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Tag: Ogilvy

  • Philips India sparks off Diwali festivities

    Philips India sparks off Diwali festivities

    MUMBAI: Philips, a leading player in the consumer electronics segment, has launched a campaign for the festive season titled Khushiyon ki Ladi.    

    Traditionally, the brand has been a key advertiser during this period because people love to upgrade their homes with electronic devices. A large chunk of people wait for the festive season to buy new goods because they get great discounts, which adds to their celebrations. 

    The marketing objective of Philips is to revive the spirit of celebration this Diwali, and as a result revive people’s need to make a purchase for their home.

    Conceptualised by Ogilvy, the film talks about how each one of us can ignite a Khushiyon ki Ladi or string of happiness. The film illustrates how joy and prosperity can trickle down from one family to another this Diwali – all triggered by one single purchase. Besides film, the campaign extends to other media like Instagram stories, carousels, print and point-of-sale.

    The key challenge was to devise a festive campaign keeping in mind the sensitivity of the time. The country is still very much in the middle of the pandemic and an economic crisis. Full blown celebrations are not expected as these have limitations and challenges. Therefore, people are not yet ready to celebrate in a full-blown manner. 

    Read more news on Ogilvy

    The agency shares that when it sat down to think on the communication strategy, it realised that the power to evoke joy and reinvigorate the economy lies in the hands of a single individual. Any purchase made, no matter how big or small, can help make someone else’s Diwali. This becomes especially relevant in the context of India slowly opening up post-lockdown.

    Ogilvy (north), chief creative officer, Ritu Sharda said, “We’re all expecting Diwali to be a little different this year, but we’re hoping something will still spark that infectious festive spirit. In some way or the other, we will all celebrate Diwali together. So, we thought why don’t we light a ladi this year, a slightly different one, but one that involves everyone. The beauty is that any one person can spark off this Khushiyon ki Ladi, a ladi that quietly but surely, spreads joy from one home to another.”

    It will be interesting to see how the festive season pans out for the consumer electronics segment.

  • Veteran media professional DK Bose passes away

    Veteran media professional DK Bose passes away

    MUMBAI: Veteran media professional DK Bose passed away on Friday. He was a pioneering advertising and media professional who laid the foundation for media planning function in the Indian industry. The industry mourned his loss.

    In a career spanning five decades, Bose was associated with several leading companies. Together with his team, he was crunching numbers and calculating the reach for brands at a time when no excel sheets were accessible. He trained many media professionals during his career.

    Bose was a media director at Hindustan Thompson Associates between 1984 and 1991. He later moved to JWT Delhi for a period of nearly four years in the capacity of a VP. After his stint at JWT, he joined RK Swammy BBDO as an executive director and then in a few years moved to Ogilvy Outreach as a president. He served in the latter role between 1998 and 2001.

    For the last 14 years, Bose had served as a consultant in the field of rural and social marketing. He recently got his biography Life Unstoppable published through Amazon.

  • KFC’s ‘Aaj ka Special’ looks to break monotony of daily fare

    KFC’s ‘Aaj ka Special’ looks to break monotony of daily fare

    NEW DELHI: Slow braised with the choicest of ingredients, infused with flavourful spices and presented like poetry on a plate – a karela (bitter-gourd) would still be a karela!  When your mealtimes are a series of Ks – karela, khichdi, kaddu – or when your week seems such a drag that you can no longer tell the difference between Tuesday or Thursday, KFC’s ‘Aaj ka Special’ campaign hopes to break the monotony with its zing and zest.

    Through a series of ‘Aaj ka Special’ digital films that feature Colonel Sanders promoting KFC’s new range of daily special menu items, the fast-food chain is tempting customers to give in to their cravings for crispy fried chicken.

    Read more news on KFC

    The films, conceptualized by Ogilvy & Mather India, capture relatable moments from everyday life when we grapple with the choices of ‘go with it’ or ‘go for it’. 

    “When life gets dull and boring, we usually reach out to food and not everyday food, we ask for something special – ‘Aaj ka special kya hai?’. It is precisely this emotion that we’ve latched onto,” said Ogilvy (north) chief creative officer Ritu Sharda. Of course, the message here is to bring out how KFC is all the ‘special’ you need on an otherwise dull day.

    KFC India CMO Moksh Chopra tells us what makes ‘Aaj ka Special’ so special indeed. "Whether it is boredom with the same home food or the tyranny of work routine, KFC is a great way to liven up any day and make it just that little bit more special. The different films in this series are sure to strike a chord with KFC fans across all ages,” he said.

