David Innis -- Stylish ad-guru

David Innis -- Stylish ad-guru
MOHAMMED WAJIHUDDIN

MARCH 30: Ad-Man David Innis is a restless spirit -- one moment he is part of a sofa, the other he is out of the gate talking to a friend. One follows him even to the car. "Why don't you hop in. We will talk here as well," he says.

As vice-president and senior copywriter with Vickers and Benson Arnold Advertising, Toronto, Canada, this stylish ad-guru commands immense respect in the ad world. He is currently in Mumbai as one of the judges for Synergy 2001, the first Indian Advertising Festival organised by the Advertising Club Bombay from March 29-31 at Nehru Centre and NSCI stadium, Worli.

Born in Calcutta, he began his career at the age of 20 with F D Stewart in Madras. Subsequently, he moved to Bombay and worked with J Walter Thompson. Along with Rajiv Agarwal and Arun Kale, Innis started Nexus Advertising, before he moved to Canada in 1990. Ad campaigns for companies like Molson, General Motors, Nestle, Pennzoil, Air Canada, Canadian Airlines, United Way and Bank of Montreal are credit flags on his career graph. Acclaimed internationally, he has won many awards including Show Gold, New York Art Director's Gold, a couple of ABBY Awards, two Bronze Lions at Cannes and a Campaign Gold in Chicago. A frequent visitor to India, he spends some time with parents in Kolkata and in-laws in Pune every time he is "home."

His views:

On being in India

``It is great to be back. I owe much to my friends in advertsing in Indialike Ivan Arthur, Shelia Syed, Arun Kale, Rajiv Agarwal, Sudhir Deokar, Garud, Aubrey Sequira, Chandu Seth and Sundar Chatterji. This time I will be here till April 15.''

On the advertisement scene in India

``Since I left India a decade ago, advertising scene here has changed a lot -- for the better, of course. Today, television advertising is more powerful than advertising in print media. The visuals have certainly revolutionised the ad world. Take the Fevicol ad. Beautifully made and presented, its impact is great. Indian ad people are winning awards at international advertising festivals, with young talent sharing the cream. As a judge of the Advertising Festival, I have seen some good work done here. With the opening of economy, there are more opportunities in the advertising world today.''

On the advertising scene in the West

``Out there they advertise churches. They are certainly more professional, pay better and recognise good work. I don't mean to say that good work in India is not recognised. But because of advanced media, recognition is instant there.''

On the controversy over Scam ads at Ad Festival and importance of clutter busting in advertising

``I will not comment on the controversy. But I can say that it is ideas which are important. The ads which are made for getting entry to festivals are called scam ads. I think there should not be any ban on throwing up ideas. Even some scam ads might have been fired by brilliant ideas. Clutter busting is an ad which stands out amidst the editorial contents. If a particular ad is surrounded by editorial contents on the middle of the page, it's bound to attract attention.''

On ads gobbling editorial space in newspapers

``It depends on the policy of a newspaper. On Thursday, I counted there were 77 ads in a leading Indian English daily. Probably the newspaper wants to make more money. Some readers justifiably complain that the edit space is being increasingly taken over by ads. But you should also understand the problems of a newspaper. To meet the huge costs they sell space aggressively. And this phenomenon is not confined to India. It is everywhere.''

On what makes a successful ad man

``It's an idea that matters more than its execution. In advertising, idea is God. If your idea is brilliant, you can sell your product easily. Advertising is a fun business. If there is an element of humour in your ad, chances are it will have more buyers than a serious ad. An ideal ad is simple, imaginative and provocative.''