Alyque Padamsee
Visits IIM-A Campus
- by Vinamra Srivastava *
"Buland Bharat ki Buland Tasveer...
Hamara Bajaj!!!"
Does the jingle ring a bell
somewhere? It would be tough to find someone who wouldn't have lived his years
without listening to this evergreen tag line and the familiar music that goes
with it.
Though I am supposed to write
about Confluence, it would come a bit later as I couldn't help penning down
today's experience lest it fades away in my memory!
We students had the opportunity
to listen and interact with the ad guru of India, who not only was the
mastermind of the above but has also created such powerful advertisements and
tag lines that have etched in the memory of millions across the country for
years together!
Alyque Padamsee was here today to
share his mind and enrich us with his insights!
For the uninitiated, this is the
man who has created some of the most enduring, catchy and ever-lasting
advertisements Indian television has ever witnessed. No wonder he is known as
the advertisement guru of the country.
He explained the circumstances
and the creatives that went into coming up with these ads. He dissected the ads
and we soon realized their relevance as well as the huge role they played in
building brands. Brands, that have become household names, brands that have at
times become more powerful than the product itself, and brands that often thrive
on the wonderfully brilliant marketing (advertising included) that breathes life
into them.
'Hamara Bajaj', the 'Liril Girl',
'K-S' and the more recent 'Fair and Handsome' are some of his creations that
re-defined the way these products were perceived in the market and
revolutionized the product as well as the market. He showed us clips of all
these ads (trust me, it felt so wonderful to see the old and original Bajaj and
Liril ads), and explained to us the dynamics and behind-the-scene creativity
that went into making these ads the success they were.
He has a good sense of humour,
and that kept all of us in splits more often than not. His anecdotes from the
tremendous experience he has in the advertising world, his experiences at Lintas,
his advertising agency, were all too enriching for young budding marketers.
He did explain to us some of the
basics of brand advertising, with a complete understanding of what an IDEA is,
and how it has the power to change the world. However simple it may sound, it
proves to be the toughest thing when it comes to creating a unique ad that
touches the customer.
I am not really interested in
marketing, but the session was an experience in itself. After the lecture was
over, he handed out few autographed books, which got over in no time with the
plethora of students making a bee-line for them. The auditorium was filled with
news reporters and photographers, which by now must have become so familiar with
each nook and corner of IIM-A.
I felt elated not only by the
learning I derived, but also by the fact that I had never dreamt that I would
ever get a chance to see and listen face to face big names and personalities and
that IIM-A is offering me all these opportunites that make this place what it
is! Harsha Bhogale, Laloo Prasad Yadav, Nitish Kumar, Ajay Piramal, Naina Lal
Kidwai, Sudha Murty... and all this is just the beginning. With Chaos 2007
coming up soon, I can only see this list increasing further.
Sitaram Yechury, the CPM leader,
will deliver a lecture tomorrow at the RJM for all of us. It would be
interesting to hear the left stand from the original source itself. I feel it's
going to be a charged up atmosphere.
Whatever learning you get is
completely up to you. But one thing is sure. It indeed does feel privileged to
have the opportunity to listen personally to big guns across various fields
sharing their insights and intellects with us!
WIMWI rocks indeed!!!
Oh and yeah, if you think life is
all fun here, think again. Today was the fourth consecutive quiz on the trot
this week, discounting other stuff like presentations, assignments, poster
makings, etc., that are regular supplements!
And quizzes that... well... the
lesser I talk about them, the lesser pain they will cause me.
Some things at
WIMWI will never change! Ha Ha Ha!!!
