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There are many stories about the man who has spent close to three decades in advertising. Some speak about his feisty battles with the industry and others about his aggressive streak even when he was a newbie in the industry. But author and veteran adman Ambi Parameswaran says that one of his greatest qualities was that he was that rare ad professional who did not chase awards. "He focused his energies on solving client and brand problems with great ads," he says.
Balki worked on a long list of brands, notably with HUL, Titan, Micromax, Saint Gobain, Maruti, Havells and Google among others. His biggest contribution was his ability to translate his creative vision to tell the story of the brands. For instance the Lifebuoy ad (a child teaching adults the value of cleanliness) managed to go beyond the brief and give the brand new meaning say experts.
Anil Rai Gupta, chairman and managing director, Havells India says, "He did astonishing work for Havells. Each of his campaigns had an inimitable way of communicating the message" His famous campaigns for the brand include 'Shock laga' and 'Wires that don't catch fire' that changed brand perceptions.
Amer Jaleel, chairman and chief creative officer, MullenLowe Lintas says, "Balki is the fastest processor of information I have ever come across. He not only thinks about the brand, but also considers all other aspects like the macro factors, industry, consumers and every other related thing under the sun." This helped Balki develop some strong relationships with his client companies. CK Venkatraman, CEO of the jewellery division, Titan says that he has known Balki since the time the two worked together in Mudra in the late 1980s. "We developed a friendship based on respect and a certain common leaning for fun and bindaas stuff," he says.
Tanishq's remarriage campaign is one of the many that Balki drew praise for. Deepika Tewari, general manager (marketing) with the jewellery division at Titan says, "He has been one of the key architects of the brand and some of our most appreciated campaigns are attributed to his brilliance."
Subramanian R, managing director, (glass and solutions) Saint-Gobain India says Balki played a big role in creating the brand in India. "Today, the fact that it has better recall in India than in most other countries is in no small measure due to Team Lowe and its boss Balki," he says. Arvind Sharma, chairman IValley Group and angel investor, and former CEO at Leo Burnett says, "A perfect example of his dedication was the Fair N Lovely campaign. The brand was sort of stuck with the 'marriage not happening' communication and he modernised it making it about independent and confident women of today."
His work was considered remarkable because he set it within a national context. Nakul Chopra, CEO, South Asia, Publicis says, "In the past there was a Westernised view of the industry. It was people like Piyush and Balki who were instrumental in changing this."
(With inputs from TE Narasimhan in Chennai and Apurva Venkat in Bengaluru)
