Bobby Sista, an adman who lived by the axiom touching lives
Guest Column: Yogesh Pawar, Programme Director, Population First, pens down the industry's recollections of Bobby Sista, one of the pioneers of Indian advertising
"To allow oneself to be embittered and let that negative experience to colour one's whole understanding of life is self-defeating. It means the other side wins," advertising doyen and founder of Population First Mr Shambhu Venkatrao Sista (better known by his advertising world moniker Bobby) told me on the sidelines of the 17th South Asia Laadli Media and Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity awards ceremony. "In doing so you let the other side win."
The nonagenarian adman Bobby Sista who lived by this axiom touching lives of everyone around wherever he went breathed his last at 2.15 pm on July 27th 2024 at Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital where he fought a protracted battle with illness and multiple age-related complications.
Though he spent more than half a century in advertising he would modestly joke about getting into this field in the early 1950s only because he "didn't know what else to do." It will be pertinent to point out here that Sista's Sales and Publicity Services, the earliest advertising agency in India, was founded and owned by his father Venkatrao Sista back in 1934. While the world was still in the grips of a Great Depression, Mahatma Gandhi had begun working on eradicating untouchability after calling off the Civil Disobedience Movement against the British and ominous clouds of WWII - which came five years later - had begun to gather
Later, when the senior Sista partnered with Vajid Mahmood, an adman who had previously worked with J Walter Thompson before founding AdArts, the business became known as AdArts. However, Mahmood and AdArts relocated to Pakistan in 1947 post-Partition. And Venkatrao found himself back at the helm of the agency he founded.
Soon after his graduation in 1950, destiny rolled her dice in a life-altering way for the Sistas. Both Bobby and his sister had accompanied their father to an advertising seminar at King's College, London as young delegates. The seminar had them hooked and the siblings decided to stay back and enrol in an advertising course. But when they lost their father in an air crash in 1951 their lives would change in ways they never envisaged.
After Venkatrao passed away, Premnarayen, who had been appointed by one of the directors, assumed leadership at his ad agency Sista's. Premnarayen made a young Bobby a job offer at the agency at a monthly salary of Rs 600 when the young Sistas returned. Though reluctant, Bobby agreed.
To the chagrin of the Sista family, Premnarayen headed their father's agency for 18 years. Due to the fact that he "made a career out of not only surviving but also thriving after working under that man for six and a half years," Bobby viewed his time working under Premnarayen as pivotal. This is what he was alluding to when he spoke of not getting embittered.
He used this experiences to turn around the sinking agency when he finally took charge after Premnarayen's contract ended. Bobby elevated Sista's to the top 10 agencies in India over the ensuing decade. He worked with Dancer, Fitzgerald, and Sample (DFS), which merged into Dancer, Dorland, and Fortune (DDF) in 1971 and landed the prestigious Cathay Pacific account. After that there was no looking back.
Around the time that L K Advani's rathyatra was changing the course of India's political history (1991-92) Sista's tied up with BSB (Backer, Spielvogel and Bates). But the alliance was short-lived as BSB wanted to launch the cigarette brands Benson & Hedges and 555. Bobby Sista put his foot down insisting his agency would - on principle - not want any truck with promoting cigarette brands.
Senior ad-man Prahlad Kakkar remembers the shock waves this sent through the advertising fraternity. "Considering the sheer amount of money involved, it spoke of rare character to stand on principle. But that was how Bobby was. Once he made up his mind there was no rethink."
Premier Auto, Kerala Soap Industries, Vijaya Butter, HMT Watches, Canara Bank (for which Sista also designed the logo), VIP (suitcase), Aristocrat (suitcase), and Nycil were among the other accounts that the firm worked on around this time.
Meanwhile the PV Narasimha Rao government had ushered in liberlisation in 1991. With it new brands began tip-toeing into the Indian market. Following in their heels were new agencies and the whole game was changing. Bobby Sista handed over reins to V Shantakumar as MD to run the agency and began exploring collaborations. In 1995 Saatchi & Saatchi showed interest.
Three years later he would sell his stake in the agency to begin an entirely new chapter. Kakkar recalls, "Bobby felt it was time to give back to society."
Accordingly in March 2002, he registered Population First under the Bombay Public Trusts Act (1950) in order to use media influence and communication to address the nation's social and demographic problems.
Dr A L Sharada who worked closely with Bobby Sista at Population First for over 20 years remembers how they jointly created a plan to focus on gendered mindsets which undermine the value of girls and women, promote discrimination against them and justify gender based violence. "We recognised that the real challenge is change such mindsets," she said lamenting being away in the US, unable to pay her respects personally. "Though I was aware that he is ageing and battling several medical complications, the news of his passage has devastated me as he was a close confidante, mentor, well wisher and friend rolled into one."
Veteran theatre actor and casting director Dolly Thakore who is - a national coordinator for Population First - remembered Bobby Sista as the kindest soul she has known. "He wouldn't ever say anything unkind about about anyone, even those who had gone out of their way to hurt him." She should considering their acquaintance went back to 55 years. "My early memory of him goes back to when he was beginning in the ad world and had a fashion show for Lakshmi Vishnu Textiles. My sister modelled and I was compering the event."
She also recounted his support when her late partner Alyque left her. "He knew what my strengths were and always found a way of giving me some work or the other to sustain," she said and added, "And this was done without ever trying to emphasise that he was helping me by going out of the way."
(Senior journalist Yogesh Pawar is currently Programme Director, Population First)
