Guest Column: The paradox of Indian art & design - Santosh Padhi

The CCO & Co-founder of Taproot India laments the fact that despite India's rich art culture, agencies have failed to blend it in modern communication and design

e4m by Santosh Padhi
Published: Jan 15, 2014 7:58 AM  | 5 min read
Guest Column: The paradox of Indian art & design - Santosh Padhi

When I was in college, I remember seeing some fantastic print campaigns from Enterprise, Nexus, Ambience, Avenues, Trikaya, Mudra – you name it and each one of them produced fantastic work and campaigns that can create fear in us even today.

However, it is the most painful thing to be a serious Art Director in India today, and it is the industry and the creative heads that are to be blamed; we are all responsible for why we are behind today when it comes to art direction and design.

Excellent print is what we inherited. This is where I get to say ‘those were the days’. That was the story 20-odd years ago.

The work that was produced back then would work even today. It would easily beat most of the recent print work by far.

But then TV happened. As the prices of television sets dipped (along with the quality of print), television commercials came up in a big way. It was sad to see several creative directors jump the bandwagon to get a grip on this most happening and exciting new medium.

Needless to say, print suffered as the layout was reduced to nothing more than the last frame of the commercial, as the creative guys got so busy in learning and getting a grip on the new medium, and once this grip was established, print seemed like it was too much hard work.

Lately, it has been heartening to see the current crop of youngsters trying all they can to revive the medium and return its due. Here, I want to say a ‘big thanks’ to all the passionate art directors who go out of their way to make things look good. They play multiple roles at times, constantly juggling hats of a designer, typographer, illustrator, photographer and even digital retoucher. Besides image-searcher, logo-protector, and word-adjuster.

And at times we don’t have either the money or the time (mostly both) to do justice to either art direction and design, however the passionate art director will spend a few nights trying to give his best in the given limited resources and is expected to create magic every single time.

The Paradox of Indian Art and Design
We are a very rich art culture when it comes to art, but unfortunately some of the fantastic iconic traditional art forms such as Warli, Kalamkari, Madhubani, Pahari, and Mugal have been extremely underleveraged in advertising.

These are so unique and so ‘ours’ that we do not need to look at the West to get things right to speak to our Indian audiences. Look at Japan and China, who have a similar culture and traditional art, may be even less than us, but they have been doing some great art and design, especially Japan. Why can’t we blend in our art in modern communication and design?

We as a community have a vast sea of power via communication, anything which can ‘make or break’, if utilised correctly. I believe we have passed up our responsibility of seeding our rich art forms in our advertising. Quite paradoxically, some of these art forms are in much demand across the world, and have even been used and accepted quite successfully in advertising.

Some of our iconic Bollywood hand painted print posters are truly memorable art form (again world renowned), but unfortunately even that has come to an end.

Global shimmer vs local creatives...So close, yet afar
Many will agree with me that we as Indians have lost faith in our abilities. Unfortunately, this is still happening despite India being recognised as one of the global players and a country in which the advertising industry is growing at a phenomenal rate.

Many of the clients lack faith in the designing and art direction capabilities of local creatives. A lot of work, things such as logo designs, is still being done from the UK and the US. I’m aware of more than dozen such logos that have been made by design studios from outside India, which, I’m sorry to say, aren’t really spectacular. And mind you, the clients pay a hefty sum for these.

Coming from the same country, we are inherently in a position to understand the brief more clearly and know the client background better than our international counterparts. Our local knowledge can help better our work and make it more relevant.

Another major point to debate is that many international design studios often get longer time to work on things like logo design, while we get much shorter, non-flexible deadlines just because we are Indians.

Amul is a classic example of print/ outdoor as someone believed in it, hence we are taking about it today and it is still going strong.

Unfortunately, many of us are short-sighted and we look far for the answers. Look closely and you’ll realise that the answers are actually close to us.

The author is Chief Creative Officer and Co-founder, Taproot India.

 

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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur

The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:15 PM  | 1 min read
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With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.

The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.

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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out

The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:07 PM  | 1 min read
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Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."

The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."

COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.

Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.

He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.

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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK

Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 11:48 AM  | 1 min read
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e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.

Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.

According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.

As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.

A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.

Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.

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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall

The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 10:54 AM  | 1 min read
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Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.

“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.

“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.

"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."

"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."

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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias

Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 24, 2023 3:35 PM  | 1 min read
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KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.

Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy

Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.

Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."

Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."

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