2005-2008: Ras Al Khaimah

Headline:
RENDEZVOUS AT RAS AL KHAIMAH

Sub:
Ras al Khaimah, is now the must visit destination in the Middle East for the discerning tourist and it is not surprising why….

Body:
Ras al Khaimah offers you many surprises. Though situated at the northern tip of the UAE, in largely a desert area, agriculture was practiced for years in this oasis and has sustained probably a civilization thousands of years old. Heritage sites located in and around what were once date palm gardens pay tribute to the ingenuity and tenacity of the people of this desert land and offer the tourist a wealth of knowledge of bye-gone eras.

Mountains in North Ras Al Khaimah have reported snow falls with summer temperatures at a pleasant 28*C. These now welcome the nature lovers who wish to beat the heat and indulge in mountain climbing and similar pursuits.

Isolated clean sandy beaches and clear blue waters welcome the worshippers of the sun and sea. Luxury Hotels dot the 64 kms beach front offering you the privacy and all the facilities to ski, surf, swim or just soak in the sun. An 18 hole day and night golf course, shopping malls that stock international brands, a 5 star hotel and spa at the famed therapeutic Khatt Spring waters all make for time well spent at Ras al Khaimah.

With Dubai just a 45 minute drive away, it is not surprising that Ras al Khaimah is the new rendezvous for everyone.

Logo of the destination and the tag: “The oasis of the Emirates “
Logo of the RAK Tourism Office

Creative Concept and Copy: Vinod Natesan, RAK Tourism Office. Art:RAK Ceramics Design Support Dept.








The work at Ras Al Khaimah involved promoting tourism in the Emirate. Given that the number of hotels were few my task became promoting of the Emirate as an investment destination for the hospitality industry. On my own initiative I found an opportunity to bring in investments in media and set up the Media City.
My work and results are exhibited in my other blog:

http://vnreferences.blogspot.com/

But to give you an idea the highlights were:

*The nearly 300 million Euros Arabian Opportunities Fund from Hamburg. This was to bring in funds for investments into real estate projects in the Middle East, particularly, Ras Al Khaimah.
* The 150 million US$ Century Media City which was to provide uplinking facilities for TV channels
*The Us$1 billion Mirage Film City from Hollywood, a part of the Nickelsen Group a breakaway unit of Manex which won back to back Oscars for special effects done in movies like"What dreams my come" and "Matrix".
*RAK Marathon with Premier Marathon as the coordinator. This was the first international event of consequence in RAK.
*Starting of dhow cruises in RAK with the entrepreneur Suresh Laljee.
* Marketing of Marjan Island. I managed to sell more than 2 million sq.ft. This included investors
*Promoted the Emirate through a sustained PR Campaign that saw real estate prices go up in the Emirate.
*Brought in an international school (International Baccalaureate). This was through the D.Y.Patil Group.
*Represented the Tourism Office and the Investment Authority at international B2B seminars like the ITB in Berlin, The MIPM in Cannes , the GITOF in Bahrain, The Arab Summit in Munich and the Arab Hotel Investor Conference in Dubai. On instructions from the Deputy Ruler HH Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qassimi,I was also made the 'protocol in charge' with the responsibility of presenting to Ambassdors and Commercial Attache's the Emirate's progress in the fields of tourism and industry. I had the privilege of presenting to Sir Richard Makepeace the UK Ambassdor, the Chinese Ambassdor, the Bulgarian Consul General, the Armenian Ministerial delegation, trade delegations from Moscow, Italy and many others.
* Successfully initiated the talks for a twin city agreement with Dusseldorf.
*Successfully moved on the Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts project .BTHR was a premium hotel chain which chose a unique luxury project in RAK.
*To preserve the heritage of the Emirate, undertook a restoration project and complemented it with a PR initiative to promote heritage tourism. This was a joint venture with the Khaleej Times.
* Arranged film shoots and publicized this to promote the destination as glamorous, naturally scenic and premuim.

At the end of the day, I was double promoted and made "Head of Operations" by my immediate superior, Dr Massaad. Both Dr Massaad and HH Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qassimi were wonderful people to work for. I worked without holidays without a break for 1.5 years or more, before I returned to India due to personal compulsions. Given the time involved, it was a phenomenal stint.The Oxford Business Group ranked Ras al Khaimah as one of the fastest growing investment destinations in 2006. This was echoed by the Financial Times, London. Tourism in RAK grew from 156,000 in 2005 to 500,000 in 2006-07.
The best compliment I ever got came from Dr Massaad "He is capable of doing miracles if he sets his mind to it and focuses"!! That was worth more than the millions I was paid!!

