MxMIndia

Tag: Raj Nayak

  • Partners with SKY to enthrall viewers starting 9th February, 2016

    Colors set to enthral viewers in New Zealand

    By A Correspondent

     

    After engaging viewers across more than 135 countries, IndiaCast is all set to further strengthen its footprint in the New Zealand market. Starting 9th February 2016, IndiaCast will reinforce Colors’ presence to viewers in New Zealand, giving them access to the finest offerings from their content library as part of SKY’s foreign language subscription channel line-up.

     

    The Colors bouquet of offerings includes a robust combination of fiction dramas, non-fiction, reality shows, live events and blockbuster movies. The programming line-up caters to many entertainment needs of the Indian diaspora across the world.

     

    Commenting on the success story, Raj Nayak, CEO – Colors said, “It has been our constant endeavor to present viewers with path-breaking content across the globe, which has fortified our position as a game changer in the television industry. As the channel launches on SKY in New Zealand, it strengthens our belief that our programming line-up provides not only Indian viewers but also international audiences with entertainment avenues in sync with their sensibilities and preferences.”

     

    Commenting on the association, Anuj Gandhi, Group CEO – IndiaCast, said, “IndiaCast has been at the forefront of bringing Indian viewers spread across the world one step closer to home and Indian culture, by bringing them the best of Indian content. Our association with SKY enables us to reach out and further strengthen our footprint with content that engages and entertains.”

     

    Commenting on the association, Megan King, Director of Content Strategy – SKY, said “At SKY, we’re always evolving to provide our customers with a world class entertainment experience. COLORS offers superb Hindi entertainment content and its inclusion in our foreign language channel line-up helps bring this culture closer to home here in New Zealand.”

     

  • The song will be launched on Colors’ digital and social media platforms reaching out to over 13 million followers and subscribers on 26th January, 2016

    Colors partners Equal Rights Music for new Republic Day anthem

    By A Correspondent

     

    On the occasion of India’s 67th Republic Day, Colors, in association with Equal Rights Music Project, seeks to spread a message of goodwill and amity with the launch of Kabootar – A Peace Anthem. The song will be launched on Colors’ digital and social media platforms reaching out to over 13 million followers and subscribers on 26th January, 2016.

     

    Speaking about this initiative, Raj Nayak, CEO – Colors says, “As a brand, Colors has always showcased the different hues of human emotions, feelings and sentiments. However, as we drive global development to accomplish personal goals and ambitions, peace is something that the world has lost touch with. As a nation, India has always led the fight for global harmony and brotherhood, making the country’s 67th Republic Day the perfect launchpad for ‘Kabootar – A Peace Anthem’. We are happy to have partnered with the Equal Rights Music Project for this initiative and hope that it unites the nation to achieve peace.”

     

    Conceptualized and written by Manish Bhatt – Founder Director, Scarecrow Communications and composed by Eddie T Avil, the song uses Kabootar as a metaphor for peace. The song’s insightfully written lyrics asks the dove the one question that mankind has been eternally pondering over – ‘When Will Peace Finally Grace the World / Kab utrega dharti par, ein kabootar’. The video, aesthetically shot by Riju Samanta, also symbolizes the cause and is a nostalgic reminder of the diversity and similarities we share as Indians. The song and the video builds upon the fact that we really don’t care about the minor differences we have, but the one thing we genuinely care about, is to ensure harmony and peace for our coming generations.

     

  • Modifies format to keep up with the changing advertising landscape

    The Ad Club announces the Effie 2015 Awards

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Club announced the Effie 2015 Awards Gala Ceremony, to be held on Wednesday, 27th January, 2016 at 6.30 p.m. at the Seaside Lawns, Hotel Taj Lands End, Bandra, Mumbai. Campaigns that ran in India from 1st October, 2014 to 30th September, 2015 (12 months) are eligible for entry.

     

    In tune with the changing times, The Advertising Club has drawn up a slew of changes to the Effies 2015. For the first time, entries can now be submitted online. As an acknowledgement to the increasing importance of the startup ecosystem in our country, a new category called New Product or Service – Best Campaign for a Start-up, has been introduced. The Digital Campaign category too was redefined into the Integrated Marketing Category – a tacit nod to the evolution of the digital platform as an inclusion rather than extension of an ad campaign. The growing economic influence of small town India came to the fore as the erstwhile Rural Marketing category got rechristened to Small Town and Rural Marketing Category. Though not renamed, the Healthcare Category also underwent a redefining exercise, to account for the increasing diversity of the segment. Barring the Best Ongoing Campaign, all other categories will now be eligible to compete for the Grand Effie.

