“I got STD after our last meeting,” Samay Raina deadpans into the mic. Apoorva Makhija stares him down. “You mean PTSD?”
“No. Sun Transmitted Disease.”
Boom. The internet laughs at the classic Samay humor, shares, and double-taps. Somewhere in the mix, a bottle of sunscreen makes a cameo.
This isn’t just another podcast clip going viral. It’s Deconstruct’s newest skincare ad campaign—camouflaged as comedy, disguised as redemption, and executed as a masterclass in brand storytelling.
Earlier this year, Samay’s “India’s Got Latent” series sparked backlash giving rise to conversations upon freedom of speech and its limits. Apoorva, aka Rebel Kid, caught a wave of criticism for her unfiltered presence. Most brands would’ve stayed miles away.
Deconstruct, instead, called them in.
Set in a faux-podcast format, the ad features self-deprecating digs, Gen-Z lingo, and surprisingly smart metaphors. Like jokes about stains that even Vitamin C serum and Raj Shamani can’t clean.
This isn’t just content; it’s calculated chaos with smart product placement.
The genius of this campaign isn’t just in the script, it’s in the strategy. By choosing creators who’ve been “canceled” and giving them space to reclaim the narrative, Deconstruct scores on these fronts:
- Humour meets habit-building: They’re not just selling sunscreen—they’re making it cool, funny, and part of your daily clapback kit.
- “Daag ache nahi hote” reimagined: Deconstruct reframes emotional baggage as skin damage, and healing as skincare.
- Cultural Self-Awareness: The ad doesn’t avoid controversy. It turns it into copy.
- Cultural Relevance: They tap into what Gen Z is actually talking about—not aspirational beauty, but relatability, reputation, and redemption
- Format Familiarity: Samay’s podcast-parody format already has social capital. Deconstruct simply plugged in their product.
- Audience Intelligence: It trusts the audience to get the joke and the science.
In just 48 hours, the ad racked up over a million impressions and flooded comment sections with praise. A brand that was once niche is now part of meme culture.
Deconstruct didn’t just ride the controversy. It deconstructed it. And in doing so, it shielded itself from irrelevance—armed with SPF 55, a mic, and the audacity to turn cancel culture into a commercial.
Written By:
Yashi Bhatia
