People: India’s multi-awarded creative Santosh Padhi leaves Dentsu Network

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MUMBAI, INDIA – After a decade, Santosh Padhi aka Paddy, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Taproot Dentsu, says goodbye to Dentsu network.

This January, Ayesha took over as CEO of Taproot Dentsu, while Shashank Lanjekar got into the leadership role of National planning head, and the new creative structure of 4 ECDs were formed to take the agency’s cutting edge creative legacy forward.

Taproot which was founded by Santosh Padhi and Agnello Dias got acquired by Dentsu Network in 2012, one of the initial acquisitions in India. Both co-founders had a lock-in of 5 years and their 100% shares transfer/hand over happened back in 2017.

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“The new leadership team at Taproot Dentsu sets the tone for the future of the agency. They are a talented bunch of minds and I am confident they will continue to drive Taproot dentsu’s creative reputation going forward. I was lucky and blessed to have been showered with so much love and respect from the dentsu family over my wonderful 10-year-long journey. I preserve some beautiful memories which will always be close to my heart. My best wishes to the young & dynamic network for their further journey,” shares Santosh Padhi (Paddy).

One of his favorite campaigns remains to be “Adidas Odds” for Para-athletes. It also happens to be one of the most awarded campaigns from India.

Over the last 12 years, Taproot Dentsu has risen to become one of India’s most prominent creative agencies, notching up several accolades along the way.

In its very first year 2010, it was the only agency in Asia to win a Gold Clio. That same year, Taproot was rated the No. 1 Independent Agency from India at Cannes and ranked amongst the Top 20 Independent Agencies in the World in the Cannes Survey.

The agency was also declared the Best Performing Agency from India at Adfest Thailand 2010, Best Performing Indian Agency in 2011 at Spikes Asia, and Runner-up for Best Performing Independent Agency in 2012.

Similarly, in 2012, the agency was announced Indian & South Asian “Creative Agency of The Year” by Campaign Asia. It also emerged at the top of India’s Gunn report twice, and was included in the top three for several years.

The agency’s other awards and recognitions include:

“Creative Agency Of The Year” title at Adfest (first-ever Indian agency to win this)
Record 4 Gold Lions at Cannes 2013 for their Times Of India Farmer Suicide Campaign
Cannes Gold for “I’m Mumbai” TV Campaign in 2014
Grand Prix at Spikes Asia in 2015 for Mumbai Mirror
“Agency of the year” at Goafest 2017.
Integrated Grand Prix and “Agency of the year India” at Spikes Asia in 2017.

Most recently, in 2021, Taproot Dentsu was the “Most Awarded Agency from India” at D&AD, and Adfest as well.

About Paddy:
Santosh Padhi, popularly known as Paddy, is the only Indian to win the highest number of Cannes Lions (12), the first Indian to win a Cyber Cannes Lion, and a Cyber Oneshow Pencil (2009). He was voted as the 3rd Best Art Director in the world, in a survey conducted by Campaign (UK) and the No. 1 Creative Person from India, by Campaign Brief Asia ranking, in 2008 and 2009.

He is the only Art Director from India to win Golds Awards for his art direction at almost every international award show: Cannes, Adfest, Spikes Asia, New York Festival and the London International Awards, to name a few.

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