     

    Raj Nayak

    Commenting on the changes, Raj Nayak, President of The Advertising Club said, “The Effies is the award that recognizes advertising effectiveness. To be able to do justice to its purpose, it is imperative that we recognize and integrate the changing landscape of advertising in India with the rules of the award. I am confident that the modifications that we’ve introduced this year will further streamline the purpose of Effies with the ground realities of advertising in India.”

     

    Ajay Kakar

    Ajay Kakar, 2015 Awards Chairman said, “The advertising industry has grown from strength to strength since its inception in India. Not only has our industry grown in volume but also in terms of geographical spread. It is in recognition of this reality that, for the first time, Effie India will be organizing the first round of judging at Bangalore besides Mumbai & Delhi.”

     

     

    Vikram Sakhuja

    Vikram Sakhuja, 2015 Awards Co-Chairman showed his excitement when he said, “What’s new in Effies is your work. Celebrate the fact that you did something creative, analytical, but always accountable. We love madness but love the method underlying even more. If you’ve done something that made you proud chances are we would love to see it. Let it rip.”

     

  • Ramesh Narayan declared the chairman of AGC for Goafest 2016

    Ramesh Narayan to helm Abby Awards Governing Council for Goafest 2016

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Club and Advertising Agencies Association of India has announced the Awards Governing Council for Goafest 2016. Ad veteran and industry leader Ramesh Narayan, founder at Canco Advertising Pvt. Ltd. has been appointed theChairman of the AGC. The other members elected to the Council are:

     

    Chairman (CEO, Publicis South Asia & Vice President) of Goafest Organizing Committee – Nakul Chopra; President Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAA’s of I) & Advisor, FCB Ulka Advertising – Ambi M G Parameshwaran; Chairman and CEO at Dentsu Aegis Network – Ashish Bhasin; President, Sony Pictures Networks – Rohit Gupta; CEO at Group M, South Asia – CVL Srinivas; CEO at Mediabrands – Shashi Sinha; CEO at Percept H Pvt. Ltd. – Ajay Chandwani; National Head, Sales, English Cluster at Viacom18 – Namrata Tata; Chief Executive Officer at Contract Advertising – Rana Barua; Founding Partner and Chairman at The Social Street – Pratap Bose.

     

    Announcing the appointment, Raj Nayak, President of The Advertising Club said, “We are pleased to announce that Ramesh Narayan will be the Chairman of the Awards Governing Council of the Goafest. He brings his unique experience as one of the very few people who has been President of the Advertising Club and the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) to this post. He has also been Chairman of the Abby Awards Committee twice, and was the first Indian to judge the Effie Awards finals in New York. Ramesh is the only person to have been conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award by the AAAI and been inducted into the International Advertising Association’s Hall of Fame.” 

     

    Welcoming the announcement Ambi M G Parameshwaran – President, Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAA’s of I) said “Ad Club is a wonderful institution. I am delighted to hear about Ramesh Narayan’s appointment. With his unparalled understanding of India’s advertising scenario, and his years of valuable experience, Ramesh is sure to bring in a whole new perspective which will definitely drive the council to greater heights of success.”

     

    Nakul Chopra- Chairman of Goafest Organizing Committee, showed his excitement about the new appointment as well. “I’ve known Ramesh as a visionary leader who embraces change and is open to new ideas. I’m sure his appointment means an interesting phase for the Council is on the anvil.”

