Adil Najam
The Ads (commercials) we watch while growing up can sometimes have an amazingly profound an impact on us. When I look back at all my years of growing up with PTV (Pakistan Television) I remember as many ads as I do any other form of programming. The memories of some still bring back a smile on my face. This blog post shares a few of those ads which I was able to find on YouTube.
This first one (above) is the famous Binaca Ad with the, then, child singer Afshaan who used to appear in the Sohail Rana children music programs and later, when all grown up, also appeared often on PTV.
This famous Naurus Ad (Naurus, by the way, is the other Red Bull of Pakistan) was equally popular and the cute little girl featured here was a national sensation of her time. I wonder where she is now.
We have written aboutsome very striking old PIA Ads, print Ads from the 1950s, and also about credit card and bank advertising and telecom company advertising. But old PTV ads have a quality and power all their own (see some new TV ads here).
I am not sure if these ads are necessarily better than the ones we have now. Indeed, some of the new ads are truly amazing – programming quality or better. For example, the Tapal Tea Ads/songs that Shoaib Mansoor produced. And also many more. Mayb, I was younger then and the memories of those days seem more glorious in retrospect. Or, maybe, we only had one channel and much fewer ads and, therefore, whatever was on TV seemed more memorable.
But whatever the reason, for me at least, these ads and the memories of some others from the same era have a particular and special quality to them. I have enjoyed seeing them again, and I hope you will too.
I should confess that I always found this next Ad – of State Life Insurance – rather funny. I still do. The very cute child is praying for her father’s long life and celebrating the fact that he has bought a Life Insurance policy. I wonder why buying – or cashing – a Life Insurance Policy bring such happiness to any child? Anyhow, the ad was catchy and very very popular. In fact, I think it was remade twice or thrice.
By the way, in the realm of the funny were the old Metromillan Billi Marka Agarbatti Ads.
One of my all-time favorite Ads was the old Peek Freens biscuit Ad with the Pied Piper luring all the kids away with Peek Freens biscuits. This is the one filmed on a beautiful hill-station location and produced, I believe, by Javed Jabbar.
Another memorable one was this Ad for Kiwi Show polish. Again, the theme is school children and the classroom.
Do share with us what might be some of your favorite ads from the old PTV days. And why?
Nice blog. brings back so many memories. Well people have already mentioned all the ads that i liked. The best was from Muhammed Farooq Textiles…. that cricket ad where shadows were playing cricket with strange music. What a spooky ad. I wish i could find it on youtube!!!!
I also find it interesting that BoneyM was very popular in those days. I can remember at least 3 ads that used music from BoneyM numbers
1: Polka Chocbar …. music was from ‘Night flights from Venus’
2:Shezan Zangebil: music was from ‘Rasputin’
3: Sunny Busicuits: Music was from similar naming track ‘Sunny’.
Seems like advertisement agencies in those days were huge admirers of BoneyM :-)
beautiful post adil.
one adv about which no one has said anything was of a refrigerator going something like;
yeh hai kahani do bahnoon ki,
aik ney khareeda direct cool no frost
…………
kesi museebat ghar me lai…
v still enact that jingle whenever the topic is about something to do two siblings
Another crude ad, I thought, was:
LakkaR hazam, pathar hazam!
@Nisar. I had forgotten all about that Phillips Ad. It really was quite something. They used to show it with the late night movies and I know people (including my parents used to wait for the Ad as much as the movie!). I was myself quite young then, but even I know that it was an icon of an Ad.
And, yes, it may well be the best ever (though I think many of the one’s mentioned here by various commenters are contenders for that title). However, I think that that particular Ad may not really be a “Pakistani” commercial and might have been an “import” dubbed into Urdu. Would love to find out if it is indeed so.
My favourite one was from black and white early era of PTV.
It was Phillips ad:
Aye na aap hamare ghar
Na padosi na
Aap ke ghar mein radio na tv
Na padosi na
This was an ad in both English and Urdu. The best ad ever!
I am looking for this ad, if somebody by miracle has it please let me know at pipric@hotmail.com.
Off course,
Chai chahiye
Kaun si janab
Lipton umda hai
is another classic.
Gold label tea’s…
Its a new day new day
Shake me up! wake me up! tea
with a girl sending a flying kiss… man o man.
Dekha mein ne pyara sapna
pehna he ik pyara kapda
Sitara ki hai sapna lawn… the first ad to employ a foreign model.
I am Mr. Denotnic…. he he he he he….
is another ad which was very annoying for my dad, but funny for me.
Na na na… achha naheen balon ka girna
ho girna say ho balo ko bachana
to eden rock ho ga lagana… aur bal girna band.
What about:
Glo ra pel
khushki ko bhool jaye
Glorapel ko yad raken.
Muje Crystal Chaheye was another one. Reminds me of 50 50 parody as well.
Cha cha cha chen from Gillette.
Garam garam chai garam green spot chai
isphahani green spot chai… with 50 50 changing it to
Sharam naheen aaye sharam in ko naheen aaye
Pakistani Yeh kehlaye.
Ha ha ha… too many fond memories!