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The Suhel brand

"I do not believe in time management. I believe in will management," says adman and theatre person Suhel Seth in an interview

WEARS MANY HATS WITH EASE Suhel Seth PHOTO : M.Vedhan

The Ballroom at the Connemara is dimly lit except for the stage where three men are deep in rehearsals for the play "Art" to be staged that evening. One of them is a man with many faces, the man who's the subject of this piece: Suhel Seth.

Ad guru, actor, theatre person, columnist, guest lecturer... well, Suhel loves playing all these roles. But the role closest to his heart? "Theatre," he says, in between rehearsals. "That's because there's an immediacy of acceptance and rejection." And theatre is the reason for his being in Chennai this time.

"Theatre and writing started as hobbies during my student days. I took to advertising because it was creative and I also got to make money!"

Talking about the play "Art", the Harvard-schooled Suhel says, "At the outset, the play is a witty take on art. Go deeper, and several layers emerge... that of personal choices, friendship, and life at large. That the edifice of friendship is the co-existence of different perceptions. Then, there's art; it's a personal hobby and does not require societal approval." Incidentally, Suhel is an avid art collector and prefers the Bengal School. Setting up his ad agency Equus Red Cell in 1996 was something the ex-O&M employee found challenging. "Whether it is launching a category or re-launching a brand, there's gratification at the end of it. For me, the Max New York Life Insurance campaign with Rahul Dravid was a memorable one. We were positioning cricket and a cricketer strategically, not just as wall paper." He continues, "Another client I enjoyed working with is Vijay Mallya. Here's a man who's deeply committed to providing the finest hospitality service."

Among the other ad campaigns in Equus' kitty are those for Coca Cola, the Delhi Government, ITC Hotels and Bombay Dyeing.

On marketing trends today, the adman says, "The general perception is: use the vernacular and you've `Indianised' the ad. I think not. I think the future of advertising lies in rural marketing. And that's one reason why I prefer to travel by road whenever I can. It gives me a chance to get an insight into the materialistic world in rural India."

In the same breath, Suhel adds, "I am a perfect misfit in the ad world. For I believe in initiating a process of social change using the medium I am comfortable with."

And this is the man who was directed by the legendary Satyajit Ray as a 12-year-old in "Shatranj Ki Khiladi. "I played Amjad Khan's son. Then I did "Sadgathi" as a 16-year old. It was fun." His Mrinal Sen connection happened with "Ek Din Achanak" and the TV series "Kabhi Door Kabhi Paas". Recently, he acted in Mahesh Bhatt's "Rog".

So, from Ray to Bollywood... What was the experience like? "I think Bollywood is a different country, not part of the Republic of India. The people there are caught in a time warp. Ray made films for posterity. In Bollywood, they make films for... what else? Money."

Besides acting, Suhel gives lectures at various IIMs, speaks at various business and political fora, and writes columns, when he's not attending board meetings or planning marketing strategies for his high-profile clientele.

How does he manage it all? "I do not believe in time management. I believe in will management. If you have the will, things will happen," says the bachelor, who's off on his annual pilgrimage to Tirupati the following day.

SAVITHA GAUTAM

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