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Tag: Santosh Padhi

  • Paddy dives ‘Into’ it again: adland maverick launches new creative hotshop

    Paddy dives ‘Into’ it again: adland maverick launches new creative hotshop

    MUMBAI:  Santosh Padhi—better known as Paddy—is back in the game. The celebrated adman, who co-founded Taproot before selling it to Dentsu, has launched his independent creative agency, Into Creative, with a mission to bring back big, brave, and fearless ideas.

    Paddy will serve as chief creative officer &  chairman, with Ayesha Ghosh as CEO & co-founder. The founding team also includes Yogesh Rijhwani (creative lead), Tania Dey (strategy and digital), Namrata Gosavi (design and digital), and Gargi Vegiraju (business lead).

    “I could have retired on an island, but adland’s calling was too loud to ignore,” said Paddy. “This industry has given me everything, and it’s time to give back. Our focus will be on doing brave, fearless, creative brand work. Indian brands and platforms have grown in number, but creativity hasn’t. Oddly enough, brands are being built on creativity. Somewhere the passion of creative agencies to push boundaries has been lost. In a world where anything is now creatively possible, we are here to fill this vacuum.”

    Into creative

    More than just an ad agency, Into Creative aims to craft big directional ideas—concepts that don’t just live in ads but shape brand universes. The agency’s offerings span brands, insights, ideas, design, tech, digital, content, and collaborations.

    Said Ayesha Ghosh: “More experiments happen when independent. Sure, some fail, but some lead to triumphant discoveries. We’re here for that. We see ourselves as multipliers. When one collaborates with high creative integrity, respecting every platform, that’s when true magnification of ideas happens “

    The six founders, all ex-Wieden+Kennedy India, have worked on some of the country’s biggest brands, including Jio 5G, Hero Vida EV, Jindal Steel, Jockey, and Zoya. Paddy and Ayesha also share history from their Taproot days.

    Into Creative officially launches in Mumbai on March 30, aligning with Gudi Padwa/Ugadi—a day marking new beginnings. The agency is already in talks with brands, with announcements expected soon.

    The creative revolution starts now.

  • W+K India CCO Santosh Padhi & president Ayesha Ghosh quit

    W+K India CCO Santosh Padhi & president Ayesha Ghosh quit

    Mumbai: Chief creative officer Santosh Padhi (Paddy), president Ayesha Ghosh, along with Shreekant Srinivasan (head of Delhi) have put in their resignations at W+K India.

    Santosh Padhi joined W+K as CCO in early 2022, and was joined by Ayesha Ghosh shortly after. Together they opened W+K in Mumbai, and oversaw creative and business operations across Mumbai and Delhi. Combined, both offices created campaigns for these giant brands Jio 5G, Jio Fibre, Hero Vida, Jockey, Jindal Steel, Casio G-Shock, Hero Cycles, Firefox, Zoya Solitaires, Brownkind Skin care, Whistle dental care, among others.

    Santosh Padhi (Paddy) stated: “I came into the W+K family with lots of excitement as I always followed their amazing work during my taproot days. I’m super proud that along with Ayesha and the solid team we managed to get some of the biggest brands in the nation, and had success on every front, be it people, reputation or clientele. We won over a dozen businesses and have managed to produce some beautiful work on the brands mentioned above. Not only me but we all really enjoyed the freedom the global team gave us on every front with total autonomy and many other wonderful things which I will always remember.”

    “Unfortunately like most senior creative individuals even my heart is calling for something beyond this, something new, something that will give me a newer high, I have to depart in search of a new love,” Paddy added.

    Ayesha Ghosh said, “The last 2.5 years have been quite exhilarating, right from stepping into this legendary agency, to setting up the Mumbai office, stabilizing and growing the Delhi office, delivering good results and adapting the unique W+K culture to India. Within a little over half a year of joining, it was satisfying to see the impact of our leadership. This wouldn’t have been possible without the passion and hard work of our employees. Every interaction with the W+K crew around the globe has opened my mind to new ways of thinking and new ways of measuring the worth of the work that we do. I hope I get to work with such a smart set of people again.”

    Added Ayesha, “I’ve been meaning to pause for a while, dedicate more time to yoga and spend time with family. As for what comes next, I’ll see what the universe throws my way.”

    An official statement from W+K stated: “We are grateful to Paddy and Ayesha for their efforts during these past two and a half years as they set up an office in Mumbai and brought in new energy and clients. We wish them all the best as they move on from the agency and take their talents into the world.”
     

