MxMIndia

Tag: Shashi Sinha

  • When we spoke with some of his closest aides from Ulka (and even earlier), most felt too devastated to share a long tribute. While we were able to catch a quote from veteran adperson Nagesh Alai, the quotes from Ambi Parameswaran and Shashi Sinha are from an article we had done in September 2013 when Kapoor was felicitated with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Advertising Agencies Association of India

    Nagesh Alai, Shashi Sinha & Ambi Parameswaran on Anil Kapoor

    Anil Kapoor, Chairman Emeritus, FCB Ulka, passed away in Mumbai on Monday after a prolonged illness.  

     

    A little about Kapoor from our archives and courtesy the Ulka website: His love for challenges saw him taking charge of Draftfcb+Ulka (Ulka Advertising, at the time), turning it into the fastest growing agency in India and taking its rightful place as one of the ‘Big Five’. With the formation of Draftfcb in 2006, Mr Kapoor was appointed as Draftfcb President with responsibility for Asia-Pacific region and Africa.

     

    He was appointed Chairman Emeritus of Draftfcb + Ulka, after a 22-year stint with the company and its other associated agencies. As one who is known to make things happen, his role expanded naturally into industry bodies. He is a Past President of the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), the Chairman of the Audit Bureau of Circulation of 2007-08 and was also on the Management Board of the National Readership Survey and the Television Audience Measurement Research. He was also on the Editorial Advisory Board of The Economic Times. In May 2002, Mr Kapoor was also inducted into the Foote, Cone & Belding’s Worldwide Board.

     

    Before joining Draftfcb+Ulka Kapoor was with the Boots Company, India, for 14 years, where, as the Marketing Director, he launched a string of brands, all of which went on to become No. 1 in their markets. At Boots, he also set up two field forces, one for consumer products and the other for ethical pharmaceutical products. Before that, he was with the legendary agency MCM and though not the cause, he says he had to preside over its closure – quite a learning experience! Kapoor grew up in Delhi and graduated with a BA in English Literature from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi and then did his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

     

    When we spoke with some of his closest aides from Ulka (and even earlier), most felt too devastated to share a long tribute. While we were able to catch a quote from veteran adperson Nagesh Alai, the quotes from Ambi Parameswaran and Shashi Sinha are from an article we had done in September 2013 when Kapoor was felicitated with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Advertising Agencies Association of India. 

     

    Nagesh Alai

    Nagesh Alai

    Veteran adperson, business advisor and columnist

     

    A vision of purpose and a mission of execution was the hallmark of a man called Anil Kapoor. A huge banyan tree under whom everybody flourished. Quite simply,  Ulka shone brighter because of his effulgence. A true leader who will be sorely missed by legions of people and brands. The advertising and marketing fraternity have lost a doyen…. Anil was a wonderful persona of a tough exterior and a soft interior who would go out of the way to help people close to him. He was a mentor par excellence. A void difficult to fill.

     

     

    Shashi Sinha

    Shashi Sinha

    CEO, IPG Mediabrands and Lodestar UM

     

    They don’t make people like Anil Kapoor these days.

     

    I have had the good pleasure of working with Draftfcb+Ulka a few years before he joined the agency from a strong client background. In fact that possibly ensured that he was very focused on deliveries.  As someone who helmed the agency for many years and even now as Chairman Emeritus, we and our clients included have always known him to be a no-nonsense man. Forthright, never into any frivolous conversation. He was always focused on the task on hand.

     

    He had a keen eye on the business and would actively engage with all his clients.  Even now when some of us meet him, his observations are pertinent to the business and may I say: bang-on. Anil Kapoor has always been an excellent people manager considering his team has been together for so long.

     

    I have always had an excellent rapport with him and have found in him a Guru whom I admire and respect.

     

    Ambi ParameswaranAmbi Parameswaran

    Veteran adperson, author and columnist

     

    I have worked with Anil Kapoor for over two decades and I have seen him in various roles, as Head of Marketing of a large British multinational, as a CEO of a pioneering media company and as a CEO of a struggling ad agency. One thing that defines him is his ‘Never Say Die’ attitude. When he joined Ulka no one thought he had a chance of saving an agency that was fast sinking. In fact someone who is revered in advertising world even told me that I was mad to join Anil Kapoor in his mission of saving an ailing Indian agency. Anil proved all his detractors wrong though his passion, attitude and commitment to the cause. He also showed the industry how to build a strong team and keep it together for two decades. How to build an agency group entirely from within, and without the help of international experts and hand-me-down accounts. He demonstrated how to partner clients at senior levels to launch one successful brand after another,  in tough market conditions. As Ulka became FCB Ulka and later DraftFCB Ulka, his managerial and leadership skills got recognized on the global stage, many times over.

