Idea Cellular

In a nutshell: Abhishek Bachchan adopts one of many variations of his country bumpkin act, to try and con two foreigners into hiring him as a guide. Only thing is, they're deaf. Or dumb. Or both. As he starts to walk away though, they hit upon the all-new concept of an SMS, thrilling him to bits in the process. The history of the Taj Mahal presumably unfolds, one text message at a time, stretching into the next couple of weeks.

Why it sucks: No point commenting on Abhishek Bachchan's fixation with Amitabh Bachchan's style; it's actually the sloppy story that makes this seem so much more ridiculous. Is this an advertisement for Idea Cellular, or for the concept of the SMS? Why would I consider moving to Idea Cellular? Do other operators deny me the SMS feature? This could work against the iPhone perhaps, until it sorts out that forwarding capability. Maybe this ad applies only to those who desperately need a stupid guide and haven't realized — until now — how a short text message can be used to change their lives.

Possible solution: Could Abhishek possibly be made to enumerate why Idea Cellular works better as a service provider? He can continue to play the role of guide if he likes it as much as he appears to, but are the mute tourists necessary? Change that, and there's a real idea. Fire the copywriter.