ghazi52
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What has been the most controversial advert in Pakistan?
A heavily-criticised advert for Islamabad eatery Table No. 5
As the newspapers were flipped open on October 6, 2015, a series of advertisements titled `announcement’ caught many an eye. These advertisements placed by Sindh Police officials carried pictures of purportedly missing persons and openly claimed that “unknown Rangers” had picked up these individuals; the adverts requested readers to share information so the recovery of those individuals could be made possible. A row erupted between the police and the Sindh Rangers, with the latter accusing the former of issuing these adverts to malign the Rangers-led security operation in Karachi. More recently, an eatery in Islamabad came under fire for the sexist tone of its marketing campaign; the restaurant later apologised for the adverts. In light of these campaigns that have stirred disagreements, the Herald reached out to analysts and commentators to find out about some of the advertisements that have created the biggest controversies in Pakistan.
Selling like hot buns
You could spend a lot of money flying to Thailand and shooting a million-dollar commercial that would probably get a lot of abuse and acclaim (more abuse, given how advertising is mostly irritating and intrusive here). Or you could do something very simple, but something that would start debates, scathing arguments, earn scorn, and might just earn a ban or two for good measure.
Hardee’s did just that. We’ve all heard the clichés about liking it or hating it, but it being impossible to ignore? You couldn’t ignore their “Fresh Buns” campaign. A lot of people spoke up against it: it’s offensive, it’s tasteless, it’s trite. But they spoke. And they spoke a lot. And they posted. And they shared. And then the press spoke too.
In advertising, you’ve usually hit gold when the newspapers themselves do your job of publicising — when your work becomes the topic of headlines. Free media is worth many times more than the ones you pay to display the otherwise safe and usually bland stuff.
It perplexed me that this came in for so much criticism. A Pakistani brand was being bold for a change. Sure, it might be close to the line or even crossing it, but at least they had imagination. Sure, it might not be the most creative execution in the world, but they have cheek, so to say. Sure, it might be inappropriate for a country where sexual innuendos are taboo, but this is also a country that consistently ranks amongst the top, in the world, for **** searches. And secretly, of course, we know that more than half the people who criticised it went home and thought about buns. All kinds, of course.
By Ali Rez, a creative director who won Gold at Cannes and Clios Festival this year.
Moral police
ScreengrabIn the summer of 2013, Pakistani television channels began airing a fifty second commercial for Josh condoms. This was supposed to be a big moment in the battle for population control that the Pakistani government and its various international partners have been struggling to wage. A mass audience needs to be convinced that spacing out childbirth is a good strategy. Television can help increase the visibility and acceptability of contraceptives.
Instead, the Josh condom commercial provoked a protest campaign that led to the Pakistan Electronic and Media Regulation Authority (Pemra) banning the spot and pulling it from airwaves on the grounds that it was “indecent, immoral and in sheer disregard to our socio-cultural and religious values”. Rolling out the commercial during Ramzan added insult to injury, according to Pemra and other commentators. Much of the fury was directed at the star of the commercial, Mathira, the VJ-turned-media personality who has built her reputation around bold, sexually suggestive posturing. The offending advert remains available and widely viewed today on numerous social media websites, thanks to her.
The commercial itself was confusing in its message and not very well produced. It shows a glamorous bride starting married life and gossiping neighbours who wonder how her ordinary-looking husband is able to keep a hold on her affections. At the very end, the husband gleefully shares his secret by brandishing a packet of Josh condoms and urging others to use them. One can debate whether this depiction demeans women as sex objects or presents a tantalising picture of a satisfied wife. However, the charge of immorality and offense to religious values derives from the very suggestion that sexual activity could be permissible for any reason other than procreation.
By Faiza Mushtaq, an assistant professor at IBA.
All in the mind
ScreengrabIf beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, perhaps controversy lies in the mind. Controversy is contextual. What was controversial a decade ago may not be so today. What is controversial in one culture may not be in another. Controversy is fluid, it waxes and wanes according to the mores of the times.
Controversy is to advertising what honey is to bees. An advertisement that is talked about is one that has registered in the minds of the audience.
No doubt there are limits, but these are reached when an advertisement goes beyond controversy and becomes offensive. There may be a fine line between them, but it is there. Controversy challenges, offensive transgresses; it seeks to impugn values that underpin the functioning of societies.
The most controversial advertisment to appear in Pakistan? Given the fluidness of controversy and because Pakistani advertising is hugely tame in expression, naming even one is hard. Perhaps one has to look among those that were banned — most recently the Josh ads, deemed “immoral” by Pemra, following a slew of complaints from the public. There is much to be debated about the public response, but it is suffice to say that a vocal segment among Pakistani audiences is unprepared to view contraception as a part of normal life.
As for the ads; were they controversial? Given the mores of our society, they were. Were they offensive? That would depend on whether one believes they were likely to tear into the fabric of our society. And while promoting contraception is a no-no, what clearly is a yes-yes is the onslaught of ads promoting cooking oil, spices, tea, milk — suggesting a woman’s place is not only firmly in the kitchen but subject to the taste buds of her in-laws. Or the whitening creams reminding women that if their complexion is a tad darker than wheat – and they fail to take ‘remedial’ action – they are doomed to be forever shunned by every eligible Pakistani man on this planet.
