BackDentsu Creative appoints Ajay Gahlaut as group chief creative officer
Dentsu India initiated the formation of a new structure for its creative service line in June this year. The rejig, part of the network’s global plan to transform into the most integrated group in the world by 2024, brings together its creative agencies under one umbrella
PremiumNEW DELHI: Dentsu India on Friday announced the appointment of Ajay Gahlaut as group chief creative officer of Dentsu Creative. He will report in Amit Wadhwa, chief executive, Dentsu Creative India.
Gahlaut will be responsible for accelerating Dentsu India’s creative businesses under one optimised service line. Dentsu India initiated the formation of a new structure for its creative service line in June this year. The rejig, part of the network’s global plan to transform into the most integrated group in the world by 2024, brings together its creative agencies under one umbrella. The agency brands that come together under this new creative design include Dentsu Webchutney, Taproot Dentsu, WATConsult, Perfect Relations, Isobar, Dentsu One, Dentsu India and Dentsu Impact.
Wadhwa said Dentsu India is in the midst of a transformation journey towards dentsu India 2.0 and Ajay’s joining is a critical part of the plan.
"Ajay is a well-respected creative leader with years of experience across categories and the right mindset that matches with dentsu India 2.0. With the brilliant Creative minds in our business, we will be a force to be reckoned with, delivering growth for our clients while continuing our creative evolution at pace and scale," he added.
Gahlaut, with over 27 years of experience in advertising, was working with advertising agency Publicis Worldwide, India, as chief creative officer and managing director till June 2020.
Gahlaut joined Publicis from Ogilvy where he was chief creative officer, Ogilvy North and deputy CCO, Ogilvy India. Prior to Ogilvy, he has had stints with McCann, Saatchi & Saatchi, among others. He has worked on brands such as Pernod Ricard, BMW, KFC, Taco Bell, Dabur, Perfetti Van Melle, Mother Dairy, Pizza Hut and Philips, among others.
He wrote the line ‘Do Boond Zindagi Ki’ that anchored the famous Pulse Polio Immunisation campaign with Amitabh Bachchan. He was also the man behind the line ‘Make It Large’ tagline for the whiskey brand Royal Stag, 'Men will be men' series of campaigns for whiskey brand Imperial Blue and created the character ‘Mr. Murthy’ for Voltas air conditioners.
On his new role Gahlaut said, “Dentsu’s creativity defines generations. When the opportunity came to join Amit and his team, I could not refuse. Creativity is in the spotlight, with brands looking to differentiate themselves in a disrupted marketplace – it has never been a more exciting time to work in this field rich with opportunity."
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