AD Ventures, 1975

Kerala still holds sway among tourism destinations. And the Kerala Tourism ads are still bewitching. &ldquoYour moment is waiting,&rdquo released last September by Kerala Tourism, debuted at the Saatchi Gallery in London, so when it came on television we ran to see what the fuss was about. A long-limbed, cappuccino-tinted woman lies in the grass, thrashes about in a religious trance, and drapes herself over a wet elephant. The ads play to foreign tourists who jet into Kochi and glide in cotton wool to their secluded resorts. Not that they tell lies. The paddy in God&rsquos Own Country really is that green. But the ads sell an atmosphere of mystery, not facts. 

&nbspThree decades ago, Kerala was cleaner, greener and redder. The ads offered an open book, not mystery. Along with scenery and hospitality, they promised you&rsquod find homes for the homeless, space research stations and industrial centres to ensure prosperity. It looks like that moment is still waiting.