Prasoon Joshi is an Indian poet, writer, lyricist, screenwriter, communication specialist and marketer. He is the CEO of McCann World group India and Chairman APAC (Asia Pacific), a subsidiary of the global marketing firm McCann Erickson. He was appointed as the Chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification on 11 August 2017.
Prasoon has received the Filmfare Best Lyricist Award three times, in 2007 and 2008 and again in 2014 for the Hindi movie Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. He has also received the National Film Award for Best Lyrics twice, for his work in Taare Zameen Par (2007), and Chittagong (2013). He was awarded Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2015, for his contributions towards the field of Arts, Literature and Advertising. He is one of the trustees of IGNCA, a member of Nehru Memorial Museum & Library Society Panel and is among the select 120 members of the National Committee for Commemoration of 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Advertising
Prasoon started his career with Ogilvy & Mather in Delhi. In just 10 years, he was appointed the Executive Creative Director of the Mumbai office. In early 2002, he joined McCann-Erickson as Executive Vice-President and National Creative Director. By 2006, he was the Regional Creative Director for South and South East Asia. In December 2006 he was promoted to Executive Chairman for McCann Worldgroup India and Regional Creative Director for Asia Pacific.
Joshi is known for creating brand-building work for multinational brands including Nestle, Coca cola, Microsoft, Mastercard, L’Oréal, Intel X Box, Reckitt Benckiser, Unilever, Perfetti, J&J, as well as Indian Brands like Britannia, Saffola, Dabur, ITC foods, TVS motors, Reliance, Reliance Jio, Paytm, RadioMirchi, and media brands like NDTV India (Sach dikhate hain hum), Times Now, CNBC, CNN IBN, and the Cannes-winning Thanda matlab Coca-Cola campaign with Aamir Khan.
His Happydent television commercial was listed by Bob Garfield of AdvertisingAge as one of his personal choices for the Cannes Gold in 2007, and it was chosen by a Gunn Report poll as one of the 20 best ads of the 21st century.
His works were utilized for various social campaigns in India: Swacch Bharat, education, polio eradication, malnutrition, women empowerment, child rights, against student suicide, and UN millennium goals. His contribution was acknowledged for the 2014, and subsequently 2019 elections.
Film career
Prasoon made his debut as a film lyricist with Rajkumar Santoshi’s Lajja, a critical and commercial success, and this soon led to Yash Chopra’s Hum Tum and a string of highly successful Bollywood films like Fanaa, Rang De Basanti, Taare Zameen Par, Black and Delhi 6. With Rang De Basanti (2006), he also became a dialogue writer.
He won the Filmfare Best Lyricist Award for “Chand Sifarish” from the film Fanaa in 2007 and for “Maa” from Taare Zameen Par in 2008. He has won the prestigious National Award twice. The first for his work in Taare Zameen Par and the second one in 2013 for Chittagong.
He has also written the script for the award-winning 2014 film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag.
As a CBFC chairman he has maintained the fine balance between the filmmakers and societal sensitivities, instituted dialogue discussion instead of controversy and has played a big role in digitising CBFC functionality.