     

  • Other members include Ambi Parameswaran, Sam Balsara, Rana Barua, Ashish Bhasin, Jaideep Gandhi, CVL Srinivas

    Nakul Chopra named Chairman of Goafest Organizing Committee

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Club and Advertising Agencies Association of India, announcedGoafest 2016 with Nakul Chopra, CEO, Publicis South Asia as the Chairman of Goafest Organizing Committee.The other members on the committee are:

    • President, Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAA’s of I) & Advisor, FCB Ulka Advertising | Ambi M G Parameshwaran
    • Founder, Chairman and MD at Madison World | Sam Balsara
    • Chief Executive Officer at Contract Advertising | Rana Barua
    • Chairman and CEO at Dentsu Aegis Network | Ashish Bhasin
    • Managing Director at Jaya Advertising | Jaideep Gandhi
    • CEO at Group M, South Asia | CVL Srinivas
    • CEO at LHAMPL | Shashi Sinha
    • CEO at JWT | Tarun Rai
    • Group CEO at Madison Media | Vikram Sakhuja
    • Group CEO at Zee Media Corporation | Bhaskar Das
    • Chief Corporate Sales and Marketing Officer at Dainik Bhaskar Group | Pradeep Dwivedi

     

    Commenting on his appointment, Ambi M G Parameshwaran – President, Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAA’s of I) said, “Nakul has been in this industry for over 30 years now. He has been leading Publicis in India through this last decade. I am very excited to see what plans he has in store for us this year!”

     

    Welcoming the announcement, Raj Nayak, President of The Advertising Club said, “This is wonderful news. Nakul has been instrumental in driving Goafest to success in the recent past. With his proven track record in managing high performing agencies, he is truly the best man for the job! I look forward to work with him to make Goafest 2016 a roaring success!”

     

    Nakul Chopra stated,” To have been given the opportunity to Chair the Goafest Organizing Committee is an honor. There’s still a lot of work to do in strengthening Goafest and together, I hope we can build upon the good work of the past years.”

     

  • The event will be held in Mumbai on January 15, 2016

    Ajay Kakar & Vikram Sakhuja to head Effies 2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Club announced the appointment of Ajay Kakar as Chairperson and Vikram Sakhuja as Co-chair for this year’s Effies Awards. The event will be held in Mumbai on January 15, 2016.

     

    In its 15th year, Effies will celebrate not only the advertising agency behind the campaign, but also the client.  Commenting on their appointment, Raj Nayak, President of The Advertising Club and CEO, Colors said, “The Effies is an institution by itself giving due recognition to campaigns that engage consumers thereby furthering a brand’s promise and proposition. I would like to congratulate Ajay Kakar and Vikram Sakhuja for this new project that they will be leading. The entire advertising community looks forward to the Effies and I am certain that they will strengthen its credibility within the industry.”

     

    Ajay Kakar

    Speaking on his appointment as the Chairperson, Ajay Kakar, Chief Marketing Officer, Aditya Birla Group – Financial Services said, “Over the past four  years that I have chaired the Effies, I have seen a growing support and participation. Every year has broken the record entries and number of participating agencies, from the previous year.‎ I believe this demonstrates the underlying need and demand for marketing campaigns that are not only creative, but more importantly, work for the brand and business. And I am confident that this year’s Effies will again beat last year’s record. And be even bigger and better.”

     

    Vikram Sakhuja

    Adding further, Co-chair Vikram Sakhuja, Group CEO, Madison Media & OOH, said, “For me it is imperative for advertising to drive demand and strengthen brand value. It is therefore an honour to be part of the Effies which is the undisputed champion of effectiveness in India and worldwide.”

     

    Earlier this year, Messrs Kakar and Sakhuja were also inducted as the new officebearers of The Advertising Club. While Sakhuja was elected as Secretary, Kakar was elected as Joint Secretary.

     

  • Partners with MultiChoice to launch COLORS in Southern Africa starting 15 October, 2015

    IndiaCast expands footprint in Africa

    By A correspondent

     

    Come October 2015, Viacom18’s leading Hindi general entertainment channel, Colors will be available to DStv Indian customers  in South Africa as well as Southern Africa, inclusive of Zambia, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana giving viewers access to the choicest offerings from the Colors content library.

     

    With a combination of fiction dramas, non-fiction and reality shows, blockbuster movies, and live events, Colors has become the one-stop entertainment destination for viewers across the globe. With its presence in more than 135 countries, Colors has been providing quality entertainment avenues to the Indian diaspora scattered across the world.

     

    Raj Nayak, CEO – COLORS said, “In the 7 years since it first launched, Colors has been a game changer in the television industry with path-breaking content that has appealed to viewer sensibilities. As the channel launches on DStv in Africa, the channel’s global penetration in more than 135 markets, with shows syndicated in over 100 markets, further reinforces our belief in our offerings and ability to match viewing preferences of our audiences.”

