Sreejita Chakraborty : Interview with an Art Director

Having stayed in various parts of the country, Sreejita always brings a fresh perspective to the table. Being one of Ogilvy’s home-grown creatives, she has worked in the agency’s Delhi and Kolkata office. With a keen sense of design she is also known for experimenting with typography. She is an erratic, chaotic and a somewhat charismatic individual. Treating each work as her last, she believes she is the most finicky art-director on the face of the planet.

Why are you into Advertising?
Because I would rather think of new ideas every day than be submerged in excel sheets. It’s fun, it’s chaotic. It’s me.

Did you attend school for fine art or design or Communications?
Yes, I spent the best years of my life studying Communication Design at D. J. Academy of Design, Coimbatore.

Tell us about your awards?
Other than a couple of regional and Pan-Asia awards, I’m still working up to the biggies. You’ll also find my work in last year’s Luerzer’s Archive, Volume 6.

Were there any particular role models for you when you grew up?
Who said I have grown up?

Who was the most influential personality on your career in Advertising?
Basab Tito Majumdar.

Where do you get your inspiration from?
From everything outside advertising.

Tell us something about Ogilvy Kolkata, work environment. We know lots of creatives would love to work with Ogilvy Kolkata…
It’s cosy, intimate, transparent and always chaotic. Like all other Ogilvy offices, Kolkata gives a lot of freedom and space to explore. Good ideas are always welcomed and appreciated.

What do you think of the state of Print advertising right now. At least here in India, the released work is most often too sad?
Print advertising is on a steady decline due to the rise of digital media. However, any ‘sad’ print ad is not the product of bad creatives but a result of poor judgement from the client’s end. Today, most clients believe that their target audience is not as intelligent or evolved to understand work which may have a grain of an idea. For them a print ad starts with a huge logo and ends with a no-brainer, direct headline.

Do you think brands who’s advertising wins awards, do well in the market?
Not necessarily. I’m sure that some brands do well in the market despite not winning awards. And vice versa.

What advice do you have for aspiring creative professionals?
Brace yourself. You’re in for a ride.

What’s your dream project?
A project that will not be dissected by clients, restricted by time and crippled by budgets.

Where do you see yourself in 15 years?
I don’t even know what I’ll be doing tomorrow.

Who would you like to take out for dinner?
If possible, Alan Fletcher.

What’s on your iPod?
I can’t afford one. You forget I work in advertising.

Mac or PC?
Mac.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJXCZHVvQ_8