Ford takes 'social content series' forward with third poem

Ford has launched the third film in its social content series. The video, with a poetic voice-over, builds an emotional narrative around adventures and journeys of travelers. Here is a quick overview.

Ford has unveiled the latest addition to its poetic social content series. The new ad film, titled #Raastey, celebrates the journey of those who take the road less travelled.

The video flaunts Ford Endeavour as the vehicle of choice, cruising through the hilly terrain of Himachal Pradesh. And while scenic landscapes invoke the traveller spirit in viewers, the poem narrates a wanderer's journey through the roads that are often overlooked.

The video has been crafted by Word of Mouth Media, and written by Vineet Panchhi and Kapil Sharma, head of communications at Ford India. Complementing the spirit of the #DiscoverMore campaign, the social content series from Ford aims to bring everyday emotions to life with words decorated with visuals.

Previously, the brand had unveiled the first two films from the series - Galiyan – a film showcasing the multiple sides of the old part of national capital Delhi, and Aasman – an ode to childhood. While the films had their own designated storylines and narrations, the overall theme of all three videos underscores emotions and adventure.

The series comprises five films, all fashioned with poems and visuals. The campaign will also seek participation from consumers, in an attempt to crowd-source original verse on self-discovery, with the tacit possibility of being turned into videos in the future.

Speaking the venture, Kapil Sharma, head of communications, Ford India, points out that the brand aimed to go beyond vehicle features and delve into emotional storytelling.

As part of Communications’ mandate of emotional storytelling, we wanted to go beyond vehicle features to explore how it (a vehicle) stands witness to many discoveries in life and is in fact, an enabler to these discoveries. With the vehicle as the real protagonist, verse was seen as the best form of expression to bring these nuances to life.

Sharma also laid out the brand's plans to seek audience participation after the campaign nears the end of the first phase. He says, “At the end of the first phase comprising five videos, we want to leave people inspired enough to share their discoveries - preferably in the form of original poems in regional languages. These crowd sourced poems after undergoing a creative process, will form the second phase of the series.”

Wasn't shooting in a place like Himachal, in cold, bleak weather challenging, we wondered. We reached out to Vineet Panchhi, founder and creative director, Word of Mouth Media, to know what the challenges faced by his team were. He says, “The challenge was the winter."

"Most of the places where the car could be challenged were shut. The city, however, was very challenging and it was difficult to shoot there. But at least it was open. We decided that we would take up the challenge and shoot there. If you know filming, you'll know that a lot of our cameras don't work below zero degrees Celsius. The team was sheltered in local villages and there was no connectivity.”

Hinting at the upcoming additions to the series, Panchhi points out, “This is a five film series, and we've done three now. The upcoming two films will be for the other two cars – Freestyle and Ecosport. And then there could be a culmination film in which all five cars appear.”

About the poetic narrations, which he has voiced himself, Panchhi says, “When you go through the poem, you'll realise that these are experiences of every traveller. The metaphors used are personal journeys. The car is a carrier of the message, but the larger message is that of ambition. If you aim to do something, go and do it. Don't just wait.”

Expert Review:

Sunila Karir, founder and creative partner, Boing!

Some very evocative writing in this campaign....in all the three ads. And kudos to the team that has written this. With such sort of intimate writing, the poetic voice-over tool is an apt treatment. Ford India has remarkably succeeded, for the past many years, in taking on an Indian colour in spite of being a foreign brand. I feel that the story will go a long way in resonating with the TG of this campaign.

Navin Kansal, chief creative officer, 21N78E Creative Labs

There is nothing wrong with using poetry as a narrative style, especially in the context of this campaign when the intent seems to dial up the feeling more than the features. More so, when the features are being plugged visually. Ford has been looking to stay consistent with this kind of narrative for a while now. However for this particular campaign, I wish the human connect could have been stronger and peppered into the film a lot more. The glory shots of the car against the expanse of stunning rugged terrain is all fine, but it does not seem to evoke the same emotional high that the earlier Galiyan campaign was able to achieve.