Red-carpet resemblance

Controversy and the IPL are never too far apart. The latest one is to do with the 2010 season’s promotional film, which shows a large spool of red carpet being rolled through India as a welcoming gesture. However, this ad is reportedly strikingly similar to Coca Cola's campaign during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Officials at SET Max, the official broadcaster of the IPL weren't too perturbed. "It's pure coincidence that our ad film looks similar to the Coke Olympic campaign of 2008," said Gaurav Seth, vice-president (marketing), SET Max. The IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi, too, tweeted his support: "The campaign (is) the best I have seen in a long time. Max (is) doing an outstanding job, as usual". "Even we are surprised by the similarity,'' said Debu Purkayastha, senior creative director at JWT Mumbai, the advertising agency that conceptualised the campaign, "everything, however, was completely unintentional."