CLIENT AND EMPLOYER FEEDBACK
Investment Promotion
Media City
Tourism Promotion
Overall
POST SCRIPT:
Knowledge at Wharton on the Branding of Ras Al Khaimah

2002-2005: Mayan Consultants International.Tourism

DOUBLE CLICK ON THE VISUALS TO SEE IT IN DETAIL





TV Commercial: 10 seconds

Title: Still Life

The film opens on a well known location in Pondicherry, like the Esplanade on the waterfront. The scene is unmoving, just as if the whole scene is a still photograph. There is no movement, no traffic, no sound. A super appears on this frame, which reads ‘Main street. Tourist season’. This scene continues for a good ten seconds. Then all of a sudden, a bird, maybe a seagull, flies across the frame, squawking.
SFX: Cries of the bird, as it flies past across the frame

The camera now moves to follow the flight path of the gull, as the viewpoint of someone watching it fly. The camera moves back to its original position, capturing the very same frame as before.

Of camera we hear a deep, contented sigh. And the film fades into darkness, from top to bottom as if somebody’s eyes are closing.

MVO, Super and Branding: Silence. Solitude, Serenity.
Pondicherry. Nothing’s better.


Radio Spot: 10 seconds

Title: Sounds like nothing

The spot opens with the sounds of a wave approaching and crashing onto the shore, then rolling away. There is no other sound to be heard except for more waves rolling in. After a few repetitions of this, we hear the birds squawking and chirping, interspersing the sound of the waves. Then it goes back to the sound of waves. This sound fades a little to bring in a new sound, that of an elongated, deep and contented sigh.

MVO: Silence. Solitude, Serenity.
Pondicherry. Nothing’s better.



Target Profile:
•This will largely mirror the Indian international tourist profile as Pondicherry is a sub-brand. Tamil Nadu tourist profile is also relevant
–Within this we have to target the up-market consumers who are looking for a quiet holiday.
–Age wise its skewed to the mature group. Best to target the 35yrs to 50 years old group.
–Group travel is the norm now. People with common interests. Religion and Yoga could be propositions.


Consumer Insight:

•Most vacations which are meant for relaxation end up being more strenuous, taxing and hectic than normal everyday life with “things to do “ and “must see” lists. There are many who need a “genuine” vacation when they can catch their breath, pause and ponder on life and come to terms with it.


Proposition:
Pondicherry offers the tourist rest both mental and physical in its pristine sense. There is no “to do list” or “must see” destination. Life moves along as in a Zen prayer …you and the universe. It’s the place where you make peace with life and yourself.


Support to Proposition:
Pondicherry has few tourists and the places are relatively deserted. The landmark is an Ashram where people come to meditate. There is a Yoga festival which again is about inner peace and harmony and quiet contemplation. Beaches, are also quiet and without crowds and suited for quiet contemplation and to find the rhythm with nature. The proposed investments in Pondicherry also push for ecological balance and tourism that does not spoil the landscape and Nature’s balance.


•Creative Button:
“Nothingness”. As in the consummate form of meditation as when you let your mind really rest without thoughts. It’s an ideal way to relax both body and mind.


•Tone Tenor and Feel:
Calm,still, soothing, tranquil. Far from the “madding crowd” . "Lost in an island of togetherness" for the honeymoon/couple segment.


Creative Units:

•Campaigns aimed at the up-market tourist.
•The tourist who is looking for peace and tranquility. Could be a harried professional who needs to take a break from a hectic work schedule, or a person coming to terms with a bereavement, a couple trying to save a marriage by spending time together, discovering each other….the myriad reasons for getting away from the “madding crowd”. Bit of a self- actualizer
–“Far from the madding crowd” series
–“Together in the silence” series

This campaign was developed in the EICL Chennai Office by myself as Head of the Business, Raghunath Madhavan the Account Director, Shanmughapriya the Account Executive, Prakash Pillai the CD Copy, Kiran Waval the CD Art and with Veera Murthy providing art support with his friend. Sangitha the CD from Rediff gatecrashed on reading the strategy and creative brief and wrote the together in silence campaign while Pillai did the far from the madding crowd with the empty promenades and roads campaign. The film concept was mine and radio concept was Shanmughapriya's. These were finished in consultation with Prakash Pillai.

This campaign was done as pitch for the account in 2 days flat!! We were shortlisted for the business! The agency was closed down and hence the shortlist went waste.