     

    Anil Kapoor, who was seen as an outsider in the Industry, was soon accepted as an equal and may be as a ‘more than an equal’. He went on to play leadership role in various industry bodies such as AAAI and ABC. He was instrumental in setting up the independent NRS survey in the mid-’90s. He also played a very vital role in helping the formation of IBF as a body that could work with AAAI to create norms and processes on how agencies work with television.

     

    We don’t have too many people in advertising industry today who can fill his shoes.

     

  • Shashi Sinha and Boria Majumdar will go face to face

    The Advertising Club unveils next attraction of digital debate series

    By Our Staff

    The Advertising Club has announced a debate ‘There is no life beyond cricket in Indian sports’ as a part of its digital debate series ‘Vice & Versa’.

    Moderated by Gautam Bhimani, Vice & Versa edition to be held today (April 6) will see Shashi Sinha, CEO-India, Mediabrands and Boria Majumdar, historian and journalist going face to face to put forward their views on the biggest question in the minds of every sports fan in India – Is cricket’s domination complete or is India waking up to new sporting possibilities?

    The debate will be held on today, Tuesday, April 6 at 6.30 PM and is free and open to all. If you are interested you can register here https://bit.ly/3ueViRp.

    Said Rana Barua, Chairperson, Vice & Versa, The Advertising Club: “The sporting culture in India is deep-rooted, and in the past few years, we have been time and again reminded of the potential that various sports behold other than cricket. This year The Advertising Club’s digital debate series has been curated to discuss and seek the answer to the all important question, is cricket’s domination in India complete or is India waking up to new sporting possibilities?,” adding: “We are delighted to have Boria and Shashi with us to present their views on this topic. These stalwarts do not need an introduction as they have closely observed the growth of sports as well as the sporting culture in India. After the tremendous success of the previous edition of Vice & Versa, this year adds to the entire excitement and anticipation of this debate. Brands today are heavily and actively investing in sporting properties and we hope to immerse the audience in a thought-proving debate session as a busy sporting calendar begins in India with the IPL shortly.”

     

     

  • If channel-owners don’t end this all-out war, advertisers may pull out and the government will interfere in their content, writes Pradyuman Maheshwari

    Peace or Perish!

     

    [updated with India Today Group quote & Republic TV statement]

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Ask present and past TV audience measurement professionals who or what is pulling down the reputation of their business, the response would be an emphatic: news channels.

     

    TAM, a joint venture of Nielsen and Kantar (then owned by WPP and now majority owned by Bain), lost its measurement contracts from broadcasters, advertisers and agencies thanks essentially to news channels warring against it. Premier news network NDTV took TAM to court over allegations of faulty data, and this hastened the effort to set up the joint industry owned body Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC). Eventually TAM sold its measurement business to BARC.

     

    Like TAM in the past, the BARC team faced turbulent times from the news channels, and in a letter to the BARC chairman Punit Goenka, the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) is said to have expressed its reservations about the BARC leadership of the past.

     

    There are murmurs that BARC CEO Sunil Lulla too has experienced some angst from news channels.

     

    The problem is always with ratings. That some of the channels have deep political connections makes matters worse. So every time there is a peeve, news channels flock to the I&B minister for intervention. In the past, matters have also gone to Parliament and there have been committees set up to examine nuances of the business. And if it’s not the law-makers who assert themselves, it’s regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) which intervenes.

     

    Frankly, the government ought not to have role in the business of news television. Except for running its own Doordarshan news channels, its publicity department DAVP which doles out advertising and monitoring objectionable content and addressing the media on issues and make announcements.

     

    But by running to the government often, channel owners have invited the ministers and bureaucracy to step into a territory which they shouldn’t be treading on.

     

    For instance, BARC’s weekly viewership data ensures that advertisers and the agencies make wise media buying decisions. It also helps broadcasters and content-makers better their content, sales and marketing act.

