the ads that interrupt the streaming on online platforms like Youtube. I think that they are the most annoying things ever. I want to watch a song for 5 minutes and I spend a minute watching ads and shit. Why on earth? And do not get to Spotify. That is the worst. The most idiotic platform that knows ads are annoying but would not stop them to annoy the fuck out of you.

Iconic Daag Acche way ad by Surf Excel


But what would life feel without ads? I would not know that Lay’s came up with another flavor that has more air in the chips itself than the pack. I would not be able to know about the perfume that exists for hair. Ads at the right place can be the perfect point of inspiration or humor. Take the example of chewing gum. Imagine a place where you need to have silence but there is this one annoying person who cannot just shut their mouth. Now, the place has a tray that offers candies and chewing gums at its entrance. As the event is over, the same place says XYZ Chewing gum, zubaan pe rakhe lagaam. It becomes a point of amusement as well as joy.

The most interesting usage of ads is something I have seen in games as well as some places like cloud storage. If you see an ad, you get a reward. You do not necessarily need to watch it but it becomes a currency to get something that you would have to otherwise pay for. How cool is that!

(Comment or reply if you want to know which website is this. I would send you the link and in turn, earn some cloud storage)

Leave a comment

Oops, cool reminds me that my fan is on and I need to switch it off. My mom is still complaining about not having ads but lavishly enjoying Anupama at her command. I close the door and go to sleep. Ads also used to save me from annoying noises of that irritating bua from Ghum Hai kisi ke pyaar mein who would say Mast mast every second line. It saves me a lot of anger.

Maybe there is a switch that would also switch on the fan and bring back good quality ads that feel rare today? Maybe. I can only sit and write about it. Maybe if you work at a company, you can make them. If the client agrees that is…

Share

Here are the customary treats-

Comic-

Credit- @strangetrek

Video-

( some self promotion) :P

Raj’s Version

Advertisements have become so versatile, innovative, and fluid recently. They no more have to adhere to the traditional structures of time slots or limitations of the format. The scope for advertisements has widened immensely with the advent of the internet and especially social media. Participation of people has now become such a crucial element which almost did not exist at all in the previous generation of the advertisements. This has also pushed forward the fan culture, today people are not only fans of movie stars but of brands, ideas, initiatives, so many things. 

Share Harsh’s Writings

Fans and advertisements go hand in hand, that’s why we see stars right from Ranveer Singh to Amitabh Bachchan selling pan masala. The brands tend to be selling you an idea, a feeling, an image rather than the product itself. Along with all the good that has happened to the advertisement world, there has also been another side full of controversies and harmful effects. Messaging through advertisements is taken much more seriously nowadays due to the kind of reach it has and thus whenever an ad comes out it is scrutinized by various social groups, activists, religious groups, political parties, gender welfare groups, and the woke population on the internet. Invariably some or the other group tends to take objection to ads quite frequently nowadays. Many progressive ads tend to be withdrawn by major corporate houses when confronted by one of the above-mentioned groups, be it Dabur, Tata group’s Tanishq,  Sabyasachi, the list goes on. I feel only a handful of these objections are valid, otherwise, we end up doing unnecessary and imposing criticism whereby the creativity and the novel message in these ads tend to get lost. And no wonder very objections are taken at Amitabh Bachchan selling pan masala but everyone seemingly loses their shit if an ad comes out about a lesbian couple celebrating karva chauth  or a Hindu-Muslim couple celebrating festivals, this clearly shows how the criticism and the opposition to these ads are highly motivated politically, depending on the ideology of the current party ruling the state. 

Advertisements have evolved so much and the scope for them is enormous with the latest AI and other unimaginable technologies coming out. 

Coming back to fans, when you come to think of it, isn’t the whole ad culture dependent on the fan culture? You need people to be able to relate and connect with something or someone so as to be able to show or sell them something. 

I see fans as people who devote themselves to a personality or something which makes them feel good, probably because of the aspirational factor or the relatability factor. This pure and one-sided kind of bond arises out of it where you admire without even receiving any direct acknowledgment for it. How very wonderful is that? In this otherwise seemingly mean and cruel world, the same mean and cruel people also have this side whereby they are ready to give some part of themselves without getting anything in return! I wonder what this tells about us as humans…

Ah, Finally a connection strikes me as I write about these two. The thing that makes us connect so deeply with both of these is that they both attempt to take us to this wonderland. There is a huge aspirational value attached to both which does the magic. 

What advertisements have you been watching recently? What is the latest thing/person you became a fan of? Anything that you would like to share?

Leave a comment

Share

Ayee! Thank you so much for reading and I would be so happy to know what you think about this letter. Do feel free to give me any constructive feedback. I would really appreciate it! See you soon with another version of this newsletter in a fortnight or 20 days!

That is all from our side for this edition! See you all! Like, share, comment, subscribe, send kabootars, throw your devices and computers, and make us famous! :P