The eighth edition of the prestigious IndIAA Awards, hosted by the India Chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA), unfolded in grandeur at the Taj Lands End, Mumbai. ABP Network and Sony Pictures Network served as co-partners for the event, while Network18 and JIO Cinema joined as associate partners.

The IndIAA Awards aimed to recognize advertising campaigns that displayed exceptional creativity in reaching their target markets. A diverse panel of industry experts made up the all-client jury that selected the winners from 102 shortlisted campaigns, with only one winner per category and joint winners in closely contested categories.

Leo Burnett, MullenLowe Lintas Group, and Ogilvy emerged as the standout creative agencies of the night, each securing three IndIAA Awards for their exceptional work. BBDO, DDB Mudra, and TBWA also impressed, securing two awards each.

Several other creative agencies and creators, including Grey Group, Kehat Kabira Pictures, McCann Worldgroup, Publicis Worldwide, Rediffusion, SG Media, Talented, The Script Room, The Womb, and Tilt Brand Solutions, were honored with IndIAA Awards.

Notably, two Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) brands claimed victory in the Food & Beverage and Personal Care categories, while HDFC Life secured the top spot in the Insurance category, and HDFC Mutual Fund triumphed in the Banking & Finance category.

Suresh Narayanan, Jury Chairman and Chairman & Managing Director of Nestle India, expressed his gratitude for being part of this esteemed gathering of creative minds in advertising, sharing a short poem titled ‘Jury Chair ka Sambodhan,’ which encapsulated his five-year journey in this influential role. His heartfelt recitation in Hindi earned a warm applause from the audience, marking a fitting conclusion to a night celebrating the best in advertising creativity.

The IndIAA Awards continue to inspire and acknowledge exceptional advertising talent, setting a high standard for the industry to follow.

Avinash Pandey, President IAA, sheds light on how the IndIAA Awards exemplify creative excellence and have set the gold standard for creative awards in India. He states, “It’s been an intriguing year for arguably the most active industry association of its kind. We’ve demonstrated that our industry can be a catalyst for change, particularly in breaking gender bias. We celebrate the winners reflecting the growing synergy between associations and showcasing the remarkable impact of the communication industry. The positive feedback from young leaders has been heartening, and our industry’s enthusiasm for AdAsia remains strong. We’re organising a delegation led by Sam Balsara for AdAsia 23 in Seoul, the largest event of its kind in Asia.”

IAA IndIAA Awards Chairman, Abhishek Karnani said, “IAA Awards are unique because you can’t “enter” them.” A group of seasoned journalists shortlisted 102 campaigns across 19 categories from over a thousand ads. This accomplishes two important goals- first, it ensures that only genuine work is presented to the jury, keeping scam ads at bay, second, it truly democratises the creative process by not charging an entry fee, making fundraising for this grand event a challenging task.

He further said, what sets the IAA awards apart is that they are judged by senior marketers who own and invest in the brands. We showcase the transformative power of communication for our beloved country and society, embodying IAA’s unwavering belief in the ability of communication to drive change.

IAA honoured Ayushmann Khurrana as “Most Disruptive Brand in Entertainment Industry” on questioning his criteria while choosing a Brand, he replied, “I believe before taking on a brand it resonates with the credibility of my films. Credibility is everything. I think only going with commercials will be very myopic. My father once told me, ‘Goddess Saraswati comes before Goddess Lakshmi. I always go like that. If you earn respect, nothing like that.”

Speaking about being an outsider in Bollywood, he said that the first choice had to be truly different and clatter-breaking. “I’ll never get a second chance being an outsider. So it’s all about the choices you make eventually. Everybody is hard-working and talented. It’s the kind of opportunities you get and firmly success is nothing but when preparation meets opportunity,” he avers.

The Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA) felicitated the all-India winners of its maiden Changemakers For Good Awards at the IndIAA Awards 2023. These meaningful awards are to salute those individuals and companies in the communication space who have used their talent to make the world a better place.
The winners for the four categories were:
• Advertising (for transformational messages) – Lowe Lintas for their International Women’s Day 2022 entry.
• Government (for transformational messaging by a Government arm). –RK Swamy Associated for State Bank of India.
• Industry Leader (someone who led societal change in the last few years).- CVL Srinivas, Country Head, WPP Group.
• Innovation (where technology or approach made the difference) – Lowe Lintas for International Women’s Day 2022.