  • Wieden+Kennedy turns Kyoorius’ initiative into an industry wake-up call

    Wieden+Kennedy turns Kyoorius’ initiative into an industry wake-up call

    Mumbai: This year, Kyoorius Creative Awards has introduced a special initiative to empower younger, growing agencies. For the first time, participants whose entries don’t make it past the first round of judging have a special incentive – they will get back 50 per cent of their entry fee, per entry. This is also the year when newer kinds of participation are being encouraged, be it for regional or for pharma.

    Their creative partner, Wieden+Kennedy India, felt this was an apt opportunity to take this brief to the next level. They’ve taken Kyoorius’s initiative of ‘giving something back’ to an industry-level clarion call, urging every member from adland to give back more to the industry that has made them.

    “Kyoorius has grown beyond an award, it has become the industry’s voice, that’s why this year’s campaign isn’t just about the award, it’s about addressing the uncomfortable realities in advertising and igniting the change it needs.” Wieden+Kennedy India chief creative officer Santosh Padhi (Paddy).

    “When I heard of Paddy’s brainchild, ‘Give Back’, it struck a chord with me. I know the world of Indian advertising is going through its toughest challenges and if we all don’t take ownership of our problems, if we don’t introspect and evolve, then who will?” shared Kyoorius founder CEO Rajesh Kejriwal.

    W+K Mumbai ECD Yogesh Rijhwani added “Our creative team found a way to express each hard-hitting message through some stunning typography, which has become the visual voice of the campaign. We enjoyed the love, especially for craft, in the comments section of these posts.”

    The campaign started on 21 Feb and has had more than 30 posts since. The creatives will continue to be shared till the actual day of the event.

    W+K partnered with Nirvana’s Rajiv Rao for a funnier take on Give Back video, featuring prominent ad landers and marketing names.

     

     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    A post shared by kyoorius (@kyoorius)

     

  • Hero MotoCorp’s VIDA begins its ride with national campaign from W+K India

    Hero MotoCorp’s VIDA begins its ride with national campaign from W+K India

    Mumbai: With its entry into the EV market last year in October 2022, VIDA and its electric scooter VIDA V1 is all set to raise the bar with a national launch across multiple cities with its creative platform Make Way conceptualized by Wieden+Kennedy India.

    Make Way was born as a celebration of and a paean to changemakers, to exhort riders to bring about the change they want to see.

    The campaign features a thematic brand film and product films which will be followed by print and various on-ground activations. The thematic brand film revolves around an element that goes unnoticed by many; road signs. These road signs are an ode to the changemakers that history has witnessed. VIDA wants to showcase that the trailblazers of today, will also live on through those who believe in them. The cast includes real-life changemakers like Durga Gawde, Abhir Bhalla, Bhargsetu Sharma and Ashay Bhave.

    The product films and upcoming print focuses on showing the VIDA V1 in all its glory. The research and development on the product is clearly reflected in industry-firsts like two removable batteries, 110 km of real world range and 20-degree incline capacity, etc.; which are unique to VIDA and its electric scooter.

    Commenting on the campaign, Wieden+Kennedy India chief creative officer Santosh Padhi (Paddy) said, “It was important for us to set a unique tone and personality for brand VIDA, within the Hero family and also in the category. While other brands are still selling the EV category, we decided to up the game by tapping into the new age mindset and behavior in our narratives. The brand film is an ode to the changemakers who made this world more meaningful, while we kept VIDA V1 at the core of our narratives. In both films, the casual, candid, slice of life storytelling was well captured by both the directors, it was much needed for us to be energetic, effortless and authentic as these are some of the pillars the brand is built upon.”

  • Wieden + Kennedy India appoints Anirban Roy to lead strategic planning

    Wieden + Kennedy India appoints Anirban Roy to lead strategic planning

    Mumbai: Anirban Roy has joined Wieden + Kennedy India’s leadership team to head strategic planning for the Delhi and Mumbai offices. He will be operating out of the Mumbai office.

    Anirban’s exposure has been rich, having worked on several brands at various agencies and various cities. In his last role, he was head of strategic planning for McCann Worldgroup in Delhi. Prior to that, he worked at Ogilvy and Saatchi. He has worked in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Manila, where he steered strategic conversations at Nestle, Yum Foods, BMW, Amazon, Coke, and Unilever, among others. He has also helped script the brand narrative for some of India’s unicorn start-ups like Licious & Flipkart.

