Name: Sashwati Banerjee

Designation: Marketing and Communications advisor CMS Project, Futures Group, India

Sun Sign: Taurus

Educational Experience
Regular scolding from my parents saw me through graduation. Joined MA with good intentions but the thought of studying Chaucer and Silver Poets seemed too morose. Dropped out, did the usual vocational course in marketing and advertising, learned on the job and soaked up any and all kinds of information. I READ, READ, READ. My friends swear that I'm the ultimate TRIVIA QUEEN.

Professional Experience
In India, my company is the commercial market strategies project (CMS) division of Futures Group International. We're funded by USAID to provide technical consulting services on various reproductive health projects in India. Specifically CMS works with the private health care sector in order to increase their participation in public health goals.

To achieve this we design, manage, supervise and monitor programmes that include behaviour change campaigns, training, research, and other outreach activities. Currently CMS is managing programs to increase demand and usage of Oral Contraceptive Pills and Oral Rehydration Salts in north India. ICICI Bank is the fund manager of these programmes.

All my jobs have been a learning experience. My first one was handling the front desk of a newly opened 5-star hotel in Delhi. I learnt how to wear a sari well and also never to judge a book by its cover! Then I moved to work in a real dodgy below the line promotions company - learning? Bullshit works 9 times out of 10!

Then I moved to the UK and Hong Kong... retail promotions and corporate communications - learning - how to work in a multi-cultural environment and have a blast. Those were really fun days. The Brits really respect POETS (piss off early tomorrow's Saturday) DAY.

On a more serious note, Bombay is where I really learnt a lot about communication. What I brought to the table were ideas and experience that were being used outside India. What I got to learn here was how to translate those in the Indian context; how to accept that there are some things that can't change; and how to change the things that can.

At Contract I met some of the best advertising brains and to this day I think of Rohit as my guru! After a year at a company that launched a product well before its time and went under with a ssssss (the infamous Vaccumiser!), I was ready to leave the corporate rat race.

I started working with the development sector and consulted with various NGOs and funding organizations. Reproductive health was a field that interested me and I sincerely believe that health care in this country is a huge growth area. Coupled with my activist background from college days and feminism, I finally found the perfect niche.

I worked with CMS for 2 years and then moved back to Bombay. O & M was setting-up their Healthcare Division and I applied to head up their Bombay branch. It was most exciting. Almost too exciting!! Onset of ulcers and the NEED to be back to doing social development work brought me back to CMS.

Job Profile
PAPER and TRAVEL!! Seriously the amount of paper we generate in the form of contracts, reports, documents, research is not funny. I spend almost 45 per cent of my time traveling to my project areas - namely the BIMARU states in north India.

I manage and supervise two programs currently that look at increasing the demand and usage for hormonal contraceptives in north India, change behavior and have some policy impact in the long run.

Coordination with communication agencies, PR and Advocacy, working with the medical community and partner pharmaceutical manufacturers plus finding innovative ways to ensure that the sales chart keeps showing a healthy growth is the core of my job.

Social marketing as career choice
I can do a motherhood number here - like this is my calling, I was born to help others (sic!)

Well, social marketing is a bit like a big jigsaw puzzle, and you have to fit all the pieces in to make sure that everybody has the complete picture. I love big, complicated jigsaw puzzles.

I love working on issues that affect public at large and designing programs that bring about behavior change - to me that's marketing and communications at it's best! Health is an area that interests me and women's issues are close to my heart. Put the two together and wow what more can I expect?!!!

Current social marketing scenario
Nearly 25 per cent of India is below poverty line and supposedly can't afford basic health care. In reality almost 78 per cent of people access health care from the private sector namely they pay for health care from their own pockets and even the poor go to private doctors and chemists!

India's a highly segmented market. Basic health care is provided by the Government, social marketing firms like PSI and DKT cater to an SEC (socio-economic class) who can afford services and products but not pay the prices that the private sector demands and then the commercial or private sector catering to the higher SEC's.

However, that's all theoretical. This highly segmented market is also a highly subsidized market where all the above categories eat into each other and nobody gains. The programmes we run aim to grow the overall market and create an environment where the private sector feels motivated enough to provide quality services and products and help share the health burden of the country with the government.

