MxMIndia

Tag: Rediffusion

  • He will be the agency’s Digital Lead in North and East India

    Vivek Bahl joins Rediffusion as digital lead

    By Our Staff

     

    Vivek Bahl
    Vivek Bahl

    Vivek Bahl has joined Rediffusion SmartMedia as Senior Vice President and will be the agency’s Digital Lead in North and East India.

     

    Said Bahl on his new assignment: “I am looking forward to working with the Rediffusion creative team to take clients’ digital campaigns to greater impact and ROI. The apertures available today in digital allow for smart targeting and far higher creativity. Having worked across multiple categories over the past few years, I have seen the digital scene evolve and grow. At Rediffusion we are going to create unique solutions that communicate brand propositions better and help create a more endearing connect with the consumer.”

     

    Welcoming Bahl to Rediffusion, Navonil Chatterjee, Joint President added: “Vivek has both wide ranging experience and maturity. He is incisive and insightful about digital usage by brands. He brings new learnings to Team Rediffusion. We are delighted to have him with us.”

     

  • It is a new term to describe consumer emotions during pandemic

    Rediffusion files trademark for ‘Postalgia’

    By Our Staff

     

    Sandeep Goyal is at the helm and it’s raining communiques and announcements. The Rediffusion Consumer Lab (Red Lab) has coined a new word, Postalgia, or nostalgia in the future tense or ‘post-nostalgia’. It has filed a trademark on the usage of the word.

     

    Said Navonil Chatterjee, Head of Red Lab and the person who coined the term: “Postalgia is a new pandemic-driven twist to the traditional concept of nostalgia. We at Red Lab observed this trend of consumers today wanting the future to reflect their pandemic-freepast, and came up with the term postalgia to describe it. If nostalgia is for the past or the ‘pre’, postalgia is all about the future or the ‘post’. Hence the coinage.”

     

    Added Goyal, who is Managing Director of Rediffusion Brand Solutions: “Trademarking of ‘postalgia’ is just to ensure that Rediffusion and Red Lab are credited for the coinage. We will otherwise encourage its widespread media usage, and its usage by brands. Red Lab is dedicated to greater understanding of consumer behaviour, and to sharing key insights with our clients and peers.”

     

  • The iconic creative whiz Kamlesh Pandey will be a 'Legend in Residence'

    Can Kamlesh Pandey help Rediffusion get its mojo back?

     

    By Our Staff

     

    Rediffusion has announced the return of its most famous alumnus, Kamlesh Pandey, as ‘Legend in Residence’. Pandey, who has nearly 45 years of experience in advertising, 35 years in films, and 30 years in television is an awardwinning bilingual writer. He was Creative Director at Rediffusion from 1976 to 1992. And returned again in the late 90s and early 2000s for a short innings. He is 72 and will join the agency on June 1.

     

    Some of the copy lines written by Pandey are legendary: ‘Whenever you see colour, think of us’ (Jenson & Nicholson), ‘Hum Red & White peenewalon ki baat hi kuchh aur hai’(Red & White cigarettes), ‘Palmolive da jawab nahin’ (Colgate Palmolive), ‘When it can’t be done, it must be done’ (J&N Corporate), ‘Gimme Red!’ (Eveready), ‘Annu taazgi de’ (Tata Tea) and many many more. Pandey entered the CAG Hall of Fame in 2005.

     

    Said Diwan Arun Nanda, Chairman & Founder of Rediffusion who recently sold the agency to senior advertising professional Sandeep Goyal. “I am delighted that Kamlesh Pandey is back home to Rediffusion. I have the fondest memories of working with him on some of India’s most acclaimed campaigns. Pandey commands a first-hand experience, and a deep insight into the lives and aspirations of the people of India. Which is why his thinking for brands is rooted in reality, and his creatives are always memorable,” adding: “Pandey will help the younger talent at Rediffusion to understand consumers better, think differently and write differently”.

     

    The industry has been abuzz with the development. While one former agency honcho remarked: “Brilliant idea – so Sandeep,” crediting Goyal for doing a smart one to bring back some of the lost glory.

