Shashi Vandrevala: My first client who taught me so much

The year was 1986. I had just joined HTA Delhi. For those who may not know, HTA was Hindustan Thompson Associates, which later became Wunderman Thompson and is now VML. I was hired as an Account Executive, the least common denominator in the system and was assigned to the hotel Maurya Sheraton (now ITC Maurya Delhi) account.

My predecessor on the account was a very attractive young lady who was getting married, and moving out of Delhi. She had been very popular with the client and not too many of my peers saw me as a worthy enough successor to the vivacious lady. But the mantle had befallen me, and I was to now be HTA’s ‘representative’ at the Maurya.

My client interface, I was told, would be Ms. Shashi Vandrevala, the hotel’s head of sales and marketing. Shashi was reputed to be a taskmaster - the girls in the sales team were petrified of her, or so I was told. Shashi was on first-name basis with most diplomats in the national capital; she lived in Delhi’s tony Chanakyapuri and her husband was supposed to be a big shot in some big fancy company.

My first meeting with Ms. Vandrevala started on a not-too-auspicious note. Shashi was even more impressive (and intimidating if I may say so) when I met her in person at her office. She was tall - maybe 5’8” or more, draped in a beautiful chiffon saree and with a signature string of pearls around the neck. I was honestly a bit tongue-tied by the lady’s dominating persona. In any case, I introduced myself and sat down opposite her.

“Agenda?” she asked. I hadn’t carried one. “Can’t have a meeting without an agenda,” she said matter-of-factly. I felt really stupid. She was right but they hadn’t taught me this at management school. I was dismissed. “Tomorrow please bring an agenda.” The meeting was over. But I had learnt my first valuable lesson from the debacle - no agenda, no meeting. Forty years later, I have not forgotten that basic first lesson of client servicing.

Next day was an even bigger disaster. I had carried a meeting agenda but this time Ms. Vandrevala opened the meeting saying, “Let us start with your unapproved estimates and outstandings. With me, in every meeting financials are the first item on the agenda so that business fundamentals are in good shape. After all, business is all about money, no?” I could not but agree with her 100% but I hadn’t carried the outstanding statement. The meeting would have most certainly been terminated once again, except that Shashi Vandrevala perhaps saw my crestfallen face and took pity.

I learnt very quickly. Got organised and prepared. Was fully aware of my entire job list and in full control of all the pipeline jobs. Thereafter working with Shashi (she insisted I address her by her first name) was a dream. Quick, efficient meetings, instant approvals or rejections, meaningful and constructive feedback, realistic deadlines - I quickly settled into the routine.

The first piece of turbulence, however, came a couple of weeks later. Shashi handed me a brief for a smorgasbord F&B promotion. I took the brief and headed back to the agency. But I wasn’t sure what a smorgasbord was. I had never heard of it. I headed straight to the small library at HTA. I pulled out the dictionary (there
was no Google back then to Search) but there was no ‘smorgasbord’ in the English dictionary. It was most likely a foreign word.

I hesitated on what to do. Finally decided that discretion was the better part of valour - I went back to Shashi to ask what smorgasbord was. “Oh! Sandy you’ve never experienced a smorgasbord?” Shashi laughed. She pulled me to the F&B manager’s office and together we trooped up to the kitchens to meet the chef. “From now on Chef, every time there is a brief to the agency on a F&B promotion, you will call Sandy and give him and his creative team a full sampling of the offerings,” Shashi instructed. And so it became the norm - paranthas, chicken, burgers, hotpots, fondues - a whole new world of delicious gastronomic offerings suddenly opened up for me and the creative team! And yes, before I proceed any further you must still want to know what is a smorgasbord - a range of open sandwiches and delicacies served as hors d'oeuvres or a buffet!

Shashi mentored me. She guided me. She questioned me. Occasionally she even reprimanded me when work was not good enough or tacky. I was a quick learner - sponging new nuances on the marketing of luxury and MICE, getting to imbibe new domains like food photography, aerial picturisation of large properties… Shashi was a patient but strict teacher. I tried my best to internalize and absorb as much as I could.

The work was varied… creating Razzmatazz, a disco dance competition for The Ghungroo to launch of the Dum Pukht Awadhi restaurant. Every day was a new day. Shashi would have something to contribute to every brief; she would question every presentation and never accept anything sub-standard. I learnt from her that quality was never to be compromised or accepted at sub-optimal levels. Another lesson I have treasured for decades.

Very soon Shashi and I formed a very strong bond. She cut a huge cake for me when I got engaged; gifted Tanya and me lots of honeymoon goodies - she sure did know how to make you feel special. As for me Shashi’s every wish was my command. We became a wonderful team together.

When I quit HTA four years later to move on to my next job, it was Shashi Vandrevala that I missed the most.

Shashi now lives a retired life in London. We are still in reasonable touch. Whenever we are in the UK, Shashi still smothers us with love and affection. It makes us feel special.

I couldn’t have asked for a better first client than Ms. Vandrevala. She was smart; she was phenomenally well organised; she didn’t suffer fools. I just learnt to measure up and the lessons learnt from her nearly 40 years ago have guided me and inspired me as I started to lead teams, and later companies.

Shashi is even today my Shero. They no longer make women like her anymore.