Goafest 2022: 'I'd want for print and radio to be the minor categories that they really are'

 

Abhik Santara, director and CEO, ^ a t o m

 

The return of the Goafest is great news for the industry. And it should infuse the much-needed excitement in the fraternity.  In the last one and half years, multiple award shows have cropped up - starting from 5 under 5 to 60 under 60, and those have reduced the excitement some bit. But on the brighter side, they have also managed to recognise work/people who have tried to break the mold. 

 

The return of the Goafest should make things brighter.

 

Do these awards make business sense or impress a client, are questions we have to ask ourselves, but they do definitely make agencies feel more confident. 

 

^a t o m will participate in this season. Our creative team has been very watchful in not creating carbon copies of our own work, and the variety will help us enter into multiple categories. 

 

As a part of the industry, we should leave the past behind and participate wholeheartedly in this season. I am also hoping that the organisers will create special offers for younger agencies and create new categories to reward modern-day work. An iconic festival like Goafest should provide a perfect platform to acknowledge and recognise the drastic changes in the industry and celebrate work that truly represents this new wave, without past biases or hangovers. 

 

Anupriya Acharya, CEO,  Publicis Groupe, South Asia and president, AAAI

 

Goafest is the definitive festival for the advertising, media and marketing industry in the sub-continent. Since it is coming after a gap of two years, I expect a lot of anticipation and excitement around it from all quarters of the industry. But obviously, we are expecting very high levels of participation. Almost everyone is looking forward to reconnecting at the festival after two life-changing years. Plus two years is a long time in our industry so we expect a lot of newcomers joining in too this year. Personally, I can’t wait to get there!

 

Ashish Khazanchi, founder and managing partner, Enormous Brands

Goafest could be so much more. It's honestly a shadow of what used to be a glorious celebration of creativity and marketing thinking intersecting. I've always talked about the ghost of scam ads having destroyed the clients' and consequently our own faith and respect of the wins. As a side show they were fine, today the scams because of the numbers, downplay the hard fought real work, and therefore no one really cares apart from the seven art directors and their seventeen ardent followers on Pinterest. Ideally I'd want for print and radio to be the minor categories that they really are. That'd be taking cognizance of where the marketing dollars moved really. Most importantly, creative and planning people should be in Goafest managing committee and good marketing people on creative juries, and also creative and digital people on Effies boards and juries. That would probably pull us out a little of the nostalgic nineties.

 

Mehul Gupta, co-founder and CEO, SoCheers

 

Our team would be excited to get out and attend Goafest, they’ve missed the energy that the event brings to the work people in the industry manifest.

 

Would love to see how the industry brought their creative skills to create a change during the pandemic, how they helped bridge the gap for brands creatively at a time when everything was new for everyone, and how businesses of agencies thrived during these times.

 

Mitrajit Bhattacharya, office bearer, The Ad Club, Mancom member, IAA India chapter, chairperson, Effie India Awards

 

Pradeep Dwivedi, group CEO, Eros International Media

I am personally delighted to see Goafest and ABBYs back in onsite action and I hope it will be a great and safe success. Apart from this, I would expect awesome lineup of speakers who’d help make sense of rapidly emegering trends of marketing and advertising In post-pandemic world. The advent of digital and its intersection with social provides unique opportunities for the advertising industry and would be great to understand ground breaking work happening in the field.

 

Ramesh Narayan, founder, Canco Advertising

 

The Abby Awards at Goafest are the biggest tribute to creativity in India. I am delighted they are back and I will be attending the festival.

 

As someone who has been closely associated with the Abby Awards in many different capacities, I hope all the advertising agencies will participate by sending in entries. No one should stay away.

 

I also hope the organisers have a good cause they will support in the Young Abby's category and the winning entry will be run across the media.

 

And of course I hope the bonhomie and the networking that characterises this festival will be very much in evidence again.

 

Sam Balsara, chairman, Madison World

 

I am delighted that Goafest will be back. I look forward to it being bigger, brighter and more interesting and also a little different.