     

    Another former agency captain was less charitable: “He’s been brought in many times in the last 25 years to resuscitate an ailing Rediff. Famous Rediff magic trick. It’s like bringing Mohammed Khan back somewhere as legend in residence.”

     

    So what will Pandey do in the agency? According to Dr Sandeep Goyal, Managing Director, Rediffusion, as ‘Legend in Residence’, Pandey will interact with Rediffusion clients. “[He] will discuss emerging consumer trends and help figure where the maximal opportunities exist in both Bharat and India; and how best to pivot brand communication for a real and enduring connect with consumers of tomorrow,”

     

    Commenting on his return to Rediffusion as ‘Legend in Residence’, Pandey added: “One way, it feels like ‘Back to the Future’. A lot has happened in Rediff since I left Rediff – Rediff managed to shake off the appendages of ‘Y&R’ and ‘Dentsu’ and returned to its original heart, mind and soul, the fearless spirit and the creative precipice that drove it in late 70’s through 90’s, the values that never left me long after I left Rediff and romanced Bollywood with some success. And now it’s great to be back. Great to be with Arun, Ajit and Sandeep. Great to be home among those who managed to get the best out of me, and those who are currently giving their best to take Rediff to a future that could be the pride of the past”.

     

    When Goyal took over Rediff, one expected him to come up with some moves like these to get into the limelight. Finally, of course, getting a fresh set of big ticket clients and getting back the freshness in the advertising will finally decide on whether this and other moves will work for the aggression which a typical Sandeep Goyal operation promises to bring in.

     

  • Sandeep Goyal can hardly be underestimated. His aggressive business stance is well-known.  As is his passion for hard work, and particularly his extreme dismay at losing, writes Prabhakar Mundkur

    By Invitation | Prabhakar Mundkur: Rediffusion – Never too late?

    Prabhakar MundkurBy Prabhakar Mundkur

     

    “Tomorrow is nothing, today is too late, the good lived yesterday”.

     

     Marcus Aurelius

     

    Rediffusion has come a long way since WPP’s Martin Sorrell made a bid to up his 26.7% stake in the agency in the early millennium, which had a tripartite shareholding of WPP, Dentsu (13.3%) and 60% owned by Dewan Arun Nanda and Ajit Balakrishnan.  The two international shareholders holding 40% were strange bedfellows making the once highly regarded agency a bit of an oddity.   The agency touted some of the industry’s best people once upon a time including the late Dr Ashok Bjiapurkar and Kamlesh Pandey who later moved on to script writing in Bollywood. Not to mention many other well-known names like V Shantakumar. Why, even Mohammed Khan was one of the original founders before he went on to start Enterprise.

     

    Like many agencies of its ilk, it kept attracting back some its best names in some consultative capacity or the other.  Mr Nanda is known to have had good ties with most of the people who worked for him and that could be the reason.

     

    According to the grapevine those days, Nanda might have paid dearly for refusing Sorrell’s offer to increase his stake in the early millennium.  Sorrell was known to be very clear in the ownership patterns of his acquisitions. He always wanted a clear majority and typically the starting point would be at least 51% share before engulfing most of the remaining stake in the shortest period of time.  People those days spoke in hushed whispers that Sorrell had threatened that if he couldn’t increase his stake in the agency, he would pull out its largest piece of business which at that time was Colgate, being a global Y&R account and terminate the Y&R partnership with Rediffusion. Moving global accounts to another agency is not a piece of cake, but Sorrell finally seems to have carried out his threat by moving Colgate to Bates 141, which created a special unit to handle the account, reporting directly to the Y&R global management. This gave credence to what thus far was attributed to agency gossip.

     

    Team Colgate was a typical WPP style business unit that that had become Sorrell’s favourite model, a prime example being GTB for Ford.  This ensured that Sorrell had direct control over some of the most important global accounts in the group.  There is a bit of history there, since the agency heads of individual accounts can become quite powerful with time. A great example was Peter Schweitzer at JWT, who by heading the Ford account which once upon a time contributed to almost 25% of JWT’s global revenue, grew too powerful for Sorrell’s liking. When Schweitzer retired as CEO, Sorrell quickly moved Ford from JWT into WPP’s special unit called GTB thereby retaining direct control over this large piece of business.

