MAM
Colors’ 24 and Tata Motors to ride together
MUMBAI: It has been touted as one of the biggest fiction shows to hit Indian television in a long time. Based on the hit Fox series which ran for eight seasons in the US, Colors‘ long-in-gestation 24 series has already created a buzz because of the fact that Anil Kapoor is associated with it as producer under the banner of Anil Kapoor Film Company. Additionally many key names from Bollywood are working on it: right from acclaimed Delhi Belly director Abhinay Deo who is helming it to Rensil D‘Silva and Bhavani Iyer who have been scripting it.
Colors CEO Raj Nayak saw a lot of promise in the Indian adaptation of 24 when Kapoor approached him and it took barely 20 minutes to decide to put it on his channel. Some of Raj‘s faith in it is bearing fruit. Colors today announced that it has managed to rope in Tata Motors Vehicles as the presenting sponsor.
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Ranjit Yadav believes it to be a good opportunity for the company
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Speaking on the association Tata Motors Vehicles Business unit president Ranjit Yadav says, “This association with 24 offers us an exciting platform to demonstrate the true capability of our dynamic cars, which delivers performance and comes with technology rich features.”
Brand integration will be visible throughout the series as Anil Kapoor and Tata Motors cars and UVs will be racing in action. Nayak points out: “It takes brand partnerships to another level beyond the conventional 30-second commercial.” Previously, the channel had also experimented with its brands on Bigg Boss where a lot of its sponsors were seen during the show.
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The show will be a hit, according to Raj Nayak
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Anil Kapoor who plays the role of Jai Singh Rathod, the Indian version of Jack Bauer explains: “In the show, I will be driving Tata Motors‘ dynamic and exciting vehicles in my adventurous quests across terrains to tackle various security threats.”
This will be Anil Kapoor‘s first stint on the Indian small screen (he acted in the English version of the series in the US) and will have the pace of a real time narrative. The set which has been developed to look almost like the American version is in Andheri (Mumbai) at Kapoor‘s own studio named Stage 1. Under pre-production and production for more than a year, it was to see the light of day on 1 April. However, Nayak says that everyone had to take care during the adaptation process because of sensitive issues such as religion, terrorism and politics; hence it has taken time.
“It will be a game changer and I genuinely believe it,” says an optimistic Nayak.
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.
