Cadbury appoints Shah Rukh Khan as the brand ambassador of countless small stores

Using machine learning, Ogilvy, for the chocolate giant, got King Khan’s voice and face to endorse the businesses.

Shah Rukh Khan, one of India’s most loved actors ever, has decided to become the brand ambassador of countless small and hyperlocal businesses in India this Diwali.

Cadbury, wanted to do something for small businesses who’d suffered amid the pandemic last year and, unlike big businesses, cannot bounce back with minimum difficulty.

So, the chocolate maker got King Khan (as Shah Rukh is lovingly called) to become the face and voice of these small shops and businesses; they couldn’t have asked for a better endorsement for their peak season.

Ogilvy, for the chocolate maker, used machine learning to recreate the actor’s face and voice to take the local store’s name.

“After last year's endeavour to support small local shops, our #CadburyCelebrations team at Ogilvy brings us another fantastic idea, blending star-power with A.I. technology to give a boost to our local stores' businesses. Let's hope it is a happy Diwali for all!” wrote Harshad Rajadhyaksha, Ogilvy India's chief creative officer in a LinkedIn post.

Cadbury also let these stores create their versions of the ad by filling in a bit of information.

Also Read: “The ad’s algorithm is similar to that of Google Maps”: Ogilvy’s Sukesh Nayak on Cadbury’s pin code-based ad

The chocolate giant, for Diwali last year (2020), offered an advertising platform that displayed names of the (small) stores which changed based on the pin code in which the ad has been viewed.

Media partner: Wavemaker

Technology partner: Rephrase