Mayuresh Dubhashi: “It Feels Like a Renaissance in India Right Now”
With two decades of experience, FCB India’s chief creative officer, Mayuresh Dubhashi has worked on some of the biggest brands in the country, from The Times of India and Airtel to PepsiCo, P&G, Oreo, Flipkart, Amazon and more.
He's been at the forefront of combining new-age technologies with classic storytelling in his work which includes designing the Indian cricket team's jersey using data, as well as turning an Oreo cookie into an AI tool to express oneself. His #BringBack2011 work for Orea was recognised as India's most awarded creative campaign for 2023 and he has received a string of national and international awards, including multiple Grand Prix at Spikes Asia.
At FCB India, Mayuresh is at the forefront of the company’s creative efforts and he is also a key member of FCB Group India’s Creative Council, collaborating with leaders across agencies to continue to elevate the work across the network.
In this interview, LBB’s Sunna Coleman speaks with Mayuresh about mutated creativity, the holy trinity for propelling ideas and what’s most exciting about the Indian market right now.
LBB> Tell us about how you got involved with FCB Group India’s Creative Council. What was your reaction and why did this responsibility feel right for you to take on?
Mayuresh> The FCB Group India Creative Council is a brain trust to further the creative quality of work. It’s meant to be a place where good ideas are pressure tested and made better. I am personally quite excited and looking forward to partnering with the other council members to forward this agenda, because it’s the absolute right thing to do.
Different points of view often help sharpen the thinking and we are strong believers in building up an idea by putting it through the wringer.
LBB> What’s first on your agenda in your mission to develop groundbreaking work that resonates with audiences?
Mayuresh> First and foremost we want to embrace ‘mutant’ creativity. It’s the kind of work that can’t be categorised as just a film or print or outdoor campaign or digital innovation. It’s supposed to be a mix of anything and everything. The business-solving idea becomes the core, the packaging of that idea and how it’s supposed to reach the audience is where the new and evolved and mutated comes in.
We are operating in an attention deficit world; films, songs, reels and TV shows compete with advertising work, so we better do something new and different, and dare I say, disruptive.
LBB> What are some of the creative challenges that brands in India are currently facing?
Mayuresh> Brands need to be far more adaptive and responsive to how the audience is consuming content or communication. Just relying on classical mediums and ways to reach them is going to get tougher with every passing day. There’s a general growing sense of apathy towards an ‘ad’. The good part is that this point isn’t lost to marketers and there’s an effort to package work differently.
Now, it’s just the question of doing this consistently over a period of time. I can even confidently say that the adoption rate of new-age communication solutions is on the rise.
LBB> The Council will be embracing new-age problem-solving. What are some of the new-age tools and solutions that are being utilised?
Mayuresh> AI, tech and data – this will be the holy trinity; the fuel that will propel ideas. But one thing is for sure, doing something for the sake of it never works. So, if an idea deserves a particular tool/tech to bring it to life, we will use it. We, as an industry, are still experimenting with a lot of new technologies and the future is exciting as a result. The learning curve is steep, but that’s the price to pay to just keep ourselves ahead of the game.
LBB> The team is made up of incredibly talented individuals who are diverse in their backgrounds and expertise. What are you excited to bring to the table and what role would you like to play?
Mayuresh> It’s always nice to be in a room where there are people who know things that you don’t. The learning never stops as a result. In return I’ll love to share all the past experiences across brands that I’ve had. Be it mixing up mediums to communicate or using technology or combining technology with design to launch a new product; it’s going to be a healthy exchange of knowledge for sure.
LBB> What do you most love about the Indian market?
Mayuresh> We are at the inflection point right now for sure. The brands, the marketers and the audience in India are operating in this heady atmosphere of innovation, disruption and anticipation. It feels like a renaissance.
The marketing calendar is quite robust; we have consistent and healthy patterns of spends with sales and festivals and cricket that keeps everyone busy. There’s this wonderful sense of ‘what new can we do’ across the industry. And that’s a great place to be in, because the desire to outperform the competition will only move the industry standards up.
LBB> How would you like to see brands push themselves more creatively in India?
Mayuresh> Be brave. Remain brave. Believe in the brave. I think many brands across categories have started understanding the value of brave work; creative work. The audience has matured too and are wanting to be wooed by the right things.
LBB> What is one piece of advice that you have learned in your career that you would like to share?
Mayuresh> The more things change, the more they remain the same. Our business has been, and will always be, about the idea. It was the gospel truth across the print, radio and TV eras of advertising. So no new technology or AI will ever be able to work without that very human, intuitive process of connecting disparate bits of information and data points to come up with a world-changing idea.
LBB> Lastly, how do you personally stay creative?
Mayuresh> Books remain top of the list. They are the greatest source of ideas and new thinking. But I’d also like to add gaming to the list; especially console gaming.
Today, games are sweeping sagas that have innovation built in, high-end craft across design and animation, voice acting and CG coming out of every frame. They do a damn good job of holding your attention for an average of 30-35 hours of gameplay. If that’s not good storytelling, I don’t know what is.
