Pallavi Chakravarti left DDB Mudra in early 2023 to launch Fundamental, a move she labelled if 'not now, then when'. Her belief was that while ageism should not be part of advertising, it somehow does seep in.

She explained, "If someone is adding value, age should not matter. What tends to happen, especially in the network universe, is that politics takes over, and work stops being the priority. Leaders focus more on keeping systems happy than on the work itself. It's a tough balancing act, and very often work slips lower and lower."

Chakravarti added that if she were in the network system, she would have no choice but to play that politics game.

Another game that she and the agency are not playing is that of awards.

However, that status could change in the future; then too, it will be extremely selective in picking which ones it will participate in. 

"I know what it takes to put together a winning case study - time, money and a lot of people. One needs to be sure that the ROI is going to be worth it. Given this situation, where we see an award show proliferating in every corner and everybody has an award and is decorated, then who is not? There was a point in time when awards like a 'copywriter of the year' meant something because there were just one or two. Familiarity breeds contempt, and there is no one today who has not got something to boast about, and that somewhere dilutes the effect," she stated before listing what she believes that ROI could be.

"The agency gets talked about. One is storied and decorated. The agency gets to talk about itself in front of clients, and so on," she said.

Read the full chat with Chakravarti in the September issue of Manifest. Get your copy here.

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