While in a hot shower

When it comes to taking decisions or thinking about something very important, our favourite place is in the bathroom, under the shower. Nothing is better than hot water to clear any doubts; Racold pegged on just that in writing their recent TV spot #PowerOfHotShower.

The latest TVC by Racold Water Heaters revolves around a man who takes one of the most important decision in life, to not send his parents to an old age home; and the place he takes this decision is, of course, under the shower.

Conceptualised by BBDO, the advertisement addresses the generation that’s usually stuck in the paradox of choosing between their wives and parents. The protagonist in the advert has a ring on his fingers, which indicates that he is either engaged or married.

The spot starts with the protagonist continuously looking at a document (declaration of guardianship of his parents), with a pen in his hand. He gets a call from office, which he disconnects, and as he gets back to looking at the document, he turns to see his parents happy and smiling.

Making up his mind, he signs the documents; and as he starts feeling emotionally and mentally heavy, he steps in for a hot shower. As he switches Racold water heater and starts taking a hot shower, he recollects all the happy moments he spent with his parents.

From his childhood to being adult, he recollects the nostalgic moments when his parents were with him, through the thick and thin. Post the shower, he steps out confidently, walks to the hall and tears the documents of the old age home. He realises how important his parents are to him, and walks to sit next to them in the balcony.

The ad points towards the common weakness of people, who are financially capable of taking good care of their parents, but do not always have the time and will.

It is appreciative of Racold to come up with an advert that does not boast the top notch functionalities of the product but speaks out the emotions of people. Last year, the brand had come up with a brilliant campaign that gave a product demo.

Titled ‘Reborn’ with a power of hot water, the ad featured a cricket umpire and his life on field. It showed how the umpire absorbed all the negative energy on field and still came out fresh every new innings; just like the product gave the same superior quality hot water every time one switched it on.

But despite the great take, the ad missed out on a few grounds. For instance, the premise of the advert looked pale and monotonous on-screen. While the background score and message was good, it did not appeal as much as the previous year’s campaign.

A little more realistic setting, with a family (protagonist’s wife and children) around, would have made the ad a little more realistic and clear in the messaging.