Hasta La Creative!

Interview of Viswaprasad Raju– Senior Lead-Creative Process at Doo Creative, Hyderabad

I was born in a remote village in East Godavari, in Andhra Pradesh, and brought up in the outskirts of Hyderabad: around the Golconda fort in the Army quarters skirting the fort walls and around factories in Jeedimetla, thanks to my father’s stints with the Army and with HMT. I used to sketch when in school, which I started again. With more travel, I started writing travelogues. I’m currently working on a screenplay. I live with my family – grandma (95 and going strong), parents, wife, two daughters, a scurry of squirrels and a dream of going back to Europe or the National Parks of Central India whenever time permits. I collect coasters, am passionate about Tennis and I have plans to come up with creative products, say calendars and diaries using my sketches. If you find advertising missing here, read on.

Why are you into Advertising?
Somebody told that it’s a job where you can have the most fun having your clothes on. I bought into it. It is, to an extent. When your hobby becomes your job, it’s no longer a job. I am living my dream, no regrets.

Did you attend school for fine art or design or Communications?
I dropped out of a Diploma course in Creative Writing.

Tell us about a recent campaign you worked on?
It’s for an uber luxe realty project. We have some interesting ideas up our sleeves. Pretty excited about it!

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
Too many across film-making, sketching and writing – and that left me confused. To pick a few – Mario Miranda, Shekhar Kapur and Vikram Seth

Who was the most influential personality on your career in Advertising?
Swapan Seth, Joji Jacob. Have been following their work since a long time.

Where do you get your inspiration from?
I go by the adage – the raw material of advertising is life. There’s so much chaos, so much life out there, so many ideas floating around. Pick that sticks to the brief. Plus, I carry a small book – The Creative Companion by David Fowler, it’s an instant mind-opener.

You had worked with O&M, Hyderabad and R K Swamy BBDO, Hyderabad, How was your experience working with big agencies?.
Two different schools!

What do you think of the state of Print advertising right now. At least here in India, the released work is most often too sad? Are agencies ignoring released print?
The shift to one-good-ad-film-is-enough has led to the present state of released print work in India. You would hardly find work that’s a stopper. Plus, the visual-driven approach has taken the front seat, so long copy ads are relegated to the garage.

Pick and tell us about one of all your past campaigns, your personal favourite…
The billboard campaign that we did for Medwin Hospitals. It ran for over three years. Here was a client who gave total freedom. We focused on social issues, month after month, and it became a landmark of sorts, people taking a detour to see the billboard, strangers sending me mails. It was the most talked about billboard campaign in Hyderabad. From The Hindu, The Indian Express to vernacular newspapers, it became a regular feature with them – to feature the billboard. It was rumored that the press photographer from a leading daily would wait to capture the billboard while the paint (long before the flex era) was still wet. The most cherished was the one we did during the Gujarat riots – ‘Iss Gujraat ki subah kab hogi’. Also, the one on using mobiles while driving – ‘Cell2Hell’. I realized the power of good advertising then and how good work spreads. Ok, we now have a name for it – Virals.

Do you think brands who’s advertising wins awards, do well in the market?
It should be the other way around. The sole criteria should be work that does well in the market. If it picks a metal or two, it’s the icing on the cake.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals?
Meet interesting people. See Interesting movies. Read interesting books. Travel to interesting places. Lead an interesting life, everything else will follow.

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
Penelope Cruz

What’s on your iPod?
Whatever is being played on my art partner’s Mac!

Mac or PC?
PC/Paper

The post Viswaprasad Raju : Interview appeared first on desicreative.

En partenariat maintenant avec Samsung, Fubiz est fier de vous présenter le retour de Fubiz TV Issue 17. Au sommaire cette semaine, nous avons sélectionné le meilleur de l’actualité de l’univers créatif et nous avons eu la chance de rencontrer les designers Kuntzel & Deygas. Une interview à découvrir en vidéo dans la suite.

Just like it says on his website, Karthik M is a guy who loves to make things, who lives with his musical better half, and who sincerely believes that one day both his feline sons will start talking to him. He loves doing side projects, just like Ji Lee and SwissMiss. He’s the author of @mysmallstories on Twitter. He keeps a thick beard to hide his double chin, and will often scratch it while pretending to think. He finds it very, very difficult to write about himself, be it in the third person, or out of that person.