    Speaking of his appointment, Roy said, “Very few people in their lifetime get to work in a place that’s revered for its irreverence & celebrated for being a ‘cathedral of creativity’. I am grateful to Ayesha and Paddy for this opportunity and feel lucky to be a part of this team that will write a new chapter for W+K India. Looking forward to the dance.”

    Commenting on the hire, W+K India president Ayesha Ghosh said, “With Anirban’s valuable perspective, we intend to steer the fundamental brand thinking and look forward to building lasting brand relationships. While we’ll always have room for brands that want to do short-term projects, the real test of an agency lies in building brands over years, like W+K has done with Indigo. Anirban has steered important brand conversations for many big MNC clients, as well as for start-ups, and in doing so, has helped them win Effie, Cannes, AME, Kyoorius, and D&AD awards. I’m really excited to see him at work at W+K.”

    W+K India CCO Santosh Padhi added, “Client, creative, account management, and strategic planning are the four key pillars of advertising that build and hold the foundation of a brand and help grow its business. I’m happy that we now have the fourth pillar in order, with Anirban, to help our brands grow stronger, bigger, and bolder.”

  • Ayesha Ghosh joins Wieden+Kennedy as managing director for India; Gautham Narayan moves on

    Ayesha Ghosh joins Wieden+Kennedy as managing director for India; Gautham Narayan moves on

    Mumbai: Wieden+Kennedy has announced that Ayesha Ghosh has been appointed as managing director for India. Ghosh, who will be based in Mumbai, officially starts at W+K on 15 July and will partner with India CCO Santosh Padhi.

    Present WK Delhi managing director Gau Narayanan, who is leaving India and the agency to return home to the UK, will help with the transition through August.

    Ghosh joins the agency after six years at Taproot Dentsu where she held the role of CEO, based in Mumbai. She joined Taproot in December 2015 as general manager, and was promoted to CEO in 2021.

    Prior to Taproot, Ghosh was part of the leadership team for Contract Advertising for over a decade, helping build and grow the agency’s presence. Here she worked closely with the consulting and design practices, to help expand sources of growth. Previous to Contract Advertising, she held permanent positions in a number of industry shops including Grey Worldwide, Trikaya Grey and PSL McCann Erickson.

    On her new role, Ghosh commented, “It’s astonishing how W+K consistently produces off-the-charts work, across the world. I hope to absorb some of that genius and with the help of a talented team in India and an ace like Paddy, create some genius of our own. With scattered attention and infinite distractions, only work that is honest and primal, will win for brands. And that’s what we mean to do.”

    Padhi said, “I’m glad Ayesha is joining us to be part of this wonderful journey. She is absolutely blunt and honest when it comes to work, which is extremely important these days for our business. Clients too prefer to have conversations that cut to the chase. Ayesha and I have worked closely together for a good number of years at Taproot, we understand and complement each other.

    “An organisation is known by the kind of people that work for it and both of us will be focusing on putting together a crazy, talented bunch of people, across departments. And we believe that magic will follow,” he further said.

    Wieden+Kennedy Global CEO Neal Arthur added, “Ayesha’s first day is a great day for W+K. W+K India has big things ahead. Their collective creative ambition, optimism and connection to both local and global culture will no doubt usher in the next wave of transformation for the brands they work with. We are excited and grateful to have Ayesha with us.”

  • Wieden+Kennedy brings in Santosh Padhi as CCO for India

    Wieden+Kennedy brings in Santosh Padhi as CCO for India

    Mumbai: Wieden+Kennedy (W+K) on Tuesday announced the appointment of Santosh ‘Paddy’ Padhi as chief creative officer (CCO) for India. W+K has been established in Delhi since 2007. 

    “The hire also means an expansion for the independent creative agency into Mumbai, where Paddy will build out the shop’s second India location,” said the company in a statement. 

    In this new role, Padhi will build out a leadership, talent and client roster for the expanded India shop. Dean Wei, who has been the executive creative director leading W+K Delhi since 2019, is leaving the agency later this year to return to London. 

    “W+K have always raised the creative product of our industry for the last 3-4 decades, they were one of my inspirations when Taproot was set up,” Padhi said. “In a business like ours you are as good as the kind of people you have on board—there are some wonderful minds in Delhi and I’m once again fortunate to hand pick some more wonderful people to join us and expand our presence into Mumbai.” 

    Padhi started his advertising career 25 years ago after graduating from art school in Mumbai. He founded Taproot in 2009, and the agency quickly became one of India’s most prominent creative agencies, picking up critical acclaim, accolades and awards.