    In the first of the ‘Aaj Ka Special’ series, the colonel foils a father’s attempt to woo his family with some gourmet karela (is this a thing now?). In another, he shows us how a family that bites into crispy, juicy, KFC chicken together, stays together. Imagine the plight of a husband in the last film, when he’s told that the kids are away, but he has to make do with khichdi. Luckily, the Colonel was right around the corner delivering more than a sermon of ‘Boring hatao, Special le jao’.

  • Vodafone Idea Ltd rebrands itself as ‘Vi’

    Vodafone Idea Ltd rebrands itself as ‘Vi’

    NEW DELHI: Going ‘Together for Tomorrow’, Vodafone and Idea have been rebranded with a unified identity ‘Vi.’ The integration of two brands is a culmination of the largest telecom integration in the world. The announcement was made Monday noon via a virtual press conference. 

    Vi is built to be strong, ever-dependable, agile, intuitive, and a brand in tune with the needs of the customers, in these ever-changing times. It is future-ready and is committed to dynamically serve and enable a digital society. 

    The new brand identity has been designed in collaboration with Vodafone Idea Ltd’s agency Ogilvy. 

    Vodafone Idea Ltd MD and CEO Ravinder Takkar said, “Vodafone Idea came together as a merged entity two years ago. We have, since then focuesed on integrating two large networks, our people and processes. And today I am delighted to present Vi, a brand that will bring important meaning to lives of our customers. Indians are optimistic and want to get ahead in life. They would love a credible partner to help them on this journey. Vi’s positioning is built around this promise and will focus on meeting the customer needs to help them thrive.”

    “The brand integration not only marks the completion of the largest telecom merger in the world, but also sets us on our future journey to offer world-class digital experiences to 1 billion Indians on our strong 4G network. VIL is now leaner and agile, and the deployment of many principles of 5G architecture has helped us transform into a future-fit, digital network for the changing customer needs. The new brand launch signifies our desire to not just deliver, but delight our customers, stakeholders, communities and our employees and signals our passion and commitment to be a Champion for Digital India. With Vi, we are confident of building a brand that continues to command respect and trust, and will be admired and loved by all. We look forward to your continued support as we get ready to deliver a superior Vi experience,” added Takkar.

    Vodafone chief digital transformation and brand officer Kavita Nair said, “Vi leverages the strength of two of India’s most loved brands, Vodafone and Idea. Vi is vibrant, exciting and throbs with the spirit of rising India. It is committed to help every Indian move ahead in life. Vi is dynamic, flexible, fluid and always on. In the months to come Vi will continuously unpack exciting possibilities for its customers. Vi is built for the new age and for the connected ecosystem. We invite everyone to join this exciting journey as we move towards building a better tomorrow.”

    The team highlighted that the rebranding is not just an identity but a new design system, which intends to leverage legacy and at the same time be transformational in its intent and signals that change. It stretches across consumers and businesses, and across all classes, geographies, urban and rural.

    Nair noted, “The “i” is always punctuated with a bold mustard dot. It is confident, surprising and delightful. It reflects the throbbing and progressive pulse of India. It is unique, continuously unpacking amazing possibilities, and always putting customers at the heart of everything.” 

    Starting today, Vi ads will be on TV and digital platforms, followed by a high decibel intensive multi-media campaign, spread across the physical and virtual channels. The customers will get a personalised message to welcome the new brand identity and little surprises like creating a personalised ringtone from one’s phone number are at offer. 

  • Chaubey Ji makes a comeback Dabur Red Paste

    Chaubey Ji makes a comeback Dabur Red Paste

    New Delhi: In the wake of the Covid2019 pandemic, both businesses and consumers are focusing on essentials. Most of the communication has been a creative rendition of social distancing and washing hands, the two most important preventive measures to break the chain. However, a third was added – building immunity – and this gained momentum post the directives from the Ayush ministry.

    While immunity-boosting foods like Amla, Ginger and Haldi are commonly consumed in India, but as beneficial as they are in fighting diseases, they are quite tough to chew and hard on the teeth.

    Drawing from an inherent product truth of healthy and strong teeth, Dabur Red Paste – the No. 1 Ayurvedic toothpaste – launched 3 films adding to the ‘#ChabaateyRahoIndia’ series, advising people to remain tough, resolute and prepared against the pandemic.