     

    Commenting on the association, Anuj Gandhi, Group CEO – IndiaCast, said, “At IndiaCast, it is our endeavor to present South Asian viewers across the world with quality Hindi entertainment avenues bringing a taste of Indian culture and values to their fingertips. Our association with MultiChoice is a partnership which enables us to further expand our footprint within Africa and keep viewers entertained through our varied offerings. We are happy to be able to reach out to DStv customers with content from the COLORS library and look forward to reaching out to more viewers in Africa as our relationship with the network strengthens.”

     

  • Snapdeal, OPPO smartphones and Maruti Swift are key sponsors of the show that will now air at 10.30pm Monday through Friday and at 9pm on weekends

    It’s Salman Khan again on ninth edition of Bigg Boss

    By A Correspondent

     

    India’s biggest reality show, , is getting set for its ninth edition. Set to premiere on on Colors on October 11, Bigg Boss Nau will see Salman Khan play host again. While the opening show will air at 9pm, the subsequent airings on weekdays (Monday through Friday) will be at 10.30pm and on weekends at 9pm.

     

    Even before the unveil of the show, the channel has roped in sponsors Snapdeal, OPPO Mobiles, Maruti Swift, Garnier Men Powerlight, CP Plus CCTV Cameras etc.

     

    Speaking about the show, Raj Nayak, CEO – COLORS, said, “The brand Bigg Boss today has transcended television screens and has become a phenomenon engaging kids and families to artists and musicians, sportstars, movie stars, fashion designers, social media mavens and even the nation drivers. This is the show where stars are made. With a volley of inimitable personalities even this year, Bigg Boss Nau is going to enhance family viewing with the promise of double entertainment. We once again welcome Snapdeal and OPPO on-board as sponsors for the second season in a row along with Maruti Swift. And of course, megastar Salman Khan who has become synonymous with Bigg Boss as the host for the sixth season.”

     

    I Srinivas Murthy, Senior Vice President Marketing Snapdeal, said, “Big Boss is only getting bigger and better with every season. We are very excited to partner with Big Boss Nau and look forward to great response from the viewers this season too.”

     

    Said Mike Wang, CEO, OPPO Mobiles India: “We are pleased to renew our association with the immensely popular show Bigg Boss this season.  There is no platform better that entertainment in India and we wish the show a huge success.”

     

    In his inimitable style, superstar Salman Khan who will host the show for the sixth time said, “This season with Double Trouble being the flavour, the contestants have no choice but to double up and face the trouble, or remain disconnected and invite trouble!”

     

    Revealing what Bigg Boss Nau contestants will be in for, Manisha Sharma, Programming Head – COLORS said, “The return of Bigg Boss each year marks the return of the ‘family viewing nights’ for the viewers. The addition of the show at 10.30 pm along with our other thriving prime time properties will only bolster the viewership further on Colors.”

     

  • That's what the new Big Boss of the Advertising Club hopes to achieve as President of the premier body of the ad frat

    Collaboration is key: Raj Nayak

     

    One of the first things senior mediaperson and Colors CEO Raj Nayak did when he was elected President of the Advertising Club a fortnight back was to register a Twitter handle, and start reaching out to the fraternity.  He has several other plans up his sleeve, including collaborating with other industry associations to work for a common cause. In an interview with Pradyuman Maheshwari last week, Raj Nayak spoke of some of his plans for the Ad Club, on doing things beyond Goafest, Effies and Emvies and how he manages to find the time to do all of it…

     

    One did get an indicator that you were looking at bigger things when you took on the responsibility of the secretary of the Advertising Club two years back…

    You should be a fortune-teller or an astrologer because two years back I had no inkling of this when I was roped into the Ad Club as secretary. I’ve been a part of the advertising community – whether it’s the Ad Club or IAA, but to be honest with you, this hasn’t happened by design.

     

    As someone who has been tracking Ad Club events for the two-plus decades since you’ve got into the profession, what are the things you remembers most from then to now?

