MAM
Percept/H wins Bharat Nirman creative biz
MUMBAI: Percept/H won the creative duties of Bharat Nirman, the set of flagship programmes initiated by the central government for the development of rural India. The win is an outcome of a seven-agency pitch in July that included Dentsu, Grey and Concept.
Bharat Nirman was launched around six years back. So far, the communication had always projected the schemes as an opportunity to improve and empower the lives of people. The focus this year is to project the change that people have experienced in their lives through these schemes.
The agency has already started work on the account and has rolled out the first campaign for the client.
The agency was asked to project the Bharat Nirman programs as the ‘right‘ or ‘haq‘ of people provided by the central government. In order to communicate this, the agency decided to show the change in people‘s life once they demanded their “haq” and which once they got, empowered them to impact their lives in a positive manner. The idea was to portray the moment of transition from the underdog to a person who knows his or her rights and the feeling of ‘pride‘ associated with the sense of achievement.
The campaign is being executed through a complete 360 degrees approach with print, TVCs and radio. The logistical challenges of executing the TVCs were immense: 7 programme TVCs and one overarching jingle TVC, 4 language masters for each, making it a total of 32 master films and dubs in 7 languages of each film, making it 56 dubs. In all, a total of mind boggling 88 films.
The campaign used a jingle “Bharat ke is Nirman pe haq hai mera”. It is directed by Paresh and Naresh Kamath and sung by Kailash Kher and Neha Bhasin. It aims to embody the emotions of people who have taken their rightful “haq” and which everyone should demand. It reflects the pride associated with the positive change that the people of India are empowered to bring about in their lives.
The campaign includes initiatives in TV, print and radio. The idea was not just about reaching the rural masses in every nook and corner of this country by the width of its media usage and reach through multiple use of TV and radio channels and maximizing newspaper. There was equal focus on the way this campaign has been creatively conceived, designed and produced so as to connect with rural masses, relate to them, impact and involve them.
The campaign covers the seven programs offered by Bharat Nirman through film, print and radio along with a 90 sec film. The film has been created in a way that covers every region and every language by separately creating an edition for different regions, in different languages, bringing out the authentic and real environment and setting and all the local nuances so as to connect better with local people of any region.
These films have been extremely sensitively produced and filmed by Pradeep Sircar and his Apocolypso team with Joydeep Sircar directing all the films. The communication initiative by Bharat Nirman and Percept H is unique because no other brand in the social, government or corporate (national or multinational) sector has ever attempted a massive and authentic communication and production.
Percept/H executive creative director Rajiv Agrawal said, “Till now, over the last few years, the Bharat Nirman campaign has really been from the POV of the Govt., and not from the POV of the people. This is what we corrected. It‘s a people‘s campaign this time around and exhorts them to claim their right. It‘s classic storytelling which attempts to engage the audience in the warm, aggressive campaign. Also, the look-feel is deliberately different, non-sarkaari. I believe that social campaigns should not be any different in look-feel from brand campaigns. The principle remains the same: you are trying to engage your audience by providing them a sound reason-to-believe”.
Percept H COO (North) Amitava Mitra said, “Bharat Nirman has always been an extremely prestigious project for us since its launch, and this year too, it was a matter of great pride for us to win it. The complexities involved in the execution of the campaign were extremely challenging with multiple programs, languages etc. But at the end of it is a hugely gratifying and satisfying experience.”
MAM
Ad:tech honours 2026: Full list of winners announced
Expanded awards spotlight winners across 22 categories as industry doubles down on intelligent automation
NEW DELHI: Marketing’s tech elite took the spotlight as the ad:tech honours 2026 returned with a sharper focus on AI, data and immersive media, signalling how deeply technology now underpins brand strategy. Held at Yashobhoomi on March 17, the second edition drew industry leaders to celebrate innovation that is reshaping engagement and performance.
Presented with the International Advertising Association India chapter and new partner Huella, the awards expanded from 8 to 22 categories, tracking the rapid convergence of creativity, automation and analytics.
The winners’ list reads like a snapshot of marketing’s future. In affiliate and partner marketing, Lyxel & Flamingo – Boat and Paytm Ads – Giva took silver. Mobavenue Media Private Limited struck gold in AI-driven dynamic creative optimisation, alongside a silver for Laqshya Media Limited.
Creative AI collaboration saw Rediffusion Brand Solutions Private Limited win gold, with Saltinc Consulting Private Limited securing silver. Laqshya Media Limited continued its strong run, taking gold in AI conversation agents and adding multiple wins across categories, including silver in GenAI-led creative and both gold and silver in interactive DOOH campaigns for Tanishq and Tata Coffee.
Predictive AI honours went to Strong Metrics and Tyroo, both silver, while Orient Bell Limited picked up silver in immersive retail tech. In GenAI-led creative, Laqshya Media Limited, Salt – Kotak and Sumimoto each secured silver, reflecting the crowded race in generative creativity.
Publicis bagged silver in influencer management and gold in performance marketing, where it shared the stage with Arm Worldwide and The Trade Desk, both silver. Glad U Came Private Limited stood out with gold in influencer measurement and analytics.
Marketing automation saw CereOne Media Pvt. Ltd. and Globale Media win silver, while ADMOTT Private Limited claimed silver in OTT innovation.
Programmatic media categories highlighted the shift to advanced targeting and connected screens. Mobavenue Media Private Limited clinched gold in connected TV advertising, with Animmoov Digital Media Pvt Ltd – Asus and Lyxel and Flamingo taking silver. Cheggout Services Private Limited won silver in retail media advertising, while Paytm Ads – Versuni secured gold.
On social platforms, Vayner Media India took gold in community and UGC engagement, with Under 25 – Oppo winning silver. Segumento rounded off the list with silver in the innovation category.
Jaswant Singh, country managing director at ad:tech India, underscored the momentum, saying generative AI and data-driven decision-making are now central to marketing impact. Neena Dasgupta, IAA mancom member and chief executive and founder at The Salt Inc Consulting, added that the awards celebrate not just technology, but “the people, the creativity, and the relentless effort behind it.”
Backed by Comexposium Group, ad:tech New Delhi has long tracked digital disruption. Now, with the honours, it is rewarding those who are not just adapting to change but engineering it.
In an industry racing towards automation, the message from 2026 is unmistakable. The future of marketing will be written not just in ideas, but in algorithms.