    Earning over 200 international awards (including two dozen Cannes Lions, and multiple Golds and Grand Prix titles from different award shows) and over 300 local awards, Padhi is one of the most awarded creatives in India.

    “Paddy is a transformative creative leader with an impressive track record building creative companies and brands, and making work that is really centered in culture,” stated Wieden+Kennedy global chief creative officer Karl Lieberman. “We feel lucky to have him join us at a time when we really want to connect further to the creative people and culture in India. We are excited about the future of Wieden+Kennedy in India.”

  • Taproot Dentsu creates launch campaign for Shaze’s hosting collection

    Taproot Dentsu creates launch campaign for Shaze’s hosting collection

    MUMBAI: Shaze, the premium luxury retailer, has partnered with Taproot Dentsu, the creative agency from the house of Dentsu Aegis Network, to launch its keenly anticipated hosting collection of barware and brew-ware with its latest campaign. Since its inception a decade ago, the brand has carved a niche for itself in the designer jewellery and home décor categories. The decade-old company known for its figurines and jewellery, will be seeing a revamp in its product offering with this launch.

    The hosting collection heralds a new vision of thoughtful design that creates moments of magic and mystery, brought to life with the expertise of the London based firm, Seymourpowell.

    Along with the collection, the campaign will also be the first exposure to the brand’s new proposition “Shine by Design”, an apt commentary on the product and the consumer who desires to be noticed. Conceptualised by Taproot Dentsu Mumbai, the campaign is live across films, outdoor, in-store branding, influencer outreach and more.

    Commenting on the association and campaign, Samrat Zaveri, MD, Shaze Luxury Retail said, “Our hosting range is the result of months of loving craftsmanship. After putting in a lot of efforts into its intricate designing, we were absolutely sure that we had a winning collection. Taproot Dentsu has created an advertising campaign that is worthy of this collection and we are very happy to have them as our communication partner. We have big plans for Shaze, so watch this space as there’s lots more to follow."

    Commenting on the campaign, Santosh Padhi, CCO and Co-founder, Taproot Dentsu said, "The lovely hosting collection has been designed by some of the world’s best designers. It was important for us to be true to the range and weave stories around the hosting collection, at the same time celebrate the host by a new-age inspiring narrative, "Shine by Design" is a true insight that seamlessly bridged the host and collection."

  • Airtel ad: What’s wrong in cooking?

    Airtel ad: What’s wrong in cooking?

    At a party I attended recently, a woman narrated how at her job interview she was asked if she was planning to get married soon. The question angered us all, as we asked, “Why aren’t the men ever asked the same question?”

    The discussion led to Pepsico CEO Indra Nooyi’s recent statement on work-life debate where she declared that women can’t have it all. Of course, her statements created a lot of furor; the feminists were the ring leaders as the ones, who after their 9-5 jobs go back home to cook for their families, wondered what the big deal was all about.

    But a question that hovers on my mind is why can’t we have it all? Why is it that we have to always choose?

    While I am still trying to figure an answer to that, there is a new debate that has been ignited and this time by a TVC. And I am sure, by now, everyone would have seen the latest Airtel data services advertisement. 

    The TVC shows a woman boss ordering her subordinates to finish an assigned job no matter what. It turns out that the woman boss is the wife who goes back home to cook for her husband who happens to be the junior she had ordered. The ad is about the telecom giant’s data services, but the buzz created by it on the social media has nothing to do with the services.

    ‘They couldn’t afford a cook?’ is the question everyone needs an answer to. As many applaud the first half of the ad for showing the woman as the boss, there is another set of people who can’t digest the fact that she went home and cooked.

    While people are criticising it, I ask what is wrong in that? What if it was one of those days when she wanted to cook for her husband? Is that a wrong thing? Most of us have seen our mothers do that for years and sometimes we do it too. Does that make us less of a feminist? She a boss and she loves to cook.

    Click here to watch the Ad

    Would we have the same reaction if the genders were reversed? Most of us would have gone ‘awwww’ on the man cooking for his wife.

    The question here isn’t about who cooks or not. What is needed is a changed mindset. The husband/employee is fine with a wife who is also his boss. This is a good move in a patriarchal society. So instead of debating on the latter half, we need to focus on the first.

    The ad is forward looking, it should, according to me, be applauded and not criticised. It is a reflection of the fact that a woman can have all that she wants. It’s a choice she makes, and no one can dictate her.