Why are you into Advertising?
Because it lets me revel in my misfit-ness, and pays me for it too.
Did you attend school for fine art or design or Communications?
Yes. R. A. Podar College of Commerce and Economics.

You are an illustrator, graphic designer and copywriter. Which of these best describes you.
None. An unromantic, absent-minded husband. That sure does.

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
N.A. (Not grown up yet.)

Who was the most influential personality on your career in Advertising? In Illustration and Design?
The Internet.

Where do you get your inspiration from?
From everyday life, and my very tolerant wife.

Tell us something about the work environment at your agency Catalyst SMC.
Leg-pulling 30%, Laughter 30%, Talks on Food 20%, Eating 10%, Alcohol sessions 5%, Abuses 5%.

What do you think of the state of Print advertising right now. At least here in India, the released work is most often too sad?
It could be so much better. Right now, it’s a clear case of too many cooks spoil the broth. Everybody wants to have their say in it. “Hey! It’s just advertising. Even I know a thing or two.” seems to be their thought process. And you can’t argue with that. The result? Well, we all know what that is. But I admire Taproot’s approach. They do really good ads, and most of them are released work. So hats off to them, especially the person who sells it, and the client who buys it.

Do you think brands who’s advertising wins awards, do well in the market?
Well, there cannot be so many scam ads year after year, right? There are clients out there who are brave enough to put that work out into the market, and also intelligent enough to check whether they are working or not. So I’d love to think
that yes, they do work well in the market. And I also think that “Make a great product, and you won’t
have to worry about advertising”.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals?
To all aspiring creative professionals (which includes me too), I’d suggest: Learn, unlearn and relearn.

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
My wife. She’s had way too many takeouts with me.

What’s on your iPod?
iPad chalega? Some Coke Studio, Dewarists, The Shruti Box and Bollywood.

Mac or PC?
Hey, thanks! Mac. Which model are you giving? Is it the new iMac?

Nous sommes fiers de vous présenter aujourd’hui l’Issue 11 du programme hebdomadaire de Fubiz TV avec Orange après sa trêve estivale. Au sommaire cette semaine, nous avons sélectionné le meilleur de l’actualité créative et nous avons rencontrer le directeur artistique freelance Tyrsa pour une interview exclusive.

Why are you into Advertising?
One strong reason could be that it’s not rocket science.
Because I hated Physics even though I took science stream to please my parents, neighbours and pretty girls who thought arts stream was a waste bin for rejected rouges.
Somewhere I think God silently guides you to where you want to go.

And then coming from a defense back ground, I didn’t want to wear uniforms, bother about haircuts, and salute somebody only because of seniority and rather than out of respect or the persons’ merit.

From the very beginning I knew what I was good at and more importantly, what I was not good at.
Once I even asked my mathematics teacher where we would be using calculus in real life and all she said was, it’s in the syllabus, so just pay attention.

I used to sketch and paint well; I used to write poems from a very young age and was very active on stage as well. So the only place I thought where I could utilize all my talents without sacrificing or compromising on another talent would be advertising.

And I am one of those few lucky people who get paid for having fun with my hobbies.
I eat, drink, make merry and money.

And believe me, it’s been a wonderful journey so far.

Did you attend school for fine art or design or Communications??
I was not fortunate enough to get into an Art College, even though I tried my luck 3 times .
For Chandigarh College of Art. Three years in a row but didn’t get beyond shortlist.
Then I used my writer’s card to get an entry into the world of advertising.
And kept painting to keep the hobby alive.

But then life teaches you so many wonderful lessons, and if you are an honest student, you can excel on your own, and without having a certificate from an institution.

Tell us about your most recent campaign?
The last campaign that I did for McCann was for PSI, Population Services International for EDP (Early Detection Of Pregnancy) which went on air last week.

It’s all about empowering women and giving them the right to live their life on their own terms without compromising on their freedom. It’s about how life can still be in their control even after they miss a chance in life.

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
There were not one but many. From Sunil Gavaskar, Ian Bothom, Vivian Richards, Steffi Graff, Martina Navratilova, Amitabh Bachhan, Imran khan, Rajani and Lalitaji(The TV Stars), Alyque Padamsee,  Michel Jackson, Mohammad Ali, Maradona, Carl Lewis, Satyajit Ray,Spielberg, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Mohanlal, PT Usha  to Safdar Hashmi to name a few.

Role models are ones who you look up to and motivate you through their perseverance, performance and personality.
You would not want to be what they are but you love them for their passion and dedication towards their goal.

