April 17, 2023; Mumbai, India: South Asia’s biggest advertising festival, Goafest is all set to return for its 16th edition with power-packed sessions, and workshops led by internationally acclaimed speakers and industry stalwarts. As the industry gears up to celebrate excellence and discuss the future of creativity, the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and The Advertising Club today announce the Governing Council and Committee Members for Goafest 2023.

Following is the complete list of Governing Council for Goafest 2023:

• Mr. Prasanth Kumar, President, Advertising Agencies Association of India and CEO, South Asia, GroupM
• Partha Sinha, President, Times of India Group and President of The Advertising Club
• Mr. Jaideep Gandhi, Chairman, Goafest 2023; Founder, Another Idea
• Mr. Mohit Joshi, Co-chair, Goafest 2023; CEO, Havas Media
• Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas Group India & Chairman, The ABBYs Award Governing Council
• Ajay Kakar, Managing Committee Member, The Advertising Club & Co-chair, The ABBYs Award Governing Council
• Ms. Anupriya Acharya, CEO South Asia, Publicis Groupe
• Mr. Sam Balsara, Chairman, Madison
• Mr. Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman & CEO, FCB Group India
• Shashi Sinha, CEO-India, IPG Mediabrands
• Ajay Chandwani, Managing Committee Member, The Advertising Club
• Malcolm Raphael, Senior Vice-President, The Times of India Group

The sub-committee members for Goafest 2023 from Advertising Agencies Association of India are:

• Content Committee Chairman: Mr. Vikram Sakhuja, Group CEO, Media & OOH, Madison Communications
• Delegates Committee Chairman: Mr. Sam Balsara, Chairman, Madison
• Creative Committee Chairman: Mr. Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman & CEO, FCB Group India
• Creative Committee Joint Chairman: Ms. Anusha Shetty, Chairman & Group CEO, Grey Worldwide India
• Client Associations Chairman:Mr. Shashi Sinha, CEO, IPG Media Brands
• Client Associations Joint Chairman: Mr. Prasanth Kumar, CEO South Asia, Group M
• Advertising Associations Committee Chairman: Mr. Srinivasan K Swamy, Chairman & Managing Director, R K Swamy
• Events Committee Chairman: Mr. Ashish Bhasin, Co-Founder & Chairman, RD&X Network

“We are blessed to have great leadership working together to make Goafest’23 a remarkable event. This year sees greater support and collaboration across the industry coming together. As always Goafest is a passion center and while we discuss greater opportunities across the industry and celebrate our great work am sure will push the boundaries as a collective team and achieve greater progress.” said Prasanth Kumar, President, Advertising Agencies Association of India and CEO, South Asia, GroupM.

On opening up delegate registrations for Goafest 2023, Sam Balsara, Chairman, Madison said, “Goafest has earned its position as a destination that celebrates creative excellence in most disciplines in Communication in South Asia. We look forward to welcoming teams from across India, South Asia and indeed the globe to come and participate in Goafest as we exchange thoughts and discuss the future of Communication and increasing its Role and Accountability to the Marketer, further making way for growth of the Industry.”

Presented by The Advertising Agencies Association of India and The Advertising Club, Goafest 2023 is scheduled to take place on 24th, 25th and 26th May, 2023 at Grand Hyatt, Bambolim, Goa. Delegate registrations are now open on https://www.tecogis.com/goafest/client/Login.aspx

“With each edition of Goafest, India’s position in the global creative industry is only strengthened. Given the format and scale of Goafest, the festival has firmly positioned itself as the most sought-after creative festival in South Asia. With day-long sessions and masterclasses led by the brightest minds in the industry to evenings that honor and celebrate work that has set new benchmarks and trends, Goafest is the only festival of its kind in India and Asia that drives value, encourages creative excellence and discusses pertinent topics, aiding our industry’s growth. We look forward to hosting our industry colleagues and partners once again at Goafest” added Partha Sinha, President, Times of India Group and President of The Advertising Club.

Pushing the envelope further this year, the theme for the 16th edition of Goafest is ‘THE FUTURE OF CREATIVITY IS HERE!’. With advancements in technology, including machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing, the boundaries of creativity are being pushed further than ever before. There is a rise in innovative tools and technologies that enable new forms of creativity; for example, virtual and augmented reality (VR & AR) technologies are already opening up new avenues for artistic expression, allowing creators to build immersive, interactive experiences that blur the line between the physical and digital worlds.

Unveiling the theme, Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman & CEO, FCB Group India said,“Generative AI is pushing the boundaries of what is possible and opening new doors to creativity and innovation. This technology will allow our industry to explore newer ideas at a much faster pace and is likely to play a significant role in shaping the future of creativity. Inspired by this game-changing development, we have used Generative AI in the design process of our three-day festival. With sessions and masterclasses that deep dive into the creative technology landscape, we are sure to re-envision how we collaborate with machines to bring transformative ideas to life. ‘THE FUTURE OF CREATIVITY IS HERE’ and Goafest 2023 is celebrating it. Will you be there?”

Changemaking technologies and the changemakers behind them are reshaping the world while creating a positive real-world impact on communities, societies, and countries. While some may worry that AI will replace human creativity, it is certain that it will instead be used to enhance and augment human creativity, leading to even more groundbreaking and innovative creations.