TRESemmé has rolled out a campaign featuring actor Ananya Panday and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap to spotlight its Hydra Matrix range.

Conceptualised by Braindad, the campaign consists of an ad film.

The film opens on Panday mid-shoot, tied up in ropes and screaming for help, when Kashyap suddenly calls cut and reminds her he had asked her not to wash her hair before coming to set. Ananya insists she hasn’t and jokes that she’s a method actor, while Anurag argues she looks like she’s walked straight out of a salon. To prove his point, he gestures to a crew member’s visibly messy hair as a reference. Ananya suggests fixing it with VFX, which Anurag immediately dismisses, saying VFX isn’t meant to make hair look worse. As tensions rise, Ananya’s manager steps in, firmly stating that no product will be added to make the actor’s hair look “spoiled,” prompting Anurag to grumble about why managers are even allowed on set. That’s when Ananya launches into a sharp, playful monologue, calling out the director for mocking her as 'Bandra Panday' behind her back and for obsessing over her shampoo and conditioner instead of the film, before flipping the moment into a product pitch for TRESemmé. The film ends on a comic note, with Anurag secretly stealing the shampoo from Ananya’s vanity van while her manager shoos him away, landing the brand message through humour and self-aware satire.

What we think about it: Smartly uses meta-humour and the contrast between Ananya Panday’s polish and Anurag Kashyap’s gritty persona to turn a behind-the-scenes argument into the idea itself, making the product feel organically embedded rather than bolted on. At times, the joke runs a little long and risks tipping into indulgence, but the self-awareness and casting keep it watchable, culturally fluent, and very on-brand for social.

The campaign was rolled out on Instagram on 4 January.