Mountain Dew protagonist revs past the fear in his mind, conquers

Mountain Dew from the Pepsico stable has launched a TVC building on its ‘Dar ke aage jeet hai’ (There’s victory after fear) proposition. The ad film has been conceptualised by Taproot India.

The film features a young male stunt-biker as the protagonist. He practices relentlessly, despite many falls. A male voice over explains that only when he falls can he rise, as the tempo of the film rises. Even broken limbs do not deter him; he can’t wait to get back on his bike. He has to endure nagging criticism from his family. As he stands on the dirt track on the big day in his biking gear, all the memories of his hardships flash before him. Bottling them up (in rewind mode), he gulps his Mountain Dew and performs the challenging stunt. The film ends with him celebrating his success with friends in the audience, as a super and the voice over sign off with the brand’s tagline.

Mayuresh Dubhashi, associate creative director, Taproot India, said, “Everything about this project was a challenge. Right from the brief to the script and then its execution. The reason is that Mountain Dew has moved on to a more cerebral nature of fear. And that makes it a lot scarier. A physical version of fear can be overcome with sheer will, but it takes something special to rock your own boat and challenge your status quo.”

Unplugged moments

A note from the production house informed that the final stunt was done in Delhi, where a dirt bike track with a ramp was created from scratch. The location had never been used for a shoot prior. Bike crashes and street fights (on set in the middle of Jama Masjid area) were part of the shoot experience -- one hampered by rain, fog and mist. Breakfast and lunch, on each day of the shoot, were inside a police station.

Credits

Client/Brand: PepsiCo India/Mountain Dew
Creative agency: Taproot India
Chief creative officer: Agnello Dias
Associate creative director: Mayuresh Dubhashi
Group manager: Rahul Megharaj
Brand associate: Maithili Naik
Production house: Bang Bang Films
Produced by: Roopak Saluja, Chahna Rupani
Director (film): Martin Aamund (Denmark)
DOP: Kavin Jagtiani
Music director: Sameer Uddin
Post production: Pixion, Teamworks