Breaking stereotypes: India's maverick admen

Wherever you go, you are stormed by ads without even knowing or noticing. Ads have the power to induce conversations that people won’t start or indulge in otherwise. It takes a genius to make an ad that delivers on point and stays with us long after. 

The advertisement scene in India has been hilarious, thought-provoking and even surreal and stupid at times. Today, ads have become much more than just a means of promoting businesses; they are being used for bigger purposes. Undoubtedly, all credit goes to the people behind such campaigns. 

Let’s talk about some of India’s best admen -- people who changed the face of Indian advertisement scene and gave us some of the most iconic advertisements:

Piyush Pandey 

There is no doubt that people consider Piyush Pandey to be India’s number one adman. He is the executive chairman and creative director of Ogilvy and Mather India. 

Some of his best works include Cadbury's 'Kuch Khaas Hai' and Fevicol's 'Fevicol Ka Mazboot Jod'. He is also the one who gave the slogan for PM Narendra Modi’s 2014 Lok Sabha campaign, “Abki baar, Modi Sarkaar.”

Prasoon Joshi 

He is a poet, lyricist, scriptwriter and just all sort of talent. Joshi began his career at Ogilvy and Mather and is now the chairman of McCann WorldGroup Asia Pacific. 

He is the one behind notable ads like 'Alpenliebe Chlormint' and 'Thanda Matlab Coca-Cola'. The latter won an award at the Cannes. He has also composed the music of Swach Bharat Abhiyan and was conferred the Padma Shri this year. 

R. Balakrishnan 

R. Balakrishnan or also popularly known as R. Balki is the chairman and chief creative officer of Lowe Lintas. In 2014, Balki’s agency picked up three gold lions at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. 

'Daag Acche Hai' for Surf excel, 'Jaago re' for Tata Tea, and the 'Walk and Talk' for Idea cellular are some of Balki’s most popular works. Also, he is the one who featured late superstar Rajesh Khanna in his last ad for Havells fans.

Josy Paul

Having worked for O&M and Lowe Lintas for a long time, Josy went on to establish BBDO in India and is now the chairman and chief chairman officer for BBDO. He is the mind behind campaigns like Prega News’s 'GoodNewsIsGenderFree', Ariel’s 'Share the Load', and Gillete’s 'Barber Girls'. 

Taking an alternate route from conventional advertising, Josy's promotions are saturated with social messages like Aviva's 'Great Wall of Education' and Gillette's 'Women Against Lazy Stubbles'. 

Watch Josy Paul talk about the craziest way he sold a thought

Prahlad Kakkar

Who doesn't remember Aishwarya Rai's first-ever TVC? "Hii! I'm Sanjana, got another Pepsi?". Founder and director of Genesis Film Productions, Kakkar is considered as the ad guru and is one of the most prominent names in the Indian advertising industry. Campaigns like 'Yehi Hai Right Choice Baby! Aha!' for Pepsi, '2 minutes!' for Maggi and 'Ting Ting Ti Ting' for Britannia are some of his successful ads. 

If these ads don't start unconventional conversations between friends, at homes or in offices, or they don't make you think about various social issues, we don't know what will.