Thursday, March 6, 2014

Exotica and 3eid el Oummahat (in Arabic!)

The new Exotica mother's day ad is already making waves, and not in a good way. A lot of people are already upset about mixing politics with motherhood. Because the colors of the flowers refer to the colors of the political parties in Lebanon. And the headline goes "United Mothers" which in Arabic is close to "United Nations". For me, since Exotica already played the political card before, with the same colors concept, it is not really shocking. If you don't believe me then check this ad:
Just married, with - ooops - same colors shown above in a bridal bouquet (the ad was released in 2005 after what was called the Doha Agreement between the Lebanese factions).
What I loved about mother's day ad was the use of Arabic. Finally Exotica saw the light. In a previous post I argued heavily about their use of Arabic (which they have not done in a long time - since the 80s probably with one exception that I know of "Marriage Khatife" - or eloping). Other people were not of the same thought because they suggested it would not fit with the target audience of Exotica. But that is not true, it all depends on the kind of Arabic used. The one above strikes a chord.
As usual, Beirut/NTSC offers Exotica their "should-have-been" ad, and here it is!
For those wondering about what it means the expression goes "flip the amphora on its tip and the girl turns out just like her mother".... Except no amphora but rather a vase in this case.

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