by Ashok Banker
‘You mean that I'd have to start at five hundred less than what I'm getting now?'
‘It's up to you, really. You see, unlike some other firms, we don't believe in buying people. Ofcourse, once you're part of the family, I'm sure you'll be able to get back on par.'
‘But one of the main reasons why I want to change is because I need more money. You see, sir, I have to support my mother, and she's quite ill, so even to manage on three-five is quite—'
‘Yes, yes. I understand.What I suggest is, you think about it. Sleep on it. Call me tomorrow, and tell me what you've decided. Otherwise, my personal advice would be to stick with your direct marketing firm. It's always better to stick to one place, especially when you're starting out. Okay, then, Jayesh. All the best.'
‘Thank you, sir. Goodbye, sir.'
‘Tuli?'
‘Yeah.'
‘What's the matter? Are you crying?'
‘Yeah.'
‘Tuli, you didn't have to walk out yesterday. I came running after you, but you were gone. Where did you go?'
‘I caught a cab home.'
‘But why? What was there to get so upset about?'
‘I can't talk for long, Daddy's at home.'
‘Tuli, what about this evening?'
‘We're going out for dinner.'
‘But I have the tickets. Fifty-rupee seats.'
‘What tickets?'
‘For Evita. Don’t you remember, you wanted to see it last week but I had to work late on the weekend, so I bought tickets for this Sunday instead. Today.’
‘I can’t come.’
‘But it was all planned. We were to meet at the theatre—at Sophia’s—at 7. You said you’d already told Mummy that you were going with some college friends.’
‘I forgot to tell her.’
‘How could you forget? You knew I bought the tickets.We bought them together, last Monday.’
‘We’re going out to dinner today, to China Garden.’
‘I thought your parents didn’t like Chinese.’
‘We’re taking one of my father’s clients. I have to go.’
‘Why do you have to go? Tell them your friends have already got the tickets. They’ll go waste. Come on.’
‘I’ve got to go. Daddy’s calling me.’
‘Okay, okay. Fine. Go to China Garden.’
‘If you want to get angry, get angry. I can’t help it. It’s not my fault.’
‘Okay, baba. I’m not getting angry.’
‘Don’t forget to go for your interview tomorrow. To Lintas.’
‘How can I forget? Are youjoking? I’ll be there at 9 sharp.’
‘Wear something decent. Not jeans.’
‘I know that. You’re sure you can’t make it for the play today?’
‘Daddy’s calling me. Okay?’
‘Fine. I love you. Bye.’
‘Bye.’
‘Why do you want to join Lintas?’
‘Uh, well, it’s the best agency.’
‘And you think you’re the best too?’
‘At client servicing?’
‘Obviously.’
‘I like my work.’
‘What makes you think you’re good enough to join Lintas?’
‘I’m willing to work hard. I have some experience.’
‘Why did you spend three years in this joint, what’s it called?’
‘DM . That’s short for—’
‘Why didn’t you join an ad agency fresh out of college? Didn’t you know what you wanted to do?’
‘I did, but there were no vacancies for account trainees, only for people with some experience, so I—’
‘And now why do you want to make this change. You’ve hardly been at this place for, how long?’
‘Three years and two months, sir. Actually—’
‘Are you having some problems? Did they ask you to leave?’
‘No, no. It’s just that—’
‘This salary you’ve mentioned here is out of the question. We don’t pay trainees more than three initially.’
‘Trainees, sir? But I thought the job is for account executives.’
‘Yes, but you don’t have any experience.We require at least two years’ experience.We have a certain standard to uphold.’
‘Yes, sir, but I have more than three years—’
‘In direct marketing. You can try our direct marketing division if you like. I don’t think there are any vacancies right now, but you can try. The receptionist will tell you whom to contact. Good day.’
‘But, sir—’
‘Jenny, send in the next one, please.’
‘Excuse me, sir, but I have over three years’ experience as a client-servicing executive. I’ve worked on—’
‘Jenny, just see what this fellow wants.’