    Done in the usual fun and light-hearted manner that we all have come to like about the ‘#ChabaateyRahoIndia’ series, the thought is brought to life through tough to chew ‘immunity building foods,’ that we consume to boost our immunity. In the film, we can see our protagonist ‘Chaubey Ji’ chewing through the toughest foods like Amla, Ginger and raw Turmeric to prepare himself against the pandemic but is not fazed by their toughness because he uses Dabur Red Paste.

    The brand campaign comprises a series of films that have been conceptualized by Ogilvy Gurgaon.

    Ogilvy North CCO Ritu Sharda said, “The ‘#ChabaateyRahoIndia’ series by Dabur Red Paste makes a comeback this year, and our favourite ‘Chaubey Ji’ is here to chabao some things that are important for all of us to stay fit. While everyone talks about chewing on haldi, ginger and amla, we understand that they are hard to bite, and one would need healthy teeth to chew them properly. So, make your teeth strong to make your immunity strong. Chabatey raho India, aur har problem ko bhagatey raho.”

    Ogilvy president & head of office Shouvik Roy said, “The platform of ‘#ChabaateyRahoIndia’ for the brand Dabur Red Paste is all about chewing through adversity. It was a challenge to bring back ‘Chaubey Ji’ without cricket, especially in this current situation. Yet again, the strong teeth and ‘chaba dalengey’ connect gave birth to 3 beautiful films.”

    Dabur India Oral Care head of marketing Harkawal Singh said, “Dabur Red Paste – the #1 ayurvedic toothpaste – stands for providing strong teeth and complete oral protection with clinically proven Ayurveda. Though this is a serious and efficacious proposition. We created a platform ‘#ChabaateyRahoIndia’ to make it engaging for consumers, celebrating their love for food, their resolve to chew away obstacles, and their will to chew away every hardship and stand tall. In our effort to connect with people and give oral health another fun twist, we are bringing out Season 2 of the endearing ‘Chaubey Ji’ films in which Mr. Manoj Pahwa again helps deliver the brand’s message, urging people to focus on oral health for overall health.”

    Watch the YouTube Links:
    Amla –

    Ginger –

    Haldi –

    CREDITS:

    Client: Dabur India Limited

    Agency: Ogilvy Gurgaon

    Creative: Ritu Sharda, Dalip Daniel, Preeti Koul Chaudhary, Avik Bose, Sumit Vashisth

    Account Management: Shouvik Roy, Atif Rahman, Soumyabrata Banerjee, Asim Mathur

    Planning Team: Rohitash Srivastava, Jose John

    Production House: Dreamcatchers Films Director: Ishwar Singh

  • Cadbury and Ogilvy’s ‘Heart Felt Thank You note’ print campaign

    Cadbury and Ogilvy’s ‘Heart Felt Thank You note’ print campaign

    NEW DELHI:  In today’s world, when digital is increasingly becoming the media of preference for brands, Cadbury and Ogilvy gave a refreshing twist to a classic way to reach out to 3.2 million people with a full page print ad that gave each reader a chance to fill in their personalised Thank You, for each person who makes their lives easier each day.  

    The print ad plays on the insight that everyone has their own unique heroes who make their lives smooth and easy but usually go unnoticed. The copy takes the reader through a typical day in their lives and the people in it – The maids and cooks who pack their dabba, the rickshaw wala who's a friend now and doesn't say no to them, the office admin staff who organises their desk and heats everyone's dabbas, the society watchman who keeps a close eye on the kids playing around – leaving the blanks for the readers to add the names of the ones who play these roles in their lives, making each ad personal for each reader. 

    The ad was released in 5 languages in 7 publications, to enable regional relatability and personalisation. 

    The print ad is a part of the ongoing Cadbury Dairy Milk campaign #SayThankYou, which acknowledges the generous spirit of these unacknowledged heroes in our daily lives and melts the power distance between two individuals – between those being served and those serving. As a part of the initiative, Cadbury has partnered with Nirmana, an NGO that aims to empower unorganized sector workers to help sponsor over 17,000 daily wagers. 

    Mondelez India director, marketing (chocolates) Anil Viswanathan said: "In line with our proposition of inspiring generosity and connecting people, we have activated the Thank You campaign in May which involves a multimedia campaign across all media touchpoints. This print campaign aims to inspire people to “acknowledge the unacknowledged” – those who keep our lives ticking every day and whom we often forget to thank. We want people to be actively engaged in this idea and actually take action. From our end, we also want to contribute to this unacknowledged workforce and proceeds from the sales of our Thank You Bar will be used to secure Insurance for domestic workers in partnership with an NGO, Nirmaana."

