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Celebrity models rewrite rules of India's ad world

Joydeep Ghosh in Bombay

Yeh Dil Maange More (Pepsi), Mera Asli Hero (Hero bicycle), Refresh Ho Ja (Coca-Cola), Zor Ka Jhatka Dheere Se Lage (Mirinda) you name it, the most visible advertisements feature celebrities (read cricketers and film stars).

Amitabh Bachchan. Govinda. Vishwanathan Anand. Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi. Karisma Kapoor. Aamir Khan. Twinkle Khanna. Salman Khan. Shah Rukh Khan. Mohammed Azharuddin. Sachin Tendulkar. Rahul Dravid. Ajay Jadeja. Saurav Ganguly. All of them as busy with their movie/sporting careers as they are with modelling assignments.

Have full-time professional models become extinct?

"Consumers are mostly cricket-lovers and film-goers, so the strategy (to cast these celebrities in ads) is useful," says Imam Siddiqui, model co-ordinator, Ammirati Puris Lintas

He points out that there is nothing new about celebrity-centric advertising. Only, the heightened frequency of celeb ad-making is unprecedented. Whatever the product, movie stars and cricketers seem the automatic choices to promote them. So: companies in the business of tyres, biscuits, tea, toothpaste, suiting, software teaching, soft drinks, sports goods, health foods, footwear, televisions, banking, wrist watches, water filters, credit cards are making a beeline for the celebs.

A fallout of this "trend" is the steady emergence of female lead artistes -- hitherto they were confined to promotion of toiletries -- as the first preferences of ad agencies, and the consequent eclipse of regular models. Karisma Kapoor and Twinkle Khanna model for Coke, Shilpa Shetty vouches for Videocon's electronic durables and Rani (Aathi Kya Khandala) Mukherjee goes gaga over Hero bicycle.

"Rani's endorsement should help the brand to promote itself among the teenagers," says an advertising executive.

Is this tilt towards celebrities a trend? "One can call this a sign of the things to come. I am not sure whether it's a trend, " says Prahlad Kakkar, well-known ad-film-maker.

Agrees Anisha Oberoi, model co-ordinator. "The producers are 'getting spoilt' by the high quality of the work of the 'stars'. They would love to work with them even in the future," she says. However, Siddiqui says, "This is not a passing phase; it'll continue."

It is said celebrities charge fortunes to appear in advertisements. "Comparitively, yes. Only companies with financial muscle will be able to afford the stars. The quality of demand for models is definitely changing. The demand for good-looking, tall, broad male models is sagging," says Kakkar.

Instead, the hunt is on for people who may have ordinary looks but can emote/act well. Instances: Apple Singh, who regaled cricket-lovers with his pre- and post-match antics during the cricket World Cup, live on television; Uddham Singh of Channel [V] fame who promotes Kanchan Fans. "Just look at Shah Rukh Khan's range of facial expressions. You will know why he's in demand. Unlike in the past, good looks alone won't carry one far," says Oberoi.

"What's more, the quality of work has improved. Now our ads are world class," says Kakkar. "Having said that, let me add: it's a double-edged sword. For stars have their own idiosyncracies."

It is learnt that Karisma Kapoor could give only three hours for the Coke ad. "What can you shoot in three hours?" says an industry insider.

"Superstars such as Govinda are chased by feature film-makers round-the-clock. It's difficult to get these people to meet deadlines," says cinematographer Vicky Idnani.

However, just as ad agencies, celebrities seem more and more inclined to complete the assignments in time. "Why not? They stand to make as much or more money from a few days' work as they would from movies or cricket series that consume weeks or months," says a source.

A full-time model is definitely cheaper than a celebrity. For example, the cost differential could be ten times if one were to sign on Shah Rukh Khan over Milind Soman.

Model Gautam Rode agrees that full-time models have a challenge on their hands. Rode is the newest sensation among full-time male models, having done Close-Up toothpaste, CenterFresh chewing gum, Lifebuoy soap, Jai soap, Birla White cement and many others. "I've been in Bombay for the last seven months but in the last two, things have really slowed down." Result: Rode is busy seeking appointments with feature film-makers for movie roles. "I want to get into acting."

Rode is not a model in isolation. Many of his ilk are now stranded on the showbiz highway. "There is no point is being that way," he says. So he has jumped on the route to showbusiness taken by supermodels Arjun Rampal and Milind Soman.

Others have landed music video assignments. "There are too many newcomers in this industry which is showing signs of a slowdown. There isn't big money to be made," says a producer of music videos.

But not all models are losing hope. "Now that the World Cup has ended, the craze for cricketers will subside. I hope the models will return where they belong," says a modelling aspirant.

By and large, the industry is convinced that is wishful thinking. "This tilt towards celebrities is not a phase. It's a change that the industry is witnessing. The models would do well to realise that they will have to change, not the industry," says the ad executive.

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