MAM
DDB Mudra brings Kharwatkar on board as creative director
MUMBAI: DDB Mudra has roped in Ashish Kharwatkar as creative director for its Mumbai office. He will be reporting in to DDB Mudra Mumbai ECD Louella Rebello.
Kharwatkar comes in from Lowe where he was creative director. He has also worked with Grey Worldwide, Enterprise Nexus (Bates 141), Masters DDB (Sri Lanka) and FCB Ulka among others. This is his second stint with DDB Mudra, where he worked on Volkswagen in 2009.
With over 12 years of industry experience, he has worked on a diverse set of categories ranging from automotive, FMCG, technology to media, hospitality, financial, retail and pharmaceutical. He has worked with brands of the world such as CEAT Tyres, Audi, Kinetic, Volkswagen, Surf Excel, Parle Marie, Citi Group, ICICI Bank, Toshiba, XYLYS, Carlton Resort, and Killer Jeans.
Rebello said, “Ashish has the perfect mix of experience and the right attitude. He‘s done some fine work across categories and I‘m looking forward to seeing him do some great work on our brands.”
Kjarwatkar said, “The main draw was the opportunity to work on an iconic brand like Volkswagen, again. Which brings us to the fact that, in my career, I have found myself coming back to Mudra, over and over again. I have worked with both, Mudra and DDB Mudra in India, and DDB in Sri Lanka. I guess what I like about the DDB Mudra Group is the focus on work (and work alone) and, more importantly, the people. Needless to say, I‘m looking forward to doing some good work.”
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
