Volkswagen Talking Newspaper Ad in Times of India

My sister had already told me about the shocking audio that leapt out of the pages of the Times of India when she opened it, so I knew what to expect. But even so, I was quite amazed. Well, yesterday, Volkswagen placed a ‘Talking Newspaper Ad’ in the Times of India. As soon as you opened the newspaper, a recorded voice reading out the benefits of the newly launched Volkswagen Vento, began playing.

I found myself more interested in the technology used to make the ‘Talking Newspaper Ad’, than the high-tech German engineering advertised for the Volkswagen Vento. The Volkswagen newspaper ad works on simple solar technology, using a PhotoDiode. A PhotoDiode is a small photodetector tool that can convert light energy into electrical energy, like those present in solar calculators. This electrical energy is then converted into sound energy, when the audio speaker in the little gadget begins saying its lines. When a person opens the newspaper, the natural light activates the PhotoDiode, which begins playing the sound clip.

At a time when newspapers are losing out to the Internet, this gimmick serves to bring back interest. The idea was truly innovative and very soon, I expect to see more companies joining the bandwagon, and flooding newspapers with such audio advertisements. Oh…the cacophony of technically dead voices greeting you every morning….

I suppose, an audio newspaper advertisement would work best for films and music companies. They can send clips of their music or movie dialogues, which people would actually like to hear repeatedly. They could also put a colorful sticker on their gadget, with a bit of information about the product. The black plastic audio player for Volkswagen looked quite ordinary. No one would guess it was given out by Volkswagen, unless one saw the actual printed advertisement.

What was your reaction when you first saw the Volkswagen PhotoDiode ‘talking newspaper ad’? What do you think it harbours for the future of newspaper advertising?

Dabangg - Movie Review

I have found time to write a movie review after a long time. Many were asking me if my blog has become a wedding blog, because of the celebrity wedding photos I have posted. Well, it's not. I just posted them coz there is a lot of demand for celebrity wedding photos. There's nothing much happening in my life right now, so I don't know what else to write about.

Well, I watched Dabangg yesterday, at PVR Rivoli in Connaught Place. So here is my movie review:

Dabangg - 7/10 - Action Comedy - starring Salman Khan (Chulbul Pandey), Arbaaz Khan (Makhi Pandey), Sonu Sood (Cheddi Singh), Sonakshi Sinha (Rajo), Vinod Khanna and Dimple Kapadia. A film produced by and credited to the Salman Khan family.

Salman Khan plays a fearless (Dabangg) cop Chulbul Pandey, who steals from criminals and gives to the poor. For this he is also called Robinhood Pandey. Chulbul is jealous of his half brother Makhi and hates his step dad (played by Vinod Khanna). He later takes a fancy to Rajo, a pottery maker in his village, whom he wishes to marry. Rajo is more interested in caring for her habitually drunk father, and does not give in to his idiotic advances.

Meanwhile, half brother Makki steals Chulbul's crime money so he can marry his girlfriend. There is also a mix of local politics and terrorism. Cheddi Singh is a local strongman and youth leader who puts the brothers against each other, to recover his crime money.


Salman Khan is on yet another ego trip in this film. He does not get into character, does a lot of overacting and basically, plays himself - albeit in a police uniform. The movie is very violent, though in a funny way. I liked the scene where Salman Khan's muscles burst from his shirt and his shirt comes off, leaving him shirtless.

Some scenes, like the end tractor smoke choking scene were unwatchable. I actually covered my eyes to avoid watching it - no idea why parents bring their kids along to watch such movies.


Positives of Dabangg:

• New actors, both in main and supporting roles have been given a chance to show their potential. I was getting real tired of watching faces like Amitabh Bachchan, Paresh Rawal and Rajpal Yadav in almost every weekly release.
• Good to see some robust Indian village scenes. The movie was based in Lalganj, Uttar Pradesh and has a true local appeal. We also got to see a bit of Dubai, in one of the songs. I was a bit bored of watching scenes featuring Times Square, London Bridge and Opera House, inserted in almost every Bollywood film. Costumes and sets were quite realistic.
  
• Action sequences and songs were well choreographed.
• Great story and screenplay. Punchlines were delivered with style.
  

Negatives of Dabangg:

• Salman Khan can't act like he loves a girl (except for Preity Zinta, whom he may actually like..wink). He comes across as too egoistic and should stay away from doing such romantic scenes.
• Some jokes were quite crude and vulgar.
  
• Promotes suicide: This was uncalled for. You don't need to wish for a girl's father to die, to marry her.
  
• Promotes crime, stealing, revenge, violence and physical aggression to sort out situations.
  

Did you watch Dabangg? What do you think of this film? Did you like my Dabangg movie review?