Though social marketing has existed in India for a while, the growth of social marketing is very recent. It's only now that people are realizing the importance of private-public partnerships, corporate social responsibility and the glaring fact that subsidies cannot be an answer to long-term growth.

With burning health issues like population, women's health, child health, HIV/AIDS there is a strong need for the public and the private sector to join hands and promote services and products that can help to bring down the health burden in India.

Five years from now
Five years from now... the project will continue and be more dynamic, US won't declare war on Iraq or any other country, India will actually win a world cup or two, I'll be able to buy a house in Italy and make wine, learn how to Samba, find the courage to bungee jump, walk the streets of Delhi without fear of getting raped, half the population won't get wiped out because of AIDS? five years is a long time!!

Hobbies
Have a bag, will travel! Watching films irrespective of language, reading, music (modern jazz, blues and old Hindi film songs!)

What I hate: Liars, creepy crawlers, paying exorbitant rates for average food, haggling with cab drivers, late night horror movies!!

Idea of enjoyment
A glass of the very best single malt, jazz on the system, cold winter night, blazing log fire?.heaven!

Name: Nisha Sareen Job

Profile : Actor

Sun Sign: Sagittarius,    12 December 1979

Educational Experience
I've done my B.A. (Economics & Sociology) from St Xavier's College. Then I went to New York and did an acting course from The School for Film and Television and also from Weist Baron. I've learnt dancing from the Broadway Dance School.

After coming back to India, I joined the Kishore Namit School of Acting and also the Shakur Sheik Dance School. Everyone in the film industry from Hrithik Roshan to Vivek Oberoi have learnt dance from him!! He's the best.

Professional Experience
I have done a lot of theater since I was six years old. I was actively involved in it right through school. The credit goes to my mom because she has always been involved with theater. She has a theater school called SPEED which stands for "Speech Personality Evolution through Educational Dramakinetics," and I have trained under her.

I played the character of Mother Teresa in a play called God Is My Banker. The play portrayed her life from childhood till death. It was a great experience to play a young girl and a dying old lady in the same play.

Then I also played the part of Beauty in a play called Beauty and the Beast. Both these plays were under the banner of my mother's theater school.

The other plays that I have enacted in, are Rendezvous with Guess Who and My Best Friend's Wedding, which is directed by producer-director-actor Sundeep Sikaand.

My last performance was at the Abby Awards where we enacted a spoof on all the ads. It was a great experience.

On television I'm doing Deepti Bhatnagar's daily soap Kabhi Aaye Na Judai which airs on Star Plus. I play the character of a girl called Raveena who does not believe in salwaar kameez and sarees. She's a hard-core American return with tank-tops and spaghettis and a whole lot of attitude!!

I have also shot a pilot for Gurudev Bhalla's Rishto Ki Dori, which will be aired on Sony. The shooting for the serial should begin by the end of April.

Five years ago I started teaching the students at my mom's theater school SPEED and I really enjoy it.

Theater & television as career choices
Acting has always been in my blood. I was exposed to a lot of theater since childhood because of my mom. Theater is my life and I am very passionate about my work.

One thing that I believe in is that if you enjoy doing something you are definitely going to make a success of it. And I really enjoy acting.

Current Television scenario
Well, honestly the current television scenario has nothing new to offer. The same saas-bahu dramas are being shown on television these days and believe you me it's not going to work in the long run. You can't fool the Indian audience by showing them such dramas. The Indian woman is not as weak as is portrayed in these serials and I don't think any woman relates to the characters shown in such soaps.

Television is such a huge medium and has so much scope for performance, especially for new actors. There are so many talented actors in the industry right now but they need the right kind of role because for actors, serials are the best way to grow and also show their potential.

Right and wrong about current television scenario
There is a dearth of good stories in the industry. We NEED good stories and more intellectual growth. But sadly, it's not happening.

Indian women are not weak and mean like they are shown on most of the soaps aired on television today. They are not submissive to their husbands' atrocities like is shown. That needs to change.

I will never choose a role in which I don't believe. I don't think I can see myself playing the saas-bahu kind of roles. The characters of Tulsi and Parvati are definitely very popular and they have gained immense fame and popularity, but I'd rather not do those kind of roles. Fame, money and popularity are important for me but not at the cost of doing what I don't believe in.