Controversy does, indeed, reside in the mind.
..
What has been the most controversial advert in Pakistan?
As the newspapers were flipped open on October 6, 2015, a series of advertisements titled `announcement’ caught many an eye. These advertisements placed by Sindh Police officials carried pictures of purportedly missing persons and openly claimed that “unknown Rangers” had picked up these individuals; the adverts requested readers to share information so the recovery of those individuals could be made possible. A row erupted between the police and the Sindh Rangers, with the latter accusing the former of issuing these adverts to malign the Rangers-led security operation in Karachi. More recently, an eatery in Islamabad came under fire for the sexist tone of its marketing campaign; the restaurant later apologised for the adverts. In light of these campaigns that have stirred disagreements, the Herald reached out to analysts and commentators to find out about some of the advertisements that have created the biggest controversies in Pakistan.
Selling like hot buns
You could spend a lot of money flying to Thailand and shooting a million-dollar commercial that would probably get a lot of abuse and acclaim (more abuse, given how advertising is mostly irritating and intrusive here). Or you could do something very simple, but something that would start debates, scathing arguments, earn scorn, and might just earn a ban or two for good measure.
Hardee’s did just that. We’ve all heard the clichés about liking it or hating it, but it being impossible to ignore? You couldn’t ignore their “Fresh Buns” campaign. A lot of people spoke up against it: it’s offensive, it’s tasteless, it’s trite. But they spoke. And they spoke a lot. And they posted. And they shared. And then the press spoke too.
In advertising, you’ve usually hit gold when the newspapers themselves do your job of publicising — when your work becomes the topic of headlines. Free media is worth many times more than the ones you pay to display the otherwise safe and usually bland stuff.
It perplexed me that this came in for so much criticism. A Pakistani brand was being bold for a change. Sure, it might be close to the line or even crossing it, but at least they had imagination. Sure, it might not be the most creative execution in the world, but they have cheek, so to say. Sure, it might be inappropriate for a country where sexual innuendos are taboo, but this is also a country that consistently ranks amongst the top, in the world, for **** searches. And secretly, of course, we know that more than half the people who criticised it went home and thought about buns. All kinds, of course.
By Ali Rez, a creative director who won Gold at Cannes and Clios Festival this year.
Moral police
Instead, the Josh condom commercial provoked a protest campaign that led to the Pakistan Electronic and Media Regulation Authority (Pemra) banning the spot and pulling it from airwaves on the grounds that it was “indecent, immoral and in sheer disregard to our socio-cultural and religious values”. Rolling out the commercial during Ramzan added insult to injury, according to Pemra and other commentators. Much of the fury was directed at the star of the commercial, Mathira, the VJ-turned-media personality who has built her reputation around bold, sexually suggestive posturing. The offending advert remains available and widely viewed today on numerous social media websites, thanks to her.
The commercial itself was confusing in its message and not very well produced. It shows a glamorous bride starting married life and gossiping neighbours who wonder how her ordinary-looking husband is able to keep a hold on her affections. At the very end, the husband gleefully shares his secret by brandishing a packet of Josh condoms and urging others to use them. One can debate whether this depiction demeans women as sex objects or presents a tantalising picture of a satisfied wife. However, the charge of immorality and offense to religious values derives from the very suggestion that sexual activity could be permissible for any reason other than procreation.
By Faiza Mushtaq, an assistant professor at IBA.
All in the mind
Controversy is to advertising what honey is to bees. An advertisement that is talked about is one that has registered in the minds of the audience.
No doubt there are limits, but these are reached when an advertisement goes beyond controversy and becomes offensive. There may be a fine line between them, but it is there. Controversy challenges, offensive transgresses; it seeks to impugn values that underpin the functioning of societies.
The most controversial advertisment to appear in Pakistan? Given the fluidness of controversy and because Pakistani advertising is hugely tame in expression, naming even one is hard. Perhaps one has to look among those that were banned — most recently the Josh ads, deemed “immoral” by Pemra, following a slew of complaints from the public. There is much to be debated about the public response, but it is suffice to say that a vocal segment among Pakistani audiences is unprepared to view contraception as a part of normal life.
As for the ads; were they controversial? Given the mores of our society, they were. Were they offensive? That would depend on whether one believes they were likely to tear into the fabric of our society. And while promoting contraception is a no-no, what clearly is a yes-yes is the onslaught of ads promoting cooking oil, spices, tea, milk — suggesting a woman’s place is not only firmly in the kitchen but subject to the taste buds of her in-laws. Or the whitening creams reminding women that if their complexion is a tad darker than wheat – and they fail to take ‘remedial’ action – they are doomed to be forever shunned by every eligible Pakistani man on this planet.
Controversy does, indeed, reside in the mind.
..
