Brands
Over 34,000 submissions for OPPO India’s Imagine IF Photo Awards
Mumbai: Within seven weeks, OPPO India received 34,000 plus entries from photographers across India for the imagine IF Photography Awards 2024 in round one which concluded on 15 June 2024.
OPPO launched the Imagine IF Photography Awards globally in 2023 to spark creativity in mobile photography and showcase the prowess of OPPO camera technologies. The competition made its foray into India this year after the success of the inaugural edition.
Round one invited Indian citizens over 18 years to share their smartphone photographs across nine categories: Landscape, Portrait, Colours, Unfading Moment, Fashion, Snapshot, Light, Travel, and Collection. Of these 34,000+ entries, the ‘Portrait’ category emerged as the most popular and garnered 26 per cent of the submissions. This was followed by ‘Landscape’ which witnessed 20 per cent participation.
OPPO India head of digital marketing Sushant Vashistha said, “We are thrilled with the overwhelming response to the platform. The high volume of entries uncovers new photography talent across India, and we are glad to present them with an opportunity and a platform to showcase their work on a global stage.”
The top 50 photographers will move to round two by end of June and the final six winners will be announced on 25 July 2024. “The shortlisted photographers will get to shoot exclusively on our flagship OPPO Find X7 Ultra device and experience the world’s first Quad Main Camera while submitting their nominations for round two. We are excited to see the next set of photos and the creativity they will showcase.” added Sushant Vashistha.
To generate excitement around the competition, OPPO India released a brand video on its Instagram featuring director, screenwriter, and Indian ambassador for the initiative, SS Rajamouli with TV producer and actor, Raghu Ram. The video presents Raghu as the judge of a photography contest, and in true Raghu fashion, he is shown losing his cool over the photography capabilities of the contestants. Raghu’s level of disappointment is consistently on the rise and so is his anger. Just then, SS Rajamouli enters the scene and advises Raghu to nurture creativity rather than shun it. Following this, Raghu’s attitude shifts, and he is shown sharing encouraging feedback with the contestants with a big smile.
The Imagine IF entries are being judged by a panel of expert photographers including celebrity wedding and portrait photographer and OPPO Imaging expert Joseph Radhik, wildlife photographer Aarzoo Khurana, fashion photographer Arjun Mark, and other global jury members.
All top six winners will get an opportunity to attend the Paris Show 2024 and collaborate with OPPO India for photography-led projects in future. The Gold awardee will receive a cash prize of Rs 5,00,000, two Silver winners will get Rs 2,00,000 each and three Bronze winners will win Rs 1,00,000.
Brands
Godrej clarifies ‘GI’ identifier after logo similarity debate
Says GI is not a logo, will not replace Godrej signature across products.
MUMBAI: In a branding storm where shapes did the talking, Godrej is now spelling things out. Godrej Industries Group (GIG) has issued a clarification on its newly introduced ‘GI’ identifier, addressing questions around its purpose and design following a wave of online criticism. At the centre of the debate were two concerns: whether the new mark replaces the long-standing Godrej logo, and whether its geometric design mirrors other corporate identities.
The company has drawn a clear line. The Godrej signature logo, it said, remains unchanged and continues to be the sole logo across all consumer-facing products and services. The ‘GI’ mark, by contrast, is not a logo but a corporate group identifier intended for use alongside the Godrej signature or company name, and aimed at stakeholders such as investors, media and talent rather than consumers.
The need for such a distinction stems from the 2024 restructuring of the broader Godrej Group into two separate business entities. With both continuing to operate under the same Godrej name and signature, the identifier is positioned as a way to differentiate the Godrej Industries Group at a corporate level.
The rollout, however, triggered a broader conversation on design originality. Critics pointed to similarities between the GI mark’s geometric composition and logos used by companies globally, raising questions about distinctiveness.
Responding to this, GIG said its intellectual property and legal review found that such overlaps are common in minimalist, geometry-led design systems. Basic forms such as circles and rectangles appear across dozens of brand identities worldwide, the company noted.
It added that the identifier emerged from an extensive design process and was chosen for its simplicity, allowing it to sit alongside the Godrej signature without competing visually. While acknowledging that elemental shapes may appear less distinctive in isolation, the group emphasised that the mark is part of a broader identity system that includes a custom typeface, sonic branding and other proprietary elements.
Following legal and ethical assessments, the company said it found no impediment to using the identifier, reiterating that the GI mark is a corporate tool not a consumer-facing symbol.
In short, the logo isn’t changing but the conversation around it certainly has.