     

    But the ecosystem dominated by broadcasters inflicted on itself the government’s intervention (or interference?) and got BARC to be governed by a set of rules and regulations.

     

    There’s nothing new with what happened on Thursday. It occurred when TAM was around and it’s taken place under the BARC regime. There has been pilferage of information on the placement of set-top boxes, but the machinery is well-oiled to issue alerts when necessary.

     

    That’s what happened when Hansa Research, one of BARC’s vendors on engagement with panel homes, alerted the police about a mess up.

     

    Was Republic named in any written complaint? We don’t know. An FIR shared with MxM has a mention made of the India Today channel. Both Republic and India Today (by way of a report on the site) have presented their points of view.

     

    What we did find last night was various channels shaming Republic TV and founder, editor-in-chief and managing director Arnab Goswami. Newspaper reports today – owned by media companies which also run news channels as well as a few others – have also named Republic and Goswami prominently. The reference to other channels and India Today has been understated or is missing.

     

    So when did it all start? The war of words and ratings began even when Goswami was with Times Now. The channel was doing exceedingly well, on the back of the heated debates that it would air.

     

    But when Goswami quit the Times Network to start Republic, the daggers were pulled out from all directions. All sides are to blame. Times Now had its issues with Goswami for quitting, hiring some ex-staffers and making no bones of the fact that he was taking on his former employer. The others got on to the act the moment Republic shot to #1 in the ratings roster. ‘News without Noise’, became India Today’s credo.

     

    Various attempts were made to isolate Republic, including the rest of the news channels pulling out their watermarks so as to boycott BARC. On its part, Republic too countered the others – and compared its ratings with that of the others. Nothing wrong with it, except that the comparison was accompanied by much bombast. Surefire formula to rile others.

     

    But the war took on a new turn when Goswami launched Republic Bharat. While English news channels are influential and earn fair monies, the real bucks is in Hindi news. Aaj Tak, ABP News, Zee News have been raking in the moolah over the years. While Bharat made its presence felt, it didn’t create much of a dent until the Covid-19 pandemic-led lockdown happened and the Arnab Goswami brand of hyper-aggressive, right of centre journalism took over.

     

    And then came the controversy around actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. The line that Republic Bharat took on the controversy ensured it was numero uno. And not just for one week, but for now many weeks.

     

    Advertisement buying decisions are not taken in a hurry, but buoyed by its success, Republic Bharat has hiked its ad rates.

     

    On Thursday evening, the Mumbai police commissioner named Republic TV based on what appear to be unverified complaints and allegations. Later, on its primetime bulletin, Republic TV showed scans of the FIR naming India Today. The joint commissioner of police is reported on the India Today website stating that while India Today was named in the FIR, neither the accused nor the witnesses supported the claim. “On the contrary, the accused and witnesses are specifically mentioning the names of Republic TV…”

     

    The India Today Group issued a statement late on Friday: “There is a malicious campaign on right now by a few vested interests to drag the name of the India Today Group into the TRP scandal that broke out on October 8, 2020,” adding: “We welcome any probe the police may wish to conduct and are fully confident that we will come out unscathed as we have not acted in any inappropriate manner. What we have right now is nothing but malicious, unsubstantiated allegations by a vested party.”

     

    Republic TV has taken on the Maharashtra government and Police Commssioner Param Bir Singh over the last few months in Sushant Singh Rajput case. Meanwhile, Goswami has threatened to sue Singh.

     

    So what next on this? The news channels business in India is a divided house. There is the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) which comprises most of the big players operating nationally and there’s News Broadcasters Federation (NBF) which is spearheaded by Goswami and Republic. Recently TV9 pulled out of the NBA with the association lodging a complaint with BARC saying that the network had used unfair means to forge ahead on the ratings roster. The network is now back as its member.

     

    Singh was quoted on a channel saying that advertisers may also be called for interrogation. So will Amul managing director R S Sodhi have to make the rounds of the commissioner’s office? Perhaps he will be. Will media agency network bosses Prasanth Kumar of GroupM and Shashi Sinha of IPG Mediabrands also be questioned by the cops? If Sodhi is, surely Kumar and Sinha will be called in.

     

    It suits the government perfectly well to have channels warring each other. But if the police summons advertisers and agency bosses for questioning, there could be trouble. Large, pedigreed advertisers would prefer to stay away from the murky world of news television. Channel owners would do well to smoke the piece pipe.

