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Goafest Creative Abby jury chairs announced for Print, Radio and Brand Activation
MUMBAI: The Goafest Creative Abbys, the highly coveted advertising awards that recognize the best in advertising and marketing has announced the second set of jury for the coveted awards. The Awards Governing Council of Goafest 2016 has declared the jury chairs for print, radio/radio craft advertising and brand activation verticals. While Publicis Communications managing director & chief creative officer Bobby Pawar will chair the print communication jury of Creative Abby, Contract Advertising national creative director Ashish Chakravarty will chair the radio/ radio craft jury and Scarecrow Communications director and founder Manish Bhatt will chair the jury for brand activation vertical.
Jury chair of the print category Bobby Pawar is reckoned amongst peers as one of the most influential professsionals in advertising. Before joining Publicis, he was the CCO at JWT, where he curated some iconic campaigns. Prior to that he spent 4 years as the chief creative officer of the DDB Mudra Group. He was instrumental in transforming the agency into a top rated creative solution destinations in the country. Bobby was earlier creative director at Ogilvy, New York and group creative director at BBDO, Chicago.
Ashish Chakravarty with over 2 decades of experience has created some of the biggest brands in the country and is recognized as amongst the top 10 creative directors in India and amongst the top 50 creative Ddrectors in the world, according to a latest global ranking. Ashish’s work has won him several metals across the biggest creative fests across the world including Cannes and D&AD. He is credited with winning more than 200 national and international awards across categories and brands.
Manish Bhatt started his career as a Civil Engineer at Gujarat State Fertilizer Corporation. But, soon he decided to enter the world of advertising and went on create one of India’s most sought after independent ad agencies Scarecrow. He has worked in Ad World for more than 15 years and has been associated with agencies like Contract, Ogilvy & Mather (Delhi, Mumbai & Malaysia), Ambience Publicis and McCann Erickson. Bhatt has received recognition for his creative work across platforms like Cannes Lions, D&AD London, The One Show, Clios and the Abbys.
MAM
Barista partners Ginny Weds Sunny 2 with mango campaign
Cafe chain blends cinema buzz with summer menu and 20 per cent offer.
MUMBAI: Love may brew slowly, but marketing clearly doesn’t especially when coffee meets cinema and mangoes steal the spotlight. Barista Coffee Company has partnered with the upcoming hindi film Ginny Weds Sunny 2 as its official beverage partner, in a move aimed at tapping into youth culture through entertainment-led engagement. The collaboration is not just a logo placement exercise. Instead, Barista is translating the film’s high-energy vibe into its cafés with a themed summer menu titled “Main Hoon Mango”, accompanied by a limited-period 20 per cent discount on combo offerings across outlets.
Actors Medha Shankr and Avinash Tiwary feature in the campaign, seen engaging with the mango-themed menu inside Barista cafés, a visual cue designed to blur the lines between reel and real-life consumption moments.
The strategy reflects a broader shift in how consumer brands are leveraging hindi film industry not just for visibility, but for immersive, on-ground engagement. By embedding the film’s narrative into its product experience, Barista is aiming to drive footfall, especially among younger audiences who increasingly seek experiential touchpoints over traditional advertising.
Barista Coffee Company CEO Rajat Agrawal described the partnership as both a branding and growth play, focused on expanding reach beyond the existing customer base and aligning with evolving consumer preferences.
The emphasis on a seasonal, flavour-led hook mango, one of India’s most culturally resonant ingredients adds a timely layer to the campaign, aligning with summer consumption trends while riding on the film’s promotional momentum.
For Barista, the move is part of a larger positioning shift. Rather than operating purely as a coffee retail chain, the brand is increasingly framing itself as a lifestyle destination, one that intersects with entertainment, conversation and shared experiences. By integrating cinema into its physical spaces, Barista is effectively turning cafés into micro-extensions of the film’s universe, where consumers do not just watch a story unfold but participate in it sip by sip.
The 20 per cent offer further nudges trial, lowering the barrier for consumers to engage with the themed menu while amplifying recall through a tangible incentive.
Brand-film collaborations are hardly new, but their execution is evolving. Where earlier partnerships relied on co-branded ads or product placements, the current playbook leans towards immersive storytelling and retail integration.
In that sense, Barista’s “Main Hoon Mango” push is less about promotion and more about participation inviting consumers to experience a slice of the film within a familiar, everyday setting. As the film industry continues to act as a cultural amplifier, such partnerships underline a growing truth, in today’s attention economy, it is not enough to be seen brands must be experienced.
And if that experience comes with a mango twist and a cinematic backdrop, all the better.
