Opinion: Celebrating India’s Finest at Cannes

celebrating-india's-finest-at-cannes

Eight spontaneously recalled campaigns from India that also won at the Cannes Lions, of which six did not win a Gold but are worth far more for what they delivered in the market.

It was ironic even back then to see campaigns like Ericsson’s ‘One Black Coffee Please’, Fevicol ‘Bus’ and Google ‘Reunion’ win Silver and Bronze metals at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. If the prize was for creativity, popularity among consumers and sheer evocativeness, the campaigns were worth more than Grand Prix’. But that’s how international awards work.

There were two requests that came my way this year after the Cannes festival (which I did not attend).

One was to showcase in detail the winners of Cannes Lions 2023. There were three big winners from India – by that I mean Grand Prix and Gold winners. All three are by now familiar case studies for anyone following awards.

The Grand Prix winner was also a Titanium Lion from last year – for Mondelez by Ogilvy (listed as this year’s winner), Wavemaker and Rephrase.AI. Leo Burnett’s ‘Airtel 175 Replayed’ and FCB India’s work for Stir magazine being the others. All the Cannes-winning work can be viewed on lovethework.com, courtesy organisers.

Without taking away anything from any of the winners, present and past, this post is to pick my all time favourites from among Cannes Lions winners from India. This follows a request for the same following an opinion piece that did not go down well with some.

It might just turn out that my picks are favourites among a lot of us, because all that I have picked are campaigns that we have seen and enjoyed before they made it to the festivals. For some of us who love advertising, these are evergreen comfort foods for the soul. They are reminders that the best of Indian advertising that did not need case studies can still wow international juries (with one exception). And a reiteration that acknowledgment on the global stage is good to have, but impact in the market is priceless and has a far longer life.

So here goes. I will stick to pieces of work that are top of mind (spont.).

Ericsson ‘One Black Coffee Please’

The film directed by Prasoon Pandey of Corcoise (then with Highlight Films) via Nexus Equity won a Silver at the Cannes Lions in 1996. It went on to be remade in 26 markets for the handset maker. For the Indian consumer, it was refreshing and made the brand stand out from the rest. At a time when mobile phones were brick-sized and weapon-like, it was a great insight to own ‘small’. And they did it in style. This ‘coffee’ film for a mobile phone is immortal and deserves a place in Indian advertising history, irrespective of Cannes glory.

Fevicol ‘Bus’
One of the innumerable pieces of work from Ogilvy for Fevicol that used humour to delight consumers – to the point where advertising was entertainment you looked forward to, not an intrusion. The all-powerful jury decided to award this a Silver in 2002. For the audience, that bus with all the people in it, was worth its weight in gold.

Happydent ‘Palace’
It was in 2007, when Trevor Beattie famously wore a T-shirt that said ‘Happydent for Grand Prix’ or something to that effect. The final result was way off, despite the spectacular end product put out by the team and director Ram Madhwani. The saving grace was that it won some metals at Cannes. But it had won consumers over in India much earlier.

Google ‘Reunion’
The categories started getting a little confusing after a point at the Cannes Lions. This landmark film by Ogilvy won a Silver and Bronze PR Lion in 2014. The reaction from the audience at the Palais, when the Pandey brothers took stage the year they were honoured with the Lions of St.Mark, told a different story.

Nike ‘Make Every Yard Count’
Directed by creative Senthil Kumar at JWT, this one won four Silver and three Bronze Lions at Cannes in 2014. It had innovation written all over it. The work stood out not just as a film but also as a digital crowdsourcing exercise and for its use of craft without an exorbitant budget. The work made every festival count.

Kan Khajura Tesan
This piece of work by Lowe Lintas and PHD is an exception because it solved a real problem for consumers and brands. Hence, this is the only ‘case study’ featured here. It took the awards world by storm and why not? It was seemingly frugal and incremental innovation with its ear to the ground. And it attracted Gold Lions and other awards by the droves.

Lifebuoy ‘Roti Reminders’
The largest religious festival on the planet and members of the congregation being reminded to wash their hands with soap through a message on their roti – this incredible idea, executed at scale with proof, failed to impress the jury beyond a Bronze Lion. The imprint of the campaign will remain on the minds of anyone who has seen the video, for long.

Ariel ‘Share The Load’

The year 2015 when ‘Share The Load’ won a Glass Lion at Cannes, it was another entry from the same agency, for another P&G client Whisper ‘Touch the Pickle’, that won the Grand Prix. Share The Load was a movement whose time had come and the proof rests in its continuance, exploring the inequality in sharing of domestic duties from different lenses.

There will be many more that one feels deserve to be on this list. Each of us can make our own list of unforgettable campaigns that were also recognised at global awards, including several that did not get their due.

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