    Ogilvy India (West) chief creative officer- Sukesh Nayak said: "Fill In The Thanks’ is not just a print ad, it is a customised, personal thank you note for every reader. Igniting the spirit of acknowledgement of people in our lives who make our life magical."

    Ogilvy executive creative director- Neville Shah said, "The idea makes each one of us realize the value of the people who help make our lives easier by making you actively fill in YOUR thanks."

    Ogilvy Mumbai head of strategic planning -Ganapathy Balagopalan said: "In the digital world where brands struggle to engage audiences on social platforms, we thought using print might help to break the clutter. We hope the unexpected use of the medium will inspire people to acknowledge those they never acknowledged. People who most surely deserve at least a 'thank you'. We sincerely hope this makes the world a wee bit kinder, generous, and less unequal."

    CREDITS

    Agency: Ogilvy India  

    Chief creative officer worldwide: Piyush Pandey  

    Chief creative officers, India: Sukesh Nayak, Kainaz Karmakar, Harshad Rajadhyaksha  

    Creative team: Sukesh Nayak, Neville Shah, Minal Phatak, Chirayu Palande, Archana Singh 

    Account management: Prakash Nair, Antara Suri, Neha Shah, Manseerat Sethi, Deeksha Chaturvedi  

    Planning: Ganapathy Balagopalan, Bhakti Malik, Prasidh Dalvi 

    Media Agency: Wavemaker India

  • Amazon India launches its new campaign – ‘Inn Dibbon Mein Kya hai?’

    Amazon India launches its new campaign – ‘Inn Dibbon Mein Kya hai?’

    Bengaluru: Amazon India today unveiled its campaign “Inn Dibbon mein kya hai”.

    Amazon as an organization is known for their consumer focus.  This campaign is inspired from real slice of life moments, striking an emotional chord while highlighting the resilience demonstrated by customers in adapting to a new way of life. This film is an ode celebrating the testimony of the customers in their endeavor to pave the way for a new normal.

    The campaign features a series of situations peppered with insightful observations from the new way of living. It acknowledges that life, as we once knew it has changed. In this changing scenario the meaning of things, our possessions too have transformed. An ordinary mop and copper are ways to share chores for a young couple, a laptop is an online school for a girl. The question ‘Inn Dibbon mein kya hai’ is answered by the emotional connections these purchases stir. While the film showcases Amazon’s wide selection, safety, best practices, delivery and assurance its high point is heart strings it touches. The intent behind the campaign is to give the brand a real human form. A partner rather than a provider.

    Conceptualized by Team Ogilvy Bangalore, the ‘Inn Dibbon mein kya hai’ and directed by Afshan form good morning Films, the campaign evocatively dovetails with Amazon India’s intent of partnering its consumers in this New Normal. All the while making customers aware about the vast selection on Amazon.in with safe and reliable delivery. The campaign includes TVCs and short content for customers across India.

    Ravi Desai, Director Mass and Brand Marketing, Amazon India: “Last few months have transformed the way we all live and each one of us is embracing change & making many new beginnings…some big…some small. We see this intervention as more than just a campaign from Amazon, but as an ode, a salute to this spirit of optimism and human tenacity – finding moments of joy & togetherness during these times. It also very humbly reminds us of the privilege & the responsibility Amazon has, to serve our customers, and be an ally in their new beginnings. The quintessential Amazon Box ceases to be just a carrier of something you ordered, transcending to a larger purpose of delivering happiness safely, with the trust that millions of customers have placed in Amazon.in.”

    N Ramamoorthi, President, Ogilvy South: “What unites all of us during this tough time is hope – for newer beginnings and for better times ahead. Little things symbolize new beginnings, be it the new laptop for a daughter or a mobile phone for a parent. That’s where Amazon and it’s wide selection across categories comes in – as a brand that enables our search for new beginnings by delivering these symbols of hope when we need it the most.”

    Kamala Gowri, VP, Ogilvy South: “In a time when we are trying to learn to live the new normal, this campaign beautifully brings out the role and relevance of Amazon in our lives.  It also demonstrates how Amazon has touched the lives of people in this country."

    S M Talha Nazim, Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy Bangalore: “In these uncertain times, Amazon is not just another e-commerce platform. Rather, it is a thoughtful partner that intends to deliver hope and joy to all of us. This is what the campaign so beautifully captures.”

    Divya Bhatia, Group Creative Director Bangalore and Scriptwriter said, “This campaign is a heartfelt attempt to embrace our new life. An attempt to infuse it with meaning, warmth where everything we own sparks joy.”

