Arindam Sarkar, planning director, Ogilvy moves to BBDO

BBDO India is all set to make a new beginning with Arindam Sarkar, its new vice-president, strategic planning. Earlier, Sarkar was senior planning director, Ogilvy Delhi.

Sarkar was handling businesses such as Coke and Max Life at Ogilvy. He looks forward to his new assignments in BBDO India. "What attracted me to BBDO India is its way of working. Our ideologies match in terms of developing brand ideas that actively involve people. Also, I am really looking forward to working with Ajai (Jhala) and Josy (Paul). As I take charge of the agency, my first priority will be to focus on work, intensify the effectiveness of communication and build more business," states Sarkar in a conversation with afaqs!.

Ajai Jhala, chief executive officer, BBDO India, says, "I met Arindam for breakfast and as we ate and discussed oats, we realised that his ambition was perfectly articulated in our work. Arindam is a key hire as we build on our brand ideas that are action oriented and have an inherent utility value."

Josy Paul, chairperson and chief creative officer, BBDO India believes that Sarkar will bring in a new influence and a refreshing perspective to BBDO India. "Sarkar's background is a rare mix of activities. He is not just an ad man but also a musician, a strategist and has worked in the digital interactive world. Being a part of Ogilvy, he is exposed to some of the greatest works in the industry. With such varied experience, he is quite different from us and thereby, will add value to us," shares Paul.

Sarkar's immediate responsibilities will include looking after key accounts such as PepsiCo (which includes Nimbooz, 7Up and Quaker oats), Aviva and Gillette, in addition to other existing accounts.

In a parallel development, Sangeet Pillai, director, strategy planning, will move back to BBDO New York after a two year stint with the agency. Speaking about the development, Paul adds, "It was great working with Sangeet, who has successfully set up the planning department here. He came to India with a purpose, rendered his duties with perfection and is now moving on to some interesting assignments abroad. We wish him all the luck for the future."

According to the agency, Pillai is moving back to BBDO New York solely due to personal reasons. He was not available for comments.

For the record, BBDO India is the youngest agency of BBDO Worldwide and the Omnicom Group. Currently, it has a client list which includes brands such as 7Up, Nimbooz, Quaker Oats, Aviva life insurance, P&G Gillette, Godrej Protekt, Bayer Healthcare, Wrigley's Doublemint, HP and Dulux.