Actors entering showbiz through endorsements appears to be a good plan. From Priety Zinta’s Perk ad, Yami Gautam’s fairness cream ad to the recent ads that star Pooja Hegde who is currently the favourite of many filmmakers, many actors owe their rise to fame to advertisements.
Closer home there’s Akhil Akkineni who is a recognisable face thanks to his two ad films.
But ad guru Piyush Pandey says there’s no proven formula. “One gets noticed if they are good at their work.
There is no way one can tell how things are going to work out.” Akhil Akkineni, who surprised everyone when he debuted with an ad, says, “With the hype that surrounded my debut, to opt for an ad where everyone would judge my acting skills prematurely was a risk.
But I knew that the ads would do well… I laid a lot of emphasis to the script and the brand value.”
Ad man Prahlad Kakkar feels it doesn’t necessarily work like that for everyone. “With Akhil, there was a lot of hype because he is a star son.”
Director Nandini Reddy doesn’t agree. She feels ads work well for all. “One usually sees fresh faces in ads. That way new actors get a chance to showcase their talent.”
With regional movies, an actor can only reach the regional audience, but when an actor debuts with a national ad, he reaches a wider audience.
“A national ad, with a huge brand only adds to the fact that an actor has some talent, which is why he would’ve been selected to represent the brand,” says director Madhura Sreedhar.
