Rarely do empowerment ads empower anyone. Sure, Dove has nailed the formula, but most peddle platitudes dressed up as purpose and leave behind a string of hashtags and mood boards. Self-worth as a concept has been milked so hard it squeaks. But add Bollywood star and global icon Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to the mix, and suddenly it’s less copy, more commandment.
McCann’s latest for L’Oréal Paris India calls b***shit on the dopamine economy.
At 51, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan isn’t fishing for relevance. She looks straight into the camera and announces that your worth isn’t up for auction in the marketplace of likes. In a culture where Instagram reels can make or break self-esteem, it lands like the slap we maybe needed.
Yet, for all the raw honesty in the messaging, the irony isn’t lost. Aishwarya herself is airbrushed and polished to perfection—an almost impossible standard she urges others to ignore. The tension is delicious. L’Oréal urges all to reject digital validation, yet leans on one of India’s most naturally flawless icons, polished by the very same beauty lens that drives comparison culture.
In 1:47 minutes, this isn’t your typical star-led brand film. It’s part of a bigger McCann playbook—the same shop that won Cannes this year with Ilon Specht, that stripped glamour down to its raw nerve. In the current work, the agency and brand refuse to sugarcoat, ditch the puffery, the pandering, and weaponise simplicity—it lands nicely.
Prasoon Joshi, chairman McCann Worldgroup APAC, CEO and chief creative officer, McCann India, shared: "In an era dominated by fleeting digital validation, this campaign is a vital reminder that true self-worth is not measured by likes or comments, but by the strength, courage, and authenticity within. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, with her grace and voice, beautifully carries this message forward. It’s a narrative that young people need now more than ever."
Ad Nut appreciates the effort.
The copy is razor-sharp and this is not your double-tap-and-forget kind of film. It holds a mirror to societal norms and holds it uncomfortably close. Yet there’s a subtle what-if hanging over the work. Ad Nut wonders if the message could have landed even harder with a cast of diverse faces that represent the many shapes, shades, and realities of Indian teens and women who live through social media pressures? Aishwarya carries the campaign with authority, but a broader ensemble might have made the truth feel universal rather than aspirational.
Something to chew over for the good folks at McCann.
The work marks 50 years of L’Oréal's iconic tagline 'Because You’re Worth It'.