At times when i see Christmas Ads, i feel like Scrooge.

Most of them, especially the firang ones, tend to be full of cheer, laughter, great looking people, great looking food and extended families who love being together, in joyous harmony – and after a point a surfeit of them can drive me towards acute nausea, caused by excessive sweetness. (it has begun happening with diwali ads too).

But, this rather morbid humour ad, from Germany, has turned the formula on its’ head. And the impact is emotional. I found myself tearing up.

The story is simple, and possibly closer to reality than most ‘festivities’ ads are. Old man, widower. Empty nest. Children have moved away, leading their own lives, and he is going to celebrate X’mas alone. yet again.From the treatment it is evident that this is normal behavior by his children, and he is terribly lonely and yearns for their presence.

The children get a message that he has died, and they return home for the funeral …

This is just the kind of stunt my dad would have pulled, if we were like the children in the ad.

The brand in question, is the largets German supermarket chain, Edeka. And, i am not quite certain what the ad has to do with supermarkets . There are ads that win prizes, and there are ads that sell products. This is possibly the former.