Why did you choose to call your memoirs, The Dum Dum Bullet?

I thought the name did justice to the subject of my book, the business of advertising. The original Dum Dum Bullet was a soft nosed one that ballooned out on impact. Advertising too has a tremendous ripple effect, especially if it is well conceived, well directed and well targeted. It has the potential to explode into the minds and the psyche of the target audience. This is the simple parallel that I saw with the Dum Dum Bullet.

The title of the book also states that The Dum Dum Bullet is really about “Adventures of a Corporate Soldier”. That is really the autobiographical slant to the book. In a strict sense, the contents are not really memoirs. I have strung together interesting anecdotes from my 20 years in advertising. Sure, they follow a chronological order, but every anecdote has reasonable amount of corporate learnings woven in.

Why did you feel it necessary to pen down the evolution in the advertising world at this point of time?

We are living through very important times. The last ten years especially have seen cataclysmic change in the Indian market place. The biggest and the best global brands have entered the country. New categories - mobile telephones, insurance, pension funds, international tourism - have emerged in the market. Malls, over crowded shop shelves, multiple offers - the Indian consumer has moved from scarcity to overwhelming choice.

I have captured some of this change that I have been witness to in the book. For example, the birth of Airtel captures vividly the birth of mobile telephony as a category in India. Today when the tale is told, we can still relate to the times when there were no mobiles to carry around and how life changed subsequently for all of us. But if this story were to be told, say 20 years later, the context itself would not be relatable. Similarly with credit cards, cars and all product categories that have evolved in the last few years and their evolution and growth are an interesting story to tell.

The Dum Dum Bullet is replete with wise maxims coined by you. Do you think the book can be a new-age guide to any layperson who wants to drink life to the lees?

The Dum Dum Bullet is a book sans pretences, sans pontification. I have written this book in a very one-to-one conversation mode. The narration is easy to understand, relate to and vibe with. Therefore for wannabes, the book should be a good read. Beyond that I would rather not place the book on any intellectual pedestal.

Can you elucidate on any of your ads that are very close to your heart and why?

I think the commercial that we did for Maruti in Leh/Ladakh featuring a Maruti Gypsy but actually talking about the widespread Maruti service network, is really my favourite. It tells a simple story, interestingly. The location, the setting of the ad, the pace of the editing, the music, the small boy “Kancha” who points out the far away Maruti service station in the mountains, all are elements that make for endearing viewing. I have seen this commercial hundreds of times but have always enjoyed seeing it. It has now been running for almost eight years. Simple communication, interestingly told is really timeless.

Now tell us about your ads which you did not like and why?

Some of the work we did on Colgate was dull, boring and uninspiring. I would not single out any one ad but in the past there have been many commercials that followed the age old formula of problem-solution with cut to product window… once you had seen one commercial, you had well seen all that were to follow because the formula became clich�d, repetitive and predictable. This is sometimes the problem with global brands that follow brand diktats blindly beyond a point.

Is there any ad by someone else that you really appreciate? Why?

I think the work on Fevicol has been brilliant. Also a recent Maruti ad with the little Sardarji boy playing with the toy Maruti 800 that does not seem to ever run out of petrol is brilliant.

As a creative person, what does competition mean to you?

Higher benchmarks. Higher goals to pursue.

You have a varied and rich career in media. How has your profession helped you to grow as a person?

Advertising teaches you that there are no absolutes. There is no one point of view that is either correct or incorrect. Life is not just about blacks and whites, but really about the myriad greys in between. Advertising has taught me to keep my ears and eyes open - to new ideas, to new opinions, to new situations, to new realities, to new mindsets, to new products, to new stimuli…

What kind of books do you read usually?

I love fiction. From Jane Austen to David Baldacci, anything goes!

Are you planning to write a second book?

Penguin Books have signed on for my second book, which is a study on Human Brands: Celebrities as Real Brands. Hopefully we should have the book out early next year.

Finally, if you were to explain the world of advertising in a line, how would it go?

The maximum fun you can ever have with your clothes on!

Satarupa Ray

Click here to read the review of The Dum Dum Bullet .