Why advertisers can’t get enough of Ba***ds of Bollywood memefest
What was meant to be a spoof on the dirty business of Bollywood has, ironically, become the vehicle of Bollywood-themed ads.
When Parvaiz tried to impress Emraan Hashmi with an off-key version of ‘Kaho na kaho’ in The Ba***ds of Bollywood, the homage to Bollywood’s ‘serial kisser’ went viral. But the runaway success of this moment from the Netflix original prompted Hashmi and Raghav Juyal, who played Parvaiz, to recreate its exact opposite in a recent ad for Spotify’s annual Wrapped feature. This time, Juyal gets a chance to turn the tables on Hashmi, asking him to step aside as he poses for the paps.
But it all ends well when Juyal bursts into yet another tribute to Bollywood’s ‘serial kisser,’ singing ‘Tu hi meri shab hai,’ which he claims is his top song on this year’s Spotify Wrapped.
Only those who watched the show, and the memefest that followed, will really get the ad, which makes us wonder if this Netflix series has become such a phenomenon that brands are now tapping its memes for mainstream campaigns.
Looks like it. Juyal and his co-star Lakshya Lalwani also feature in another ad for Hindustan Unilever’s Vaseline, replete with Ba***ds of Bollywood references—Parvaiz and Aasmaan’s friendship is so strong on the show that it fits into the relationship between Ceramides and Hyaluron—the actives that help Vaseline keep skin moisturized, even in winters! The obsession with all things Ba***ds is unlikely to fade soon. After all, the track ‘Duniya haseenon ka mela,’ which has a pivotal role to play in the show’s plotline, has been racking up millions of views ever since it got successful.
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