     

    When Colgate left Rediffusion, it was a telling blow.  Losing large accounts didn’t faze Rediffusion. They had lost Airtel in the first decade of the millennium. And after Colgate they it lost the Tata Sons PR business which was placed in their partnership with Edelman to Adfactors.

     

    In the M&A business, timing is critical. Both for the buyer and the seller. Rediffusion no doubt was well past its best valuation having waited too long for someone to come along.  But the ego and the resilience of the founders kept it plodding along.  What has Sandeep Goyal really bought into, one is not quite sure. The press release talks of its past glory rather than anything else clearly making it a ‘has been’.

     

    So it would be interesting to speculate on what Goyal would do with the agency he has bought.  He would necessarily have to fill the shell with some meat. If one goes by his earlier reputation, he is known to walk into agency pitches with a bag full of advertising campaigns, something that used to shock advertising professionals 20 years ago because it painted a picture of the ‘servile’ model for advertising.  Servility in the advertising business has peaked since then and also contributed to its downfall.

     

    The industry did little to continue the legacy of equal partnership and mutual respect with clients.  It needs to be seen however whether the same tactic will work today.  His long-term gameplan of course would be to dress up the bride.  For this, he would need to build adequate value in Rediffusion to attract a global agency for an acquisition.  Of course he can hardly be underestimated. His aggressive business stance is well-known.  As is his passion for hard work, and particularly his extreme dismay at losing.

     

    But it may take a while for the once famous agency of yore to re-acquire its earlier halo!  For Rediffusion, Sandeep Goyal might well be its Angel Gabriel, the Arch Angel of Resurrection, the Voice of God and the Bringer of good news.

     

    Prabhakar Mundkur is a veteran advertising person, a former agency CEO – in India and elsewhere in the world, a musician, a music producer, a talkshow host, a prolific commentator and a great conversationalist with an infectious laugh. His views here are personal.

     

  • Diwan Arun Nanda will stay on as Chairman. Goyal will be MD

    Finally done. Sandeep Goyal buys Rediffusion

     

    By Our Staff

     

    Two years back, on May 27, 2019, to be precise, MxMIndia carried a speculative story titled ‘Is Sandeep Goyal buying into Rediffusion?’.

     

    When the media publishes speculative stuff, in all likelihood the deal is done. It’s only not official. So when a veteran adperson alerted us of the news on Saturday evening, our instant response was: Okay, we’ve heard that before.

     

    The morning after, given the mad rush to arrange an oxygen cylinder for a friend and the election results thereafter, we just parked the news to be tackled in the evening. And then we read the news on a couple of other websites.

     

    And in the evening, we had this official press release coming in.

     

    Let’s read what we’ve received, and then interpret it.

     

    Diwan Arun Nanda and Ajit Balakrishnan, the founders of Rediffusion have decided to step back from the day-to-day management of the 48-years-old ad agency. However, Diwan Arun Nanda shall continue to mentor the agency and will stay on as Chairman. Ajit also will step back from all day-to-day operations here but focus his attention on Rediff.com, the technology world and public service and will be always available to Rediffusion for any guidance it may need going forward.

    Sandeep Goyal, a past President of Rediffusion (1997-2001) will come back as Managing Director.

    Rediffusion is even today, India’s largest independent full service ad agency and was set up in July, 1973. Over the years the agency has created some of India’s most iconic and memorable advertising for brands like Jenson & Nicholson, Eveready, Parle, Garden Vareli, Godfrey Phillips, Tata Tea, Lakmé, Telco (Tata Motors), Colgate Palmolive, Citibank, Maruti Suzuki and many others. Rediffusion also launched brand Airtel in 1995. The agency currently works with Tata Sons, Parle, Tata Trusts, Tata Motors, State Bank of India, Liebherr, Larsen & Toubro, Brookfield, PGIM, Orra, Eveready, Deys Medical, Sulekha, Danone, Sun Pharma, Dr. Reddys, Audi India and many more.

