AD Agencies
ICW wraps Portfolio Evening 2023 with 96 participants over two days
Mumbai: To provide women and non-binary creatives a platform for visibility in the Indian advertising and design industry, Indian Creative Women (ICW) partnered with DDB Mudra Group and D&AD for the fourth edition of Portfolio Evening, sponsored by McDonald’s. Held on 7 December (virtual) and 8 December (Mumbai) the event saw participation from 96 women and non-binary creatives from design, UI/UX, writing, animation and other diverse backgrounds. The panel comprised of 39 jurors from creative, media and digital agencies along with marketing leaders from the industry.
The in-person event kickstarted with an inspiring opening address from D&AD CEO Jo Jackson and Rahul Mathew, DDB Mudra Group CCO Rahul Mathew. Following this, participants started engaging in brief one-on-one sessions with multiple jurors over the course of two rounds showcasing the best of their work, receiving feedback and insights from the brilliant creative minds. Pallavi emerged as the winner at Portfolio Evening, Mumbai while Nidhi Shah won the virtual Portfolio Evening. They’ve both earned themselves a chance to an all-expense paid trip to the D&AD Festival in London in March 2024.
Student art director and winner of Portfolio Evening – Mumbai, Pallavi commented, “I heard about Indian Creative Women for the first time in the first month of ad school. And just the thought of a female and non-binary centric initiative was so exciting to me that I was ready to participate when the time was right. Fast forward to a year and here we are, and it feels absolutely surreal!
Just the fact that I got to share the space with so many fellow female and non-binary creatives for the evening was a huge privilege, to see them shine and share their work. The energy was contagious!
Many of the faces of Indian Creative Women are women that I admire and look up to, so just to have the opportunity to interact with them and share our stories was definitely an experience I’ll cherish forever. Hopefully, this push by Indian Creative Women will enable me as a female creative to help give a platform to other female and non-binary creatives in the future.”
Advertising student and winner of the virtual Portfolio Evening Nidhi Shah said, “As someone who has never been in front of industry leaders, this was already a surreal chance to present my work to them! But winning it as well? I’m still pinching myself if this is real! Thank you, Indian Creative Women, for organising this and for helping foster the creative women’s community!”
AD Agencies
WPP appoints Hephzibah Pathak CEO of WPP Creative India
Ogilvy India chair takes charge of unified creative model in key market
NEW DELHI: WPP has appointed Hephzibah Pathak as chief executive officer of WPP Creative India, putting a local leader at the helm of its newly created creative operating model in one of its most important growth markets.
The move brings clarity to how WPP’s global restructuring will play out in India, weeks after the group unveiled WPP Creative as part of its Elevate28 strategy. The unit sits alongside WPP Media, WPP Production and WPP Enterprise Solutions, and is designed to simplify what the company previously described as an overly complex structure.
Pathak, who continues as executive chairperson of Ogilvy India, will represent all agencies under the WPP Creative umbrella in India. Her role centres on driving integration across brands, expanding capabilities and ensuring clients can tap into the network’s full talent pool without friction.
WPP said Pathak will work closely with agency brand CEOs to “enhance integration, expand capabilities, and ensure seamless client access”, while maintaining the distinct identities of its agencies.
The portfolio under WPP Creative includes leading networks such as VML, Landor, AKQA and Grey, along with Burson and its affiliated firms. Leaders across these agencies will now report into Pathak, even as each brand continues to operate independently within a unified system.
The appointment also formalises a dual-track strategy in India, preserving agency identities while accelerating collaboration. Pathak is expected to work closely with media leadership to align creative and media capabilities, reflecting growing client demand for integrated, multi-market solutions.
WPP Creative global CEO Jon Cook has described the unit as “not an agency” but an operating system that helps creative, design and PR brands work together more effectively. The group has been clear that it is not merging or phasing out legacy agency brands, instead aiming to reduce complexity on the client side.
Pathak brings nearly three decades of experience within the network, having joined in 1997 and held roles ranging from Mumbai office head to chief client officer. She made history in 2024 as the first woman to lead Ogilvy India in its 95-year presence in the country.
Her expanded mandate positions India at the centre of WPP’s Asia-Pacific strategy, with a focus on strengthening brand presence, deepening client relationships and unlocking growth in a fast-evolving market.
The appointment signals WPP’s intent to move beyond the traditional holding company model towards a more integrated, AI-enabled structure. With Pathak now steering WPP Creative India, the group appears set to test whether simpler structures can indeed deliver sharper creative outcomes.
