Top 10 most-watched Indian ads on YouTube in January 2021

Video ads are one of the most demanded marketing contents for almost all the brands and industries. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a major shift in people’s regular lifestyle that included brand preferences and picks which were heavily influenced by the video marketing strategies.

The consumers went with the brands that offered security, safety and well-being, which was judged from the kind of ads they launched on YouTube. The changing norms changed the ad trends, thereby helping new companies pop up with maximum views and engagement on their ads.

The advertising trends have slightly changed with OTT platforms, e-commerce sites and FMCG brands making it to the 'Top 10' list.

Note:

· Only advertisements published on YouTube in January 2021 are considered.

· The overall audience sentiment that is mentioned below each advertisement is based on the number of views, likes, dislikes, watch time and comments.

· All ads are as per the tracking done through Vidooly's advertisement search engine.

· All the stats here are updated on February 5.

#1 'Tandav' - Official Trailer | Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia, Sunil Grover | Amazon Original | Jan 15

The three-minute gripping trailer of the Amazon Prime Original 'Tandav' is mind-blowing. It is a tale of power, politics and relationships. The video starring Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia and Sunil Grover is based on the story of powerful politicians involved in a cold war to become the prime minister. The visual representation, dialogue delivery and overall screenplay make it one of the most visually appealing videos on YouTube.

#2 Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Ready) | Epic in Every Way

The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G is advertised in a subtle, yet strong way. The groovy BGM with visual highlights of the handset make it one of the most beautiful smartphone ads of all time. Samsung showcases features like cropping pictures within images, clicking photos from videos and powerful battery backup even when used with 5G network. All such floating texts on the video make the 30-second visual tour of the smartphone worth the time.

#3 What’s Next for Ranbir And Alia?

Starring Bollywood superstar couple Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, this Flipkart ad is basic and engaging. The e-commerce platform has wisely decided over its star cast as both the actors are in the news for their ongoing relationship and have mostly managed to stay away from the negative headlines.

The ad shows Kapoor and Bhatt picking their outfits from the branded lot that has various designs and styles mostly worn by the celebrities. It promotes the huge clothing collection of the brand and Flipkart’s seamless shopping experience.

#4 Join MS Dhoni and Ziva – Take the #OREOPLAYPLEDGE

Running the hashtag #OREOPLAYPLEDGE, the popular cookie brand launched the ad, casting the legendary former captain of the Indian cricket team MS Dhoni and his daughter Ziva. The fandom and popularity of the sports star are big winning factors for this ad because that is probably the most important reason to select the right celebrity.

The ad shows the father-daughter duo participating in the hashtag challenge and eating Oreo cookies as they decorate a cake on the table. It also shows them taking a pledge to do certain daily work like making breakfast for Ziva’s mother, spending less time on the phone, etc. This is a heart-warming ad featuring Ziva.

#5 Bheem Cooks The Best Pongal | Mighty Little Bheem: Kite Festival | Netflix India

The popular cartoon character Chhota Bheem is the lead in this creative ad. It celebrates the South Indian festival Pongal with the cutest visuals. It shows little Bheem trying to cook Pongal as an offering to God, but unfortunately he is not able to start the burner. He watches others cooking the dish, but the smell is not that impressive so he gets sad.

Watching his interest, the Lord himself helps him start the fire. Once the Pongal is ready, Bheem serves the first plate to God. The aroma spreads all around the village. Everybody comes over to Bheem to taste the Pongal, which he happily shares. The animated presentation makes it a beautiful ad by Netflix India.

#6 The Group Study

HP India launched a smart ad featuring a young man and his girlfriend. The video content is funny and engaging as it showcases the 360-degree foldable feature of the laptop. The ad starts with the man chilling with his girlfriend, who happens to wear his green shirt. As they spend some time together, he suddenly gets a video call from his parents.

As he takes the call, they (the parents) demand a tour of the flat he is staying and in and he hesitatingly shows them around… At the end, he turns on the laptop and they get to see her (his girlfriend) in the mirror reflection. It ends on a funny note, where the mother tells him that his lost green shirt has now been found and he tells them that he was about to inform them about it.

#7 Keep private, private

Yet another innovative ad by HP India, featuring two sisters working from home. As one of them goes on to attend a video call meet with her colleagues by keeping a chocolate cake beside her, the other sister watches it and wants to eat it. While the sister starts discussing a work on the HP laptop, the other sister tries to steal the cake. The sister on call immediately uses the webcam shutter feature and goes private on the video meet as she saves her piece of cake from her sister.

#8 Cadbury Silk Mousse - #ScoopIntoChocolateHeaven

The brand new variety by Cadbury Silk features a young couple who are spending some quality time together. The man gets the woman a Cadbury Silk Mousse that they both devour together. When it gets over, she is disappointed, but ends up getting yet another chocolate from him. Both then enjoy the smooth creamy mousse texture, as well as the time.

#9 Amazon Karigar: Handcrafted, with love

A classic ad by Amazon India where it shows its strong support to the Indian artistes. The ad is beautifully crafted with mesmerising visuals that explain the hard work and talent that goes into making different marvellous art pieces and handmade utilities. There are wood crafts, pottery, beadwork and other types of art pieces that require effort, skills and time of these workers. Amazon is promoting the same on its e-commerce platform.

#10 The Family Man Season 2 - Official Teaser 4K | Raj & DK | Manoj Bajpayee, Samantha | Amazon Original

The much-awaited sequel dropped its trailer this January and people were ecstatic. Amazon Prime Video India managed to engage and attract the target audience with the ad that exhibits the gripping storyline in a mysterious manner.