ALL WAS NOT LOST. THIS CAMPAIGN WENT VIRAL AND GOT US RAVE REVIEWS!!
Reactions to the Pondicherry Tourism Campaign

2002-2005: Mayan Consultants International

In 2002, I landed up in Dubai and worked for the Landmark Group as their Group Marketing Manager. I was in charge of the Oasis Centre, a mall in Jumeirah. The mall had a tenant profile that was skewed towards women with baby Shoppe, Splash, ShoeMart, Lifestyle, Home Centre , Areej and the Kids Play Zones all having a strong female clientele. For the festive month of February that year,(we had the Valentine's Day and Id comming in the same month) we ran a promotion called the " Fantastic February Festival".
We ran a campaign around the movie "What Women Want" which was relatively popular in the video libraries in Dubai. A radio channel ran this contest on the movie which asked questions on what characters in the movie shopped for and whether they could find in Oasis and if so in which outlet? It was a huge hit.
Radio spots for this contest were written by me.
The first line from the song,"Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera
"What a girl wants ... what a girl needs .... "
MVO: "To know the answer to that .. we suggest a trip to the Oasis Centre this February and make it a Fantastic February for your family. Trust us, at the Oasis Centre we really know what women want !"
Radio Spot 2:
The line from the Spice Girls first hit "Wannabe"
I wanna I wanna ....I wanna
MVO:" For all that she really wants we have the Oasis Centre. Visit us and make this a fantastic February!"
For a more mature radio station we used the Bee Gees track "How deep is your Love".
Song: "How deep is your love?, I really need to know.."
MVO: "We recommend a visit to the Oasis Centre this February for shopping and we assure you she will know. At Oasis centre we really know what women want".

Sometimes great work has to content with envy. This campaign was done with the art director of an agency called IKON. The day this campaign appeared, a surreptitious complaint was made to the owner, by one of the agencies that unsuccessfully pitched for this business, that it was a "waste of money"!! This resulted in me doing a day after recall test at the mall followed up with a Forced Exposure Test to understand how the campaign was decoded!! Problem solved! There was a decision to carry this ad on the cover of the newsletter sent to loyalty club members of the malls across GCC and an advice to run the contest in their markets!!





The Lifestyle ad was done specifically for Valentines Day. Lifestyle in Dubai was a novelty store and not the flagship retail format as in India. It was aimed at women and had a lot of cospmetics, bric a brac, few accessories for the home and self, a music station, etc. I got this ad through after a lot of trouble. the first creative brief sent to the agency was not read (or seen) by the Creative Director and when I was presented a crazy layout with a matchbox and a headline which suggested that the heat be turned up this Valentine, I blew a fuse !!.The second attempt was on brief and the layout, great!!
Copy: "Reveal your true colours this Valentine. Throw a hint with a ring, get naughty with a lipstick, play it coy with a pair of sunglasses... what follows is best kept a secret."






The Jungle Food Court was a jungle themed restaurant which was an instant hit with children. There were live parrots which simply bowled the kids over! The ad in itself was a Disney styled one and done by Sarosh Sheriff, who was a fabulous Art Director and who ran an agency, aptly named "Turning Heads". To promote this, we also used a unique and unconventional in- shop device. The entrance had an easel and a piece of canvas which had the pug marks of a tiger printed on it as if it had left the painting. The pug marks continued down the easel stand and onto the floor. Pugmarks on the floor led to the Jungle Food Court. Kids ended up trying to stand on the pug marks and following it till they reached the Jungle Food Court!!



CYBORG was a teen entertainment centre with bowling alleys, internet games and a water and soft drinks bar with music and a dance floor. Alcohol was not allowed. This rode on the insight that the entertainment centres in Dubai were focused on young adults or families and the teenager never had a place to be himself and which played his kind of music and had his kind of crowd. There were few and they were doing huge business and patronized by the neighbourhood kids. None of them had the space CYBORG had or the range of entertainment options that was planned.


My major contributions were in media. Landmark ran a very successful CRM program through a customer club where loyal customers got points and consequent discounts on repeat purchases. We used this to study media consumption habits. This resulted in data driven negotiations with publications and radio channels. I was also able to put together a business model for starting a magazine from the Group which would have a pan GCC footprint and which would automatically be the largest circulating publication if it was sent to all the club members of Landmark across GCC!!. With an editorial that allowed showcasing of apparel, footwear, durables, home decor products and on an assumption that at least the key suppliers of the group advertised , it could easily cross its payback period withing a matter of months and provide a healthy ROI within its first 6 months!! I could not oversee the implementation of this plan and at the time of leaving we were negotiating with content providers who ran similar magazines for local Dubai malls like Burjuman and City Centre. In fact it should be mentioned here that the NRS for UKin 1999-2000, indicated that it was retail magazine titles that had the highest readership!!!

