A few years ago, sparks flew between two creative mavericks at an awards event. The friendly skirmish later crystallised into a bonding of sorts and last year, both of them took leadership roles as national creative directors at Publicis Ambience, part of the Publicis Worldwide Network.

Today Ashish Khazanchi and Prasanna Sankhe complement each other so much that they have come to be called 'creative couple.'

Khazanchi is a skilled copywriter and is also credited with having christened this newspaper.

Sankhe is a master of art and has won several international awards.

Of late, the duo is in the spotlight for being the brain behind the latest commercial for Himani Fast Relief, which was directed by Ram Madhvani.

In a candid chat with DNA Money's Arcopol Chaudhuri,they fielded questions about theclaims that the Himani spot was similar to another award-winning ad. They also shared thoughts on their professional chemistry and their experience together at the agency so far. Excerpts:

Are the parallels drawn between McCann Erickson's award-winning Happy Dent ad and your latest Himani Fast Relief commercial, simply a result of the 'Ram Madhvani effect'?
Ashish: A spectacle is one thing and a statement is another. What differs is the idea itself. HappyDent is an uplifting film and hence its poles apart from our ad. Both Prasanna and I realise that Ram Madhvani is technically brilliant. We are very comfortable with him since we've worked with him on the 'Chinese newsflash' TVC for Hit and even Tata Sky. For Himani, it's the undercurrent of the ad that excited him, just as much as the spectacle of it.

Prasanna: I'd say the Himani ad has a sense of black humour. Ram understands that all the technical wizardry in the world, has to be used to make a point. If that surpasses everything else, then the ad is not doing its job. He has this balance, which makes the viewer understand the level to which a spectacle should be stretched, so that it doesn't overshadow the idea itself.

Has Amitabh Bachchan been sidelined from Himani's ads? Or was the client brief different altogether?
Ashish: Amitabh Bachchan is still very much a part of the campaign. This is not the end of it; there is another support role in the campaign where he will make an appearance.
The client brief, by the way, was really exciting. (Pauses) It said, 'Our product is really good.' (Laughs) We decided to take a leadership stance in the category. If you think of pain, you must think of Himani Fast Relief.

Prasanna: If you notice, any functional product benefit can last only as long as it is not copied by the competitor, or only as long as they don't come up with a better ad than yours. If you actually say something bigger, then it becomes a brand's point of view.

Is it true that the ad film cost over Rs 1.8 crore? Not surprising, considering Madhvani is supposedly the most expensive ad-filmmaker in India...
Ashish: There are some figures floating in the media. We can't comment on that. While it's an expensive film, it's not because Ram Madhvani charges a bomb. And it's not true that he is the most expensive ad film director around.

For both of you, this is your second stint at Publicis Ambience. What made you return?
Prasanna: Ambience has been the warmest of all places where I've worked. Elsie Nanji (my boss during my first stint) almost went out of her way to get me back in the agency so that she could leave the agency in trustworthy hands. Also, most of the clients we had then were still around when I returned, so it was good to work with them all over again.

Ashish: I came back for the thrill of working with Ambience, which I consider to be a challenger brand. Even if you go around our corridors right now, there is a sense of being a challenger agency. Both of us - Prasanna and I - have a point to prove. Believe me, things are happening here. By the end of next year, creative people in this city will think of Ambience as at least the third best agency.

Many ad gurus say that the final creative call has to be taken by one person. Under a two-NCD set-up, how do you both manage conflict of views?
Ashish: I almost agree, when you say that the final creative call has to be one. When we have a conflict, we just go into a room and bludgeon each other. (Laughs) But really, we've found our rhythm, and we're constantly adding to each other's strengths. It's like Contract's Raghu and Manish. They are one voice. For most people, there is an individual called Raghu Manish! Ditto for Joel and Ethan Coen.

Prasanna: We're second guessing each other most of the time and one voice comes out. It's like if one of us comes out with an outstanding idea, the other person has to just support it to make it even better. And that way, we'll create benchmark work.

What categories of brands excite you in terms of creative work?
Ashish: I like brands that have a more rooted, universal feel to them. If you ask me to work on a very premium brand of hair-colour, I don't think that would be as exciting. But now we've been thirsting for a telecom client.

Prasanna: It can't be dependant on the category alone. Holistically, Indian advertising has tough challenges - more than 1 billion people, 46 different languages, so many cultures, how do you convince them in a uniform way to buy a product? In Thailand, it's easy. One outrageous dose of slapstick or humour, and you're home.