Daily Times

A prominent beverages brand has recently unveiled an ad which has everyone feeling nostalgic and missing some of their favourite pop stars – two of whom are now deceased. The brand tried to recreate the moments from the times of previous generations and one has to acknowledge they did a not-so-bad job as is evident from the fact that the ad trended on social media for at least 2 days.

The ad begins with heartthrob Fawad Khan picking up a soda can from the fridge with branding from the 80s, drinks it and is immediately and magically transported into that era. He finds himself standing outside a disco with cars from that era – not to mention the added wit where Fawad Khan is surprised why nobody is recognising him when a woman driving by doesn’t give him the star treatment he’s normally used to.

They recreated the 80s disco era, a job well done and I felt nostalgic because I grew up in the 90s listening to Nazia Hassan and Zoheb Hassan’s 80s songs and watching their videos. The ad brought back Zoheb Hassan performing on the stage an iconic song ‘Ooie Ooie’ from the brother-sister duo’s album ‘Boom Boom’

What happens next is pure magic, at least for me. They recreated the 80s disco era, a job well done and I felt nostalgic because I grew up in the 90s listening to Nazia Hassan and Zoheb Hassan’s 80s songs and watching their videos. The ad brought back Zoheb Hassan performing on the stage an iconic song Ooie Ooie from the brother-sister duo’s album Boom Boom. The song along with many other songs of the duo was taken for the Bollywood movie Star and is one of the songs sung as solo by Zoheb Hassan. One can understand they chose this song for the ad because the duo lost its backbone Nazia Hassan some 18 years ago. It was also heartbreaking to see Zoheb perform the song along when one is so used to watching the duo in an 80s setting together, especially in the concert/events sponsored by this particular beverages brand at the time. But I must say Fawad Hassan’s charming moonwalking helped.

Next, Fawad Khan picks up a soda can again and this time lands in the 90s where he’s walking in an ally watching 1999 cricket world cup match on TV and Junaid Jamshed’s patriotic Hum Hain Pakistani number is playing in the background.

Fawad also looks at the nostalgic poster featuring late Junaid Jamshed with a guitar. One can see the range of emotions on his face and he then meets the swing sultan Waseem Akram in the ally who passes another soda can of the same brand to him like a baton being passed on to the next generation.

Drinking from this can, Fawad Khan is transported into the early 2000s with Strings’ Uski Zulfain Khuli tou Laga Yoon Mujhe playing in the background. Filmstar Reema returns in the same style as she had when she starred in this ad. Though we don’t get to see Strings in the ad, we can very well relive the moment with the song.

Reema and Fawad then walk up to each other and Reema hands him the soda can with the modern branding of the same beverages brand and he immediately returns to the present time. Here the winning band of Pepsi Battle of the Bands, Kashmir band asks Fawad to pass the mantle forward saying ‘Ab Hamari Baari (It’s our turn now). Fawad acknowledges and the band goes on to perform on the stage while a final montage shows people from all the different generations drinking the same soda. The ad ends with the brand boasting how this particular beverage brand has been the ‘choice of every generation’.

Overall, the ad does what it’s supposed to; take people down the memory lane and make everyone feel connected to this brand – generation after generation. Although, one gets carried away and wonders if through CGI effects or something they could have shown Nazia Hassan and Junaid Jamshed as well but only if all wishes could come true. So I’d say thumbs up and thank you for this ad giving us the reason to celebrate some of our iconic pop and cricket stars.

The writer is the Digital Editor, Daily Times and can be reached at me@farhanjanjua.com. He tweets and instagrams @FarhanJanjua

Published in Daily Times, March 20^th 2018.