MAM
MTV Music Summit for AIDS, says, ‘Stand Up, Speak Up’
MUMBAI: ‘Stand Up, Speak Up’ — spread the message of HIV/Aids awareness is what MTV India is promoting as part of its MTV Music Summit for Aids.
The fourth MTV Music Summit, which has the theme of ‘women’s empowerment’ will be held on 12 November in Mumbai.
MTV Networks India VP marketing and digital Vikram Raizada said, “Women take charge, Men be responsible. The message that we want to convey to men and women, especially women who have the right to make a choice and also that equal co-operation and responsibility are needed from men.”
Raizada further pointed out that the aim is to reach MTV’s target-audience (TG) as “We reflect them, we lead them.”
The music summit aims at the young audience with strong messages about avoiding infection and the need for love and compassion in caring for people with HIV/Aids.
Performers will raise their voice towards Aids awareness and preventing the spread of the virus at the summit. MTV has selectively chosen to participate in relevant social issues involving the youth. For the same, the music channel has tied up with Doordarshan and Zee TV for the telecast of the Music Summit for Aids.
At present, the promos of MTV Music Summit for Aids are on air on Zee TV and Doordarshan, besides the MTV platform. The channel also used the platform of Zee TV’s musical talent show — Sa Re Ga Ma Pa. The two channels have joined hands to promote the social cause of Aids awareness.
And what better way to reach the youth and the rest of the world through the Bollywood stars and singers who will be performing at the event. Besides Bombay Vikings, Shaan, Strings, Abijeet Sawant and Amit Sana; the finalist of Sa Re GA Ma Pa Challenge 2005 will also perform at the MTV Music Summit.
Bollywood actors are also expected to come on stage and pledge to spread the awareness message of HIV/Aids.
The event is sponsored by Standard Chartered and Whisper Ultra. While, the associate sponsors are Visa, Streax – Hair Colour and Cadbury Perk. The channel has also tied-up with TV Today’s Aaj Tak.
In 2006, MTV Asia will broadcast the 8th Wonder of the World, a semi-annual concert series to benefit HIV/Aids efforts in association with YouthAids and entertainment mogul, Lou Pearlman. The ten part concert series is scheduled to take place bi-annually in exotic locations around the world, with the first concert on 25 February, 2006, at the Taj Mahal in Agra.
On the global front, MTV International had been involved in a similar purpose with the MTV’s Staying Alive project. This was launched in 1998 as a global multimedia campaign to spread the message about HIV/Aids, given the continuing ignorance about the virus and the disease.
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.