Who was the most influential personality on your career in Advertising???
I would like to specially mention Raghu Bhat, whom I met in the beginning of my career some 16 years back in Delhi Clarion. He has been a friend, philosopher and guide throughout.
I also worked with Raghu–Manish at McCann, Mumbai.
Then Kaustav Niyogi (Kosty),  from McCann Delhi under whom I worked for 2 years,
and of course Prasoon Joshi who is an institution in himself, with whom I worked for 7 years.

Where do you get your inspiration from???
Inspiration comes in many forms, from many directions.
Your eyes, your nose, your ears are all receivers. You have to keep them alert every time.
Nature, Culture, Religion, Life, Art, People, Silence, Organism, Space they all inspire me.
Advertising should be a product of everything that you are surrounded with.
A reflection of the society. A projection of insights.
An exaggeration of beautiful thoughts.

Do you have any kind of a program to nurture and train young talent?
The best way to nurture and train young talent is to guide them on a daily basis, while you are still working with them.
Because nurturing cannot be a 4 day program. The lessons from a workshop end where they take place if it is not carried back to the cubicles and cabins.
And whoever come to be for any guidance or help, I extend my whole hearted cooperation.
I want to meet them like the good people I met during my struggling days rather than like people who found faults and discouraged me.

Tell us something about the McCann Environment.
Rich and Lively. It was a privilege to work under the leadership of Prasoon Joshi. The environment was always brimming with brilliant ideas with young and energetic team around. Out there, there was a thin line between strategic and creative thinking and everyone worked as a team rather than different departments.

Tell us about your biggest challenge as the Creative Director.
To assemble and build a team that is more like a family.
To motivate them, inspire them, console them and nurture them like a gardener.
To make sure that there is no scope for mediocrity, and not to tolerate indiscipline.
Give the freedom to make mistakes so that what you finally arrive at is a piece of gem.

To decipher a brief and explain it to the team in the most sensible and uncomplicated manner so that they can focus their mind to come up with the right solution rather than getting trapped in the web of jargons.
Then guide them in ideation to execution.
To identify the right spark and then convert it to a bushfire.

Tell us about your 1st job as a Creative Director in advertising.
It’s very tough thing because when you are working on so many brands at the same time , there are no firsts…as they don’t happen in a chronological manner. But I remember my major work as a Creative Director was on Onida, where we decided to bid goodbye to the Devil that was associated with the brand for around 20 years and repositioned the brand.

Do you think brands whose advertising wins awards, do well in the market?
Of course, they do. Because the jury who decides the awards, are the same people who would have spent their entire life creating big brands and they probably won’t go wrong. They look at the merit of the idea and not just the execution.
In fact it’s the brand that does well in the market win awards.
Obviously, it also varies from awards to awards. There are effectiveness awards, creative awards and media awards. And every award has its own criteria.
I would say a brand doing well in the market by itself is an award.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals??
Advertising is a serious business, and it is great fun if you understand the seriousness involved. It’s a 24/7 job. If you are not addicted, passionate, ready to meet deadlines as if you’re meeting your lover, love working under pressure as if playing angry birds sitting on your pot, if you can’t take rejections in your stride and bounce back,  you should stay away.

Not every piece of work you come up with will end up as landmark campaign. Many will go straight to the bins and very few see the light of the day. So, think that every time you fall in love in the day, it might just end up as a one night stand.
So enjoy those few moments before getting dumped.
Learn to enjoy the journey and you will realize that it takes many short journeys before you arrive at the destination.

Would you like to tell us something about your upcoming campaigns?
Right now I’m on a sabbatical. Just finished working on a script for a feature film and it’ll go on floor in September. It’s a romantic comedy

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
I would have liked to take Mother Teresa out for dinner. She would have taught me how much to consume without wasting food while there are lakhs of  children going to bed empty stomach every night. A dinner over an enlightening conversation.

But that would be after I have had lunch with Penelope Cruz

What’s on your iPod?
For me music is freedom. And I can enjoy music only if it is mixed with pure air, float in the fragrance of my surroundings, and blend with the ambience before touching my soul.  I don’t like it trapped in a wire and getting stuffed into my ears.
My iPod Touch is for my daughter to play games. To keep her away from the imported Chinese cartoon characters.

Mac or PC??
It’s what I do with them makes a Mac or a PC, what they are.  Content is king and they are just electronic slaves. I’m happy with either or neither. I need them when I want them.