    Said Diwan Arun Nanda, Chairman, Rediffusion: “Rediffusion has been known over the years for advertising that became famous and part of the language and the culture of the people, and helped brands build long term, and lasting equity with consumers. Whenever you see colour, think of us for Jenson & Nicholson was a path breaking campaign. So was Hum Red & White peene walon ki baat hi kuchh aur hai for Red & White cigarettes, Annu taazgi de de for Tata Tea, Gimme Red! for Eveready and the recent Isko laga dala, toh life jhingalala for Tata Sky. Rediffusion was also responsible for creating the cult ad film featuring AR Rahman, with the very memorable Airtel brand tune that has had the highest number of downloads in history.”

     

    Is Goyal Generation Next? Well, he is in his late 50s and Nanda and Balakrishnan in their late to mid-70s. Not exactly the next generation, in the way it’s made out to be. But what industrywatchers (and more importantly, Goyal-watchers) tell us is that Goyal will usher in huge energies to Rediffusion as well as the creative agency business. There is no word on Goyal’s daughter Carol assuming a role in agency, but then these are early days.

     

    While the press release received doesn’t indicate how much of stake has been sold, as per the grapevine, Goyal will be 100% owner of Rediffusion. People in the investment circuit, indicate that the valuation which Nanda and Balakrishnan would’ve got for the twin agencies of Rediff and Everest would be in the region of Rs 20-30 crore, a dramatic fall from the Rs 100 crore that was rumoured to be offered by WPP, and twice that by Havas a few years back.

     

    The agency’s books are in good shape, as of now, with costs haven’t shaved off in a big way. There are a few clients who are loyal, and given Goyal’s deep connects in the industry (if the turnout at his book releases are any indicator), we could see some fireworks all over.

  • Made by Rediffusion, the film highlights the ‘Son of the Soil’ legacy

    Rediff’s TVC for Parle on R-Day

    By Our Staff

     

    Parle Products attempted to strike the patriotic cord with the launch of its ‘Swadeshi’ communication this Republic Day. The TVC talks about the ‘Made in India, Made by India’ concept which highlights Parle Products legacy and values while reflecting the brand’s philosophy. Conceptualised by Rediffusion, the film has been released on TV and social media platforms.

    Commenting on the campaign, Mayank Shah, Senior Category Head, Parle Products, said: “Parle Products is a proud Indian brand and we believe that it is our responsibility to evoke hope and positivity among the audience. This film is a humble tribute from Parle Products recognising the importance of its loyal customers and their strong association with the brand. We have always considered ourselves to be the ‘Son of the soil’ and with each passing day, Parle Products is evolving and adapting, just like our country. Serving through generations, Parle Products has always been on the forefront and a reliable brand since its inception who everyone trusts. This film encapsulates the values of the brand along with the immersive experiences, smaller benchmarks and acts of good-well that makes us who we are.”

     

     

  • Initially the films have been released on the digital platform

    Rediffusion crafts 3 quirky films for SBI Debit Card

    By A Correspondent

     

    Rediffusion has announced the release of the #KhushiyanOnEMI campaign to promote the EMI through SBI’s debit card facility.

     

    Speaking about the film, Pramod Sharma, ECD & Mumbai Creative Head, Rediffusion Brand Solutions said: “What happens when you have the power of EMIs on your Debit Card? Buying things for loved ones becomes easier than ever. Through three quirky films we have tried to established this fact. SBI is a client that gives your creativity a broad canvas. You have to just paint your best picture. As an agency we have tried our best to do that.”

     

    Initially the films have been released on the digital platform but soon these will be taken to the television to ensure greater reach amongst the intended target group.

     

     

  • The film, shot in a tightly controlled environment, highlights the effect of the 'freshness lock'

    Liebherr creates fresh campaign with Rediff

    By A Correspondent

     

    German consumer durables major Liebherr Appliances India has created a campaign by Rediffusion that highlights its dual cooling technology.

     

    Said Radhakrishna Somayaji, Director Sales, Liebherr Appliances India: “Liebherr appliances Globally stand for its excellence in quality & German engineering. After firmly establishing our distribution network in India, our focus is now to bring into the country the latest and advanced refrigeration technologies that we have developed over the last 65 years. The first in the series is our DuoCooling Technology, which helps consumers preserve the freshness of their precious food longer. As South India, especially Kerala has been one of our important markets, we decided to ring in the festivities of Onam with our new technology launch in this South market first”.

