Digital
Ajio debuts Instagram micro-drama ahead of Valentine’s Week
Six-part series anchors new Ajio Originals content slate
BENGALURU: Ajio has kicked off Valentine’s Week with the launch of an Instagram-first micro-drama series, signalling a shift towards long-form, character-led storytelling as part of its brand-building strategy.
Titled Suit Yourself, the six-episode series extends the universe of Ajio’s latest advertising campaign and follows three friends and flatmates: Anya, Rohan and Rhea, as their shared living arrangement descends into emotional conflict, blurred boundaries and personal reckonings.
Each episode runs for about 180 seconds and is designed for social-first consumption, with cliffhangers built in to sustain viewer engagement across the season. The series stars Anya Singh, Rohan Gurbaxani and Helly Thakkar.
Moving beyond the constraints of a traditional brand film, the micro-drama allows its characters to exist within a narrative of their own. What begins as light-hearted banter around everyday urban life gradually escalates into heightened drama, reflecting the complexities of modern relationships. Ajio’s fashion offerings appear organically within the storyline, integrated as expressions of character and mood rather than overt advertising cues.
Suit yourself is the first release under Ajio Originals, the brand’s newly launched branded content slate aimed at building proprietary narrative-led intellectual property.
The move reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour towards story-driven formats over interruption-based advertising. Micro-dramas, in particular, offer brands the ability to sustain emotional continuity while remaining native to social platforms where episodic storytelling drives repeat engagement.
An Ajio spokesperson said the format allows the brand to blend entertainment with effortless presence, positioning fashion as part of everyday narratives rather than a forced insert.
Filmmaker Afroz Khan of Orange Elephant said the series was built on the belief that audiences connect with stories before advertising, with an emphasis on relatable situations, authentic casting and character-led writing.
The micro-drama rolled out exclusively on Ajio’s Instagram handle and app, with daily episodes released from February 7 to coincide with the start of Valentine’s Week. The final two episodes will premiere on the AJIO app before being released on Instagram.
Digital
Ethical AI must benefit society, not dominate it, says WFEB chief Sanjay Pradhan at IAA event
At Mumbai event, ethics expert urges businesses and governments to shape AI responsibly
MUMBAI: Artificial intelligence may be racing ahead at lightning speed, but its direction must still be guided by human conscience. That was the central message delivered by Sanjay Pradhan, president of the World Forum for Ethics in Business (WFEB), during the latest edition of IAA Conversations held in Mumbai.
The session was organised by the International Advertising Association (IAA) and the Artificial Intelligence Association of India (AIAI) in association with The Free Press Journal at the Free Press House on 7 March. Addressing a packed audience, Pradhan called for stronger ethical leadership to ensure AI remains a tool that benefits humanity rather than one that governs it.
“Artificial intelligence has rapidly become one of the most powerful technologies humanity has created,” Pradhan said. “It is unlocking breakthroughs in medicine, science and creativity at a pace unimaginable just a few years ago.”
But he warned that the same technology carries serious risks. AI, he noted, can amplify disinformation faster than facts can travel, compromise privacy, deepen discrimination and disrupt millions of livelihoods. Referencing concerns raised by AI pioneers such as Geoffrey Hinton, often called the godfather of AI, Pradhan stressed that the real challenge is not whether AI will shape the world, but whether humans will shape it with ethics and wisdom.
Structuring his talk around four guiding questions, why, what, how and who, Pradhan introduced the audience to WFEB’s emerging AI Ethics Partnership, a global platform aimed at advancing responsible artificial intelligence. He outlined four priority concerns that demand urgent attention: disinformation, bias and discrimination, data privacy and job security.
To make the idea of ethical AI easier to grasp, Pradhan offered a simple metaphor. Ethical AI, he said, is like a three layered cake. The outer layer represents the visible value ethical AI creates for businesses and society. The middle layer is organisational culture that moves ethics from written codes to everyday practice. The innermost layer, however, is the most crucial, the conscience of individual leaders.
Drawing from Indian philosophical thought through WFEB co-founder Ravi Shankar, Pradhan noted that while artificial intelligence can reproduce stored knowledge, true intelligence is boundless and rooted in conscience, creativity and compassion. Practices such as breathwork and meditation, he suggested, can help leaders develop the calm clarity needed for ethical decision making.
The event also featured a discussion with Maninder Adityaraj Singh, chief of staff and head of innovation at Rediffusion Brand Solutions Pvt Ltd, and Yash Johri, lawyer, Supreme Court of India.
Opening the session, IAA India chapter president Abhishek Karnani, highlighted the need for industries to understand and engage with AI responsibly.
“AI has to be befriended and understood,” added Rediffusion managing director and AIAI national convenor Sandeep Goyal. “Its ethical use will determine whether it becomes a friend or a foe.”
As AI continues to reshape industries and societies, Pradhan ended with a simple but powerful call to action. Businesses, governments and individuals must work together to ensure that the algorithms shaping the future reflect human values rather than just cold logic.
