A ‘Quit India’ movement, with a twist

For household insecticide brand Hit, Publicis Ambience recently unleashed a commercial with a difference – the ad, set against a Chinese backdrop to pique curiosity, hopes to empower Indians when it comes to getting rid of household pests

If you’re an Indian planning on visiting China, perhaps now wouldn’t be a great time to do so. That is, if you take the new commercial for household insecticide brand Hit literally.

Publicis Ambience recently launched a TVC for Hit that borders on a Chinese news report or perhaps even an infomercial, except that it’s none of those. The ad, according to its creator Prasanna Sankhe, national creative director, Publicis Ambience, is a “way for the brand to empower India.”

In 2006, there were several ads for Hit that positioned it as a brand that allows a common person to don the role of a ‘contract killer’ when it comes to cockroaches. Another ad in the series had a family clapping all about their house in the evening in a desperate attempt to kill mosquitoes (Hit was, of course, the better alternative). A third ad showed an Indian housewife chasing cockroaches in Rambo style, declaring war on the pesky creatures. “While these ads helped us become market leaders in the aerosol category, our brand had reached a stage where it needed to make a statement on behalf of the category as a whole,” explains Sankhe.

To do so, consumers needed to be empowered in some way. Firstly, the price of a Hit can was dropped from Rs 60 to Rs 49 to expand its market base. Sankhe and team were then faced with the task of creating communication that goes beyond demonstrating product effectiveness to the empowerment one can experience on driving insects away – a movement, a rebellious feeling of sorts.

To do so, the agency released an ad, aptly titled ‘Quit India’, on GECs as well as news channels, It was made to look, well, quite real. The ad opens on the shot of a Chinese television anchor delivering news about China witnessing an insect epidemic, with swarms of mosquitoes invading the country. Grotesque photos of victims are then shown.

The scene shifts to a busy marketplace in China, where a news reporter recounts instances of cockroaches and mosquitoes filling up the streets. Sure enough, hordes of cockroaches crawl out of nooks and corners of the street where the reporter stands, and soon, swamp her camera, while she falls to the ground. Back in the newsroom, the shocked anchor moves on to a reporter in another Chinese city who reports on mosquitoes invading the whole area. In the midst of reporting, the gang descends on her, and the coverage fizzles out.

The film concludes with a map of India and a voiceover: as Hit is available only for Rs 49 throughout India, cockroaches and mosquitoes have no choice but to quit India and escape to neighbouring countries.

“The idea was to portray that as more and more Indians possess Hit, where will these insects go?” remarks Sankhe. The newsroom part became the base of the ad to make it look more authentic, and hence, different from regular ads.

There was another reason behind choosing China as the backdrop, apart from it being one of India’s neighbouring countries. “The Chinese sound funny when panicky, which added to the drama,” says Sankhe.

The commercial was shot in and around Shanghai by filmmaker Ram Madhvani, although the production house was a Chinese one – ASAP Films. A Chinese cast, speaking in Mandarin, completed the look and feel of the film. Ramanuj Shastry, Publicis Ambience’s then NCD, also contributed to the film.