    I’ve grown up with the Ad Club. When I started my first job and became a member of the Ad Club, I remember having contributed two articles in Solus. Ad Club used to organise events on a regular basis. It used to be in the Nehru Centre in Worli or other venues and the entire industry would attend them. It used to be a big thing to be invited or for your boss to say, “I’ve got a pass for you to go to an Ad Club function.” Today if you look at the Ad Club, we do some big functions. We do the Emvies, the Effies and of course the Goafest. We do a lot of things. But these are all big events. I think the constant engagement that we used to have with the fraternity, with the industry, has somewhere got eroded. That too for me was the uniqueness of the Ad Club. It was a close fraternity which not only came together during big events, but there was constant engagement happening.

     

    So, Mr President what do we expect from your tenure?

    The Ad Club has been one of the best institutions in our industry. It’s 60 years’ old, there have been many past Presidents. There have been many committees before and I think that they did a phenomenal job. My sole aim is to build on it. To try and see how do I take it to the next level. As you wrote on your website, one of the first things I did was to start a Twitter handle for the Ad Club. I plan to start a website for the Ad Club which will be a one-stop shop to get curated content for the industry.

     

    The Ad Club has become more of just the Goafest, Effies and Emvies. Surely it should be doing lot more than just these big events.

    Yeah. I agree with you completely. We are all non-profitable organisations and are working for same cause in a way. We are working for the fraternity. We do similar things. I don’t see any reason if IAA is doing an event why can’t Ad Club be a partner of it. If Ad Club is doing an event why can’t AAAI be a partner of it? If all three of us work together because the objective is the same, the purpose is the same. We are actually giving our personal time from our daily routine to give back to the industry. I’m going to initiate it with the IAA and AAAI. Say, let us work together on some projects so that we can amortise costs, instead of doing more of the same, let’s do quality events. Let’s bring the fraternity together instead of doing things alone.

     

    A few years back the Club changed its name from The Advertising Club Bombay to The Advertising Club with the objective of taking on a national footprint. It hasn’t really happened in right earnest except for the fact you’ve jury meetings and a few events happening in Delhi.

    I don’t think it’s the right way to look at it.  It is the Advertising Club of India because everything that we do has national participation whether it’s the Emvies or theEffies. What we need to do is to find some ways of engaging with people in other cities that’s not just by going and doing events. I used to be the Secretary of the Bangalore Advertising Club in 1990.  A friend of mine Arvind Kumar, ex-Times of India, is now the Executive Director of the Club. He sent me a congratulation message this morning and said  “Raj let’s look at doing something together.” I would like to reach out to advertising clubs in Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi. Why don’t we partner and do things together? On the national level, we’ll give you the support. On the local level you extend your support to us. That’s the way we should do things rather than do things in isolation.

     

    Do you think the Advertising Club awards – the Abby – should be held as a part of Goafest?

    The Goafest is established in spite of all the minuses, controversies and everything. I have no hesitation in admitting that it is the biggest advertising festival this country has ever seen or the country used to see. The participation last year was around 6-7000. I don’t know the exact number but it’s not easy to gather such a kind of number. One is to get number of people. Second is to curate it and make it better…

     

    But a majority of the advertising folks are based in Mumbai and they find getting to Goa a pain.

    I don’t agree because if the people are ready to make the effort to go to Cannes, I think they can come to Goa. It’s just an excuse. If you don’t want to do something, you won’t do it. The fact that if 4-6000 people can come to Goa, then anyone can. But what is important about Goafest is that we don’t plan our calendar well in advance. If we are able to fix the calendar and say this is when Goafest happens and try and fix a date every year then nobody can make an excuse. If you’ve a board meeting, you can make an excuse. Then we should be able to tell the industry these are the dates, block your calendar and please be there. Then, nobody will have an excuse.

     

    The advertising industry has changed considerably from being the 10-15 big agencies of yesteryears. The media fraternity has also grown considerably. Do you see the Ad Club adapting itself to the new reality?

