MAM
ASCI secretary-general Manisha Kapoor named VP, ICAS executive committee
Mumbai: Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) general secretary Manisha Kapoor has been appointed to the executive committee of the International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (ICAS). She will be one of the four vice-presidents on the executive committee. Set up by the European Advertising Standards Alliance in 2008, ICAS is a global platform of self-regulatory organisations (SROs).
Until April this year, ASCI served on the executive committee as a member for a two-year term. Now, Kapoor will play a leadership role on the committee till 2023.
In her role as part of the ICAS leadership team, she will take forward the agenda of self-regulation globally. Some priority areas of ICAS for the next couple of years are:
● To promote advertising self-regulation as an optimal mechanism for consumer protection
● To strengthen ICAS as a global alliance
● To facilitate knowledge sharing among SROs to establish best practices
● To support emerging SROs across the globe
● To monitor global trends in the advertising ecosystem that impact self-regulation
● Work closely with established and emerging digital platforms to make the online space more transparent and fairer for consumers
Kapoor said, “This appointment is a recognition of ASCI’s growing global standing and influence in the narrative of responsible advertising, as well as the importance of Indian advertising industry itself at a global level. This offers us a chance to exchange learnings and best practices. With the Indian advertising industry evolving fast and digitalisation boosting growth, ASCI’s leadership of the ICAS executive committee will add new perspectives to the agenda of responsible advertising.”
ICAS is a globally established organisation with members comprising national and regional SROs, associations and international industry associations representing advertisers, the media and creative agencies, all working to ensure that advertising and marketing communication is legal, honest and decent.
The three other vice-presidents are one each from Canada, the USA and the World Federation of Advertisers. The ICAS president is from the United Kingdom.
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.
