Polycab rides on humour to make 'safety' and 'saving' promise

Polycab Wires, a cables and wires company, has launched its first television commercial. The company has adopted a new brand message ‘Safe raho, Save karo’ and unveiled a new brand logo. The TVC that has been conceptualized by Taproot India went on air on 8 March.

This quirky TVC opens around a family that is gathering for a meal. But they have three 'dangerous' visitors.

A middle-aged man seated on the dining table and reading a newspaper, asks a masked man seated beside him as to which movie they should watch. The masked man replies that they should watch a family picture. Meanwhile, a young boy is shown trotting out a toy gun and playing with another man who is firing real gun shots around the house. The woman of the house walks into the dining room asking who wants ‘idlis’.  She is followed by another man holding a bowl of chutney announcing that chutney has been made as well. The frame now shows a young girl seated on the table with a snake coiled around her shoulders. She asks if there is milk available for Kitu - the snake. The lady assures her that there is milk available. The family members along with the three men are shown seated on the table ready to eat. A man now appears on  screen, dodges an axe thrown at him, and asks, “Kya aapka ghar bhi itna unsafe hai? Toh unsafe wires kyun? Polycab wires chuniye.”

He is then shown shoving the three dangerous characters out of the house. He says, “Polycab ke triguard technology bachaye fire se, shock se aur short circuit se. Aur de 25 pc bijli ki bachat bhi. Toh safe raho, save karo.”
 
R Ramakrishnan, vice chairman, joint managing director and group CEO, Polycab Wires, said, “The launch of our very first ad campaign marks a new milestone for us in many ways. With this TVC, we also unveil our new corporate identity which will help our consumers understand and identify us better. While we are amongst the leading players in the industry, as a brand we evangelize the proposition of ‘safety’ and all our communication reinforces our message. We are very excited to present our new proposition and are confident this will only propel our brand to new heights.”

About the campaign, Agnello Dias, chairman and co-founder, Taproot India, said, "The film does a strategically precise balancing act of driving home the dangerous folly of treating wires like a blind spot that does not matter. To do this in a charming tone of voice that couches a serious warning along with strong product benefits is the fruit of true collaboration between the marketing team and the agency's brand team."

On the new logo, Santosh Padhi, chief creative officer and co-founder, Taproot India, said, "Polycab deals into giving power to consumers through a range of various electrical products. Keeping the nature of business and the growth plan of Polycab in mind, we wanted to add a visual mnemonic to the existing Polycab typeface. We zeroed down on a monogram/symbol that's really simple, powerful and consumer friendly. It's a universal symbol for power.”

On the brief given to the agency, Pallavi Chakravarti, associate creative director, Taproot India, said, “Everyone expects their house wires to be safe, but nobody really cares about which wires they use. So our brief was simple - get people thinking about what really lies concealed behind their walls. Creatively, we decided to do this by asking them how safe their homes really are.”

Credits:

Client: Polycab Wires
Creative Agency: Taproot India
Chairman, co-founder, Agnello Dias, Taproot India     
Chief Creative Officer, co-founder: Santosh Padhi
Associate Creative Director: Pallavi Chakravarti
Production House: Foot Candles
Director: Ayyappa