    We have to. I want to be more inclusive. One of the reasons I opened a Twitter handle and intend to have a website is to send the right signals that we are evolving. There are lots of small agencies and they are doing very good work. It’s not just the big agencies. There are small agencies whether it’s in the media or creative. Look at the composition of my managing committee. Prasoon Joshi has been appointed as the creative advisor to the club. You’ll see some more names. It was just that I was out of the country when everything happened, I put up everything in a day. I’ve already a client there. We’ll soon see another creative person or client coming on board. So, I’m trying to put together a team. We have Bhaskar Das and Shashi Sinha ensuring continuity because they know how the club has worked, what are the pluses and the minuses. I can learn from their experience and knowledge. At the same time I’ve brought in a lot of new people, fresh blood who will bring in fresh ideas. Keeping in mind a very clear structure as to who will do what. So, one of the things I’m going to do is to start a membership drive. There is going to be a sponsorship drive. So, in every area,  I’ve identified people who I think will be best suited for particular role so that clearly roles are earmarked for everybody. Then we work like any corporate structure works.

     

    Loads of plans, how are you going to manage the time, especially with a busy job as CEO of Colors?

    A lot of people say when you become CEO you are supposed to be extremely busy. I actually work the other way round. I believe a CEO should free himself and make time for himself. My KRA is just one thing: to make sure that every person who works with me wakes up in the morning and says I want to go to work. If I’m able to create the adrenaline rush in that person, my job is done because they do the work, I get the credit. Delegation is the key. That’s how we work at Colors and we delegate roles and responsibilities. We clearly have a marked calendar for our meetings. We don’t need too much time. At the end of the day, if you plan well I think you can manage.

     

    It’s too early to ask you this question. You’ve just taken on the job of the President. If there is one thing you would like to be remembered for having achieved as Ad Club President, what would it be?

    Too early for me to answer as well. But I come from a school of thought where if you ask me what’ll be my one contribution that I’ll bring to the table: I will say passion. Anything I do, I’m passionate about it. I firmly believe everybody does a job. Very few people are remembered for what they’ve done. I would like to be one of those people, hopefully someday to be remembered for whatever I’ve contributed to the Ad Club. What it will be, I don’t know. As you said, it’s too early for me. But, once I get into the pool and start swimming, probably I would know how deep the water is. Hopefully I’ll swim well.

     

  • Colors CEO Raj Nayak is the new President of the Advertising Club

    Raj Nayak is new Ad Club President

    By A Correspondent

     

    Raj Nayak

    Colors CEO Raj Nayak is the new President of the Advertising Club. At a thinly attended Annual General Meeting of the premier club of advertising, media and marketing professionals, Raj Nayak was elected President, with Pratap Bose’s term drawing to a close.

     

    While Bose and earlier Shashi Sinha are credited with having brought the credibility back to the Creative Abby, Nayak can be expected to make the Ad Club more active in terms of events through the year.

     

    At the time of writing, Nayak was out of the country.

     

  • Veteran mediaperson and CEO, Colors Raj Nayak has been appointed leader of the Indian contingent to AdAsia 2015 to be held in Taipei

    Raj Nayak to lead India at AdAsia 2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    Raj Nayak

    Veteran mediaperson and CEO, Colors Raj Nayak has been appointed leader of the Indian contingent to AdAsia 2015 to be held in Taipei. The event will be held from November 22 to 25.

     

    The announcement was made by Pradeep Guha, Chairman of the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA), in the presence of AFAA vice-chair Raymond So and captains of the media and advertising fraternity.

     

    Commenting on the appointment, Guha said: “I am very pleased that Raj Nayak is leading the Indian delegation to AdAsia Taipei. It is a great opportunity for professionals from marketing advertising and the media to participate in Asia’s premier advertising event.”

     

    Commenting on the announcement, Nayak, said, “AdAsia serves as the ideal platform to bring together like-minded professionals to meet, network and share ideas on a global scale, helping in the overall growth and development of the community at large. I would urge my friends from the industry to try and send as many delegates from their organisation to represent India in its full strength.”

     

     

  • It was raining awards across 37 categories at the annual PromaxBDA India awards

    Zee, MSM steal spotlight at PromaxBDA Awards 2015

    By Dyanne Coelho

     

    Zee and MSM walked away with 14 and 13 awards respectively at the PromaxBDA India awards held on Wednesday. Awards across 37 different categories were were presented with Star India coming in third with 10 awards and UTV Entertainment Television Limited and NGC Network won 8 awards each. While Zee bagged 9 Gold and 5 Silver Awards, MSM won 6 Gold and 7 Silver Awards. In all, 31 gold and 31 silver MUSE trophies and six gold and six silver ISIS trophies were awarded.

