Ram Sehgal’s enduring legacy: Shaping a generation of Indian advertisers

Ram Sehgal stands out as one of the true visionaries of Indian advertising and an industry builder whose sharp professional instinct, warmth, and leadership helped shape an entire generation of practitioners. As the first CEO and founder of Contract, the second agency in the HTA group, he took on a challenge that very few had succeeded at in the early 1980s. 

At that time, launching a second agency under an established network was almost always a struggle, with many efforts failing to gain traction. But under his guidance, Contract not only survived but also flourished and quickly became one of the most admired creative agencies in the country. My own interaction with Sehgal was brief but memorable. 

We met during a pitch for a tourism brand: I represented another agency, while he led Contract Advertising Ltd. Although it was a competitive setting, his friendliness, humour, and genuine warmth immediately stood out.

He had an effortless ability to make people feel at ease, and that charisma translated directly into his leadership style.

What truly set him apart was his knack for building strong teams. He identified and hired some of the finest creative and account management professionals of the time.

Under his mentorship, these teams helped Contract develop a distinctive creative voice and deliver work that could stand independently in a crowded and evolving marketplace. Very soon, Contract earned a reputation for bold, fresh ideas and high-quality thinking.

Some of the agency’s most celebrated work emerged during his leadership. Contract’s campaigns for NIIT, then a fledgling startup in the computer education space, played a key role in establishing the brand as a national name.

The agency also produced memorable ads for Uncle Chips, backed by a jingle many can still hum, and for Kelvinator Magicook, helping both brands carve out strong positions in the minds of consumers. These campaigns were not just successful pieces of communication; they became part of the cultural memory of the era.

Beyond his agency responsibilities, Sehgal was deeply involved in several advertising bodies. At a time when the industry lacked clear regulations, he contributed tirelessly to establishing frameworks for ethics, professional conduct, and self-governance. His work helped shape not just campaigns but the very foundation on which modern Indian advertising has grown.

In later years, he moved to Pondicherry and became closely associated with the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, reflecting his personal inclination toward reflection and inner growth. Even from afar, he continued to mentor, guide, and influence many of the people he had worked with over the years.

A number of them went on to become business leaders, agency heads, and successful entrepreneurs, each carrying forward a part of his philosophy and thinking.

His legacy continues through his daughter, Sonali Sehgal, a respected advertising professional in her own right. As the co-founder of Sideways Consulting, she represents the next generation of brand-building expertise, an evolution of the values her father championed: creativity, clarity, and human-centred thinking.

Ram Sehgal’s impact on Indian advertising is deep, lasting, and widely celebrated. He was not just a leader who built an agency, but he also built people, principles and possibilities.