‘So you didn’t get the job.’
‘I told you, the guy was crazy. He wouldn’t give me a chance to talk.’
‘What were you wearing?’
‘A clown’s suit.’
‘No wonder you didn’t get the job. You must have lost your temper at Lintas too.’
‘Tuli, I didn’t lose my temper. Not at all. Though I should have lost my temper, I had every right to—that bastard wouldn’t let me finish a single sentence—but I was perfect. I tell you, I was overqualified for that job. They wanted two years’ experience, I have three. But that guy wouldn’t even listen.’
‘You must have talked about yourself too much, boasted. They must have been put off.’
‘There was no “they”. It was just this guy. This asshole. He treated me like I was an untouchable. He must have some grouse against direct marketing.’
‘It was a good opportunity. Lintas is the best.’
‘It’s big. And famous. It’s the most famous ad agency. That’s because they’ve advertised themselves more than they’ve advertised their clients’ products. So people think it’s the best.’
‘Daddy was talking about Lintas the other day.’
‘Yes, but your daddy doesn’t even advertise. He’s never been to an ad agency before.’
‘Even you’ve never worked in any ad agency.’
‘Yes, but direct marketing is practically the same thing. I told you, we do campaigns too. Don’t you remember that direct response ad we did for that Goa hotel? It was a big success. They say we might even win an Adclub award for it.’
‘Daddy says Lintas always wins 90 per cent of the awards.’
‘Bullshit. The only agency that wins most of the awards year after year is Trikaya. They’re the best. Now those guys really are creative.
If I didn’t need the money so badly, I’d give up client servicing and Join Trikaya as a copywriter.’
‘What’s a copywriter?’
‘I told you, the guy who writes the ads.’
‘Like the slogans? Siddharth won a prize in the Kwality contest, he wrote a really good slogan: “North, South, East,West, Kwality is the best”. He’s really smart. His English is so good.’
‘It’s not just slogans. It’s being able to think of ideas. Concepts . You wouldn’t understand.’
‘When’s your next interview?’
‘Wednesday. With Trikaya. I really feel like quitting servicing and joining creative. I tell you,Tuli, I’m dead sure I’d make a damn good copywriter. I’m so sick of servicing. Yessir, no-sir, yessir. I know I have a talent for thinking ideas. That hotel ad we did—’
‘Daddy’s going to put an ad in the Times.’
‘What ad?’
‘A matrimonial ad.’
‘For what?’
‘For me.’
‘For you? A matrimonial ad? But why?’
‘To find a husband for me.’
‘But I thought you told him that you don’t want to get married until you finish your studies.’
‘I’ve nearly finished my third year. He says it takes time to find a good match. And if we find someone we can always have the engagement now and get married after my exa
ms.’
‘Tuli, you’re joking.’
‘I’m serious.’
‘But you like History. You want to do your MA, don’t you?’
‘Yeah, but what can I do? Daddy says he wants to settle my marriage this year.’
‘But, Tuli, you’ve got to tell him about us. You can’t let him go ahead and advertise. He’ll look like a fool if you tell him afterwards.’
‘How can I tell him? You’re hardly earning enough to support yourself.’
‘Yes, but that will change. I mean, even if I stay on at DM I’m sure to get a raise inApril.’
‘And then there’s the problem of a house too. I can’t stay with your mother. She’s a monster.’
‘Come on, she’s not that bad.’
‘Yeah? Remember, last week you were talking about putting her in a mental hospital? You were saying she’s driving you crazy.’
‘Okay, okay. She gets a little violent now and then.’
‘A little?’
‘So what do you want me to do? It’s not my fault my mother’s like that? What can I do? Tell me.’
‘How do I know?’
‘Well, you can try to help me. I’m doing the best I can. Look, at least let me meet your parents. I mean, they don’t even know I exist.