    Please watch the film:

    https://postgoodmorningfilms.wetransfer.com/downloads/d47d668262fa730c070fe1a68069f59e20200730163902/fca25035ce674d2f0b08876c2f31d46620200730163903/1ea17c

    CREDITS

    Client: Amazon India

    Agency: Ogilvy, Bengaluru

    CCOs India: Harshad Rajadhyaksha, Kainaz Karmarkar, Sukesh Nayak

    Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy South: Mahesh Gharat , Kiran Anthony

    Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy South: S M Talha Nazim

    Creative Team: Divya Bhatia, Priyanka Mukherjee

    President, Ogilvy South: N Ramamoorthi

    Vice President, Ogilvy South: Kamala Gowri V

    Head of Planning, Ogilvy South: Anirban Roy

    Account Management: Nayantara Dasgupta

    Planning Team: Barsha Chakraborty, Sumana Suresh

    Production House: Good Morning Films  Director: Afshan Hussain Shaikh

  • Ogilvy wins creative mandate for CARS24

    Ogilvy wins creative mandate for CARS24

    NEW DELHI:  Ogilvy has won the creative duties for CARS24. The business will be handled out of the agency’s Gurugram office. 

    CARS24 brand head Nida Naushad said, “We are delighted to welcome Ogilvy, as our new creative partners. CARS24 is on a mission to completely change the way India sells cars by making the process extremely easy and hassle-free.  Now, with Ogilvy’s strong creative and strategic capabilities, we aim to move forward in a journey to make Cars24 India’s most preferred auto brand.”  

    The agency will be tasked with the mandate of building and scaling-up the brand and its marketing ecosystem through its integrated communications efforts. This will include communication development across TV, print, radio, social media, and other relevant touchpoints. Over the years CARS24 through its continued efforts has achieved a substantial share-of-mind, going forward Ogilvy will dedicate its services to garner share-of-heart for the brand.  

    Ogilvy Gurugram president and head of office Shouvik Roy said, “We are very excited to partner with a young dynamic brand like CARS24 that operates in a very challenging category. Our ambition is to partner CARS24 and makes it the brand of choice for all pre-owned car buyers in India. Our interactions with the CARS24 team has been very engaging and stimulating. And we are confident of some shining work coming out of this partnership.”

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  • ICICI Lombard launches #RestartRight campaign Created by Ogilvy

    ICICI Lombard launches #RestartRight campaign Created by Ogilvy

    COVID-19 has impacted lives and businesses across the globe. The human society stands at the crossroads of a ‘New Normal’, something that will alter our future completely. Social distancing and curtailed movement have become the norm. Further, in this changing scenario, health protection through a comprehensive health insurance plan gains paramount importance.

    Staying ahead of the curve, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, India’s leading private sector non-life insurance company, has revamped its health insurance portfolio and introduced new age solutions. Further, to create awareness of the same among consumers, it has launched a unique #RestartRight campaign in mass media, focusing on digital channels and targeting new age platforms like OTT (Over The Top) video streaming.

    The campaign launched by ICICI Lombard is two-fold. The first phase of the campaign involves a brand led communication which exemplifies the current situation where consumers are hesitant given the pandemic but are trying their best to work through the constraints. Depicting various ‘slice of life’ situations, it shows a lady inviting her friend home after a long time, but first makes sure she sanitizes her hands before entering. In another instance, a mother returning home from work stops her daughter from coming close to her, but then hugs her after she has taken a shower. In this way, the communication persuades people to ‘Restart’ life, but in the ‘Right’ way. At the same time, it communicates its own adoption to the ‘new normal’ and upgrading of its health insurance solutions that align to the new normal.

    The main communication will be followed by specific benefit driven creatives which bring out the individual offerings that form part of the brand’s health insurance ‘new age’ solutions. These include benefits such as tele-consulting a doctor 24×7, online medicines order & delivery and insurance for treatment availed at home. The benefit driven videos again showcase constraints faced by consumers due to the lockdown and how the revamped offerings remove the said hurdle. For instance, if a consumer is hesitating to visit a doctor, ICICI Lombard’s tele-consult facility enables her to seek expert medical advice on the phone itself including obtaining an e-prescription that can be ordered online. 

    Sanjeev Mantri, Executive Director, ICICI Lombard General Insurance: Amid the lockdown relaxations, consumers are wanting to restart life but hesitating to do so, amid the heightened health concern. At ICICI Lombard, we understand this ‘new normal’ situation and have accordingly reoriented ourselves by introducing relevant solutions for our customers. Our new campaign that showcases new age benefits reassures customers that by following safety protocols and equipping themselves with our health insurance solutions, they can go ahead and #RestartRight.