I'm acting today because I love it and it's a passion.

Five years from now
Five years down the line I see myself extremely happy in what I'm doing. I want to be a great actress and it's always been my funda since I was a kid that I will work only in serials or movies that are in the A+ category... nothing less!

Hobbies
I absolutely love dancing and teaching kids in my mom's theater school. I enjoy singing and have trained to play the harmonium. Books are also my passion. My favourite authors are Danielle Steel and John Grisham.

Idea of enjoyment
My idea of enjoyment is being with people who I vibe with. My friends and family fall in that category.

I'm a very adaptable and flexible kind of person. I can mould myself to the kind of people around me. I love meeting and interacting with people because I believe that that's how one keeps growing.

I am definitely not a loner and I'm extremely restless. I need to be around people all the time. That's my idea of enjoyment!!

Name: Abhijit Pradhan

Designation: Associate Vice President - Core Consulting

Sun Sign: Taurus, 10 May 1971

Educational Experience
Post Graduate - Marketing, Times School of Marketing - Delhi.

Professional Experience
10 years across marketing and advertising.

Contract Advertising - cumulative six years.

Others: Fosters India (Consumer Marketing), ABCL (Marketing), Sony Music India (National Promotions & Product management), TV ASIA USA (Marketing), Ammirati Puris Lintas (Advertising).

Job Profile
I'm the Associate Vice President and founding team member of Core Consulting, which is a marketing / customer consulting outfit started by Contract Advertising (a member of the WPP group).

Advertising as career choice
I got magnetically attracted towards advertising. It was a career which combined the "definable" (the rigour of brand management, customer insight gathering, market analysis) with the "indefinable" (the creative spark and the non-rational behaviour of consumers) - or simply put a challenge etched in stone for eternity!

Current Advertising scenario
It's going through a struggle (not for revenues - which it also is!) to find its true worth. Advertising is getting more and more marginalised as the pressure of "accountability" comes heavily on marketing and even heavier on advertising.

There is pressure on how much price we should pay for creativity. It's sad that we have reached a stage where there are two schools of thought - "Creativity" and "Effectiveness" and not the true meshing of both.

Right and wrong about current advertising scenario
"Living in our box" or the Ostrich Syndrome - we need to get out of advertising to do better advertising. We need to understand people from a holistic perspective and not just consumers. We need to start instilling trust in them - and not grimace at the sight of the next commercial.

What is right is the PASSION - very few industries I have seen possess such lethal doses of this wonder drug. All one needs is the direction for the passion.

Five years from now
That's a long time frame in today's day and age - but the same time passes so fast as well !

I have a vision where I see "marketing" changing to "Connecting" - and I truly mean connecting - physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Today marketing is trying to Get attention, Impress and Sell. Tomorrow it needs to Get Respect, Partner and Share - and have people buying into the company as opposed to just buying their products and services.

I see myself executing parts (or the whole) of this vision. The first journey has already begun with the formation of Core Consulting where we are attempting to bridge the gaps that communication is leaving behind.

Hobbies
Following music - focusing on a new genre, then exploring and discovering it as much as possible. Examples: The Blues, five years ago. Yesterday, it was Arabic Music!

Sun Sign
As bull-headed as one can be. I'm a Taurean born on 10 May, 1971.

Idea of enjoyment
My mind needs to be excited, thrilled, filled with a feeling that it's never felt before! Anything that delivers these results qualifies. In plain speak, it could be exploring new fields - a new sport, new land, a new musical genre, plotting to buy a new gadget or even a new car!

On a group front, I used to enjoy the bonding. Sadly since I have given up the elixir of life (alcohol), I am not "party" to such moments anymore!

Life has been an interesting dash for Sanjay Pugalia, Editor Awaaz. An arduous yet thrilling journey in the business of news where the burnout rate is perhaps the highest. Definitely not a rollercoaster ride, but a twenty five year long career path where Pugalia was always lured by the desire to evolve and do something different.