That’s absurd.We’ve been going around for years.We’re going to get married, and I haven’t even met them!’
‘But the first thing they’ll want to know is about your parents. And then your job.’
‘So what do you want me to do? Die and be reborn? As a spoilt rotten rich Gujarati guy with a big family business.’
‘See. You’re losing your temper again.’
‘Tuli, look at it from my point of view. I can’t change my parents.
I’m trying to change my job. What more do you expect me to do?
Huh? What more? Tell me.’
‘—and for the last year I’ve been working on my own, handling clients independently.’
‘And how do you like your job?’
‘Very much.’
‘Tell me, Jayesh—’
‘Jay,
‘Jay, have you thought of joining another direct marketing firm?’
‘Yes, of course, but there are hardly any direct marketing firms around. DM was the first one of its kind.’
‘Yes, but what if there’s an ad agency with a direct marketing division.Would you be interested?’
‘Umm. .. Does Trikaya have a DM division?’
‘We’re thinking of starting one. Do you know Shankar Seetharam?’
‘Uh, no. I don’t think so.’
‘He’s at O&M Direct right now. He’ll bejoining us from April.’
‘In DM?’
‘Yes, he’ll be heading the division. You’ll have to meet him because he’ll be the one to decide finally.’
‘When will that be?’
‘Well, he’s joining inApril, so give him some time to settle in. You can give him a call around June. Or July. Yes, July would be best.’
‘I see. Er, Mr Sharma—’
‘Call me Rajeev. I’m just two years senior to you, man! Relax.’
‘Uh, Rajeev, what about the AE’s job, then? Couldn’t I still try for that?’
‘Well, Jay, I’ll be frank with you. I hate to disappoint you, but the fact is we’ve already found someone for the post.’
‘Oh. Someone’s already got thejob.’
‘Yes. I’m sorry. But you can call Shankar Seetharam in July.’
‘Uh, one last question?’
‘Sure.’
‘Are you looking for copywriters right now by any chance?’
‘Creative is Chris’s baby. You know, Christopher D’Rozario, our creative director.’
‘Of course. He’s terrific. I really like his ads. He wrote the Keltron ads, didn’t he?The one with the dog?’
‘You liked that? A lot ofpeople thought the copy was too long.’
‘No, no, no. It was great. Because it was so well-written. Like the Volvo ads. Didn’t seem long because it was interesting. He’s great.’
‘I’ll tell him that. We’ve been having a lot of arguments about whether the campaign really worked or not. The client had major doubts, but people seem to have loved it.’
‘So are you, I mean, looking for copywriters right now?’
‘You’ll have to ask Chris. He’s the man at the helm of that ship!’
‘Uh. Could I see him now? I mean, is he available?’
‘Oh, him? I’ve been waiting to see him for two days now. But I can ask him if you want. Do you know someone?’
‘Someone?’
‘Do you know a copywriter who’s looking for a change?’
‘Er, sort of.’
‘Hang on. I’ll just buzz him.’
‘I hope I’m not disturbing you or something?’
‘Cool. I was just going to go out for some lunch.Want to join me?’
‘Er, thanks, but—’
‘Chris? Hi. Rajeev. Chris, are we still looking for writers? Um-hmm. Yeah. Okay, okay. I get it. And Chris, about that Boots briefing.
All I want to know is who’s going to be working on it. Should I brief Alok? Okay, then you tell me who. No, because then I can just go ahead and—Yeah, of course, I’d love it if you could be present. Okay.
After lunch. Ciao.’
‘Busy man, uh?’
‘Chris? It’s easier to meet the prime minister! I’m just kidding. He’s a wonderful guy. Loverly! Ah, about this copywriter friend of yours, Chris says that we’ve just hired three trainees, but on the other hand, we’re always looking for good writers. Is this guy working somewhere?’
‘Uh, not really. He’s written a couple of ads, but he’s sort of fresh.’
‘Freelancing?’
‘Sort of.’
