The Hindu Business Line : K. Kurien. R.I.P.

K. Kurien is no more. Yet another giant has fallen. And the advertising industry is so much the poorer for it. K. Kurien, we gather from a wide spectrum of industry regulars, was a unique person. Very unlike an “advertising person” in demeanour, he was quiet, unassuming and very intelligent. It seems he had a remarkable eye for detail and a quiet sense of humour. The industry will remember him for the pioneering work he did on the Amul account and the “lime and lemoni Limca” theme, which he is widely credited with. Mr Kurien was active in industry circles, and we learn he served as Vice-President of the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI). Then his Radeus Advertising was bought over and merged with Anthem which in turn became TBWA Anthem, and now TBWA. He was active in the agency till a couple of years ago. A prolific writer, friends tell us he actually compiled material to publish a history of Indian advertising and even submitted the matter to the Advertising Club Bombay. Tragically, the material was misplaced when the Club moved from its old premises into the office it occupies now. Well, along with the history of Indian advertising, the industry has lost a little of its own history with his passing. He will be missed.

Ranjan honoured by AAAI

Ranjan Kapur

The Rooftop of the Trident Hotel (earlier Oberoi) wore a festive look as old friends and new came together to participate in the well-organised function to confer on Ranjan Kapur the AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award. We will skip the usual honourable mentions because most of the bigwigs (at least the relevant ones) were present and counting. A hugely apologetic Piyush Pandey arrived late but then as they say, better late than never. Ranjan Kapur seemed to be in high spirits and walked down memory lane re-living some of the “good olden days” in his long and illustrious career. He ended on an optimistic note, saying that the best years for the advertising industry were ahead. Three cheers to that!

OOH everywhere

They’re trying to catch your attention everywhere! After the plain vanilla billboards came the little screens outside elevators in every building in Mumbai. Now they have installed large LCD screens inside the buses that cart passengers from the terminal at Mumbai airport to the Jet Airways aircraft. Well, nothing to lose and everything to gain, for everyone. And with airlines bleeding all over the tarmac, an extra buck really cannot hurt. Except, one must figure out how many people can actually see those screens. After the first ten people stand in front of them, the others who board the bus are just numbers, not eyeballs.

Independence Day treat

Forget the desultory advertisements that the Government forces down our throat every August 15th. No one sees them anyway. Sure, Tata AIG is on the right track sticking with its “power of one” theme, but this year, we loved Piyush Pandey and the O&M gang remembering Suresh Mallik, the legendary creative power house with a release of his Mile Sur Mera Tumhara. It looked and sounded as fresh as the day it was made twenty years ago. A timeless classic with the magic of music that does us all proud. Twirl that moustache one more time, Piyush!

Mash Rediff chief

Mahesh Chauhan

Mahesh Chauhan is one of the bright young crop of professionals who will be leading the advertising industry over the next decade or so. Mash (as he is called, don’t ask us why) has earned a reputation of being a hard-nosed professional with a rather affable exterior. Not a bad combination, we would say. The newly crowned CEO of the Rediffusion DY&R “group” is an avid shutterbug. His pictures are widely admired amongst friends and colleagues. May he live in exciting times!

So now that Diwan Arun Nanda is just Chairman, he joins the long list of people in his age group who have served their company and industry well, and now have the time to pursue whatever they please. The times, they are a changing.

Vic’s pick

Boy, the Emami Fast Relief commercial is a humdinger of an advertisement. Breaks right through the clutter. Leaves you rubbing your eyes with disbelief the first time you see it, then you begin to marvel at the idea and the fantastic execution. This is one commercial that is going to do its job and also bring in a lot of heavy metal for India in the awards season next year. _ Victoria

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