Après le focus et l’interview de 20syl dans le cadre de Fubiz TV, voici en exclusivité le nouveau clip du collectif de Djs C2C. Réalisée par Dai-Dai Tran pour illustrer le morceau « The Beat », cette création visuellement très réussie reprend graphiquement l’univers et le tempo du morceau. A découvrir dans la suite.

Graphic Designer and  Type Designer from Kathmandu, Nepal, 29 years old, 9 years experience in design field, also a CSS Developer and Photographer. Recently working in Grafioffshore Nepal as a Senior Graphic Designer.

Why are you a Graphic Designer?
I was always interested in Design and Typography.

Did you attend school for fine art or design?
I was a Managment student because there were no any design colleges in Nepal at that time. After completion of Bachelor in Business Administration, I attended a two years intermediate course in Fine Arts from Lalitkala Fine Art Campus.

You have a distinct style of Design. How long did it take you to develop your style?
I don’t think I have consistent style of Design. It keeps on changing everytime.

How did you develop your fascination for Typography and creating your own type faces?
I always wanted to try new fonts for my designs. Seeing same devanagari fonts everywhere was boring. Then, I tried creating fonts with little know how.  People need to understand the importance of distinct typography in design and branding. There are some really good Nepali Devanagari fonts designed in Nepal but they have become old and overused now. Every advertisement looks the same because of the fonts. So, I’m trying to inspire new designers to try something new.

Have you converted your type designs as computer fonts?
Yes, all my fonts which are completed can be downloaded free from www.nepalifonts.blogspot.com and www.anandakm.com.np I’m still working on some new devanagari font designs which will be posted when completed. The devanagari fonts are based on old QWERTY keyboards, probably Remington typewriter, may be little different from hindi keyboard. I haven’t converted them to unicode. Unicode fonts for designing is not practiced in Nepal, unicode are only used in web.

Do you see a market for fonts? As in, are you able to sell your typefaces?
No, there’s no market for fonts in Nepal. I haven’t sold any fonts till now.

Hows the market for Graphic Design and Typography in Nepal?
The market for Graphic Design in Nepal is growing. It’s good. Now, there are lots of great design companies, advertising agencies, web companies,  publication houses and also design outsourcing. But not market for font . Some advertising agencies also create devanagari fonts. But completing whole sets of characters to make a font is really time consuming.

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
Dont’t remember any.

Who was the most influential personality on your career in graphic design?
My brothers who are in design and advertising industries.

When did you start freelancing?
I only taken few projects from my friends companies and personal relations.

Was there any time when you wanted to quit graphic design?
Yes, after working 5 years in Print Designing, I quit and started web designing, css codings. And again after 2 years in css coding, I’m back working as a Graphic Designer.

Are many advertising agencies hiring graphic designers? Do you work more with agencies or publishers?
Yes, there are lots of creative ad agencies which hire designers and pay good amount. And there are also good magazine publishers and press, publication houses which hire designers. So, the scope of Graphic Designing  is growing in Nepal. I have worked with publication houses, web companies, some ad agencies and outsourcing companies.

Do you have clients who give you steady work or do you advertise for new clients often?
Yes, I have some regular clients. I really don’t advertise for new clients.

Any other Indian graphic designers who you admire?
Right now, I remember Achyut Palav and Satya Rajpurohit.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals? Would you advise them to take on graphic design as a career option?
Sure, I encourage them to take on graphic design as a career. And I want to inspire them to try something new typography and come up with new nepali devanagari fonts and I’m always ready them to help them.

Do you think Clients are opening up to keeping aside a decent respectable budget for design work? Do you think clients are understanding that they need to invest in Design as a communication tool and also to cut the clutter, and that good design comes at a price?
There are various types of clients in Nepal. Some pay good amount for good work while some pay less and want unique designs. Some clients want clean design, while some doesn’t want to leave any white spaces in design, they want to fill all the spaces with text, images and big logos. So, it also becomes our responsibility to educate clients and convince them to approve better designs.

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
Park Min Young

What’s on your iPod?
Priscilla Ahn, Kina Grannis, Dia Frampton, Narayan Gopal, BhaktaRaj Acharya etc.

Mac or PC?
PC and Dell Laptop

Sabeena Karnik is a Graphic Designer from Mumbai. She is a freelancer specializing in paper typography and has developed her own style in 3D sculpturing using paper. Her recent works include a typography campaign for Tanishq jewellery and a title design for a short documentary for The American Cancer Society. She teaches painting, calligraphy and sells art in her free time.