We are sitting at the Awaaz office in Lower Parel which is abuzz with activity. We settle down in his cabin for a t?te-?-t?te, as his recalcitrant telephone continues to buzz and vibrate every minute. I am all prepared for a wonderful and drawn-out conversation when Pugalia tells me, "actually, I've a sore throat. Meri Awaaz thodi kharab hain." But then getting him to talk about his channel Awaaz does the trick. Though slightly shy and reluctant to talk about himself, Pugalia slowly drops his guard over a cup of steaming hot coffee and gets talking.

Reminiscing about his early years, he says, "My early years were all about living in a joint business family. My father used to deal in jute, textiles and food grains. But somehow, I was very sure that I didn't want to be in business. I always wanted to do something different that would directly deal with people and their lives. There were other options like being in the IAS/IPS, but I was never serious about my studies. In fact, while in school I used to question to myself, as to `why were we being taught whatever we were being taught.'

Pugalia spent his formative years in Sahibganj in Bihar. Those were the days of social activism, the youth movement in the midst of great socio-political changes. With a glint in his eyes, he recalls, "the 80s were a period when the media became extra-conscious and vigilant about democracy, due to emergency declared by the then prime minister. As a teenager, I was influenced by the student movement and once happened to catch hold of a weekly called Ravivaar edited by the late SP Singh. That magazine influenced me a lot and I knew from then on that journalism would be my calling in life."

So, inspite of stiff opposition from family and friends, Pugalia left home, moved to Mumbai in 1982 to join Navbharat Times at a salary of Rs 2000. He recalls, "it was a big decision then, because of my business background and also because journalism wasn't a viable career option then."

Listening to him tick off the course his life has taken, I realise Pugalia has a knack for cutting through the heart of things which has taken him to the dizzying professional heights he is today. Always the one to take on challenges, he started off with investigative stories, economic offences and politics.

After a good ten year stint with Navbharat Times Pugalia shifted to Delhi. Recalling the old times, he says, "I got on to the hot beats of politics and journalism. And the 90s were a happening period in terms of government change and economic reforms. After a three year stint with the Business Standard, he seized another opportunity by joining Aaj Tak as Deputy Executive Producer. He says, "those were the times when Aaj Tak was in the process of launching a channel. We used to revere SP Singh as God and when he asked me to work with him we had to make things happen. Also, it was the right time to be in television news; since it was nascent and evolving."

Pugalias' first break as an editor came with Zee News in 2001. He says, "this was an opportunity to establish live television in the country with events like the Agra summit and Gujarat riots. Working under Subhashji was the most enriching experience. He would interact, give his ideas but never would he say do this or that. We had the complete editorial freedom there.When the next challenge came in to launch Star News from Mumbai, I was all set for it. On a personal level, I was itching to get back to Mumbai."

I ask him whether he's been a rolling stone all his life. "Well, I did stick around for more than ten years in print, then five years in Aaj Tak; but the desire to do something different is what keeps me going. Also, one has to be prepared to take on challenges when the right break arrives."

Moving from the general news space to launch a niche channel for the Raghav Bahl promoted CNBC-TV18 was the next big challenge. "Call it luck gain or right timing but once when I had just send a casual sms to Raghav; he gave me this challenging offer. The challenge was to move away from politics and launch a niche within a niche."

I ask him whether he now enjoys his success? Rather matter-of-factly, he says "I am still a reporter at heart. But what is exciting is I get to meet a new breed of entrepreneurs, traders and retailers who are shaping up our new economy."

I am a peoples' person
Stress is obviously a part of the game. But Pugalia believes in being charged all the time. "I hardly take any leave and believe in constantly training my colleagues. News is a people intensive job and fortunately I am a peoples' person. I believe in delegating and developing the second, third and even for that matter the low level executives, so the process and the system is strong. I believe, either you're a journalist or you're not. Or everyone who passes out of a journalism school cannot make it as a good journalist.

Relaxing mantra
"I hate Page 3 parties or for that matter having lunch/dinner with the powerful le cr?me de la cr?me is not my trip. Also, money has never been a motivating factor in my life. I am not really brand conscious.

Over the weekends I spend time with my wife who has throughout been very supportive in my profession and about my odd working hours .On Sundays we either catch up on a movie or go for a quiet dinner. I love to spend time at the Sea Lounge in South Mumbai.
I love to travel. Recently, we had gone to drop my son for undergraduate studies in the US. We had a beautiful holiday when we went to Germany, Boston, and Las Vegas. I would recommend Las Vegas to everyone who loves to travel."

