When permanence meets product placement

Tanishq, the jewellery retail brand from the house of Tata, unveiled its latest television commercial, as part of its ongoing efforts to celebrate the enduring value of natural diamonds. Conceptualised by Kommune, the film spotlights the Soulmate Diamond Pair and is one of a series of films that reinforce the meaning, authenticity, and emotional significance of natural diamonds. Rooted in the real-life bond of Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar, the film brings alive an intimate, thoughtful conversation between two people who are deeply connected yet wonderfully different. At its core, the narrative draws a quiet parallel between enduring human relationships and natural diamonds, positioning them as a symbol of love that lasts beyond time.

Marking their first on-screen collaboration, the film captures an affectionate, easy exchange between Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar, where familiarity, compatibility, and contrast coexist effortlessly. They reflect on how people assumed their marriage was arranged due to similar backgrounds, with both fathers being poets, and how their worlds naturally aligned. The conversation reveals shared sensibilities, matching thoughts, tastes, and an instinctive understanding, balanced with playful banter about differences—Shabana’s meticulousness versus Javed’s free-spirited ways.

The film culminates in a quiet, powerful moment where they reveal what binds them beyond time: the Soulmate Diamond Pair, crafted from a single billion-year-old natural diamond, underscoring how natural diamonds are rare, irreplaceable, and uniquely suited to symbolise soulmate relationships, a truth made deeply credible through the emotional weight and authenticity of this iconic couple.

Conceptualised to highlight what makes natural diamonds truly distinctive, the film draws from the idea that rarity is inseparable from meaning. Natural diamonds continue to evolve with changing design sensibilities, embracing modern forms and expressions while retaining the preciousness, and permanence across categories. As consumers increasingly seek authenticity, emotional depth, and longevity in what they choose to represent love and commitment, the narrative reinforces why only natural diamonds can hold such significance. 

Alongside this film, Tanishq has also introduced additional narratives that further the conversation around natural diamonds, focusing on trust, transparency, and consumer empowerment. These films showcase how Tanishq’s recently launched Diamond Expertise Centres put knowledge in the hands of consumers, allowing them to understand and evaluate their diamonds through advanced tools that assess origin, light performance, and authenticity. Together, these stories strengthen Tanishq’s commitment to helping consumers make informed, confident choices while deepening trust in natural diamonds.

Speaking on the launch of the film, Pelki Tshering, chief marketing officer, Tanishq, shared, “For certain moments, relationships and milestones, only a natural diamond will do. Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar represent this beautifully through a bond that is truly unique and has grown richer with individuality and time. We are delighted to have them share their story together on screen for the first time with us. A natural diamond is not just a jewel; it is an emotion.”

Talking about the film, Roshan Abbas, managing director of Kommune/RAP, said, “Getting Javed sahib and Shabana ji to collaborate with Tanishq was truly a dream come true. From day one, there was genuine enthusiasm across the teams, and it carried through every stage of the process. Their quiet authenticity and infectious charm brings a rare depth to the film. Tanishq has consistently raised the bar with purpose-led storytelling, and this is a landmark project we’re proud to have partnered.”

Campaign’s take: Tanishq’s latest film arrives with casting that does half the storytelling upfront. Bringing together Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi, who are partners in life and cultural memory, is an inspired move. Few couples embody longevity, individuality and emotional depth as effortlessly, and for a campaign about natural diamonds, that credibility matters.

The film, however, plays it safer than its protagonists’ real story. Instead of leaning into Akhtar’s lyrical instinct or Azmi’s formidable emotional range, it opens with a near-instructional explanation of the “original” diamond—one stone, two pieces, billions of years old. The word “original” is repeated with almost academic diligence, and the age of the diamond is stressed like a closing argument against lab-grown competition.

Creatively, that’s where the opportunity narrows. Akhtar’s legacy is built on romantic understatement and poetic suggestion, not literal explanation. Azmi’s screen presence thrives in silences and subtext. Their over four-decade-long relationship, which formed under scrutiny and sustained through various upheavals, could have mirrored the idea that rarity gains meaning through lived experience, not geological timelines.

Instead, the film chooses clarity over chemistry. It does communicate distinctiveness, but doesn’t fully translate rarity into emotion. In a market where consumers increasingly seek authenticity over assurance, the campaign reminds us that sometimes the most persuasive proof of “eternal” isn’t age; it’s story.