____________________________________________________________________________________________

*Bhima






*Bhima was a jeweller in Trivandrum. Jewellery advertising in Kerala tended to focus on models draped in gold like elephants at the Pooram. One ad looked exactly like the other. Research among regulars at Bhima indicated that there was a loyalty to the store due to the fact that gold purchased here was found to be genuine. This trust in the outlet saw customers from granmothers to mothers to daughters claiming that their wedding trousseau was purchased from BHIMA. This led to the ad campaign focussing on purity.

2000-2002: JWT

I joined JWT in early 2000 after being interviewed by Sunil Gupta and Meera Patwardhan. I was the replacement for Vinay Ramachandran. Java, as Vinay was called, moved onto CitiBank. DeBeers was a great learning experience . DeBeers in the English tradition of advertising believed in planning and had a resident planner on their side. Nicola Ellis was the Client Strategy Planner overseeing the strategy planning for the region out of London. Subsequently, she was replaced by Srinivas Madani, who came on board towards the end of 2000. Or was it start of 2001?
My first project was an analysis of historical data of the last 6 years. It got me an effusive letter of appreciation from Nicola. This was followed by pre- test on Nakhsatra. Given the nonlinear nature of the creative, it was decided that the traditional testing methods would have to be debunked and we used NLP techniques to get feedback from viewers that were qualitative in nature. This proved to be the right thing to do because we had a clear idea of how the commercial was being decoded and what was driving interest and intention for trial. Nakshatra became a great success and we then moved onto analysis the diagnostics. The quantitative studies happened , which went off well. Then came the exploratory research for a new initiative and it gave us a wealth of insights and a clear way forward. Srinivas Madani was thrilled enough to send in a letter, since the agency was newly empanelled and it was an initiative from my part to rationalise the planning function in the market.

Appreciation letters did not stop with DTC. On BlowPlast, which had the luggage brand VIP, there was a threat of loosing the business. The Client wanted fresh ideas to thwart the competitor brand Samsonite. Both the head of the agency and the Client sent in their praise for the efforts. Neville and Narayan, who worked with me on this came out with two brilliant campaigns "be true to yourself" and "the world is watching". I was not in JWT when they were finally released ... but I believe it went through a lot of changes.

In the middle of all this there was an invitation to handle the Branding Concepts Workshop for the Ad Club. Given my background in teaching I helped Meera Patwardhan put together a 2 day workshop which was a huge hit. M.G.Parameswaran sent in his acknowledgement in the letter produced below and took us both to lunch!! Meera then arranged the same workshop for the JWT teams in Mumbai and my popularity in the agency grew by leaps and bounds.

The other client that I handled was Merril Lynch. That year due to a realignment, the account was to be handed over to Lowe. We however presented strategy and creatives and retained the business. I still remember a corporate branding presentation made to Timothy Cabbott which had Mike Khanna, Sunil Gupta present. We literally turned around the Client and a rejected creative (full page) for the 50 year celebrations was released, breaking the traditional habit of 60 cc ads in Front Page Solus which had become a blind spot for readers!! This ad had the headline :
" On our 50th birthday, we would like to wish you many Happy Returns!!"
With Rajan Krishnan reporting sick, I also shouldered the responsibility of presenting the retail strategy for HPCL. This too found favour with the Client.

Kelloggs was another Client. There was the usual copy tests and a lovely presentation on corporate branding. I met some great talent there and Rajeshwari Sheth was one such person. I did collaborate with her and took a guest lecture at Jamnalal Bajaj where I got a standing ovation at the end of it.
I did learn a lot about planning at HTA.But handling all this without any support staff other than a shared secretary was tiring and took its toll on my health. In retrospect the first symptoms of a thyroid malfunction and a relapse of jaundice happened here.

