Boy! What a weekend – away from Mumbai’s madness and chaos in serene and sylvan Goa. Or should I say Gooaah!!?
I had gone there with colleagues from my office to attend Goafest, organised by the Advertising Agencies Association of India, which celebrates excellence in advertising in India. Word around the block though, is that Goafest was started to challenge the authority of the Ad Club of Mumbai, organizers of the Abbys – advertising awards. A handful of reputed agencies stayed away from this fest almost in retaliation to the absence of all the other big-league agencies from the Abbys. Although this rivalry is carefully camouflaged, it does leave a bad taste in the mouths of all concerned.
Setting aside factionalism and politics let me move on to other, more important topics like the idyllic weekend.
Goa is like soothing balm on a painful bruise or a calming antidote for frayed nerves. The mere thought of spending a weekend in Goa drives away most of the ‘stress demons’ residing in me. Spending time in Goa takes care of the rest.
Goafest is young. This is only its 2nd year, but I was totally floored with the setup and the way the festival was organised. The venue was a large strip of beach across the road from the Old Anchor Hotel in Cavelossim, Salcette, South Goa – a 20 minute drive from Madgaon. Tents and outdoor umbrellas were pitched across the length and breadth of the beach alongside long ramps which led to the main bar and display areas. A large, air-conditioned enclosure, which rose above the main bar, was where all the seminars and sessions were conducted. With additional, branded bar counters (sponsored by Romanov vodka, Black Dog whisky, Bacardi rum and Kingfisher beer), souvenir
counters and arrangement for water sport activities, the whole area looked completely ‘out-of-this-country’, very international.
Enjoyed every moment of the fest – most of which were firsts for me, like the Rain Dance, open air dance floor on the beach open till 2am , water sports (jet ski in particular) and the awards ceremony.
While serious issues like achieving an industry growth of Rs. 50000 crore, streamlining of the integrated marketing communication functions and greater client participation, were discussed during the run up to the fest, the fun element was'nt forgotten. After 363 days of sheer madness and stress our industry rightly deserves a timeout of 2 days at the Goafest.
Pictures courtesy colleagues at Contract, Mumbai.
I had gone there with colleagues from my office to attend Goafest, organised by the Advertising Agencies Association of India, which celebrates excellence in advertising in India. Word around the block though, is that Goafest was started to challenge the authority of the Ad Club of Mumbai, organizers of the Abbys – advertising awards. A handful of reputed agencies stayed away from this fest almost in retaliation to the absence of all the other big-league agencies from the Abbys. Although this rivalry is carefully camouflaged, it does leave a bad taste in the mouths of all concerned.
Setting aside factionalism and politics let me move on to other, more important topics like the idyllic weekend.
Goa is like soothing balm on a painful bruise or a calming antidote for frayed nerves. The mere thought of spending a weekend in Goa drives away most of the ‘stress demons’ residing in me. Spending time in Goa takes care of the rest.
Goafest is young. This is only its 2nd year, but I was totally floored with the setup and the way the festival was organised. The venue was a large strip of beach across the road from the Old Anchor Hotel in Cavelossim, Salcette, South Goa – a 20 minute drive from Madgaon. Tents and outdoor umbrellas were pitched across the length and breadth of the beach alongside long ramps which led to the main bar and display areas. A large, air-conditioned enclosure, which rose above the main bar, was where all the seminars and sessions were conducted. With additional, branded bar counters (sponsored by Romanov vodka, Black Dog whisky, Bacardi rum and Kingfisher beer), souvenir
counters and arrangement for water sport activities, the whole area looked completely ‘out-of-this-country’, very international.Enjoyed every moment of the fest – most of which were firsts for me, like the Rain Dance, open air dance floor on the beach open till 2am , water sports (jet ski in particular) and the awards ceremony.
While serious issues like achieving an industry growth of Rs. 50000 crore, streamlining of the integrated marketing communication functions and greater client participation, were discussed during the run up to the fest, the fun element was'nt forgotten. After 363 days of sheer madness and stress our industry rightly deserves a timeout of 2 days at the Goafest.
Pictures courtesy colleagues at Contract, Mumbai.
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