Meenthe mein kuch meetha ho jaue- Cadbury Dairy Milk

Over the years, Cadbury is trying to position itself as an alternative to traditional sweets.
In a larger sense..shubh aramb to post dinner meetha cravings is a continuation of the same strategy of making the brand part of everyday consumption
A logical progression where it looks to tap into occasions when traditional sweets are consumed. In majority of the Indian households, it’s customary to have something sweet after meals. This sweet more often than not is compensation for consuming the not so appetizing.. rather bland everyday food (heightened in the tvc’s by karela & laukee)
Hence a series of commercials revolving around family dinners. Each of them trying to capture the individual idiosyncrasies and the casual banter within the family members (husband-wife, father-mother, grandfather- granddaughter.)

AS with other CDM commercials, this series also retains the CDM look/feel. The Tone & imagey is also consistent with the overall campaign and belongs to the CDM world.
Excellent casting and art direction makes a worthwhile watch.
However does it manage to establish itself as an after dinner sweet or does it only tap into another occasion is something that requires a bit more analysis
I would go in with the latter for 2 reasons
1) The messaging is not consistent enough.
The primary take out in the second TVC (The family dinner ) tvc on the other hand is the CDM bribe for kid who makes fuss about consuming everyday foods, ‘post dinner meetha ‘alternative is secondary.
The romance commercial on the other hand talks about how dairy milk as a token/symbol through which one can express love to each other, thereby having nothing in specific with the dinner setting.

2)Secondly, though the VO talks about (khane ke baad..meenthe mein kuch meetha ho jaayye), except the romance TVC, it is unclear whether it is to be consumed while having laukee/karela or is suited for post dinner consumption . The dining table sitting in case of the little girl TVC further complicates the situation.
Also in a larger sense, the idea of having sweets post dinner usually involves consumption of ladoos/mithais …often stored in large containers and under the watchful gaze of the homemaker.
Also the post consumption feeling is one that is plentiful and filling and one that legitimises to the impending burrp.
To replace the same with a few scatterd pieces of flat bar chocolates hardly does justice to the act of ‘eating meetha ‘
It reminds more as a replacement for the mint/saunf that just about manages to refrclear the tste of the mouth than the ladoo/mithai that is otherwise consumed in everyday homes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rf0X0ycQz3I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2wBnjtmmg8

HAAN JI!

• This greeting over the phone is your first glimpse into the unmistakable nawrth indian household.
The haan ji carries with it a certain respect that is ascribed to the caller…
To an insider, it gives that sense of belonging, exuding warmth ..
making you feel at ease .. At home
However to an outsider…it evokes somewhat mixed feelings.
The overtly friendly tone is totally unexpected .
And although it evokes a certain warmth, the pre-conceived notions/biases of
the delhiwallahs leave you with mixed feelings.
And the repetitive occurrence of it makes its credibility questionable..

WADA PAV & PANI PURI

It’s one of those things that strike you instantly... Ask a girl what she will like to have and without even blinking she’ll opt for the pani puri. While Men esp. in this part of the country would rather opt for a hot spicy wad pav than the tangy pani puri.
And I kept wondering as to why we don’t see women having wada pav’s & men pani puri as frequently as the other way round. It is not as if men don’t eat pani puri or vice-versa, however the incidence of them having is miniscule. This brings us to the question…
Why do men prefer wada pav and women go for pani-puri?
Let’s analyze as to what constitutes a wada pav...Boiled potatoes mashed along with paste of garlic/onions and then fried in a batter of besan.
A pani puri on the other hand involves puris (made of atta) & and a tangy liquid that comprises of saunf, pudina, green chillies & tamarind.
It’s anyone’s guess as to who adds more calories...The deep fried potato wada
And girls while having pani puri subconsciously know that it’s a healthier option….
However is that the only reason?
When it comes to taste… there’s a clear division there as well.
Research has shown us again that spicy oily and extreme flavours are preferred by men while women on the other hand opt for bland,tangy, khatta meetha flavours.
And not to forget the chai which is a great accompaniment along with the wada pav. Hence incidence of male consumption being more.

Also …More often than not..eating pani-puri is a planned outing. A majority of women like to have chaat on an outing with friends or families. it’s an occasion whether u have a date with ur bf or a family outing at a neighbourhood park
Wada-pav on the other hand is seldom a planned purchase. It’s more of a on the go snack.a quick bite while on the move.however seldom a reason for an outing.
However …there are certain socio-cultural aspects that also influence this behavior and let’s try and analyze the same.
Men primarily were hunters. And a look at how people eat was tearing the flesh from the bone and chewing till it is ready to swallow. It involves removing a piece from and then chewing it to make smaller morsels so as to enable them to swallow. Same is the case with a wada pav.one that involves biting into hot wada & pav and then tearing it apart akin to the way we eat meat/flesh.
Again the very art of eating itself is manly & aggressive with a constant chewing that is quite similar to the way lion/tiger relishes its meal

Let’s understand pani puri consumption. The vendor picks up a poorie, adds the aloo/chick pea and the tangy water and serves it one by one. This transaction between the 2 is again an interesting one. This very act where the vendor offers a puri... one by one is a depiction/demonstration of the underlying need/desire among women who like to be served.
They like to be served and at the same time also like to dictate their preferences specifically. Hence each time a purie is filled with water, it is according to the specific instruction of the woman.(thoda khatta, meetha, tikha etc).Hence something that is customized as well as served to them.
Every woman’s delight.
Now let’s understand this act of eating..Delicately picking up the puri so as to avoid the liquid from spilling...the entire puri is consumed… rather swallowed with minimum fuss. … It’s very feminine. there’s hardly any chewing or even slurping but is consumed in a way that is almost apologetic.

This is because.being at public places, it’s important for females to maintain their poise or risk being labeled and attract the unwarranted male gaze. This consciousness of consumption in the public space is then transferred to the act of eating.
It’s a hypothesis based on plain observation or so I think…