Appreciation Letters ( Summary)

1 De Beers- Analytical skills

From: Nicola Ellis AT CSOLON01@CSOLONDON_FWL on 2000-09-18 20:58 GDT
To: Vinod Natesan@JWT, Nicholas Graham-Smith ATCSOLON01@CSOLONDON_
cc: Raji Ramaswamy@JWT, Dhunji Wadia@JWT

>Subject: BTS Summary and ROI

Vinod,

>I have now as promised gone through your BTS summary and have to say it is excellent, very well thought through. It is great to have a new perspective on the results. Although many of the conclusions you came to have been discussed, I thought you clearly saw what issues we need to address and came up with some interesting ways to address them.
>
>I particularly liked you analysis of received versus giver as we have never looked at it that way, and I agree that the print could be used more effectively against men to give that extra push. We have always struggled world-wide with the balance between the messages to men and women. It is a tricky thing when you have one product which means such different things to two people.
>
>Anyway the debate will go on. Thank you for stimulating renewed thoughts on India, I will keep on thinking on this one!

>Well done with your first full summary of research, I look forward to the next.
> Letter no:2 DeBeers -Research Coordination
>
>Srinivas.Madani@dtc.com on 2001-02-20 22:07:33
>
>To: Vinod Natesan/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT
>cc: Nicholas.Graham-Smith@dtc.com,
>Subject: Research
>Dear Vinod,
>This is to express our appreciation for the excellent qualitative study
>conducted by you on the elite segment. The presentation of findings was
>very lucid and, I believe, addressed most if not all our queries regarding
>the concept we are working on for the elites.
>
>I would like you to thank Proact on our behalf - it is not often that
>qualitative research gives very clear directions, and I think they certainly
>deserve a pat on the back for this one!
>A lot of the credit also goes to the team at HTA for providing inputs on the
>stimulus material and discussion framework, and to you for co-ordinating the
>effort.

Letter 3. Sunil Gupta. Ex-GM,JWT MUMBAI. Appreciation-Creative Development

> 2000-09-05 16:56
Sunil Gupta

To: Vinod Natesan/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT, Narayan Kumar/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT, Neville Balsara/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT

cc: Melwyn Dcosta/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT, Gopi Kukde/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT, Deepa Kakkar/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT, MeeraPatwardhan/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT

Subject: Very Impressive People !

Many thanks for the efforts and above all, patience! A special word for Vinod who worked tirelessly for many days, and especially on the research. I'm glad we did the research, as it gave our work and our presentation the added edge of confidence in our recommendations. And also for Narayan and Neville, who bore my incessant pushing with calmness!

We knew the world was watching, and we ensured we remained ourselves!

And you all know it's now a different trip!!!

Cheers

Sunil

Appreciation Letter 4. BlowPlast Industries. Appreciation-Strategic Direction
>
> Kurien Pothan <kurienpothen@vipbags.com> on 2001-01-25 19:19:29
>To: Vinod Natesan/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT
>cc: Melwyn Dcosta/Mumb/J Walter Thompson@JWT
>Subject: (no subject)
>Dear Vinod,
>I heard from Melwyn that you would be moving out of the VIP account as
>part of a reorganisation of portfolios within. I have not been able to
>speak to you and hence thought it best to mail you since I would be
>travelling abroad across the next few weeks.
>This is to tell you that we appreciate your efforts in helping us find
>newer directions in our search for a new and better communication.
> I am sure you would stay in touch
>
>Regards and best wishes,
>Kurien Pothen.
>

1998-2000: Mayan Consultants. Unreleased Work

Some work for Ion Exchange which were not released are featured here

1998-2000: Mayan Consultants. Released Work

Mayan Consultants was my first foray into entrepreneurship. Mayan was the architect of the Pandavas who built the temple at Hastinapuri which was like Onida, " Owners pride and 'cousin's' envy" :) My mothers name was Maya and therefore Mayan seemed to make sense. My father was assured that as usual he had the last word on the matter, the last alphabet was in his honour the 'n' in Natesan!!

Mayan was founded on the premise of "Big Ideas Small Budgets". Big in terms of the idea and inputs given, and small in terms of what we got our clients to spend. Mayan was different in that the focus was NOT on getting the Client to spend the maximum, but the minimum. Even in 1999, I billed the client on retainer fee and called my enterprise a "Consultancy"

GOLDSTAR JEWELLERS: CONTEXT AND STRATEGY

My first major client was Sanjay Shah, the owner of Goldstar Jewellers. Sanjay wanted to launch his range of inexpensive diamond jewellery. He felt that it could be aimed at youngsters because the more mature consumer would prefer his family jeweller. It was also then decided that these would be first time users.
With Valentines round the corner it was decided to launch this line in Februrary 1999. The communication was aimed at young males (18-30) and the benefit was simply "gift the diamond , get the girl". Our estimate was that most of the affluent teenagers spent nearly Rs 500-5000 on Valentines on gifts and that getting them to invest in diamond jewellery would not be far fetched at the lower price range.

