Proud of India's showing at Cannes Lions 2024: Ogilvy India CCOs

This year at Cannes Lions, the Advertising and Marketing industry’s biggest festival of creativity, the Indian contingent won a total of 18 metals. The media industry called this a ‘disappointing’ victory that managed to make ‘barely a purr.’ To be fair, the country did close with its lowest tally in five years.

However, when you closely examine the work that made waves at the festival, the wide spectrum and body of work do reflect something positive for the country.

“India did not bring back as many medals but I am very proud of India's showing at Cannes. So many different pieces won; it wasn't just one piece dominating everything,” said Kainaz Karmakar, CCO, Ogilvy India.

Karmakar said she would be disappointed with the tally, too, if the country’s Advertising industry did not have the quality and variety of work to show for itself.

CCOs Harshad Rajadhyaksha and Sukesh Nayak also strongly echoed Karmakar’s sentiment, reflecting on the country’s creative work over the last year.

This diversity of India’s talent was also mirrored in Ogilvy India’s body of work. The creative agency added four more Lions to its den – a Silver and three Bronze medals for Taj Mehal’s Megh Santoor, Vi’s Human Network Testing Network, 5 Stars Erase Valentine’s Day campaign, and St. Jude’s Impossible Choice. The campaigns made their mark in different categories such as Entertainment, Health & Wellness, and Outdoor.

In our latest series of video interviews, The Inside Stories – where A&M leaders walk us through the inner workings of the industry – the trio that spearheaded yet another win for Ogilvy India at Cannes spoke to us about each campaign, its diversity, ideation, and execution process, the country’s performance, and how it made them feel.

Watch it here or read the excerpts below. 

 Edited excerpts:

Congratulations on bagging four metals at Cannes Lions 2024! Four very different campaigns made their mark at the international festival. I will start with the campaign that bagged a Silver Metal for its innovative approach. What was the brief for Taj Mahal’s ‘Megh Santoor’ campaign and what inspired it?

Kainaz: Tea and music are inseparable at Taj. It's been a longstanding association, starting with Zakir. So, it's not new for Taj to explore something with music. However, everything we had done so far was either a television ad or initiatives like Baithaks, promoting new musicians, and such.

When the brief came in to activate Vijayawada, our main market, the team came up with the idea for this campaign. Hats off to the client because it took six months of work to bring it to fruition. It involved an immense amount of R&D; we even saw videos of pouring water on a billboard on the floor to test if it would work when it rains. So, it was not an easy task at all. It could have failed, but it didn't. We are very happy about that. I think all great ideas are like that; You don’t know if they will really work, in any medium, until they actually happen, but we are glad it worked and worked at many levels.

Moving on to the campaign that won a Bronze in the Health & Wellness category, 'Impossible Choice'. It is a very hard-hitting campaign. Can you take me behind the scenes, it must have been challenging to capture this sensitive subject. 

Harshad: This campaign was for St. Jude Children's Center, and for those who may still not be fully aware of their work, it's a wonderful organization. The premise of the brief from the client was that they came to us for our communication expertise. They approached us and explained that a significant part of their work, which is simple yet crucial, involves helping young children battling cancer. While there are many avenues for free cancer treatment available, sometimes, for instance, in rural areas like Maharashtra or other states, families struggle to afford to stay in expensive cities like Mumbai, where treatment is available. Even with meager savings, it's challenging to sustain living costs, as hotels or basic lodges are often unaffordable. This organisation focuses on this issue and supports families who have no choice but to return home despite their child's chance at beating cancer. They provide a clean, hygienic environment and support for one parent and the child at a very nominal cost during treatment. Unfortunately, not enough people were aware of their services.

As a charitable organization relying on contributions and donations, they needed a way to communicate their mission more widely. Our team, which coincidentally includes the same core members who worked on the 'Megh Santoor' campaign for Taj Mahal, took on the challenge. Led by Fritz and Jayesh, we brainstormed and developed a concept that truly resonated. We aimed to immerse viewers in the difficult decisions faced by St. Jude staff when resources are limited—they must choose between who receives care and who doesn't. Our goal was to encourage more people to support St. Jude financially, helping them expand their facilities and save more lives. This is where the idea of 'Impossible Choice' originated, and we brought it to life in a deeply emotional manner.

On the other hand, the agency also won a bronze for its Cadbury 5 Star’s ‘Erase Valentine’s Day’ Campaign in the Entertainment Lions category. What inspired this campaign? 

Sukesh: Most of us know 5 Star as one of the most fun brands and it's a local jewel that we have here in Mondelez. It's been three or four years now that we've been doing Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day is actually for 5 Star the opposite of what it stands for for the other brands in the monolithic world. Chocolate is something gifted by all people to their lovers or the person they like on Valentine's Day, and 5 Star is a strong champion of counter-culture. It has a tagline that we've been building for the last couple of years called "do nothing." We found out that there's too much mush around Valentine’s Day and our 5 Star chocolate guy or girl, either of them, actually said, "This is too much love happening and we don't believe in this kind of demonstration of so much love." Karunasagar and his boys and girls, they came up with a stunning idea and in one line whoever heard it was, "You're gonna skip the 14th of February.” All you had to do was get on a ship and go across the timeline and one minute you're gone and in your life, there'll be no 14th of February. What a lovely way to spend Valentine's Day and again which is what we are so proud of. 

