Dentsu Creative ropes in Ajay Gahlaut as group chief creative officer

Ajay Gahlaut

After a series of high-profile exits at Dentsu India, the local arm of Japanese advertising giant Dentsu Group Inc, is filling the gaps with new senior-level hires.

Dentsu India has appointed Ajay Gahlaut as group chief creative officer (GCCO), who will spearhead Dentsu India’s creative agencies. Gahlaut will report to Amit Wadhwa, chief executive officer, Dentsu Creative India, and will be responsible to run the network’s creative businesses under one optimised service line. Prior to this, Gahlaut was the chief creative officer and managing director of Publicis Worldwide, India (PWW). He has also worked with agencies like Ogilvy India, McCann, Saatchi & Saatchi, among others in his over two-decade-long career. During his tenure in Ogilvy India, Gahlaut wrote the line ‘Do Boond Zindagi Ki’ that anchored the famous Pulse Polio Immunisation campaign with the superstar Amitabh Bachchan.

Commenting on Gahlaut’s appointment, Wadhwa said, “Dentsu India is in the midst of an exciting transformation journey towards Dentsu India 2.0, and Ajay’s joining is a critical part of the plan. Ajay is a well-respected creative leader with years of experience across categories and the right mindset that matches with Dentsu India 2.0. With the brilliant Creative minds in our business, we will be a force to be reckoned with, delivering growth for our clients while continuing our creative evolution at pace and scale.”

On his new role, Gahlaut said, “Dentsu’s creativity defines generations. When the opportunity came to join Amit and his team, I could not refuse. Creativity is in the spotlight, with brands looking to differentiate themselves in a disrupted marketplace – it has never been a more exciting time to work in this field rich with opportunity. I am excited to join Dentsu, Amit, and the Creative teams, delighting clients and creating era-defining work together.”