Name: Anjali Kapoor Garg

Designation: Marketing Executive - BBC World Sun

Sign: Scorpio, 30 October 1977

Educational Experience
I did my B.Com from Mumbai University.

Then went on to do a Masters in Business Administration with a marketing specialization from the Sydenham Institute of Management, Mumbai, not too long ago.

Professional Experience
Tried my hand at accounting in college - hated it!

Spoke to a few people from the media planet, did a few assignments with them - loved it!

Got a brilliant opportunity to work with BBC World right after post graduation in 2001 and grabbed it!

I started as a Sales Planner - Advertising Sales, for a year, gathering market knowledge and sharing it within the organisation. Moved on to meeting media planners, buyers and brand managers to book airtime revenue and handling marketing for BBC World. Managed to lose both weight and sleep but gained remarkable experience!!

Working on managing one of the world's top brands' created a strong urge to devise new strategies to make this brand top of mind for viewers and advertisers.

I knew I had to manoeuvre my career to building brands. My senior managers recognised my enthusiasm and decided to give me the responsibility of initiating and managing marketing initiatives for BBC World in India.

Job Profile
I thrive on brand building and awareness campaigns in India for consumers as well as trade/advertisers. Creating and executing contests, promotions and events also forms an exciting part of my job. Besides being a custodian of the brand, I derive special pleasure in bouncing off innovative promotion ideas to my team and brainstorming campaign specifics with them.

Television as career choice
This one is surely getting me thinking?. The dynamism of this industry - television being one of the most impactful audio visual media reaching around 80 million viewers who can be segmented in a zillion categories - is reason enough to entice me to be a part of it.

I find it highly challenging to be innovative in this highly competitive environment to connect with this vast spectrum of people.

Current Television scenario:
Conditional access systems (CAS) is probably the most clich?(d) word as of date. Updates come in everyday and currently one can only act as a sponge absorbing all information.

News is a new blockbuster in the television scenario. The news genre is currently witnessing a sea change with the number of news channels on the increase. As news is so high on people's agenda it is interesting to note that with the entry of a number of news channels in the Indian market shortly, there will be a plethora of international, national and local content available for viewers.

Being in such an environment, precise audience definition, speaking the viewer's language, delivery of a superior product and employing relevant communication tactics, are the keys that will help give anyone the edge.

Right and wrong about current Television scenario
There is a lot happening in the TV industry. Changes have been big and quick. It is difficult to predict what's going to happen in the future but one thing is for certain it is going to be very challenging and exciting!!!

Five years from now
I would definitely be involved with brand management and would still be a part of the media wonderland. My career would definitely be on a high, and I may have featured on most 'newsmakers' sessions giving away some gyan!

Hobbies
Music, Music and more music.Idea of enjoyment
A day away from laptops and ringing mobiles? lying under a coconut palm, on a beach, with a cool breeze blowing, reading a book and sipping pinacolada!!

Name: Dhawal Katkar

Designation: Brand Manager - Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL)

Sun Sign: Cancer, 25th June

Educational Experience
I did my MBA from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management in the year 1997.

Professional Experience
For three and a half years I was with L'Oreal and since the last two and a half years I've been with GCPL. Most of my experience is in brand management.

Job Profile
Brand management, new business development. Scouting for brand takeovers and acquisitions to fuel company growth is the crux of my job profile.

Marketing as career choice
My prior work experience exposed me to part of marketing. I really liked what I was doing and so I decided to make a career in it.

Current Marketing scenario
The current marketing scenario is becoming increasingly complex and challenging due to high competition and more emphasis by consumers on better "value for money" products.

Right and wrong about current marketing scenario
The present day hot topic is wrong advertising - especially the fairness cream fiasco that's going on. I would never like to associate myself with such a problem as NGO's are playing and will continue to play a very strong role in the future in any business.

Five years from now
I see myself continuing in FMCG marketing as I find it very challenging.

Hobbies
Reading and oil painting.

Idea of enjoyment
My idea of enjoyment is to gang up with a few friends; go for a drink, listen to some good music and have a few laughs.