     

    Added Navonil Chatterjee, Joint President and Chief Strategy Officer, Rediffusion: “Globally, when you think of refrigeration, you think of Liebherr. The brand swears by quality, innovation and design and DuoCooling is one more breakthrough in the science of preservation from the Liebherr stable. There is a certain direct, to-the-point and minimalistic communication grammar that hi-tech global brands follow and our DuoCooling communication is straight from that no-nonsense mould. And there is a stunning visual device of the ‘freshness lock’ which has been employed to dramatise our product story. In short, the appetite appeal in the communication is designed to ensure that if you love food, you will end up loving Liebherr”.

  • As a drive to generate awareness, the camapign posters will be displayed across  all 79 police stations under the jurisdiction

    Rediff & Swayam campaign displayed across 79 cop stations in Cal

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Commissioner of Police and Kolkata Police is supporting a campaign #StopDomesticViolenceCampaign created by Rediffusion and Swayam, a Kolkata-based women’s rights organisation working since 1995 to advance women’s rights, facilitate women’s empowerment and end violence against women. As a drive to generate awareness, the camapign posters will be displayed across  all 79 Police Stations under the jurisdiction.

     

    According to Amrita Das Gupta, Associate Director of Swayam: “Domestic violence is a deep-rooted structural problem in our society caused due to patriarchy and gender inequality which prevents women from leading a live free from violence and dignity. Through this campaign, Swayam hopes to involve individuals, corporates and institutions to support the #StopDomesticViolenceCampaign and help raise awareness around domestic violence.”

     

    Added Nilanjan Dasgupta and Piyash Ghosh, EVP& ECD, Rediffusion: “During Covid-19 lockdown, incidents and reporting of domestic violence increased by 20-70% across the world and the National Commission for Women reported a two-fold increase in domestic violence reporting in India. UN Women recognised this situation as a ‘Shadow Pandemic’. The lockdown has hugely exacerbated the incidence and intensity of violence faced by countless women and girls, both in their parental and matrimonial homes, as they are locked in with their abusers 24×7. Even after the lockdown has been lifted partially, many women still cannot approach Swayam due to the COVID 19 pandemic, limited public transport, no access to money and difficulties in the home situation. We hope the #StopDomesticViolence campaign will help us raise awareness about the shadow pandemic and help survivors of violence reach out for support.”

     

     

  • The account will be handled by Rediffusion’s Mumbai office

    SBI General Insurance awards mandate to Rediff

    By A Correspondent

     

    SBI General Insurance has assigned its creative duties to Rediffusion.

     

    Shefali Khalsa

    Said Shefali Khalsa, Head- Brand, Corporate Communication & Website Sales, SBI General Insurance: “The brand affinity for SBI General is high amongst Indians. Completing a decade of operations in the industry, we believe it is the right time to re-focus on the brand identity and align with our digital focused infrastructure & outlook. Basis a defined brief, backed by detailed research, Rediffusion came up with a beautiful concept that resonated with our brand and was the  best, of a good lot of pitch presentations. We are glad to have  such an expert team onboard, backed by strong leadership, to manage this brand exercise from planning to execution.”

     

    Navonil Chatterjee

    Added Navonil Chatterjee, Joint President & Chief Strategy Officer, Rediffusion Brand Solutions on the appointment: “Winning SBI General Insurance is a triple treat for us! Firstly, General Insurance is a severely under-penetrated category in India, which makes it a planner’s delight. The barriers to adoption are many and it is something that is sold and not bought. Eventually when one buys, it is still a grudge purchase. It’s perceived as a waste of hard-earned money that is going to go needlessly down the drain, because nothing bad will ever happen to me and my valuable things! We not only have the challenging task of building the brand, but also the formidable onus of growing the category.

     

    Rahul Jauhari

    And this is what Rahul Jauhari, Joint President & Chief Creative Officer, Rediffusion Brand Solutions said on the appointment: “”SBI General Insurance combines the maturity and wisdom of SBI with the agility and energy of a young industry player. Their passion is infectious and we look forward to working with them in this exciting space.”

