Scripting A New High In Indian Advertising

The unique thing about creativity is that it can transcend geographical barriers with perfect ease. Well known Indian ad filmmakers Piyush Pandey, who is presently the executive chairman and creative director of Ogilvy South Asia, and Prasoon Pandey, also a film director now, have done it several times with their superlative work that has been recognised internationally.

Piyush Pandey is best known as the man behind many iconic ad campaigns. In 2000, the Ad Club of Mumbai voted his commercial for Fevikwik the commercial of the century and his work for brand Cadbury as the campaign of the century. His other notable ad campaigns include: Asian Paints, Vodafone, and Fevicol among others. Piyush, who gave up a promising cricketing career to join the glamourous world of advertising in 1979, has completed almost four decades in the industry.
Under Piyush’s leadership, O&M India has won 25 Lions at Cannes. He is the only Indian to win a double Gold at Cannes for his anti-smoking campaign for Cancer Patients Aid Association, and a triple grand prize at the London International Awards. Piyush has also received a lifetime achievement award from the Advertising Agencies Association of India in 2010. In 2016, the government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the Padma Shri in 2016.

His younger brother Prasoon Pandey started his career at Lintas Delhi, eventually becoming the creative director for Lowe India. He set up his own production company, Corcoise Films, in 2002. Prasoon is credited for directing the first Indian campaign to win a Lion; it was Ericsson’s ‘One Black Coffee’ in 1996. One of the most awarded directors in India, he has been part of some iconic ad films and has been named among the Top 100 advertising film directors of the world.

Putting the Global Spotlight on India
In recognition of their body of work, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity recently announced that the brothers Piyush and Prasoon will be honoured with the Lion of St. Mark award at the 2018 Festival. The Lion of St. Mark is the highest honour that the Cannes International Festival of Creativity bestows on creative geniuses within the communications industry. Since its inception in 2011, Piyush and Prasoon will be the first Asians to receive the award.

 “Piyush and Prasoon have undoubtedly made the world pay attention to creativity in India. While they are famous, and rightly so, in their homeland, I’m thrilled that we have this opportunity to celebrate their contributions to our industry on the Cannes Lions stage. The fact we get to honour the achievements of two brothers makes this year’s Lion of St. Mark award particularly special,” says Jose Papa, managing director of Cannes Lions, on the award.

Sharing his reaction on being named for the highest Cannes honour, Piyush says, “More than a win, it’s an honour because these are not awards that you enter. It is definitely the highest recognition in the world of advertising and a recognition of the body of work that my brother and I have created over the years. I’m very honoured. Plus, it’s good for our industry in terms of motivating our youngsters that they can too achieve it someday. ”

Calling the Cannes honour ‘incredible’ and ‘stunning’, Prasoon agrees that this is by far one of the biggest humbling experiences of his life.

Of 90s, TV and digital
For Prasoon, this award will also give the Indian ad fraternity the rightful place it deserves on the global front. “It’s very satisfying that someone recognises your body of work. These awards also showcase that we (India) have immense talent as far as creativity in ads is concerned,” adds Prasoon.

The Indian advertising space has evolved in a big way over the last three decades. According to Piyush, the biggest shift occurred in the early 90s, when the industry stopped aping the west, which used to be the norm. “Earlier advertisers were copying their ads from abroad and saying that lets choose Indian models and replicate this. Today, every big MNC is saying that India has a different culture. So much so that some of our work has been exported. It has taken us time to arrive where we are today. But now, all international awards look forward to work from India. And the good thing is our people actually look forward to advertising, which is not the case in many developed nations. There is a lot of anticipation. I am asked by common people about the next ad I’m coming out with, which is very encouraging and satisfying,” explains Piyush.

Both Piyush and Prasoon believe that Indian advertising has finally developed its own character and identity. They believe the last three decades have played a defining role in achieving that and has helped the Indian advertising industry earn the respect of local consumers and practitioners abroad.

While the industry is abuzz with talks of a digital takeover of traditional media, Piyush feels it’s overrated. “Digital is not something that will take everything away. We must embrace it and make the most of it. It is just one of the tools at our disposal and not ‘the’ tool. These are the same people who 20 years ago said the radio is dead. But look where radio is today. These are the people who said theatres will close down. And when print is huge in this country, they are saying digital will replace it. Everything will coexist and everything should be embraced,” asserts Piyush.

Ask him about the biggest highs of his career, and he says, “I get my highs in a very different way. I get my highs when a common person tells me, ‘I love this ad of yours’; when my barber asks me ‘Sir, when are you making your next Fevicol ad’; when my client says that his sales force is thrilled with what I have done. The big high in my career was in 2014 when India was declared polio free. It was a campaign where I worked with Amitabh Bachchan for many many years and it will always remain a special high for me.”