A new calling

Newsmaker

KMS 'Titoo' Ahluwalia

Former Chairman,

A C Nielsen Org-Marg

If he had taken up an offer three decades ago, K M S "Titoo" Ahluwalia, could well have retired from the country's largest advertising agency, J W Thompson (JWT), instead of market research firm A C Nielsen, part of the Dutch media conglomerate VNU.

After being in market research all his life, Ahluwalia, 56, is hanging up his boots, well ahead of his time, to change tracks. His contract with VNU expires only in 2011.

Now he wants to be a full-time social worker. "I am already six years too late. There is life outside market research as well. My job is done," he says.

That is because, if there is one thing he abhors, it is people in many sectors clinging to their chairs till thy kingdom come. Isn't this a rather bold statement coming from somebody who chooses his words with care, more so if it is on record?

"I suppose that it is less of the burden of worrying now about what will happen if I say this or that," explains Ahluwalia.

He is setting up a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Anshu Foundation, close to his farm house in Nandgaon in the Raigad district in Maharashtra. "I am a team player, so I will have some people assisting me," says Ahluwalia.

Yet another NGO? "It is a foundation concerned about spreading education among farmers, adult women and school dropouts from the tribal area," he says. He wants to teach farmers about ecology and the art of extracting better yields without using pesticides.

Will this mean that Ahluwalia, considered to be an ace deal maker, will turn it into a commercial venture by approaching corporates? "It is unlikely. My message is not necessarily going to please companies as I will tell my farmers to move away from chemicals and pesticides," he says.

After reading history at St Stephen's, Ahluwalia hitch-hiked to the UK and acquired a management degree from an university which later became the London Business School. He then joined the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB) as a researcher. "I began life early," he recalls.

When BMRB, JWT's research outfit, came to India, it was rechristened Indian Market Research Bureau (IMRB).

That is when, at age 24, Ahluwalia was designated its general manager, working under Ranjit Chib. When Chib left, he became the IMRB CEO at 29. "By then, market research had got into me," he laughs.

In 1983, Subhash Ghosal, the legendary adman who was head of JWT, had suggested a novel idea.

To retain all his three favourite people when he was stepping down, he suggested that JWT had three managing directors "" Ahluwalia, Mike Khanna and Ram Ray.

"I knew it would not work and I made it easier for Ghosal by opting out," he says. Ray left for Kolkata to set up Response and Khanna continues to head JWT.

The industry has it that all three were aspiring to head JWT but Khanna was chosen.

Ahluwalia then helped friend Mohammed Khan, the current chieftain of ad agency Nexus Equity, set up Enterprise Advertising. At that time, Khan was creative head of Contract, JWT's subsidiary.

Both Ahluwalia and Khan pumped in a 50 per cent equity each. Ahluwalia later reduced his stake to 30 per cent.

Since market research was the only thing he knew, Ahluwalia left IMRB to turn entrepreneur with MARG, along with friends Dorab Sopariwala, Meena Kaushik and Sanghamitra Khanna.

A team builder, Ahluwalia was said to have an eye for spotting talent.

But people who know him closely say he is more of a public relations man rather than a market researcher.

"Titoo's contacts in the industry were impeccable. He had the knack of bagging exclusive contracts from esteemed clients," says a manager who worked with him at IMRB.

Adds another executive who was with MARG, which was later acquired by VNU, "He had a way with people and was the quintessential contact man. We benefited the most when requests to research the Indian consumer poured in after liberalisation. Not one to let go off business, we got plum jobs," remembers an executive.

Today, Ahluwalia, who is on the boards of two VNU outfits in India and asset management company Sun FC, says he is finally doing what he wants.

But a friend says: "Knowing the businessman he is, it is difficult to keep him away from a commercial venture for long."