In a recent survey conducted by Ormax Media, Sakshi Tanwar's name features among the top five most trustworthy celebrities alongside Madhuri Dixit-Nene and Katrina Kaif. Quite a feat, that. Fact: When it comes to endorsements, the gap between TV and film stars is narrowing. Models have so far been rueing that movie stars grab their share of advertisements. Now to add to their woes, chhota screen stars are also cutting into that pie.
Tune into any channel and you'll find various TV actors like Shweta Tiwari, Hussain Kuwajerwala, Mansi Parekh and Hina Khan promoting everything from household essentials to personal care products. An advertisement for a dish washing agent has Sakshi. In another ad she is along with her Bade Acche Laggte Hain co-star Ram Kapoor endorsing a departmental store. Sanjeeda Shaikh did an ad for Nirma. In the past, Ravi Dubey and Aishwarya Sakhuja (Tez and Toasty) of Saas Bina Sasural were roped in for a chocolate and paint ad.
TV actor bhi lao
Though Bollywood stars continue to be advertisers' favourite models, TV actors are not far behind. An emerging trend is to pair a tv actor with a big star. Salman Khan woos a TV actress with a soap in the Wheel ad (Rashami Desai, Aamna Shariff and Pooja Gor). Over the years, we've seen the models change while he remains constant. Sushant Singh Rajput and Ankita Lokhande did a Lux ad with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Reality show star Vishal Singh (Roadies, Splitsvilla, Bigg Boss) features in an ad with Parineeti Chopra. Aamir Ali has done a scooty ad with Kareena Kapoor. There are also many instances where the movie star and the TV star endorse the same brand but different products. Kareena 'sells' Boroplus, Sakshi is the face of Boroline, Karisma Kapoor and Sakshi promote Kellogs.
Media strategist Mona Jain, CEO, Vivaki Exchange, explains the trend, "It's a reflection of their popularity. The ratings of an exclusive TV event like a Star Parivaar or Zee Rishtey Awards, are at par with those garnered by movie premieres. This shows that households are mostly involved with serials and identify with the actors."
TV stars connect!
Pooja, who ranks number eight among TV stars, believes small screen actors are a better choice because audiences relate to them. Sakshi has had a long journey and though she was popular as Parvati bhabhi of Kahani Ghar Ghar Kii, it was after Bade Acchhe Lagte Hain that she became the face of as many as 12 brands within a span of two years.
The money factor
Shailesh Kapoor, CEO, Ormax Media, makes an interesting point, "TV stars are considered for endorsements in two scenarios — when the audience is the core TV audience like the housewife in sections B, C, D; or when the budgets don't permit a film star for endorsement. The former is a positive move while the latter is a desperate one and generally never works." While film stars get paid in the range of crores, TV stars usually are paid in lakhs. The image projected by a TV star in the serial also works for the advertiser. They may not be in the exact character, but the values of the character should be intact. For example, if Sakshi is seen as samajhdaar and sanskaari in her serial, she should not come across as irreverent and western in an ad." Chaya Unnikrishnan |
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