     

     

  • Prior to this Kalyani was representing the Chairman’s office at the agency

    Rediff elevates Kalyani Srivastava to EVP & Mumbai Head

    By A Correspondent

     

    Kalyani Srivastava

    Rediffusion has announced the elevation of Kalyani Srivastava as the new head of Mumbai operations. Prior to this Srivastava was representing the Chairman’s office at the agency.

     

    Speaking on the appointment, Navonil Chatterjee, Joint President & CSO, Rediffusion, said: “Kalyani is both passionate and relentless in ensuring that every day, the agency flag flies just that bit higher than the previous day. A troubleshooter par excellence, her constant endeavour is to push the boundaries when it comes to our thinking, our work and the ‘market value’ of our work. With her boundless dynamism and energy often rubbing off on others. In short, she is an invaluable asset for us.”

     

    Added Rahul Jauhari, Joint President & CCO, Rediffusion: “We are operating in changing times and there is no person better suited than Kalyani for the job. She has handled the kind of challenges one would take 2/3 careers to experience. She is a go-getter, digital evangelist, brand custodian, talent catalyst all rolled into one. Her focus and energy are infectious and she believes in the power of transformational business thinking.

     

    Srivastava comes with 19 years of experience and expertise in Digital & PR, Sales and Marketing, Business Development, Operations Management, Customer Relationship Management, Team management across sectors such as Advertising, Hospitality and Consulting.

     

     

  • Veteran adperson Conrad Saldanha passed away in Auckland on Sunday evening. We carry tributes by Vishnu Mohan, Harsha Bhogle and Ambba Kuthiala

    RIP, Conrad Saldanha. Tributes by Vishnu Mohan, Harsha Bhogle & Ambba Kuthiala

    By A Correspondent

     

    Veteran adperson Conrad Saldanha passed away in Auckland on Sunday evening. He was hospitalised with a brief illness. Rich tributes have been paid by industry persons, many of who owe their careers to Saldanha.

     

    Vishnu Mohan, Chairman & CEO, Havas Group – India/South East Asia/North Asia:

    There are very few people that spellbind you instantly with their radiance, charm and genuineness. Human, kind, sincere, caring – the list could go on and on. That was Conrad.

     

    Such was his gravitation that I don’t know when and how a relationship that began 28 years ago as a management trainee turned into being and believing in him as a parent.

     

    The 7pm whisky, the cricket we saw together, the laughs we shared, the immense love for my daughters, the reprimands and advice replay endlessly

     

    He taught the world and me how to always stay young.

     

    A loss for the industry, his friends and his colleagues.

     

    For me, I lost my Dad

     

     

     

    Harsha Bhogle, cricket commentator, consultant, former adperson:

     

    When I joined Rediffusion, I was petrified of Conrad.

     

    I thought he was stern and hard. I was to learn later what a facade that was! Conrad was kind, understanding and played a big part in making generations of entrants to Rediffusion feel comfortable.

     

    He was as much a guide as a boss. Our WhatsApp group is in grief but also full of stories of his help, his support and his guidance.

     

    He was, just simply, a good man

     

     

    Ambba Kuthiala, General Manager APAC, Talenthouse:

     

    There can be only one Conrad Saldanha (fondly known as Connie) in this world.

     

    If you were tired he was your go to guy, If you are feeling low & lost at work? Connie was the man. Need advice? Need help? Or need a drink? Or need many drinks to cheer you up? Or just simply bored and lonely? Go to Connie. Everyone in the industry and our agency knew that you could find Connie at “Gallops” or “The Jewel of India” after six in case you needed a kind and a  good listener. It did not matter if you were young or old, or if you were a client or a colleague……Connie was a ray of cheer for everyone

     

    And this pattern continued even when Connie and Lynett visited me in Singapore. After a long stressful daym I would go home to find Connie at home fixing me a drink or russling up a meal or waiting with a goody bag to cheer me up. He was sent there as my guardian angel to help me settle in.

     

    A man with many endearing names- “Papa bear” “Cuddly & warm” “Toughie with a heart of gold” “drinking buddy”…..

     

    You touched everyone’s life in your special way…….

     

    Cheers to you Connie wherever you go…… I am sure there will be many waiting to welcome you with a hearty drink and a warm smile.

     

    The ad industry has truly lost its lustre with your precious loss.