Indian ad frat takes Ice Bucket Challenge

The challenge dares nominated individuals to take a video of themselves while pouring a bucket of ice water over their heads or donate $100 to the ALS foundation or do both. Josy Paul, KV Sridhar (Pops), Priti Nair and many others are getting drenched!

Sarmistha Neogy | Mumbai | August 26, 2014

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How many of us knew what ALS is all about before Ice Bucket Challenge videos started flooding our social media pages? Not many. A fun challenge, embedded with a strong message, has actually raised awareness about the illness called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

All over the world, people from film, television, sports, corporate and advertising domains have been undertaking the Ice Bucket Challenge. The challenge dares nominated individuals to take a video of themselves while pouring a bucket of ice water over their heads or donate $100 to the ALS foundation or do both.

Priti Nair, Co-founder, Curry Nation, kick-started the Ice Bucket Challenge for the ad fraternity in India. The one-minute video shows Nair nominating three people – KV Sridhar (Pops), Chief Creative Officer, Sapient Nitro; R Balki, Chairman, Lowe Lintas + Partners; and KS Chakravarthy (Chax), National Creative Director, FCB Ulka, to take the Ice Bucket Challenge.

“I came to know of this challenge from my brother-in-law Ashish Chaudhary who is part of the Bollywood fraternity. Then I saw two of my nieces doing the same. It is a fun way to actually spread the message on something which we all have very little knowledge about. The multiplier effect in this challenge is quite high, because one person undertaking the challenge will, in turn, nominate three other people, and it keeps spreading. I am looking more at raising awareness than collecting funds.”

Priti Nair

“I saw Bollywood doing it and have always found the advertising fraternity to be very keen about donating to charity. But most of the time they don't know when and where to donate. I found this to be a great occasion for the entire advertising fraternity to come together for a good cause. I urge our community to continue the challenge for ALS and advertising,” she added.

Nagessh Pannaswami, Partner, Curry-Nation, nominated Ajai Jhala, CEO, BBDO India, Joseph George, CEO, Lowe Lintas + Partners, and Josy Paul, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, BBDO India, for the challenge.

Pops accepted the challenge and he, in turn, nominated Paul, Rajeev Sharma, National Brand Planning Director, Leo Burnett, and Rajdeep Endow, MD, Sapient Nitro, to complete the challenge and take it forward.

KV Sridhar

When asked if the message gets diluted when people start doing it just for fun, Sridhar said, “Advertising is all about fun and entertainment, and people won't be interested if there is only a message in it. So, unless it is exciting enough, it won't grab attention. Therefore, even though people are doing this challenge for fun, at the end of it some are actually donating to the ALS fund and others are getting to know more about it. I will share the video and contribute to the fund as well. The amount will be revealed after the process is done, probably to motivate others to get up and go for it.”

Josy Paul

Speaking on the challenge, Josy Paul said, “The Ice Bucket Challenge is all around me. I am told that I have been nominated by four different people. They are coming for me! Soon, I will turn into an ice bucket myself. The good thing is that this movement has started a conversation around ALS. Let's see how it shapes out. Talking about ice-buckets, where's my drink please?”

ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. ALS leads to paralysis, vital organ failure and, eventually, death. No cure has been found for ALS yet. However, there is one FDA-approved drug, Riluzole, and several other drugs in clinical trials, which lower the progression of ALS.

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