     

    Earlier, the 12th edition of PromaxBDA India kicked off at the Westin, Mumbai with an opening address by Conference Chair and Colors CEO Raj Nayak. “Short form storytelling has come of age,” he said, “The viewer today has evolved. It’s up to you to catch them head on.”

     

    David Shing, Digital Prophet, AOL began the morning session on an energetic note talking about the various futuristic ideas that are revolutionizing the world. “Personal experience is the new form of entertainment,” he said. Shing highlighted the word ‘Pizzled’ which is a combination of the words pissed and puzzled to describe the feeling a person gets when the person he/she is talking to is constantly busy on the phone during a conversation. “There is an information overload today and bad ads are the uninvited guests to the party.” Shing spent the most part of his talk discussing smart objects like a ring that switches on your television when you write TV in mid-air while wearing it or the same with your fan. Smart objects like the Power Suit, doesn’t require you to carry a wallet around, you merely move the tip of your coat sleeve over the billing machine and your meal is paid for, Shing explained pointing out that we would never see influential persons like President Barack Obama walking around with a wallet. “The new generation is who we should give a shit about,” Shing said, explaining that they are the ones who will be the users of these products in the future. It is all about engaging people in the calm and the chaos, he said.

     

    Nicole Velik of The Ideas Bodega followed, opening with a line that left everyone a little puzzled. “Creativity is everyone’s business,” she said. She went on to explain how once at her workplace, the creative team invited all the other teams; HR, Admin, finance, etc to join them in their brainstorming session, and some amazing ideas popped up. Creativity diminishes as age increases, she pointed out highlighting a few statistics, and it is most often an influential person like a teacher or a parent that kills some part of your creative self by telling you seemingly harmless things like draw within the lines, she said. “When all else fails, role-play,” she said. It helps to thoroughly understand the brand you are trying to sell. Come up with ideas that will get you fired and then pull those ideas back into reality, she advised. “It is much better to tame a wild idea, than to make a boring idea great.”

     

    Liz Dunning of Dunning Penney Jones shared stories of branding across the globe. America doesn’t like foreigners buying into their brands and companies, she said. Europe on the other hand is facing a major invasion by China, as a multitude of Chinese manufacturers are buying into European brands. “Indians sometimes take over a foreign brand and handle it way better than the home country ever could,” she said pointing out India’s vast growth in the industry. American brands are failing because they are not ready to spend, she pointed out. You have to spend on your product and on advertising and branding to make it a success. She cited the example of Cartoon Network and its sister channel Boomerang highlighting how each has a very different approach to branding, yet when you see the advertisements for either you will know they are connected.

     

    The post-lunch session of the day saw two panel discussions. The first one was titled, The Shift: Exploring new demographics, audiences and mind sets. Rajiv Bakshi, VP-Marketing, Discovery Networks, Asia Pacific, South Asia and Ajay Vidyasagar, Regional Director, APAC, Youtube Partnerships, Google were the participants of this discussion. It was moderated by Meenakshi Menon, Spatial Access. The session highlighted key aspects of the digital versus the television medium. The speakers shared relevant insights into each, including costing of content creation, consistency in programming, audience response, advertising, revenue streams and the growth of technology. “If you can bring consumers to have the conversations that you want them to have, then it is a job well done, whether on the internet space or on a TV set,” Menon said, concluding debate one.

     

    The next debate concentrated on the art of making a pitch to a client. ‘Pitch Therapy: A two-way conversation about the challenges of engagement’ was the topic of discussion which saw four participants; Kartik Sharma, MD, Maxus, South Asia, Paritosh Painter, Network Creative Director, Reliance Broadcast Network, Abhijit Joshi a former Ogilvy employee and Namit Sharma a former Zee employee. During the due course of this session  moderated by Tarun Katial, CEO, Reliance Broadcast Network, pointers on what to do and what not to do during a pitch were discussed. Know what your client wants, have a conviction and transfer that conviction to your client and believe in your pitch is what was unanimously agreed upon. “You have to sell your idea in the first 20 seconds,” Painter said. Pitching an idea is just like wooing your boyfriend or girlfriend, Joshi added.