Why are you a Graphic Designer?
Right since I can remember, art was chasing me. I always had a pencil in hand and colors were in plenty. I would be doodling all the time, even the walls of my house were not spared. So taking up art as a career was a very natural instinct. It was a hard choice to make between applied art and fine art. But I can never make something just to keep myself happy, I think that is what fine art is all about. For me creating something has to be for others be it a product, the way it looks, the way it is presented. That is basically the work of a graphic designer. Hence it had to be applied art. I do a lot of paintings too, but its again an idea that I am presenting and working around.

Did you attend school for fine art or design?
Yes, I graduated from Sophia Polytechnic Institute of Art and Design in Mumbai, with a typography major.

You have a distinct style of Typographic expression. How did you develop this style?
Its been a fascination ever since I was a kid. I used to cut out and collect alphabets that looked unique. I loved letters so much that I started drawing them out and developing my own style. Thats when I got immersed in Calligraphy too. In the meantime paper brought the sculpturor out in me. Paper has the most magnificent ability to turn into anything with the right technique and application. Each fold, bend and curve can be interpreted differently. It has so much of depth.
In a way now, I am combining the three, paper, typography and calligraphy. Typography being the skeleton while the inner detailing being calligraphy, just done all with paper. The photography is an integral part of my work. The end product has to be captured in the right kind of light, which can give multiple views to the viewer and thereby alter what is being conveyed.

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
I haven’t had any one particular role model. Places and people in general have always fascinated me. My travels to Africa as a child have helped to find my own perspective as an artist. Stories I came across in people, nature, artworks I have seen have played a major role in bringing out the artist in me.

Who was the most influential personality on your career in graphic design?
Achyut Palav under whom I learnt calligraphy has been very influential. Im also inspired by Jen Stark a young paper sculpturer, her works defy the force of gravity.

When did you start freelancing?
I started Freelancing in 2008. I did a lot of logo and corporate identity independently, lived in Africa for a few years and worked for design houses, made paper products for an NGO, did paintings for an art store. Freelancing happened out of choice. It gives a me time and opportunities to discover my own potential everyday through the assignments I get. Over the last one year the focus has shifted to typography purely. The paper typography project that started as personal work, has now garnered so much interest by public and designers from all over the world, it made me take my capability of it more seriously, and to develop it further.

Was there any time when you wanted to quit graphic design?
I have taken breaks but never felt like quitting.

Are many advertising agencies hiring graphic designers/typographers? Do you work more with agencies or publishers?
Yes agencies are hiring designers with special skills all the time. There is always a demand for fresh new work and ideas that are out of the box. Your work has to be seen by the right people at the right time.
Unfortunately, type design is not given the importance it deserves in India.
I have worked with agencies, a tv producer and at the moment with a publisher too for a book cover design.

Do you have clients who give you steady work or do you advertise for new clients often?
Steady work is constant and clients change constantly too. The best way to advertise yourself to the world is to showcase all your creative work and keep updating your skills.

Any other Indian graphic designers who you admire?
I admire the work of Raja Sandhu. He is based in Canada. Strong typography, simple and stylish work.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals? Would you advise them to take on graphic design as a career option?
I would advice aspiring creative professionals to not forget to draw. The computer is a tool. Find your own calling and pursue that. Do not hesitate to be different. Have the best work from your portfolio in design sites and promote your work in the right way. Keep looking for inspiration and keep sketching. The pencil is mightier than anything else. Also, I will add, designing and art isn’t everything. Travel, read, meet people, broaden and expand Syour horizon.

Do you think Clients are opening up to keeping aside a decent respectable budget for design work? Do you think clients are understanding that they need to invest in Design as a communication tool and also to cut the clutter, and that good design comes at a price?
Clients have a very big budget to advertise their brand. To an extent it depends on the brand also.
And if that involves good  design so be it. The agency gets the better of it and a small part of it goes to the designer thats been hired. Like I said earlier, very few campaigns in India involve good illustration and type design. The trend is slowly changing.

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
Leonardo Da Vinci. We would need an interpreter though.
Jeff Nishinaka. He is the most brilliant Japanese paper sculpturer.

What’s on your iPod?
From western Classical to pop, Bach to Backstreet Boys

Mac or PC?
Neither at the moment
But a mac as a laptop and PC as desktop.

Sabeena’s work can be found here.