MAM
Getty Images appoints Visage Media Services as its Indian subcontinent representative
MUMBAI: Getty Images, the imagery company, has signed an agreement with Visage Media Services to exclusively represent Getty Images creative collections in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Maldives. This agreement according to Getty Images marks the beginning of a new era for access to high quality photagraphy in India.
Previously, the Getty Images collections had been available to clients in these markets from the Getty Images Singapore office.
“A key focus for us this year is accelerating international growth particularly in non-English speaking markets,” said Getty Images VP agents and emerging markets Andrew Booth, “With this in mind, we have been looking carefully at our strategy for India. As one of the top 20 countries worldwide by advertising expenditure and one of the top 10 highest growth countries worldwide, India‘s strategic importance and potential is a great long-term opportunity for Getty Images, so it was key that we built our presence in this market.”
The company also stated that the best way to do this was to partner with a local company, and expressed their confidence levels about Visage Media Services who they believe would drive their business forward in this region.
There are also plans in place for the Visage team to build local content for India, working with the creative team from Getty Images to create imagery that meets clients‘ local and international requirements.
“We are delighted to partner with Getty Images,” says Visage Media Services CEO Srini Kilambi. “We feel confident that offering creative clients in the Indian region the opportunity to license the world‘s most comprehensive collection of quality imagery from a local partner will make their job far easier.”
Visage Media Services will license all Getty Images creative stills collections, including the award-winning collection Stone, along with The Image Bank, Taxi and Photodisc.
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.