Distribution was therefore based on width. We therefore tied up with Archies which was a novelty and gifts chain. Other outlets with a similar footfall and product profile were roped in. However, to induce credibility with the customer and to ensure that off take was not affected by lack of trust, we provided an authenticity certificate with a clear indication of grammage and caratage.

Media chosen was mainline dailies in Gujarathi, Marathi and English. We went for the supplement section, which had a lot of casual readership and was popular with the young reader.
Mumbai Times, Guj Samachar, Navbharat Times, Afternoon Despatch and Courier , MidDay carried the Goldstar blitz. The off-take in a week was what we budgetted for a month!!. It also had the happy consequence that since I paid the publications directly (thanks to sanjay) and on time, my accreditation happened in 6 months!!! I was a one man agency full service agency with the highest per capita billing at that time!!!

Sanjay Shah was more than happy with the result and granted me the Aradhana Collection campaign. Aradhana was a range of gold jewellery which involved engraving of images on gold. This was customised to the extent that any photograph or image could be engraved on gold and provided to the customer within hours. This again did well with the religious use proving to be a hit. Corporate gifting was slow, since diaries and calendars were seen as appropriate and gold it was felt would be melted and used unless of course it was a medallion.

The creatives were done by Sagar Mahabaleshwarkar and Ramanuj Shastry who were working at Ogilvy & Mather at that time. They did this campaign over a weekend at my place which doubled up as my office!!

HL: If you are planning to capture her heart this Valentine’s Day, choose your weapon carefully.

BC: Whoever said that everything was fair in love and war, hadn’t seen our collection of exquisite diamond studded jewellery. Each place is designed to floor the woman of your dreams. Gift her one this Valentine’s Day and rule over her heart.

HL: They speak eloquently of your feelings to someone who leaves you totally tongue tied.

BC: If her mere presence leaves you stammering and stuttering, maybe you should pick up something for her from our collection of exquisite diamond studded jewellery. It’ll speak volumes about your love even if all you manage all evening is “Happy Day Valentines dear!”

HL: If you are thinking of giving her chocolates, may we remind you that it’s the 14^th of February. Not the 14^th of November.

BC: Just because you call her ‘baby’ all the time doesn’t mean you have to treat her like one. So, this Valentine’s Day, instead of giving her something juvenile, chose something special for her from our collection of exquisite diamond studded jewellery. The only trouble is, on receiving it she’ll act like a twelve year old.

HL: The lord is omnipresent. And now, so is his image.

BC: Now along with the thoughts of your deity, you can also carry the image of your deity with you. Wherever you go. Made with a break through technology which allows the photograph of your deity to be reproduced with amazing detail and clarity, each Aradhana creation is an act of faith. Now no matter where you are, you can be sure that your God is with you- his magnificent image engraved in gold.

Gold Star: ARADHANA COLLECTION

HL: And now finally a corporate gift that is worth its weight in gold.

BC: Aradhana creations. Corporate gifts that are valued and treasured. Made with a breakthrough technology which allows the photograph of your associates, your products, your logo to be reproduced on gold with with amazing detail and clarity, each Aradhana creation is a symbol of pride. Now your best wishes are always with those who matter, remembered and engraved in gold.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

ZERO-B PURIFIED WATER , FROM ION EXCHANGE.

Context and Strategy:

"People who know about water prefer Zero B" was based on the fact that among institutional buyers and those from the industry, Ion Exchange was a known entity and respected. Its technological expertise was recognized. Zero B being its brand, would enjoy the same trust and this was to be capitalized in the launch. As support to the proposition the rigorous process of purification followed by the brand was detailed in brochures and literature.

Copy was by Pushpinder Singh who now runs his own outfit, Saints and Warriors and Viren Kamdar was the Art Director. I did meet Padhi and a writer whose name fails my memory(rajesh, I think it was) who also did some work on this.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

INTERACT VISION: KIRLOSKAR AIR CONDITIONERS

In 1999 September I took up an assignment with Interact Vision. The deal was that I could continue to service my clients provided there was no conflict with IV.