     

    If warring countries and corporates can get together, surely Arnab Goswami and Rajdeep Sardesai can.

     

    Updates:

     

    Media agency bosses Sam Balsara, Shashi Sinha and Prasanth Kumar have been called to the police station for seeking information. So these may not be summons, but a request from the cops is never for a chat about the weather. There are rumours that names of certain advertisers have also been handed over to the police.

     

    The Republic Media Network has issued a press release: https://www.republicworld.com/india-news/general-news/full-news-release-from-republic-media-network.html. “The Republic Media Network has approached the Honourable Supreme Court of India. We have served notices of our legal action to the Maharashtra Government as well. While we will follow the law, we are determined to seek a legal remedy against this atrocious witchhunt,” the release says.

     

     

    Although Pradyuman Maheshwari is Editor-in-Chief and CEO of MxMIndia, the views here are personal and are not necessarily that of MxMIndia. He can be reached via Twitter at @pmahesh. A version of this has also appeared on The Wire at The ‘TRP Scam’ Could Open the Doors for the Government to Enter the Picture

     

     

  • Two new Board members have also been appointed

    Pratap Pawar & Shashi Sinha to continue as Chairman & Vice Chair of MRUCI

    By A Correspondent

    Pratap Pawar
    Shashi Sinha

    Pratap Pawar, Chairman of Sakal Media and Shashi Sinha, CEO of IPG Mediabrands India will continue in their respective roles as Chairman and Vice Chairman of MRUCI. This was decided upon unanimously at the Board meeting held immediately after MRUCI’s 26th AGM on Tuesday, September 29.

     

    Two new members have also been appointed to the Board of Governors. They are:

    1. Sivakumar Sundaram, Chairman, Executive Committee of Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd (BCCL).

    2. Sejal Shah, Managing Partner and Head of Publicis Media Exchange (PMX – Mainline).

    Said Pawar: “First of all, I congratulate and welcome our newly appointed board members. We look forward to their valuable ideas and suggestions especially in these aberrant times. MRUCI has always been at the forefront in advancing the cause of media research in India and we will continue to serve this cause and provide the industry and our members in particular a robust and reliable media research.” Pawar also thanked all the retiring members for their valuable guidance over the past years, and sought their continued support towards the Council’s objectives.

    Added Sinha: “The media and advertising industry is slowly, but steadily getting back on track. Our focus will be to work towards re-launching the IRS study at the earliest taking into consideration the ground realities, and to further enhance the IRS and its offering in the new normal world.”

  • The message will be amplified via INS-affiliated newspapers

    Mullen Lintas and Indian Newspaper Society create campaign ‘Rupaiyyah Hai Pahiya’ to jumpstart economic activity

    By A Correspondent

     

    Given the ongoing downturn in the economy, Mullen Lintas has launched a campaign with the Indian Newspaper Society (INS), to “encourage consumers to start spending and to create liquidity in the market, and help boost the country’s economy”. The message will be amplified via INS-affiliated newspapers.

     

    Commenting on the initiative, Amer Jaleel, Group CCO & Chairman, MullenLowe Lintas Group said: “There’s a training inside Lintas to think scale and to think mass. We involve ourselves with brands yes, with marketing yes, but beyond that our embrace is towards our culture and our economy. Lintas cannot ignore what’s happening to demand and to consumerism as a fallout of the Covid Lockdown. Too much of our work depends on consumer sentiment and to reigniting consumer sentiment becomes not just necessary to our work and survival but it’s a calling, it’s a duty. Very early we recognised that this turn of the cycle will not revive on its own and the wheel of the country’s economy will need everyone to push. Spending with confidence is probably the only people-linked initiative that can bring about this momentum, and so we stuck our shoulder to the task and hope that the country gives it a heave too.”

     

    IPG Mediabrands forged this collaboration with Indian Newspaper Society to provide the necessary reach. Added Shashi Sinha, CEO, IPG Mediabrands: “This pandemic has proved that if we can survive together, we can revive together. It is this collective that can help in crafting the ‘India Revival’ story. The series of unlockdowns announced by the government via print media is playing its part to spread the word. Consumers are closely linked to print media and the campaign message amplification is best suited for a message such as this. The campaign by Mullen Lintas, with a massive reach supported by INS, is a call to spend in order to save.”