What we three of us have been talking about is that all the amazing ideas mean nothing if you don't have amazing partners who believe in it, who back it, who actually make a ship happen, who actually sail the ship on that particular day to make sure that it skips Valentine's Day. You have X number of people who travel, who are the people who won the contest to be on the ship, you have a gazillion number of people who are watching it live and it's being broadcasted like an actual beautiful show as in real-time happens by somebody who is able to hold the whole thing together as a show. It's a phenomenal partnership to build our experience idea executed by Ogilvy. We are lucky to have the best of minds who are not just able to conceive of great ideas, who have great partners who believe in them and make them happen, but you also have great partners in-house in Ogilvy now who make the tech happen, who make the on-ground experience happen. It's a fantastic example of teamwork.

Kainaz: As an industry, I think we are starved for irreverence and you know levity and things like that. It's really great to have a brand that is consistent in the fact that we are going to go after this quirk. 

Sukesh: We are blessed to have icons (team) I call them, we give them many names but what we love about all our people is they are all different but what bonds them is this pure hunger for the craft, of not just being the simplest ideas, the most refreshing ideas, and then they go all out with a smile on their face to make sure it's crafted to the best possible level, whatever the idea be, whether it's emotion.

Can you walk me through the ‘VI Human Network Testing Network’ campaign, the brief shared and its strategizing process? 

Kainaz: We used Dabbawalas in Mumbai to really test the network. When we were explaining it to our own teams in the US and elsewhere, what we tried to convey was that Dabbawalas are not Uber Eats. Long before Uber Eats existed, these individuals operated with the precision of technology without actually using technology. That's the power of Dabbawalas. Therefore, when this idea arose, we decided to leverage them. They represent the gold standard in reaching any location that even technicians cannot access, which allowed us to thoroughly test the effectiveness of our network.

What was also notable about this campaign is that we aimed to showcase not only where the network succeeded but also the areas where it did not reach initially and how we addressed those challenges. This approach added depth and credibility to our case because it wasn't just about showcasing success; it was about demonstrating our ability to learn and improve from real-world data.

Harshad: Another point I'd like to highlight is that it won in the Creative Strategy category. The person behind the Creative Strategy, Abir Banerjee, earned his first lion for this achievement. When we informed him about the award half an hour later, he joyfully messaged me saying, "I am going to break some tables and chairs now. I'm so happy." It was a moment of genuine joy for him. Additionally, I want to acknowledge our partner, someone who understands Mumbai deeply. As this campaign unfolded, each Dabbawala featured in our content pieces was directly involved through our partnership with their organization.

We also have Krishna, a valuable team member, who facilitated the collaboration with this organization, similar to his work with Vodafone in the Five Star campaign. All these efforts culminated in the creation of compelling content that authentically captured the bustling spirit of Mumbai. Mahesh Karat, the director behind 'St. Jude, The Impossible Choice' film, once again brought this campaign to life with his expertise. In his debut year, both his campaigns have won.

In these very diverse campaigns, one common thing was the client’s support for the agency. Can you tell us what role did clients play in inspiring creativity? 

Sukesh: Very interesting question. I think at the end of the day, we are very clear in your head that we are in a business and we feel and we believe, not just feel, we strongly believe that ideas are the best way for your businesses to grow. And I think we have all the projects that we have mentioned across, whether it's a Unilever account or whether it's a charity organization that came to us, we have delivered business results for them. And when you deliver business results for them, they only get stronger in their belief in you. So you can indulge me by making an idea happen because you want to indulge your partner. But if the idea doesn't deliver business for you, second time, you will think about it. You will not be so certain.

I've spent all my life here. They've spent half a life here also. I can tell you with certainty that whenever a creative idea is delivered, your partnership only grows stronger. It is not a chance, it is not luck, it is not nothing but you make your partners' businesses thrive. You make them thrive with work that people say, "Oh my god, that was so surprising. I didn't expect it coming," whether it's a video, an experience, or a print. Whatever it is, any medium, I feel today we are living in a world, if I was a young creative person, I would say, "Oh my God, the world is like an open opportunity for me." From when I started to where I am today, things have changed dramatically. You can do things that you couldn't even imagine.

While Ogilvy has been a multiple-time winner, you have also had experience embracing rejections for campaigns that you truly believed in. Can you tell me about that experience and share some insights for agencies who are now finding that spark back for next year?

Harshad: I would say this not just to the agencies who didn't bring back a trophy. Consider the passion that agencies, creative individuals—everyone in the ecosystem—is part of. Our planning partners, account management teams, creative technology partners, media collaborators—all are on this creative mission. Why focus only on other agencies? Even though we had four conversions, we still believed in many pieces that may not have brought home metal.