‘Tell you what, why don’t you ask him to give Chris a call after a couple of months. Let’s see now, this is November. . . hmm, say around March. Hold on. Chris is going on leave in March. He’ll be out for a month. So let’s say around May end, June beginning.’
‘Rajeev, I really appreciate this.’
‘Mention not, brother! And you can try calling Shankar around July or so. Let’s hope he doesn’t decide to take leave before he joins.
That’s the best time to take a good holiday, you know, between jobs.
Anyway, nice meeting you, Jay. Sure you won’t join me for lunch?
I’m going to Alps. Do you like sizzlers and beer?’
‘Actually Ihave a meeting at 2. But thanks a lot, Rajeev. Thanks a million for everything. And thanks for the coffee.’
‘Sayonara, Jay.’
‘Leave home.’
‘What do you mean “leave home”?’
‘You can get a flat on lease or something.’
‘Are you crazy? Do you know how much they cost? You’re talking about independent flats, not paying-guest places, right?’
‘A small flat. Two-bedroom hall.’
‘You’re joking! Just the other day this guy at DM was looking for a place. At Khar. The cheapest he could find was two-five rent and thirty thousand deposit.’
‘What if you go to some other place? Like Andheri.’
‘Okay, I suppose Lokhandwala might be cheaper but—’
‘Yeah, Lokhandwala is nice. How much would a two-bedroom hall in Lokhandwala cost?’
‘This guy saw one or two places... I think he saw a one-room Kitchen—you know, what they call a self-contained flat—for around fifteen hundred rent and fifteen thousand deposit...’
‘One-room kitchen is too small. I want a separate hall and a separate bedroom.’
‘You mean this is for us? But what about—’
‘How much would a one-bedroom hall cost at Lokhandwala?’
‘I think he saw a one-bedroom hall for about two thousand rent and twenty-five thousand deposit. But he said the fellow might reduce the deposit a bit.’
‘Let’s go see it.’
‘What? Com
e on, Tuli. Where am I going to get twenty-five thousand from? I don’t even have five thousand in the bank. And how can I afford a rent of two thousand bucks?’
‘You can ask your father.’
‘That bastard? I told you what happened on my birthday.’
‘Don’t abuse your own father, Jay.’
‘What should I do then? Kiss his ass? He’s not going to give me another paisa, Tuli. He’s only concerned about his own family now. His wife is a big bitch. She puts the phone down if I try to call him at home, and whenever I call him at office, his PA says he’s in a meeting.
I know he’s trying to avoid me.’
‘Still, you can try.’
‘Try? Cry, you mean. This is the SOB who cut off my mother’s alimony payment whenI was eleven months old.What do you expect from a man like that?’
‘He gave you five hundred bucks on your birthday last year.’
‘That was because you were there with me. He wanted to impress you. He’s such an image-conscious bastard. This year he gave me ten rupees!’
‘At least let’s see the flat.We’ll figure out how to get the money later.’
‘Fine, if you want to go all the way to Andheri, but it’ll take three hours going and coming, at least.’
‘I can tell Mummy I’ve got extra lectures at college.’
‘Then how come you didn’t use that excuse yesterday when you were supposed to come with me to that art exhibition?’
‘I told you, she wasn’t feeling well so I had to stay home with her.’
‘What if she’s not feeling well when you want to go to Lokhandwala? When do you want to go, anyway?’
‘Saturday I have lectures from 9.45 to 1.15 anyway, so I can say I’ve got extra lectures till 3.30. I can be home by 4. Is that enough time?’
‘Sure. But I may have to work this Saturday. We have that new client presentation on Monday.’
‘Call up and say your mother’s sick or something. Come on, Jay.
Let’s go.’
‘I don’t know...’
‘Maybe if the landlord gives us the key and lets us see the flat alone, we can... you know. . . hmm?’
‘Are you serious? You said that last time too, when your parents went out of town, and when I came over, you wouldn’t even let me kiss you properly.’