Ganga quits chlorophyll; plans to stay in advertising

Advertising veteran Gangadharan Menon - better known to the industry as Ganga of the famous Ganga-Nalesh team - has quit chlorophyll brand & communications consultancy, the three-year-old outfit that he partnered with Kiran Khalap, Anand Halve, Manjunath Hegde and Nalesh Patil. Speaking to agencyfaqs!, Ganga confirmed the news, adding with a laugh, "From November 8, I have formally joined the ranks of the educated unemployed of this country."

Citing reasons for his departure from the venture that he had helped midwife, Ganga says, "All I can say is that the formula didn't work out as expected. I think the personal chemistry was not working. An interpersonal relationship with one person is one thing. The moment three more people come into the picture, there's a new dynamic." However, he quickly adds that there was no bad blood in the run-up to his decision to move out. "It was a sad parting, not a bitter one," he assures. "After all, I was a part of chlorophyll's creation. And it was a unique experience… five people working on their own, doing everything. Even now, I think it is an experiment that can succeed."

Naturally, the knee-jerk reaction to the development is whether Nalesh too is calling it quits. After all, since the time the two met in Trikaya Advertising (now Grey Worldwide), back in 1982, Ganga and Nalesh have been close friends. And ever since they first formed an art-copy team at Rediffusion, they have created a formidable reputation for themselves, emerging as one of India's champion creative teams in the course of their stints at O&M, Mudra Communications and PSL McCann (subsequently re-christened PSL Erickson). For the record, Ganga and Nalesh quit their posts of national creative directors at PSL McCann to pitch in and start chlorophyll in August 1999. Replying to the poser on Nalesh continuing at chlorophyll, Ganga shrugs. "I'm not sure what the future holds, but as of now, Nalesh is very much with chlorophyll."

A fact that Khalap corroborates. "Nalesh stays with us," he told agencyfaqs!. Dwelling on Ganga's departure, Khalap says, "I think Ganga had reached a stage in evolution where he probably wanted something else out of his professional life. And perhaps our visions for the chlorophyll brand may not have matched. But I can tell you there was no bitterness anywhere. And let me add that Ganga will always be an inseparable part of the chlorophyll brand. After all, he was there right from the time we were thinking of a name for this agency. His contribution to chlorophyll is huge."

Given the lean organizational structure at chlorophyll, Ganga's departure has created a vacuum that needs to be filled almost immediately, something Khalap knows very well. "Actually, Ganga is irreplaceable," he smiles. "Where can you find a man of such talent at the drop of a hat? However, now that he is not with us any longer, we have to find someone… perhaps someone younger. In fact, we have already met a few people, so let's see."

If chlorophyll is looking towards the future, so is Ganga - although he insists that no one has made him any offers as yet. "Nobody knows that I am in the market, so my plans are to let the world know that I am willing and able," he says with a twinkle in his eye. And the man with over two decades of advertising experience has no intentions of exploring anything outside advertising. "I am not looking at any other option, at least for the next few years." Starting an agency is a definite no-no too. "I am basically looking at a place where I can make a difference by lifting the standards of creativity. It shouldn't be just another agency job which expects only that much from me." © 2002 agencyfaqs!