     

    Said Shailesh Gupta, President, Indian Newspaper Society: “Newspapers are the lifeline of the people and have been responsible to bring about national upheavals. Even though a lot of people migrated to online versions, the readership remained like a rock. It plays a strong connection with the people joining them with the mainstream and bringing them upto speed. A reach such as this can be harnessed for a national initiative like Rupaiyyah Hai Pahiya and help to turn the wheels of the economy. INS proudly supports this campaign.”

     

    Speaking about the idea for the campaign, Azazul Haque and Garima Khandelwal, Chief Creative Officers, Mullen Lintas added: “We’re happy and proud to have been able to do this campaign for the Nation. Since consumer confidence and discretionary spending is down, our attempt has been to humbly nudge the consumer to not hold back and that Every Rupee Spent is a Rupee Earned for the Nation. That’s how the idea “Rupaiah Hai Pahiya’ was born to encourage consumers to keep the wheels of the economy turning.”

     

     

  • The MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year 2019 will be announced on December 20, 2019

    8 Days to Go!

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Yes, the day is drawing closer. Just eight months to go for the 2019 MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year award. The selection process has been done. We have had five rounds of shortlisting and now are waiting to see if a new star emerges over the next few days.

     

    As MxMIndia readers are aware, over the last few years, the MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year has earned the reputation of being one of the more credible barometers of the highest performer(s) in the fields of advertising, media and marketing in a calendar year.

     

    Last year’s winner of the accolade was Piyush Pandey on his rise and rise in the global creative world. In 2017, it was Arnab Goswami for the launch of Republic TV. In 2016, we had Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia CEO Ashish Bhasin and for 2015 it was the BARC India core team of Punit Goenka, Shashi Sinha and Partho Dasgupta.

     

    Any guesses on who it will be this year? Wait for it. 10.20am. Friday, December 20, 2019

     

  • MRUC’s contract with the incumbent agency, Nielsen India, concludes with the release of the last and final quarter of IRS 2019data – Q42019

    MRUC issues RFP for research agency partner

    By A Correspondent

     

    MRUC has issued an RFP (Request for Proposal) inviting research partners to pitch for the contract to conduct the Indian Readership Survey. MRUC’s contract with the incumbent agency, Nielsen India, concludes with the release of the last and final quarter of IRS 2019data – Q42019.

     

    Pratap Pawar

    Said Pratap Pawar, Chairman, MRUC and Chairman of Sakal Media: “We are looking forward to receiving and studying each and every proposal from various research agencies. They will be evaluated basis their understanding on IRS, on meeting our research requirements stated in the RFP and of course what more they can offer beyond our stated requirements.”

     

     

    Shashi Sinha

    Added Shashi Sinha, Vice Chairman, MRUC and CEO of IPG Media Brands: “Security enhancements and measures taken to ensure accuracy in data will be some of the key objectives in selecting the new research partner. We will be working closely with industry stakeholders in the selection process and ensure the industry gets the best partner to conduct the world’s largest study – IRS”.

     

     

    Vikram Sakhuja

    Said Vikram Sakhuja, Chairman, IRS Technical Committee and Group CEO Media & OOH, Madison: “Over the years we have brought in a lot of automation, technology and controls to ensure that we get valid and reliable data for IRS – India’s most widely used Media establishment study. In this RFP we are looking for an Agency who can give us confidence in their mastery in Fieldwork, and who can impress us on enhancing the controls while minimizing the cost. I wish all participants the very best.”

     

     

  • Jaideep Gandhi as Co-Chair of Goafest 2020 organizing committee with a 11-member Awards Governing Committee appointed to make Abby 2020 a success

    Goafest 2020 on April 2-4. Nakul Chopra & Shashi Sinha at the helm

    By  A Correspondent

    The 16th edition of Goafest, the marquee eent of the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and The Advertising Club will be held from April 2 to 4, 2020. The venue is the same as has been in the last few years – the Grand Hyatt hotel.

    Nakul Chopra
    Nakul Chopra
    Shashi Sinha
    Shashi Sinha

    Veteran adperson Nakul Chopra has been appointed Chairman of the Goafest 2020 Organising Committee and Jaideep Gandhi will be Co-Chair.  Shashi Sinha has been elected as Chairman of the Awards Governing Council for the ABBY Awards 2020.