Context and Advertising Strategy:

I did the Kirloskar campaign on my own since IV did not have a writer. Gautam, the Art Director who was hired from Dubai did the layouts. Kirloskar had compressors which were used by most air- conditioners. Given the popularity of their compressors ,they decided to integrate forward and provide consumers the entire package. The colour campaign was the theme and released in magazines while the black and white ads were released in dailies during the elections. This should explain the play of words "opposition", "strong, stable ", etc. The original visual had a gandhi topi on the airconditioner , but the client wanted to be politically correct and the idea was dropped.

HL: Kirloskar, Strong, Silent, Stable

BC: The quiet performer with no nakhras. Strong, stable and capable of giving you trouble- free performance for years. In fact is guaranteed to last its term and beyond. Upto Rs 10,000 off under festive buy-back scheme on any working airconditioner.

Bullets: Faster cooling, Low Power consumption, Noise Free Operation, Voltage Fluctuation Resistant

HL: For Kirloskar, there is no opposition.

BC: The one air-conditioner that understands the Indian weather. Has successfully fought the vagaries of it,for years. Silently, effectively. No wonder then that there is no opposition to Kirloskar. The winner with a clear mandate.

Bullets: Faster cooling, Low Power consumption, Noise Free Operation, Voltage Fluctuation Resistant.

HL: The man in the double breasted Versace suit looked relaxed as he stood up to speak. There was a hushed silence in the room. I settled down in my chair enjoying the cool comfort of the room. The Kirloskar hummed on silently.

BC: It is fact not fiction. Kirloskar Airconditioners have found favour in many Indian homes and offices. Quietly providing cool comfort at the click of a button.

HL: Silence hung heavy in the room. She had not finished her drink. The ice cubes still floated in it, chilled by the cool air. The Kirloskar hummed on silently.

BC: It is fact not fiction. Kirloskar Airconditioners have found favour in many Indian homes and offices. Quietly providing cool comfort at the click of a button.

Creative Route

HL: It was a hot and dusty after noon. As I stepped in, the cool air of the restaurant enveloped me. She looked up as the stillness of the room echoed my footsteps. The Kirloskar hummed on silently.

BC: It is fact not fiction. Kirloskar Airconditioners have found favour in many Indian homes and offices. Quietly providing cool comfort at the click of a button.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Ministry of Defence:

This involved a pitch with the established provider. I did the copy and concept with art support being provided by Rajul Dhaimade. Pednekar provided the translations and artworks. These were my ex-colleagues from PSL McCann. This was an internal communication exercise and the print order was huge. It generated enough revenues to keep me going for a year in reasonable comfort and most importantly an income that was more than what I made as a Head of Business in McCann!!

Teaching assignments were took a lot of my time and I was very popular at Vivekananda, SIES, and Somaiyah. Students who passed out continue to be friends and are my biggest reward.

1996-98: PSLMcCann Erickson, Guestline Hotels

The Guestline Hotel was located in Juhu, Mumbai. It had another property in Tirupathi. It was rated 4 star in 1996 when we were asked to handle the business.
Occupancy was an issue at the time and with limited budgets, it seemed daunting. The solution was to tackle the corporate segment which could book en-masse for their dealer meets, sales meets, functions etc. Not all managers were eligible for 5 star accommodation. However to raise awareness levels amongst this segment, we took the route of promoting the restaurants. These were positioned in the fine dining slot, moving the entire property upscale in terms of image and perception. Al Frescoe the Italian restaurant, Manhattan the 24 hour coffee shop were sub-brands that we built for the Hotel. These were released in tabloids that had leisure reading audience. The results were immediately visible. Cover rates in the restaurants went up and so did awareness and bookings for both functions and rooms. This continued with festivals being organised in these restaurants and the South Indian Festival was one such. The work done for the Health Club again won us acclaim and members for the hotel.



Creatives:



*Ganesha's love for food is well known and this was used during the time of Chaturthi as a topical one -off.




* The South Indian Festival was done by Paul and Meenu with Ganga providing Mallu insights and guiding Paul while Nalesh Patil and Meetu Mahabaleshwarkar provided vegetables used traditionally in the cuisine south of the Vindhyas with a appropriate South Indian clothing!! Vanmali as usual did a phenomenal job with the illustrations.
The copy written was to me as appetising as the food served up at the Guestline. A sampling is pasted below:

Headline:Eratchi Olathiyathu or Lamb Cooked in Pounded Coconut Masala. (This went with the visual of the coconut with the turban. )

Body copy:These are things that people down South do to a coconut. They scrape it, they squeeze it and if they feel particularly cruel, they pound it. Of course its all for a good cause. Succulent as the lamb may be, to capture its true essence, it needs the help of the lowly coconut.

