‘Fuel for India’ came to me as the Image Makers’ box of chocolate-joy. It was Facebook's most ambitious campaign in India as it took a huge leap to rebrand itself as ‘Meta’. The campaign was crucial as India anchored its largest and fastest growing market of creators and small business owners. It was a one-of-a-kind campaign as I shot across ten cities in four weeks.

The crazy deadlines, multiple team operations and a series of unscheduled trips made this experience a challenging yet memorable one. The campaign aimed to connect success stories of entrepreneurs’ ranging from Gamers, Rap Musicians, Fashion Designers, Women Artisans, AI Agriculturists, AR Creators and Technology Innovators to spark the excitement of its audience across every demographic, heralding the new name of ‘Meta’.

A few months prior, the country shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was precious time for me to reflect, assimilate years of multi-disciplinary interests, and contemplate on the future of image-making. When ‘Meta’ called, I was ready, and energized by my new arsenal of creative techniques.

AUTHENTICITY AND EMPATHY TO BUILD SHORTCUT HEURISTIC RECALL-VALUE : Listening to the atomic habits of each entrepreneur guided me to build insight-dots of each story. With every creator, I looked for authentic-cues and empathetic-memory pegs to structure narratives so that every visual can be easily recalled. Such heuristics connect Meta’s essence in the minds and hearts of people instantly.

THE SECRET SAUCE : I used my proprietary methodology of Qualitative Research (QR) to find the ‘crux of my interviewee’s story’ in the shortest possible time. By creating a safe, fun, and collaborative atmosphere, the interviewee eases into their authentic story that I translate into a persuasive visual language flow.

FROM THE HEART AND SOUL: The time and effort spent in QR to deeply understand and bond with the entrepreneurs was truly worthwhile. I was invited home for dinners, family Diwali celebrations and some of their favourite hangout spots. Diving into each entrepreneur’s world and walking that extra mile was the key that enabled me to create a strong and authentic brand identity for each of them while staying true to who they are. In a nutshell, its not just about capturing the perfect photograph with the best skillsets. It is the ‘value creation’ with a ‘strategic mindset’ that truly matters.

THE CRUCIAL TASK: The crux of my role was to connect my team and production co-creators Mantapa Productions, with an inspiring sense of purpose, direction, and approach to ensure complete clarity around the plan of action.