Yes, Mitali did so. Since I was always recounting stories about my career, she asked me to write it all down in a book. Initially, I was pretending to be busy or just lazy. Then, to make it easy, I dictated my thoughts into a dictaphone. When I saw the transcript, it was repetitive, and flabby. The thought process has to be clear. The writing did not capture my voice. So I decided to write it. Since I cannot type, I wrote by hand. My grammar and spelling were atrocious. It took me two years. [Co-Author] Rupangi [Sharma] sat with me and oversaw the whole thing.
After 40 years in advertising, what is the most striking change you have noticed?
The big change is that we have become digitalised. From films, we went to digital and from there to social media. Today, social media is the playing field of young people. From 18 to 30 or 25 to 40, they are all on social media. Young people are consuming social media at a tremendous rate.
But is there a problem with retention?
Yes, absolutely. Their attention levels are going down. Because of this, the advertisements have to be better and better. Unfortunately, the ads are getting worse and worse. Young ad film-makers today have no story-telling skills. They don’t fantasise or daydream any more. If you don’t read books, you lose the capacity to imagine. So, they are rehashing old ideas. The most important point they should note is that story-telling is at the heart of all communication.
You have interacted with many celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Sachin Tendulkar. What do they have in common?
They are all focused. They have a drive to compete, but against themselves. When Sachin gets out in a particular way, he goes home, studies the videos, corrects the mistake, and practises endlessly. You can never get him out the same way again. They have great personalities. All of them are humble, because they suffered from failures before they achieved success. Success makes you arrogant. Failure teaches you humility. Life is full of ups and downs. But they never gave up. They have been resilient and determined.
You have a passion for scuba diving. What are its pleasures?
The world on the seabed has been created by God. It is perfect and pristine. But now the excessive plastic in the oceans is doing grave damage. But there are areas which exist in the way God had designed it. When you see such beauty, you have a meditative and religious feeling. The earth was probably as beautiful as the ocean. But then man came and destroyed everything. Now there is climate change and global warming. We are ignoring it. One day, nature will cause a big catastrophe to happen that will wipe out most of the people.
You have been a ladies’ man. But now you have been married for 40 years. What are the tips for a successful marriage?
You should give each other space. And the spouse should have the opportunity to grow to her full potential. You should not curb or monitor your spouse. A wife should be successful in her own right. A good marriage is not competitive. Don’t take her for granted. You must court your wife like you used to before your marriage. Make tea and take it to the bed for her. Of course, she will say, “What’s wrong with you?” Then you reply, “Just chooma.”
Published in The Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi
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