    Speaking about the 16th edition of Goafest, Ashish Bhasin, President of AAAI said: “Year-on-year, it is our endeavour to make Goafest the most sought after gathering of the Indian

    Jaideep Gandhi
    Jaideep Gandhi

    Advertising & Media industry both in terms of knowledge sharing and raising the bar for creativity. Goafest has been consistently putting India on the global map of a creative powerhouse and as we put together this edition as well, our endeavour is to bring the best of speakers, workshops and experiences to boost the next-gen of advertisers,” adding: “Nakul as an industry veteran has been adeptly handling Goafest and his vision for the industry is sure to translate into an engaging and inclusive festival experience for all.”

    Speaking about the focus of the 2020 edition of Goafest, Partho Dasgupta, President, The Advertising Club, added: “The purpose of Goafest is to bringforth a platform that encourages India’s A&M industry to engage, innovate and share cohesively. The 3 days of Goafest sees the entire media and advertising fraternity breaking the barriers of organisation and come together to share common achievements, failures and learnings. ABBYs have always been recognised as the gold standard in creative awards and with Shashi at the helm, we are sure that the awards will continue to follow the highest standards of quality and due diligence.”

    Said Chopra on being re-elected as Chairman for the festival: “Goafest is the only premier festival that is a holistic representation of the Indian advertising and media industry. Our focus continues to remain on driving up the ante of scale, inclusivity knowledge sharing.  The 2020 edition of Goafest will also focus on creating an experience that is immersive, transformational and continues to contribute to the  enrichment of the Advertising, Media and Entertainment industry.”

    On being re-elected as the AGC chair, Sinha said: With the ABBY Awards, every year we try to widen the horizon and be more inclusive. Our belief has been to let works of excellence do the talking and this year too we will continue to look for campaigns  that inspire change, make a difference and become an inspiration for the industry.”

     

    The Awards Governing Committee for ABBY Awards includes:

    1. Shashi Sinha (AGC Chairman), CEO – IPG Media Brands
    2. Ashish Bhasin, CEO- APAC, Dentsu Aegis Network
    3. Nakul Chopra, Chairman, Goafest and immediate past President AAAI
    4. Jaideep Gandhi, Director, Jaya Advertising
    5. Anupriya Acharya, CEO India, Publicis Media
    6. Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas Group India
    7. Ajay Kakar, Chief Marketing Officer, Aditya Birla Capital
    8. Partha Sinha, Vice Chairman and MD, McCann Worldgroup
    9. Virat Tandon Group, CEO, MullenLowe Lintas Group
    10. Ajay Chandwani, Director, Percept Limited
    11. Raj Nayak, Media Veteran and Founder, House of Cheer

     

     

  • Pawar took over from from Ashish Bhasin, CEO – Greater South and Chairman & CEO – India, Dentsu Aegis Network

    Pratap Pawar is MRUC chairman for 2019-21, Shashi Sinha is vice-chair

    By A Correspondent

     

    Shashi Sinha

    It may have been raining cats and dogs in the rest of the city, but Media Research Users Council (MRUC) held its Annual General Meeting and unanimously elected Pratap Pawar, Chairman of Sakal Media Group as its new Chairman, and Shashi Sinha, CEO, IPG Mediabrands as its Vice Chairman. The announcement was made at the MRUC’s Board meeting following the 25th Annual General Meeting. Pawar took over from from Ashish Bhasin, CEO – Greater South and Chairman & CEO – India, Dentsu Aegis Network.

     

    Pratap Pawar

    Said Pawar while thanking the MRUC Board: “I thank Ashish Bhasin for his immense contribution to the growth of the Council and the IRS in particular. I assure the stakeholders of MRUC that together we will indeed take IRS to new heights and provide the industry with a more robust, reliable and accurate study. We will continue with our all-inclusive and democratic approach to address industry concerns and provide acceptable solutions which will help the industry make effective business decisions.”

     

    Ashish Bhasin

    Added Bhasin: “It was indeed an honour and privilege to helm such an august body of industry stalwarts over the past couple of years. There were challenges MRUC was faced with when I took over, with the existence of the IRS study itself being questioned, having been out of the market for almost four years. From there to today – where, not only is the IRS back on track with quarterly updates, butis now universally accepted as the currency for print – it has been an incredible journey.I truly appreciate the support of the MRUC Board as well as key industry stakeholders who helped us restore the IRS to its past glory. I am confident that Pratap Pawar will take the IRS and MRUC to even greater heights. My best wishes to him and the new Board members.”

