I was 18 when I first seriously started flexing my creative muscle. I was learning to make films and ad campaigns at Mumbai University. At 19, I started assisting a seasoned television writer. By the time I was 26, I was fortunate to have worked with some incredibly creative people in the entertainment space in India. I worked as a freelance writer for lots of great broadcasters and brands. Sometimes my job went beyond writing—into direction, production and post-production. During those years, I also allowed myself to try other things, from stand-up comedy to travel blogging to almost successfully starting a business.
In 2016, while still 26, I felt like I was hitting a wall. I wasn’t enjoying what I was making for television (or digital). So I decided to go on an adventure and moved to Toronto. For the next two years, I immersed myself in studying advertising. In my first year, I did the Ad Creative and Digital Strategy program at Centennial College. Then I went to Humber College and completed the Ad Copywriting program there.
As a side note, I have a Bachelor's Degree in Mass Media with a Major in Advertising. However, I didn't get into advertising right after university.
My journey back into advertising forced me to unlearn everything I knew about creativity. In hindsight, I think it was because:
1. Unlike television advertising requires you to use creativity far more strategically.
2. I didn't write anything in English in India. I mean, we sprinkled some of it here and there, but it was primarily in Hindi.
Since starting my journey, I’ve constantly worked on injecting my television game into advertising. All while trying to find my voice as an exophonic writer in a predominantly English-speaking market.
I’ve now been in Ad Land for roughly six years. I started as an intern at DDB after graduating from ad schools in Toronto. Then I worked short stints at Mackie Biernacki and Juniper Park\TBWA. In 2019, I accepted a job offer at ZGM Modern Marketing Partners and moved to Edmonton, Alberta. I’m happy with the work I was part of making first at ZGM (October 2019–February 2023) and later at FKA (February 2023–June 2024), another independent agency based in Edmonton.
I'm currently looking for work. I can write, collaborate, produce, direct, photoshop, premiere pro, and do whatever it takes to harness my creative power to help bring to life ideas that dare to provoke and inspire. So if you or someone you know could use my diverse life and work experience, hit me up. I'm ready.
Thank you!