Chennai-based teacher, swimmer and actor Kavya Ramachandran plays a cricketer in the 2021 edition, which challenges traditional gender narratives and is a tribute to female athletes.
A woman on the pitch. A man is cheering him. A familiar dance to a familiar tune, chocolate bar in tow: Cadbury India has just released a scene-by-scene recreation of its iconic ’90s ad for Dairy Milk, but the internet hasn’t moved on. refused.
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As the screens light up with a new version that challenges traditional, one-sided gender roles, the hashtag #nostalgia trended on social media. Every ’90s kid is passionate, while Gen Z rushes to catch up with the hype and sees the version that came out in 1994. Some on Twitter call this “updated nostalgia.”
The story which is also a tribute to the Indian women’s cricket team (#GoodLuckGirls), sits comfortably on the shoulders of its protagonist and their performances. Directed by Shashank Chaturvedi, the Good Morning Films commercial stars Chennai-based actor and teacher Kavya Ramachandran as the cricketer, who is consistently earning praise for her subtle, relatable performances. Prabhneet Singh played the role of Shimona Rashi in the 1994 advertisement. Although it’s a shot by shot recreation, both actors make the characters their own in this contemporary take.
Kavya says she didn’t see the coveted ad that brought model Shimona Rashi (read: Cadbury Girl) to fame. She was born the same year the ad aired. Though she was thoroughly familiar with the ad, she only saw it completely when the casting director sent her for reference.
Did he anticipate this reaction? “Not one bit,” laughs Kavya. The actor, active in the Chennai theater fraternity, also co-founded an NGO called Sukha Education Foundation, which seeks to bridge the gap between education and employment.
“Once they cast me, I watched the ad several times. There was a small fear that stemmed from the pressure of recreating an iconic ad. once i got on the set [in Mumbai], I understood the gravity of the project. But I was told it was never about getting ahead of the classic; But looking at it as an ode. A contemporary version with a twist,” she recalls. The ad was shot at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai for over a week.
As the internet sinks into nostalgia, half the credit goes to Shankar Mahadevan’s ‘Kuch Khas Hai’ song, and Kavya echoes the sentiment. “The music really reacted,” she says. It has once again become an earworm.
As for that hook shot: It was practiced and perfected at a three-day coaching camp in Santhome, Chennai. “Even though I have two left feet and no coordination when it comes to cricket, the game is a big part of who I am. I was very excited to play on a platform like Cadbury, or even be associated with a sport,” says the national level swimmer, whose most recent medal was a gold at the 2020 Masters National Games, Baroda. She remembers how young boys threw several balls at her during coaching, to help her perfect the hook shot.
His fellow teammates and actors were also professional competitive cricketers belonging to various state teams. “I was a little embarrassed to play in front of them. But the girls were so supportive and extremely encouraging,” she says.
According to Kavya, “The beauty of it is that the music was not altered or remixed at all, and it struck a chord with people like it did in the ’90s,” says Kavya. “And to be able to see girls in a competitive sport, it’s so refreshing.”
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