Goafest 2022, India’s most definitive advertising, media and marketing symposium is back after a two-year hiatus, featuring some of the industry’s brightest minds along with prestigious industry awards felicitating notable creative thinkers from South Asia. The festival kick started with the lighting of the ceremonial lamp and the unveiling of AAAI’s new logo. It also marks Goafest’s 15th edition. Marking it as a special year, it is the first time ever that the Abby Awards have collaborated with The One Show. With an underlying theme of celebrating The SuperPower Within, delegates at Goafest 2022 were welcomed with a champagne launch by Zoom TV and a live musical performance by Sukhbir – Prince of Bhangra.
AAAI’s new logo, created by Tempest Advertising’s art director, Lohidasu, was unveiled during the lighting of the ceremonial lamp. The agency’s design was chosen amidst 200 entries. The logo effectively brought the past, the present and the future of both AAAI and advertising in unison. The official unveiling of the redesigned logo at the Goafest, was done by Rohit Ohri, Chairman and CEO of FCB Ulka and film star, Yami Gautam.
Further, the Industry Conclave presented by ABP Group marked the beginning of the festival with the first session of the day, witnessing actress Yami Gautam in a one-on-one conversation with Rana Barua, Chairman, Abby Awards Governing Council 2022 & Vice President of The Ad Club. The two enthralled the audience by speaking about films, values and the need to imagine and build a life beyond numbers. This tête-à-tête was followed by a super talk from Vineeta Singh, Co-founder and CEO, SUGAR Cosmetics & Shark, Shark Tank India, who highlighted the importance of building a brand with quality products and content before focusing on advertising. She also emphasized the power of empowering a team, which mirrors the ethos of SUGAR, passionately stating, “Empower them and let them go rule the world!”
The next session witnessed Ankush Sachdeva, Co-Founder & CEO, Sharechat & Moj, chatting with Vikram Sakhuja, Group CEO Madison Media & OOH at Madison World. The duo engaged in a meaningful conversation highlighting the mission that Ankush, a Messiah for the creator and influencer community, is on. He spoke about how short-form content is going to be the future of content consumption and while addressing the advertisers, he said, “If you do not catch the attention of the consumer in 2 seconds, you have lost them.” He also emphasized the advantage of reaching the mass audience using regional content.
Following this up was a knowledge session in partnership with the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), wherein Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary (CA), Ministry of Consumer Affairs & Food Distribution spoke with Piyush Pandey, Chairman of Global Creative Ogilvy Worldwide & Executive Chairman, Ogilvy India discussing the importance of consumer protection and its responsibility that we have as professionals. The session was moderated by Subhash Kamath, Chairman, ASCI & CEO, BBH, India who asked poignant questions and received crucially important answers regarding brands promoting and marketing misleading information, bait advertising, and those compromising consumer interest. Rohit ended on a high note stating, “If we don’t look after the interest of the consumer, who will?”
Thereafter, another super-talk was given by Honorable Dr. Kiran Bedi, Former Lt Governor Puducherry & Ex – IPS Officer, who highlighted the importance of leadership, emphasizing, “Leadership is internal – you start with yourself; if you can’t lead yourself, you can’t lead people.” She also added that one must live by what they say and they automatically will have followers. She further shared her TEA Mantra, stating that a leader must be trustworthy, empowering, and accountable. The crowd roared and cheered as she launched her second book, Fearless Governance.
This year, for the first time ever, The Advertising Club collaborated with The One Show, taking the ABBY Awards to global standards of recognition. With the coming together of this partnership, participating agencies as well as jury chairs have shown immense enthusiasm towards it.
Speaking about Goafest 2022, Anupriya Acharya, President,Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) said, “It’s been a tough two years, and it’s great to be back on-ground not only in terms of organizing the festival but also where achievements are concerned. We are thrilled to have everyone back, bonding and celebrating this festival. With an enthusiasm-filled venue, we had a successful day one. And now, looking forward to a power packed day 2 and 3!”
Jaideep Gandhi, Chairman, Goafest 2022 Organising Committee said, “Goafest has undoubtedly grown into one of the most prestigious conventions in South Asia, bringing together some of the most talented and brightest creative geniuses from all walks of life to celebrate the ad-land spirit. We are looking to keep the overall exuberance of this year’s festival about enjoyment, about people coming together to celebrate and connect. As a result, we will be able to understand the true essence of organizing a festival after experiencing two major setbacks in the past. The Goafest festival gives young talent the chance to interact and learn from some of the industry’s stalwarts. These people have played a crucial role in paving the way for them, making the event worthwhile. In addition to these benefits, it serves as a place where young people can engage and network cohesively with the entire media and advertising fraternity.”
Discussing the ABBY Awards at Goafest 2022, Partha Sinha, President, The Advertising Club said, “2022 is definitely a landmark year because of the collaboration of the ABBY Awards with The One Show, and this is a game-changing proposition. It gives a platform to a plethora of agencies, enabling it to become more global. We owe it to the industry to bring something of global standing especially when we are one large world.”
Speaking about the ABBYs Awards, Rana Barua, Chairman, Abby Awards Governing Council 2022 & Vice President of The Ad Club said, “A staggering number of participants has been witnessed, surpassing all previous records. In addition to agencies that have participated since our inception, we have also seen those returning every year. Overall, the numbers are higher this month since we had to package everything together in one month. This year and henceforth, Goafest will be considerably bigger and more extravagant.”
As the sun went down on Day 1, it was time for the presentation of the Publisher and Media ABBYs. A total of 15 Publisher ABBYs and 87 Media ABBYs were awarded, tonight. For Publisher ABBYs, 5 Gold, 3 Silver and 7 Bronze were awarded and 4 entries were given a Certificate of Merit. Lodestar UM won the Grand Prix for Mumbai Police for their campaign, ‘The Punishing Signal’. For Media ABBYs, 21 Gold, 28 Silver, and 37 Bronze were awarded.
From an eclectic platter of knowledge sharing sessions and masterclasses from renowned speakers across various fields to ABBYs digital presentations, Goafest 2022 presented by the The Advertising Club and Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) has once again raised the standards in recognising and appreciating excellence in creativity across mediums and categories.
