Tag: Commercial

Unlock with a look

iPhone X Commercial: Unlock with a look ft Bollywood song sample by @petecannon #ListenToRadha #iPhoneX #UnlockWithALook

My son has recently mastered the game of Uno so we typically sit down after dinner to play as a family. The tv is usually playing in the background, tuned to some harmless network channel, mostly as a light source in an otherwise dimly lit living room (you know, for ambiance). Recently, during one of our intensely competitive rounds of gameplay, I heard this distinctly Desi sounding song coming from the tv, and glanced up to see this iPhone X commercial.

I immediately hit rewind (thank you Xfinity X1) and Shazam’d the commercial, confirming my initial hunch. The wordless ad features a young woman unlocking various items with just a look, alluding to how amazing it is that the iPhone X is able to be unlocked with facial recognition (Full disclosure: I have an iPhone X and the Face ID only works about 60% of the time) all to the early 80s era, Bollywood pop hit, inspired song “Bang Bang” by Pete Cannon.

He’s British which explains the Indian music, ’cause we all know that England continues to be the motherland for all Desis. The cover art features a mendhi inspired drawing with the author’s name and track title running across it. I can’t seem to find much more about him online, so if anyone knows what his connection is to the Brown world or how he happened to stumble upon this sample, I’m curious to know more!

The YouTube page includes the credit: The track “Bang Bang” features a sample of “Meri Nazar Hai Tujh Pe’” sung by Asha Bhosle music by R.D. Burman and lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi licensed courtesy of Saregama PLC. The original song itself borrows some influence from Spanish Flamenco which of course is par for the old school Bollywood course; they are well known for “borrowing” influence in their songs/films. Also, the movie it was in is called “The Burning Train“. This just gets weirder and weirder!

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Campbells® Star Wars soup | New Kids

The tv was on in the background while I was doing dishes and the kids were playing with Viraj. All of a sudden, we heard a little kid speaking Hindi and everyone immediately froze and turned to the tv to see what was going on. The above commercial was playing and just as soon as we all realized what was happening, it was over. Just like that, 15 seconds and it was done.

We get a glimpse into a new immigrant’s experience of lunch time in a school where he doesn’t speak the language. Equally as important is the fact that the other child sitting across from Krish is also an immigrant and does not speak English. They bond over their shared love/language of Star Wars. The fact that it was Campbell’s soup doesn’t really  make sense because let’s face it, pasta in soup out of a can is a very American concept that newly immigrated families probably aren’t packing for their kids’ lunches.

Seeing this commercial made me feel hopeful for my kids, who though can speak English, have their own immigrant experience that they bring with them to the lunch table. We’ve come a long way from the days when my sister and I would bring Indian food to school for lunch and the white kids would make fun of us.

Visit Mum

I recently came across this sweet ad about a mother/son reuniting after years apart. It brings up feelings on the immigrant experience that I’ve heard echoed from my parents while I was growing up. The son describes his love for his native city of Mumbai or Bombay, which is also one of my favorite cities on earth. You can almost smell the delicious food the mother painstakingly makes for her son which she believes will be sent to him, courtesy of British Airways. I’m a sucker for emotional commercials featuring real people and this one even incorporates my other passion, the Indian diaspora! Enjoy.

Karan Soni, on “How To Win An Oscar”

Loving all things Desi and American, seeing Karan on the promo spot piqued my curiosity so I found the video and Googled who was the actor.

The 89th Annual Academy Awards a.k.a. the Oscars are on this Sunday and I plan on putting the kid to bed early so I can not only watch the ceremony but listen to all the speeches and revel at the performances. It’s always exciting to hear how those speeches pull from current events and might influence pop culture. I’ve long been a movie buff and with the Oscars being the ultimate “who’s who” of actors and movies for the year, I make it a point to be at home, alone, to watch it every year. I’ve already told my husband that we’re getting take out and not leaving the house, lest I miss even a moment!

In anticipation of the show, ABC has been running promo spots with host Jimmy Kimmel. One in particular, inspired this post. Jimmy Kimmel walks us thru his guide on how to win an Oscar while actor Karan Soni is acting the steps out in the background.

Loving all things Desi and American, seeing Karan on the promo spot piqued my curiosity so I found the video and Googled who was the actor. Turns out Karan has been quite busy in Hollywood and is going to be in many upcoming, high profile projects. He made his mark as the nerdy tech in a series of AT&T commercials then played small roles in Deadpool and Ghostbusters. Currently he’s a series regular in Starz’ Blunt Talk. He’s also going to be in the next season of FX’s breakout hit Fargo, due to be out later this year.

What a banner year with (my fav) Riz Ahmed and Dev Patel winning BAFTAs and hopefully Oscars too! I see good things for young Karan Soni as well.