Jewellery Man-ifesto Shift

How Vinsmera Jewels' first ever ad featuring actor Mohanlal made the Kerala based brand a household name nationally because of its bold take on jewellery

by e4m Staff
Published: Aug 29, 2025 3:45 PM | 1 min read

For decades advertising worshipped masculinity carved from marble: men were stoic, emotionally unavailable, rugged providers who smoked Marlboros, splashed on Old Spice, and didn’t dare cry. They rode motorbikes across desert highways and returned home not to talk, but to sit silently at the dinner table.

But a quiet shift has been underway, a reimagining of the Indian man, one ad at a time.

The recent talk of the town is Vinsmera Jewels. Launched in the overcrowded South Indian jewellery market, the brand had two major problems to solve: how do you stand out, and how do you not make just another wedding-jewellery ad? Their answer: cast Mohanlal, a cultural icon often associated with authority and gravitas, in an unusually soft, layered role with feminine energy and vulnerability.

The ad opens on a bustling jewellery shoot with Mohanlal, playing himself, introduced by director Prakash Varma, also playing himself. What begins as a routine behind-the-scenes moment takes a playful twist when a diamond set goes missing. The search ends with Mohanlal found in his vanity van, serenely admiring himself, draped in jewels. With no dialogue and only classical music, the ad blends humour and grace, and has been hailed as a refreshing take on storytelling.