KV Sridhar, NCD, Leo Burnett

Creativity in advertising is not writing a story with a twist in the end. Real creativity is to crack a problem and give a solution that builds value for the client. Real creativity is all about generating relevant insights, breaking barriers and changing human behaviour.

The first job of KV Sridhar, better known as Pops, was to hand-paint billboards for Bollywood films. In his first real job after college, he rose from an intern to the head of art department in 18 months. Today, he is National Creative Director of Leo Burnett India and a familiar face in the Indian ad world.

Along the way, Pops has worked at many leading ad agencies in India and managed clients like Unilever, P&G, Johnson & Johnson, Heinz, McDonald’s and Coca-Cola. Under his creative leadership, Leo Burnett India went on to win Agency of the Year in the Leo Burnett global network twice.

Last year, Leo Burnett India won six Lions at Cannes, including two Gold Lions, Print and Outdoor Grand Prix at India’s GoaFest and multiple awards at all major award shows, including One Show, D&AD and Clio. He is credited with the emergence of Leo Burnett as a creative powerhouse in India. ‘Creativity’ magazine ranks Leo Burnett India among top 20 creative agencies in the world.

Pops has been on several Indian and international awards juries and was Chairman of GoaFest Outdoor jury last year. He likes to paint and spend time with his two children. In conversation with exchange4media’s Pallavi Goorha Kashyup, Pops talks about India’s performance at Cannes Lions 2009, the impact of the economic slowdown, and Leo Burnett India’s growth plans.



Q. What are the most valuable learnings/ experiences that you have had in your stint in advertising?

Creativity in advertising is not writing a story with a twist in the end. Real creativity is to crack a problem and give a solution that builds value for the client. Real creativity is all about generating relevant insights, breaking barriers and changing human behaviour.

Many clients have also been shooting ads in India instead of opting for foreign locales. I believe that everything needed for a great shoot is available in our own country. Exceptions can be made, however, at times when a location specific issue arises. For example, the need to shoot in an airport or the need for snowscapes, etc., could result in an overseas shoot. Moreover, Indian advertising has become more Indianised. It would be impossible to shoot a Rajasthan or create a ‘Mini-Chennai’ in some other part of the world.

Q. What, according to you, are the major implications of the economic slowdown for the advertising industry?

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Clients do realise that advertising is essential for sales. I believe that people have become much more value conscious and expect much higher levels of effectiveness from communication. Therefore, they demand more value from creatives. However, this has not resulted in a slowdown in spends. However, clients do want things to be done at a lesser cost. People are cutting down on wastage and want more value for money. It is a good lesson for all managers.

Q. You have lost talents such as Santosh Padhi and Sukumar Menon. Any plans to fill in their posts? Are we going to see any more people movement in Leo Burnett?

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People like Santosh Padhi (Paddy) are very difficult to replace. Our credo has always been – to discover young talented Paddys in the industry and then groom them to the same level in a quick timespan.

Q. Which are the three ads that you really like, which are running on TV these days?

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The Zoo Zoo campaign, New York Max Life, and Big Bubble ads.

Q. How do you see the advertising scenario panning out in the coming year? What are your industry growth expectations?

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The global advertising industry is groaning under the pressure of the economic meltdown. However, the story in India is a different one. The Indian economy has been forecasted as the fastest growing one. I expect the advertising industry in India to grow at a rate of 10-15 per cent per annum. In such a growing market, television will always remain an extremely important medium. However, marketers will have to realise that ads are not enough to tap entire India. Brands will need acts. Brands will need ideas that are media neutral and big enough to impact any corner of our vast country.

Q. What are your future plans for Leo Burnett?

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I would like to make Leo Burnett the best in the world bar none. This will be achieved with our new ‘Humankind approach’ and our belief that creativity has the power to change human behaviour.

Q. What do you have to say about India’s performance at the recently held Cannes Festival?

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We have performed extremely well at Cannes over the last few years. Of course, you cannot really compare last year with this year. Last year, spectacular work like the Luxor and Lead India campaigns dominated Cannes; and such brilliant work comes up perhaps only once in a decade. However, if you remove such work, we would have done just as well. What is really noteworthy is the consistency of our performance, and that makes me very proud and confident for the future. We at Leo Burnett won three 3 metals.

Q. What percentage of globally aligned business does Leo Burnett India get?

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We handle all our network’s MNC clients in India like Procter & Gamble, McDonalds, General Motors, Samsung and Diageo. The only exception from our global kitty is the Kelloggs business. Leo Burnett India gets 40 per cent of the globally aligned business.

Q. What is your medium and long term strategy for Leo Burnett’s growth in India?

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I strongly believe that an agency is only as good as the work it produces. My focus has and always will be the power of the work that we create, and its capability to connect strongly with local consumers.

Building powerful brands is something we at Leo Burnett have done with great success; be it making Glucon-D the most trusted brand in its category, making Thums Up the most successful cola brand in India, or partnering Tide in its journey to overtake Rin. My key focus, therefore, is to maintain this standard and take it to the next level.