I am writing this article after reading a blog from my friend and rightly so, any disgust, filth or rotten tomato should be directed at her and not me. Don't we all believe its the instigator who is more accountable than the gullible?
Yes, cricket is my blood, breath, sweat and scar. Especially after we won the 1983 Prudential cup which was a turning point for the game. I have physical scars in me to remind great victories and excitement. Thankfully, we haven't had many victories before I switched my loyalties elsewhere. I have a gash in my forehead when we were playing the 1983 wc semifinal - although I do admit it was partly due to the induction of a new device called Solidaire B&W in our homes. A 4 inch long streak under my right knee when we lifted the Benson & Hedges and when I type this, I can still see the wedge like marks on my knuckles when fellow Veggie Venkatesh Prasad bowled a send off to Aamir Sohail in the quarter finals against Pakistan. Wonder how I got that ? In the heat, I jumped to the roof and the fan blades did the rest.
As a die-hard, I cannot stand ads related to cricket. There are many instances when I think these cricket ads were out of context, meaningless and misleading.
Who can forget the Hamara Bajaj ad with a tri-colour when we were losing wickets in Sharjah against the Paks? What was the ad supposed to convey - buy a bajaj and you will see India winning ?
Reliance cup 1987 - Graham Gooch swept everything that came his way to fineleg boundaries. No wonder England is a cleaner place. To add insult to injury - we were busy showing 'Only Vimal' from Reliance ads after every Indian wicket. I still remember the 'Dinesh suitings' ad was also shown repeatedly when Sunny Gavaskar left home for the day leaving his job unfinished.
2007 world cup - when the brothers in arms (India & Pakistan) were busy making early exits, the little canine was busy chasing kiddies to their schools and running behind school buses. How frustrating can it ever get ? Hind sight, if you get one cricket run for every such chase, you will have beaten the opponent before breakfast.
Ads have to be creative. Yes agreed - they are far more creative today. But are they timed at all? Never. I propose ads to cover every possibility or outcome and transmit appropriate ads during appropriate times.
The present day ads are reminiscent of hunting for photo films for a normal weekend get away when you can as well carry a tiny digi-cam in your pocket.
There is another angle to the ad story that I am angry about, but one I will leave it for later.
good lord, you mean to say that just because the indian team is losing, no ads should be shown ? it may be blood,sweat and scar for you (and a lot of others), but the point is, it is, and is meant to be, entertainment - and just that.
ReplyDeleteand if it is to be shown on tv, there needs to be some source of revenue - and those are ads.
if there are no ads, how will ardent cricket lovers (or should i say worshippers!)like you get to see them on tv ? its not just the channels, but also the bcci,in turn, which gets to rake in the moolah...
maybe there need not be so many ads if the organisations decide to forego some ad revenue...
you say the ads are not timed - why should they be ? as i said earlier, sports are a form of entertainment, and there is no reason why ads should not be shown just because a player gets out... by extending your logic, what next ? we may have aunties and grannies demanding that ads should not be shown when the heroine of the mega-serial is undergoing so much suffering :) remember, they as are as passionate about serials as you are about cricket!
i believe the bajaj ad was not shot to be shown during cricket alone ! buying a bajaj can't make india win, but one cannot make melancholy ads with flags at half masts and keep them in reserve, just in case they can be shown if the indian wickets come down crashing... :)
the gash on your forehead and the graze on your knuckles is not going to make india win,either !
P.S. 1 : sorry for making a reply as long as a post - couldn't resist !
P.S. 2 : if your post brings me rotten tomtatoes, i'd be ecstatic - for i'll know someone else other that you and my aunt has been reading my posts !
sowpar
Some questions if you may know
ReplyDelete@ In 1983 - did cricket involve ads ?
@ Was cricket run by revenues then even until the early 1990s?
@ Were not players more focussed in the game than ad shoots?
@ Games were definitely a lot more interesting then.
Now you see the downside of ads?
ShoalHaven't