TNB ROLLS OUT NOSTALGIC CNY COMMERCIAL
‘The Coming Together’ tells a story of three siblings who uphold Lunar New Year traditions despite facing challenges. DENNIS CHUA has the story
“COMING together” is a theme which celebrates family values, as well as the spirit of national unity. It is also the title of Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s (TNB) Chinese New Year advertisement this year.
The commercial draws on nostalgia for traditions that seem alien to urban youths, but are cherished by their parents, who faithfully observed them during their childhood days.
The Coming Together, which runs for three minutes and 23 seconds, tells the story of three siblings, who strongly uphold their family tradition of celebrating the Lunar New Year with their neighbours, despite being in the big city where most of their colleagues are engrossed with social media.
It is largely made up of flashbacks to the siblings’ kampung childhood, and reminds viewers that traditions practised in the yesteryears have a place in modern society.
Thus, the joy, merriment and spirit of unity which they foster should always be preserved. TNB chief corporate officer Datuk Wira Roslan Ab Rahman said: “The Coming Together aims to encourage viewers to preserve traditions practised during their childhood days and to foster unity with others, regardless of their race and religion.
“It also shows that modern technology, such as smartphones, may be important in our daily lives, but this can never replace the warmth and joy of human relationships.”
The Coming Together, which has two versions, is directed by Quek Shio Chuan, who is known for producing festive season advertisements for Petronas.
Quek said the advertisement was not a critique of modern technology, but a reminder to Malaysians to not lose the “human touch” in their daily lives, especially when it came to celebrating festivals, such as Chinese New Year.
“It is understandable that we tend to be attracted to state-ofthe-art technology, but we should not let it control our lives.”
He said nothing beat direct contact between people, especially family members.
Quek added that the advertisement reminded Malaysians to uphold the spirit of muhibbah (camaraderie) in every major celebration.
When asked about the cast of the advertisement, he said many of them were newcomers, yet they showed great commitment on the set.
“All of us got together to discuss how to make the advertisement impactful.
“I’m especially proud of the youngsters who played the siblings during their childhood — they are natural actors who knew what I wanted!”
The Coming Together