As long as you can decipher it in your head and heart, my advice to everyone, including our teams and the agencies mentioned – this comes from early years at Ogilvy, inspired by Piyush Pandey's wisdom. He emphasizes working for the audience, for the people our work it is intended for. He often describes awards as icing on the cake; true satisfaction comes when people in WhatsApp groups or neighborhood aunties tell your mom how your ad touched them emotionally—that's when your work affects people. Secondly, awards are crucial; they push the boundaries of our profession and acknowledge global experimentation across fields like automotive design, science, technology, and arts. Oscars propel filmmaking craft forward.

However, Piyush also advises contentment if your client, ecosystem, and consumers are delighted. Once you've poured your heart into it and dispatched the work with utmost intent, it becomes consumers' work. The best award is when consumers make your work part of their lives by using your slogans and language. As long as you dispatch work you believe in, pushing your craft and profession, be happy with that. What happens in the jury room is a bonus—an international award, a Lion, a One Show, a Clio, that's the icing on the cake.

Our philosophy is to advise everyone to give it their all, avoid chasing award formulas, and innovate to push boundaries and delight people around. In the process, I am sure, awards will come.

Kainaz: One senior industry figure once told me awards are fantastic if you don’t pay for it with your sanity. Once you start doing that, in the balance of things, it is not worth it. 

At the end of the day, every campaign is presented as a case study in front of the jury. How important is storytelling in this case study? What are some must-haves for these case studies? 

Kainaz: We are laughing because a case study is an industry in itself. But I'll tell you there are two things here, one is that any case has to be explained and it has to be done. But when you're coming from India or you're using something very cultural like for example a Dabbawala, you have the added burden of explaining your cultural context. So you have to explain what a Dabbawala is and then go on to explain the idea. So the storytelling has to be absolutely impeccable and tight.

But we get a lot of help. I must admit it. We have an Asia network, our boss Reed Collins, Liz, Joe, all these people. They get in when they see potential in a case, they get into it and they ask us, "Can we tell the story like this?"

Also, what really helps us is our sounding board; They are from the West. When we show it to them and if they are not excited by it, then we try and explain it to them. And they're like, "Ah, but that didn't come out." So there'll be somebody from Japan in a jury, Australia or some different country in a jury, and you don't have control over that room. All you can control is that case study which they're going to see–which is why it is a lot of effort but it's the only thing, it's like the last mile. If you don't do that well, no matter how good your idea is, it's just not going to be communicated.

A lot was said about India’s representation at Cannes this year. What do you think about it? 

Kainaz: I remember receiving an article in my inbox and I messaged the journalist, saying, "How can you write like that?” You can't just compare apples to apples. Did we win as much as India was winning every year? No, we didn't. India did not bring back as many medals, but I am very proud of India's showing at Cannes. So many different pieces won; it wasn't just one piece dominating everything. This indicates that the overall caliber of work across the industry is rising. Even a new agency established just six months ago managed to win. India secured two Glass Lions and excelled in categories like entertainment, creative strategy, creative effectiveness, and health. Our representation has broadened. Perhaps the article's headline was more attention-grabbing, suggesting India is in decline, but I was genuinely proud of the work. Can we do better? Of course, there's always room for improvement. But it's unrealistic to expect consistent peak performance. There are ups and downs, and it's important not to dwell excessively on that. What would concern me more is if we didn't have the quality of work to showcase. If that were the case, all of us would be rightfully disappointed. However, when you have exceptional work that, for whatever reason, doesn't resonate with the jury, you have to accept it. When you enter a competition, you must respect the jury's decision. Beating yourself up over it serves no purpose.

Sukesh: I was judging at Kyoorius and sitting with other jury presidents, and I echo her sentiment because in that room, all of us acknowledged the caliber of work entered at Kyoorious. From impressive prints to outdoor ads by Denso and VML, we had some fantastic pieces from India. We hoped that we will do well because there were phenomenal innovations, remarkable print ideas, and more. We can always reflect and say, "Lose with a smile, aim to return next year and do even better." We're very proud of the work we're creating for our market and the industry as a whole, including the young talent and big networks like ours. As the Kyoorius jury president, I reviewed the work and thought, "Hey, we have phenomenal films, prints, and outdoor campaigns that have won Pencils, One Show, and Clios." Perhaps luck didn't favor us this time, or maybe the jury didn't find it as compelling. Look at the awarded work from VML at the One Show or Burnett at Clio, for example; it's a great body of work. Everyone is pushing boundaries. The best part is that we're producing integrated, phenomenal ideas from India that are world-class. We excel in tech innovation too; our tech teams execute projects for global markets from India, serving Europe and the UK. We're known for our faster timelines and world-class craftsmanship. We're not just filmmakers and print-makers anymore; we're leaders in tech innovation. Still point taken and absolutely we got to respect that we got to get better and we will get better. But there's no way I'd ever headline "India is down in the dumps."

The trio further spoke to Social Samosa about their first Cannes-winning experience, what validation means to them, shared advice for young agencies, and a lot more. 

Click here to watch the interview.