     

     

  • It was yet another year of rationalisation and tweaking of Abby Award categories

    Viacom18, and not a creative agency, tops Creative Abby 2019

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Goafest 2019 came to an end on Saturday evening with broadcaster Viacom18 bagging the Creative Company of the Year at Abby 2019.

     

    Commenting on the winners, Shashi Sinha, Chair of the Awards Governing Council, Abby Awards, said: “It has been another great year of the Abby Awards We’re happy that the big winners are in Audio Visual. We have taken certain steps to encourage entries in those specific categories. We’ve opened up, bifurcated and streamlined certain categories to enable that. A lot of the work that has been entered here is very good work.”

     

    On the rise of digital that was evident in the list of Abby winners, Vikram Sakhuja, President, The Advertising Club, added: “This has been the best year for digital ever. People are realising now what the true power of the platform is. Earlier digital was an add on, now with the advancement of the platforms the syntax has to change. In the shortlists there was almost 50-50 between digital and broadcast.”

     

    Adding on to the evolution of digital, Ashish Bhasin President of Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) said: “In a few years we won’t differentiate between a digital agency and a non-digital agency, because down the line if an agency cannot do digital, I don’t think it can retain business. This is the democratisation that I was talking about, the market has opened up so that not only the big names, but even smaller and boutique companies are coming in with good work.”

     

    Said Nakul Chopra, Chairman – Goafest 2019 on the tweaking and rationalisation of award categories: “There is a proactive effort we have made to be fair to all constituencies, through our various categories. At present we see more affinity towards some categories while maybe some years down the line merging of a couple of categories will make sense. While the market and field evolves, we as custodians of the market standards will simultaneously evolve to reflect those changes.”

     

    There were a total of 2700 entries across the various creative and media categories.

     

  • The number of metals awarded this year in the media awards leapfrogged to 62 from the 38 last year

    Mindshare maxes Media Abby on Day 1 of Goafest

    Viacom18 Group CEO Sudhanshu Vats with the victorious Mindshare team

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    GroupM agency Mindshare bagged the Media Agency of the Year title on Day 1 of Goafest 2019. Mindshare bagged four golds of the 19 golds presented. There were a total of 62 metals awarded this year as against 38 presented last year.

     

    Madison Media was ranked second followed by IPG Mediabrand agencies Initiative Media and Lodestar UM at No 3 and No 4 respectively. Carat, a division of Dentsu Agency Network, was placed fifth. Also presented on the first day of the three-day annual celebration of advertising and media was the Publisher Abby.

    Nakul Chopra, Vikram Tanna, Vikram Sakhuja, Sudhanshu Vats, Ashish Bhasin, Jaideep Gandhi and Shashi Sinha at the inauguration ceremony of Goafest2019 | Dainik Jagran wins Best marketing of a printed newspaper edition in Publisher Abby awards at Goafest2019

     

     

    The first half of the day began with singer Shaan performing live and reminiscing some of his advertising jingle days. This was followed by the Industry Conclave and later the Abby awards presentation.

     

    Speaking about Goafest 2019, Ashish Bhasin, President of Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) said: “Over the last few years, we have seen the growth in participation with lines blurring between the media and creative disciplines. At Goafest 2019, on the back of an exclusive list of speakers and artists, we have seen a sustained registration of about 2000 delegates, while Abby Awards have seen 2700 entries this year.”

     

    Said Shashi Sinha, Chair of the Awards Governing Council, on participation in this year’s Abby awards: “Abby Awards continues to be the gold standard in creative and media awards. In today’s scenario, creativity is no longer limited to creative agencies only. We are also increasingly seeing it coming from other industries such as digital, PR, analytics, etc. This trend is evident in the diversity of participants and winners witnessed in the Abby Awards.”

     

    Said Nakul Chopra, Chairman – Goafest 2019: “Democratisation is a trend sweeping through the industry and we are proud of Goafest 2019 being an integral part of this change. It has been our endeavour to drive inclusivity irrespective of size and without the limitation of cost and opportunity.”