    Talha Bin Mohsin and Mahesh Parab, Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy Mumbai  The new normal has brought with it new uncertainties that have left us with a lot of unanswered questions. We all are trying to make sense of the new range of do’s and don’ts. But even in these testing times we wanted to tell people that ICICI Lombard has suitably adapted its services to help its customers adapt to the new normal, seamlessly. While the world awaits a restart, our new health insurance solutions are here to make it right.

    ICICI Lombard has always been a pioneer in identifying emerging trends and providing effective solutions to customers, in line with its brand ethos of “Nibhaaye Vaade” (Keeping promises).

     Youtube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIs-WMn0flk

  • India loves advertising more than any other country: Piyush Pandey

    India loves advertising more than any other country: Piyush Pandey

    NEW DELHI: The past few years have generated a heated discussion on the role of creativity v/s the role of technology in advertising and marketing. With machines dominating almost every aspect of the functioning of an agency, there have been debates on understanding the role of human touch and sensibility in the future of communications and how technology can or cannot be a substitute for human emotions. 

    Addressing the same in a free-wheeling fireside chat with Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari, Ogilvy chief creative officer worldwide and executive chairman India, Piyush Pandey said that technology is there to help the advertisers in creating different creative stories. “Technology is not the story,” he quipped. He elaborated the role of human emotions and sensibilities will never go out of advertising and the agencies will have to learn how to strike a fine balance between the two. 

    Speaking about India’s stand when it comes to creative trends in advertising, he said, “‘Trends' is a strange word. I will never compare Indian advertising with any other country. More people in India love advertising than any other country in the world. The cynicism is not there. We might not win Oscars but people appreciate our good movies.”

    However, Pandey also noted that communication, as we know today, has to change for the better. “It has to be more sensitive as communication is not only about transactions, it is also about relationship building. It is not the time to sell, it is the time to build relationships.” 

    He added, “I feel today, a fruit vendor has more sense of communication and tone than most people in the advertising industry.”

    Does it mean that advertising shouldn’t be focussing on delivering ROIs?

    Pandey disagreed. “ Which client ever, and sensibly so, would not want sales? You can do a bad piece and run it 50 times a day and you can do something impactful and run it 10 times a day only, to deliver similar sales. That’s what the differentiator is.” 

    He continued, “You have to know the consumer to understand what is the aspect of your brand that the consumer will appreciate. If we can engage a consumer and touch hearts, that always works well (for a brand).”

    The thespian also lauded the good world that many agencies have done during the Covid2019 lockdown with limited resources and lots of constraints. Be it the work for Asian Paints, which he wrote and did the voiceover for, or the work to promote the Aarogya Setu app, Pandey thinks there was a lot of creativity that was unleashed during the lockdown across agencies. 

    “I think agencies everywhere have done a good job during the pandemic, given the constraints. It is a testing time for everybody; much more testing time for communicators than anybody else. Yes, our feet are tied but not our hands, not our pens or computers. My personal favourite piece of work is “Family”, which my brother (Prasoon Pandey) created with Bollywood celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Rajnikanth.”

    The one ad that did not make the cut for him was Memec Ogilvy’s #StayHome for Honda. “You will have to see what the ad was for instead of what the ad was. Instead of showing something remarkable, like shooting with a mini car, and making people wonder how they did it, they just put it out there in the video. When you show how fantastic a director you are, what a fantastic editor you are, then I am looking at you and not the car,” he explained. 

    Pandey, who is not just a globally-celebrated advertising industry champion, but also a cricketer (has played CK Naidu Cup and Ranji in his younger days,) a lyricist (he has contributed to the iconic Mile Sur Mera Tumhara), a scriptwriter (Bhopal Express), a voiceover artist (a number of ads including the latest Asian Paints’ Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai), and an actor (Madras Cafe and a few ads), also touched upon his life and experiences during the chat. 

    Chuckling about the mention of his work outside his home industry, Pandey said, “I am a hardcore advertiser. I am not a voiceover artist not an actor. In fact, I am a terrible actor. I did Madras Cafe for my friend Shoojit Sircar. R Balki also tried a few times to get me into movies, but after testing me for several times, he understood that I can’t do it.” 

    On being asked about his retirement plans, Pandey mentioned that he has never seriously thought about it as he is loving what he is doing currently. He did mention that he will continue writing.