Brands
Canon shoots its shot with ‘Deep Dive’ masterclass for budding storytellers
MUMBAI: Lights, camera, level up! Canon India is stepping out from behind the camera and into the classroom with Deep Dive, an ambitious, first-of-its-kind masterclass series designed to empower the next wave of photographers, videographers, and filmmakers. But don’t expect a slideshow and a swag bag. This is Canon going full throttle into the creator economy lens-first.
Launched in collaboration with IFP, a global creator-first community, Deep Dive is Canon’s answer to an evolving creative landscape where storytellers need more than just inspiration. They need a complete toolkit: creative, technical, and professional. And that’s exactly what this masterclass promises a crash course in the entire visual workflow, from pre-shoot vision to post-production precision.
But what really gives Deep Dive its edge is its who’s who of mentors. Canon’s North Star Alliance has brought together industry powerhouses like Ravi K Chandran, Santosh Sivan, Anand Rathi, Sudeep Chatterjee, G Venket, and Siddharth Sharma names that carry weight not just in Indian cinema, but across international storytelling circles. Their mission? To share more than tips to pass on a legacy of craftsmanship in a world increasingly reliant on speed and surface.
The series aims to do away with the ‘point and shoot’ mindset and usher in a ‘plan and produce’ approach. Participants won’t just fiddle with Canon’s latest tech they’ll deep-dive into real-world workflows, exploring everything from camera setup and lighting design to colour grading, audio layering and final delivery. With Canon’s partners Aperture, Eizo, and Sennheiser backing the experience, there’s no corner of the production puzzle left untouched.
Each session is designed as a full-fledged, city-specific experiential journey, with experts from the wedding, cinema, and fashion industries leading live demonstrations. In Gurgaon, the first city on the map, Canon ambassador Siddharth Sharma kick-started the series with a session that blended insight with intensity and left participants clamouring for more.
Canon India president and CEO Toshiaki Nomura said, “At Canon, we deeply value creators and believe in their limitless creative potential. We recognize that to truly excel, creators need more than just inspiration—they need the right knowledge, cutting-edge technology, and hands-on experience to push their boundaries. They must evolve beyond being mere visual storytellers to mastering the entire workflow, from capturing the perfect shot to delivering a polished final product. With Deep Dive, Canon is proud to create an experiential platform where young, talented filmmakers and photographers can gain real-world expertise, engage with industry leaders, and experience the transformative power of Canon’s advanced imaging technology. Through initiatives like these, Canon is proud to be facilitating the growth of the entire ecosystem, empowering the next generation of creative visionaries.”
And it’s not just about upping individual skills Canon sees Deep Dive as part of a broader mission to nurture and elevate India’s creator ecosystem. It’s a signal that the brand isn’t just focused on selling cameras, but on investing in what comes after the shutter clicks: storytelling, innovation, and community.
In a world flooded with content, standing out requires more than just talent, it needs technique, tools, and trust in one’s creative voice. Deep Dive is Canon’s attempt to offer all three, wrapped in a format that’s immersive, inspiring and packed with substance.
With more cities queued up and interest already peaking, Deep Dive is shaping up to be more than just a masterclass. It’s a movement. And for the creators ready to stop shooting in the dark and start crafting with intention, Canon just lit the way.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
