MAM
Inorbit to up marketing spends by 50% next fiscal
BENGALURU: Taking into account the number of footfalls that multiplex screens bring, Inorbit Malls (India) Pvt. Ltd., plans to add screens at all its properties, including the existing ones that don’t have them.
The company also plans to up its marketing spends from about Rs 100 million to Rs 150 million next fiscal with the addition of 2 more malls – one each in Bangalore and Baroda respectively. The Bangalore Mall will open on Independence Day – August 15 and the Baroda mall will open by March 2013.
Inorbit rents out space in its malls on a minimum guarantee plus fair share of revenue model, hence it makes sense for it to increase footfalls in its properties as well as to up the average spends per customer from the current Rs 700 approximately. The company conducts a number of BTL activities to increase consumer interaction in its mall catchment areas.
“Besides shopping, we want to provide entertainment to the customer at our malls. Even for the new format of smaller shopping centres with around 200,000 square feet such as the one that we are planning in Pune, we are looking at around four screens with seating capacities ranging from 350 to around 150,” said Inorbit CEO Kishore Bathija.
“In malls such as our first one which was in Malad in Mumbai where we did not have any screens initially, we have put up seven screens. Of the four functioning properties, at present we have seventeen screens working at three of the properties in operation, and have planned 31 screens at all the malls that have been constructed or are under construction,” added Bhatija.
For the Bangalore and the Baroda properties, Inorbit has planned five screens each. Bathija said that Inorbit was open to tie-ups with cinema chains in the country.
“To attract the consumer, we have been spending around Rs 20-25 million annually per mall towards print, online, events as well as radio every year on the four malls that we currently have in operation. The spends for the two new malls will be proportionate,” said Inorbit DGM Corporate Communications Nishank Joshi.
With around 3 million square feet of space, in operation and under construction, Inorbit has about 200 brands and 600 retailers on board at its malls.
Its creative duties are handled by Mudra and media buying by DDB Mudra.
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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.
