CRED’s new Gambhir ad is bizarre, even by CRED standards

CRED has rolled out a new commercial with Gautam Gambhir, and it is nothing short of grotesque. A head perched on an ice cream cone forces its tongue into the Indian cricket team coach’s mouth, and the pair instantly morph into a giant cone.

Gambhir, watching this on a laptop, doesn’t share the marketer’s excitement. The CRED executive smugly reveals the ad was made with artificial intelligence, only to have Gambhir smash the laptop in disgust.

Underneath the absurdity lies a wink at the current AI craze; it is a reminder that while machines can churn out spectacle, it’s still humans who know where to land the punchline.

The film, created by Moonshort, is classic CRED: strange, meme-ready, and almost impossible to connect with the brand’s actual business. Hidden somewhere in the chaos is a tie-up with Instamart: pay your credit card bills during Asia Cup matches and you could win ice cream.

It’s a familiar formula. Make something so odd that people feel compelled to watch, then leave them scratching their heads about what CRED really does.

Everyone remembers Rahul Dravid’s Indiranagar ka gunda and the celebrity auditions spot. Fewer can explain that CRED is, in fact, a platform to pay credit card bills.