     

    According to Vikram Sakhuja, President, The Advertising Club, there has been an attempt to rationalise categories and getting an eminent jury. “This has led to a higher participation with around 15% more agencies entering their work this year,” he said.

     

    Goafest 2019 has Viacom18 as Presenting Sponsor and is powered by MX Player. The Industry Conclave was sponsored by Discovery Channel.

     

    Day 1 Press Release_2019

  • … even though many of the Big Boys have stayed away again. With less than a week for Goafest 2019, we speak with Abby Awards Governing Council chief Shashi Sinha

    Some good work, some surprises…

     

    With less than a week to go for the Goafest, the annual convention of the advertising and media industry, all eyes are on the Abby Awards. While some of the big names are missing, the overall numbers are roughly the same with a new set of entrants in the digital, publishing, broadcast and PR domains. MxMIndia spoke with veteran industryperson, CEO of IPG Mediabrands India and Chairman of the Awards Governing Council of the Abby Awards to get a feel of the Abby this year

     

    You’ve headed the Awards Governing Council in the past. And we know it’s perhaps one of the most thankless jobs in the media association ecosystem. So why did you get drawn into it again?

    I am part of this great industry and I’m very fond of Ad Club and the fraternity. I realised there aren’t too many people willing to take on the responsibility and someone with the wherewithal had to take it on. So when the President asked me, I said okay to it.

    Getting to the critical question upfront… participating in the awards is at a new low this year. Other than Lowe and Ogilvy and a few other biggies staying away, even last year’s #1 Social Street isn’t participating this year

    While I will give you the exact numbers in Goa, broadly they are in the same ballpark. Last time, it was 2700 entries, this year it may approximately be 30-40 entries less than that. But there is at least a 15-20% increase in media, and unlike last year, this time we have managed to get all agencies. So media has gone up dramatically this year. Similarly, the other categories that have gone up are Digital and PR. Yes, the drop has been in Creative. And that is primarily because of one agency which has come in which is, like you correctly said, is Social Street. They had some 300 entries last year. But there is a surprise entrant which has come in a nice way, and that’s Dentsu.

    But Taproot isn’t entering…

    Yes, Taproot hasn’t come. But other Dentsu creative agencies have entered

    While you say that other categories have grown, isn’t Goafest and the Abby all about the Creative Abby?

    I did try reaching to almost all agences, and we met the big boys who didn’t participate. And I am unhappy to report it that despite my meeting them 3-4 times, they didn’t come in. But no one is going to fault me for not trying. I went to Lowe, McCann, Publicis, JWT, Taproot… I went everywhere. Without giving names, some said we wish to participate, but we don’t have work this time. Someone said that you came late, you should have come earlier. Someone spoke of scams. So various people have their points of view. I can’t argue with them.

    Is it because of the rankings, since you now have the ‘Agency of the Year’ title?

    Well, even when we did not have the Agency of the Year, people would still put out the ranking.

    It’s possible to bring India and Pakistan on the discussion table, one can get North and South Korea to talk, but it’s not possible to get all the agencies here.

    I can tell you with all honesty, I put my might behind it. As I said, I met most people many times, and they were very receptive. But we have some clients participating directly even though their agencies are staying away.

    Like we saw in the Effies, where Hindustan Unilever participated directly since Lowe was staying away. Moving on, how was the judging with the second year of the Master Jury. How do you find the quality of entries?

    Very good. This year, we had the Master Jury for the Media Abby also. All the agency and network heads. There are basically two points of view: One, like every year, some have said the quality wasn’t as good. But there were others, who said the work was much better than last year. I am also delighted that many production houses and TV channels have entered some amazing work.

    Is it?

    Yes, and I hope they win. It will be a slap to some of the naysayers. Because finally it is all about content. Good content will and should win.

    On the composition of the Master Jury, we didn’t have anyone from Ogilvy yet again?

    I reached out to Sonal Dabral. He did not come back to me. There were a few who had agreed to be there, but couldn’t make it because of some last-minute engagement.

    Any surprises, stand-outs this year?

    Overall you will see good work. I don’t know who the winner is because I have not done the tally… the auditors do it. Guess there may be scams this time too, but I saw a lot of real work. I saw some films which were excellent. While I would like you to be there and see things for yourself, but I was mighty pleased with some of the digital work and the entries of the television channels.

    Any surprises?

    Who knows, you could well see some.