Sign off: A variety of tongue twisting vegetarian and non- vegetarian delicacies await you at the festival. All lovingly created by the great gurus of gourmet, chefs especially flown in for the occasion. So drop in and savor a slice of the south.

Headline: Vazhakkai chops or Banana chops. (naturally, the banana in a dhoti visual)

Bodycopy: Raw banana caught in its adolescence, is chopped into delicate slices and served. Sweet and yet sour, it flirts cheekily with your palate as you munch into its creamy tenderness. For those with a sweeter tooth, the multi-faceted banana appears in a riper avatar as Nendrapazham Puzhingiyathu or Steamed Banana.

Sign off: is the same for the camapign.A variety.............. slice of the south.

Headline: Murungakkai Sambhar or Drumstick Sambhar.( guessed right.. the drumstick legs)

Body Copy:Full grown men have been known to giggle like little school girls. Such is the wondrous image of South Indian Sambhar. This fiery concoction of the choicest spices, liberally laced with slim, shapely, drumsticks is an essential requirement for every South Indian feast.

Signoff: A variety .............. the south.

Headline: Yennakai Barthide or Fried Brinjals in exotic gravy (Brahmin brinjal ?)

Body copy: The dark horse of the culinary kingdom, the passionate brinjal has the latent charm not apparent to the uninitiated. When roasted and mashed to a quivering pulp, this vegetable takes on hitherto unknown shades of flavour. Adding a touch of romance to the proceedings.

Sign off: A variety ...........of the south.

*The Valentines Day Promotion was done in 24 hours. Nalesh while toying with the salt n pepper crockery came up with the idea. We sold the Client the campaign and for a change the agency initiated the promotion!!

*Al Fresco:

This campaign was done by Meetu and Zubin , but was rejected. It was however revived with changes suggested by Ganga and Nalesh and sold to the Client. Having a strategic overview and the big picture helped me sell the AlFresco and the Manhattan campaigns.

Headline: Munch a Modigliani

Bodycopy: In celebration of its re-opening, Al Fresco pays a tribute to the great Italian master Modigliani. Like Modigliani’s paintings our desserts are a sensual treat. We recommend the xxxxxxxxxxx our signature dessert, a rich blend of xxxxx.and xxx.

Sign off: All under the aegis of the beautiful night sky in the heart of Juhu, in the spirit of Italy.

Headline: Tickle Michelangelo with a fork.

Bodycopy: In celebration of its reopening, Al Fresco pays tribute to the great Italian painter Michelangelo. Like the masterful creations of Michelangelo, our Italian cuisine is prepared from the finest raw materials and presented with the utmost finesse and care. We recommend xxxxx

Sign off:All under the aegis of the beautiful night sky in the heart of Juhu, in the spirit of Italy

Headline : Gobble up a Leonardo.

Body copy:Like Leonardo’s magnificent creations, our meals are prepared with similar genius and eye for detail.We recommend xxxxx

Sign off: All under the aegis of the beautiful night sky in the heart of Juhu, in the spirit of Italy

Tag: Al Fresco, the taste of Italy.

This won us a Clio Nomination in 1997

Manhattan

Headline: International Dishes. Round the Clock.

Body copy: Break fast menu , Lunch menu, Dinner menu. And a special Midnight to Morning menu. With a fare that extends from India to Indonesia to Greece to Hungary to Austria to Burma to the list is enough to make your taste buds blossom. Manhattan, for a variety of dishes under the sun. And of course the moon.

Here it was quite a task getting the Client to pay for a food stylist. In the end we managed and I consider an achievement in terms of selling. It won us another Clio nomination in 1997

Body Routine:

Here too the Client was not willing to invest in such an expensive production. I first did a dip stick to get client reactions. It was quite positive. "Tough enough for a beer?" and "Svelte enough for a strawberry cream"? definitely were insights. Most people exercised to "stay fit" and to ensure that indulgences never showed up on the wrong places. Sanju Hinge, the photographer, did the special effects shoot for almost nothing, when we were worried about huge system work colour corrections. Rajul Dhaimade did the art while Zubin wrote the copy. Dorothy Paul who handled the account brilliantly ensured that all was on par.

Guestline Tirupathi

The ad was for a property were people went on a pilgrimage. The ad too was in keeping with the ethos. Ganga at his best. Short and simple!! In fact the Client was planning to put classified ads and this one turned him into a believer in regular display ads!!!

Client Feedback