When Ogilvy’s Lorraine Martin nearly made vada pav part of the interview

It was one of those October afternoons in Mumbai. The kind that disorients you and leaves you drenched in sweat. On that particular day, Ogilvy’s office in Andheri was buzzing because its newly appointed global chief, Devika Bulchandani, was visiting the city. We at afaqs! were scheduled to interview her. 

We were told the interview would happen around noon. Time passed. Another media house arrived and was ushered in. A bit of confusion followed. By the time Susmita Biswas, my then-editor, and I finally sat down with Bulchandani, the day had grown heavy. It was almost 5 in the evening.

We waited in the Ogilvy office. That is when Lorraine Martin walked in.

She was the agency’s group communications chief, and she already knew how long we had been waiting. She did something that still stays with me. She arranged for food.

Fifteen minutes later, three plates of hot vada pav appeared before us. We sat together. Lorraine, Bulchandani, Ogilvy India CEO VR Rajesh, and the two of us from afaqs!. It felt like a meal shared by people who had waited long enough to deserve one.

I do not recall whether the vada pavs came from the WPP food court or from the JW Marriott next door. I choose to believe they were from the hotel. Not because the spice inside the vada was particularly weak, but because that is how Lorraine Martin made you feel. Like you were being treated to something thoughtful, something more.

The first time we spoke was just before India went into lockdown. I was a new journalist, still unsure of how to navigate this industry. It was only my second day at afaqs!. A previous call with another communications executive had gone badly. 

She spoke to me for nearly half an hour. We wrapped up the work part in five minutes. The rest of the conversation wandered gently; we talked about the panic buying of toilet paper in Australia. We spoke about the strange ways people were responding to the pandemic. One of her sons lives there, she said.

In the years that followed, whenever we met, she always made sure I was taken care of. On one occasion, she made sure I got a plate of biryani that was meant for the Ogilvy Mumbai employees. It was thoughtful. It was delicious.

That I remember food from every interaction with Lorraine is no coincidence. It is a reflection of the care she showed. 

Of course, she was good at her job. She answered queries. She connected journalists to the right people. Sometimes she introduced them herself. When I think of Ogilvy, I do not just think of the work or the legacy. I think of Lorraine. She was part of the fabric.

Happy retirement, Lorraine. Thank you for feeding the work, and those of us who tried to tell its story.