Goafest 2023: India’s premier Ad fest kicks off with a bang

Kickstarting its celebrations by bringing together the who’s who of the advertising and marketing fraternity, and unveiling the theme, Goafest 2023 raises a toast to ‘The Future of Creativity’, at a curtain raiser event. Hosted by the Goafest 2023 organising committee, the Curtain Raiser was held on May 5, 2023 in Mumbai and seen participation from agencies, advertisers, brands and media owners.

Speaking at the Goafest 2023 curtain raiser, Prasanth Kumar, president, Advertising Agencies Association of India and CEO, South Asia GroupM said, “Goafest is known to unite India and South Asia’s creative economy. When we began working on curating Goafest 2023, we were certain that we wanted to present to the industry creativity in a new avatar and our theme is exactly in line with this. While we often discussed the future of creativity, this year’s edition of Goafest will be synonymous to it. With a stellar line-up of speakers, must-attend masterclasses, and celebration-worthy evenings, we look forward to meeting our industry folks at Goafest, shortly.”

“Year on year we have raised the standard of Goafest and The ABBY Awards making it internationally competitive, increasingly. We believe we owe it to our industry. As we kickstart our month long celebrations, we are excited as we create new opportunities, bring in new learnings, and drive enthusiasm while honouring excellence.” added Partha Sinha, President, Times of India Group and President of The Advertising Club, addressing the industry at the Curtain Raiser.

Diving into the theme, was a panel discussion led by Amrita Thapar, chief marketing officer, Microsoft India and advertising expert and veteran Agnello Dias. Noted journalist Anuradha SenGupta moderated the panel. The panel discussed the possibilities of AI and creativity, and advancements in technology that will enable new forms of creativity. The panel also threw light upon emerging technologies blurring the lines between the real and virtual worlds.

Opening up the panel discussion, journalist Anuradha SenGupta said, "AI based tools are becoming available at dizzying speed. As we evaluate the opportunities and challenges they create, we need to understand more, so much more about how they work. We will have to use these tools consciously and listen as much to the scientists and engineers who create them as regulators, ethicists and philosophers who question them. Glad Goafest 2023 has made this the theme. The more we talk the better our choices."

Sharing his thoughts, advertising expert Agnello Dias said, “AI is a big step in democratizing the access to raw material required for creative execution but it cannot substitute creativity.”

“Generative AI is the next big leap in artificial intelligence. It’s an inflection point in terms of how emerging technologies like AI are being used today.” said Amrita Thapar, chief marketing officer, Microsoft India, further adding, “It augments human ingenuity. It's your copilot that helps unlock productivity, unleash creativity and up level skills.”

In a bid to deepen engagement and drive participation from across the industry, the committee also launched Goacast, as the official Podcast for Goafest 2023. Goacast will offer exclusive interviews and scoop with the best from the industry. Curated and presented by Ideabrew Studios, Goacast is the definite platform for daily dispatches during Goafest 2023.

The curtain raiser witnessed a performance from one of India’s top three mentalist, Narpath Raman that kept guests intrigued. Raman is a pioneer in mentalism in India and is popularly known as the ‘Next Door Mind Reader’ for his simplicity and fun approach. He uses a mixture of methods - psychology, hypnotism, and storytelling to pluck thoughts out of one’s mind, influence decisions and mess with one’s sense of reality.

Co-hosted by The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and The Advertising Club, South Asia’s biggest advertising festival Goafest 2023 is set to return on 24th, 25th and 26th May at Grand Hyatt, Bambolim, Goa. The fest will also witness the 54th edition of the ABBY’s, South Asia’s Gold Standard, that has been recognszing creative excellence in advertising for over five decades.