MAM
Alchemist launches specialist agency Clay to cater to real estate sector
MUMBAI: Marketing solutions company Alchemist has launched a specialist agency called Clay to solely cater to brands in the booming real estate sector.
Clay will be helmed by Farhan Khan as business head and COO, who was previously with Xeco Marketing as COO.
Along with Khan, Clay has also roped in communication specialists and associate managing consultants Anushree Murkute and Amy Mathew with their respective teams. Both Murkute and Mathew come from an advertising background.
With offices in Mumbai and Gurgaon, Clay started out with five retainer and three project based clients. The retainer clients include Disha Direct and Nirvana Reality, Rajasthan based ARG Group, Delhi basd Novell and real estate technology start-up Realty Redefined.
The Clay division will report in to Alchemist CEO Anujita Jain. “Clay is providing genuine strategic advice and execution together, a never before complete solution from under one roof. It will be giving through the line services to the currently pressured Real Estate segment. These include brand and communication strategy, advertising, direct marketing, CRM, events and activations, lead generation and management, digital and social activation, velebrity endorsements and more.”
Alchemist director and magicbricks.com founding member Rajkumar Remalli added, “Clay is about creating brands in the real estate world, which was hitherto ruled just by project launches, successes and failures. No more will investments made in one product be non-cumulative to others by the same corporate brand.”
Clay also has its own creative, digital, CRM and events and activation support teams. The agency will draw on Alchemist’s strengths in outdoor advertising and celebrity management combined with new skills and ideas.
Khan said, “I have seen clients yearning for true strategic advice and the commitment of the same advisors to walk the talk and talk. Clay is meant to do exactly that. We have already done invaluable value addition and created IPs for our clients in this little time we have been operational. Establishment of World Broker’s Day is one such proud achievement.”
The company has also initiated the celebration of World Broker’s Day on 9 June every year. This is an insight driven strategy for the real estate brokers, for recognising their thankless services they provide to the customers. The campaign climaxed with a packed audience convention on WBD in Mumbai. Apart from benchmark ideas, Clay is navigating clients through the current challenges and pressures and has several projects line up like Wollywood, City of Music, ARG One, Maple Leaf, Reso’villa, R Square, Agent Search, etc.
Disha Direct MD Santosh Naik said, “In Alchemist and Clay we find partners who do what they say. They walk towards results and go beyond the brief. They provide business strategy and not just marketing. They execute for results, not applauses. I am glad we connected and are working together.”
Alchemist MD Manish Porwal added, “Brand Clay is the first of many specialized communication solutions that you will now hear from Alchemist. The next quarter for Alchemist is full of preparations for future that will change a bit of the communication landscape. We are excited and so are our clients.”
Digital
India leads global adoption of ChatGPT Images 2.0 in first week
From anime avatars to fantasy covers, users turn AI visuals into culture
NEW DELHI: India has emerged as the largest user base for ChatGPT Images 2.0, just a week after its launch by OpenAI, underlining the country’s growing influence on global internet trends.
While the tool was introduced as an advanced image-generation upgrade within ChatGPT, Indian users are quickly reshaping its purpose. Instead of sticking to productivity-led use cases, many are embracing it as a creative playground for self-expression, storytelling and online identity.
From anime-style portraits and cinematic headshots to tarot-inspired visuals and fictional newspaper front pages, the model is being used to create highly stylised, shareable content. Features such as accurate text rendering, multilingual prompts and the ability to generate detailed visuals with minimal input have helped drive rapid adoption.
What sets the latest model apart is its ability to “think” through prompts, generating multiple outputs and adapting to context, including real-time web inputs. But the bigger story lies in how users are engaging with it.
In India, trends are already taking shape. Popular formats include dramatic studio-style lighting edits, LinkedIn-ready headshots, manga-inspired avatars, soft pastel “spring” aesthetics, AI-led fashion moodboards, paparazzi-style visuals and fantasy newspaper covers. Users are also restoring old photographs, creating tarot-style imagery and experimenting with futuristic design concepts.
Local flavour is adding another layer. Prompts such as cinematic portrait collages and Y2K-inspired romantic edits are gaining traction, blending global aesthetics with distinctly Indian internet culture.
The surge reflects a broader shift in how AI tools are being used in the country, moving beyond utility to creativity. As younger users, creators and social media enthusiasts experiment with new visual formats, AI-generated imagery is increasingly becoming part of everyday digital expression.
If early trends hold, ChatGPT Images 2.0 may not just be a tech upgrade but a cultural moment, giving millions a new visual language to play with online.
