Kyoorius Designyatra kicks off with a focus on digital

The three-day Kyoorius Designyatra fest kicked off with much enthusiasm with a 1520-strong creative fraternity in attendance. Day One was dedicated to the second edition of IAA Kyoorius Digiyatra, with six sessions dedicated to creative expression in an increasingly digital world.

The theme of the ninth edition of Designyatra is 'What If' and the sessions are being moderated by Patrick Burgoyne, editor of the UK-based Creative Review magazine.

The day started with Gaston Legorburu, executive director and worldwide chief creative officer, SapientNitro on storytelling and how companies need to create worlds instead of creating ads. "Customers don't want to be told a story, they want to be a part of the story," Legorburu said.

Next, Christian Etter, founder of Etter Studio, explored new avenues of being social online, with his collaborative game 'Drei' where players are encouraged to build basic structures, working together. "I'm a big fan of limitation, since it allows you to find new, creative ways around the problem," he said.

The session that received a standing ovation was conducted by the MIT Media Lab's Dhairya Dand and Deepak Jagdish. They vowed the audience with their research and explorations in digital technology. "Life ends up like an omelette," said Dand, with Jagdish adding: "We live in an ocean of data, and it's time we tap into it."

Following lunch was content strategist Elizabeth McGuane who develops ways to structure a company's story and make digital more human. "Bad content is just a symptom that something else is wrong," she said.

A common thread throughout the day was storytelling and how brands need to find ways to create meaningful connections with their audiences online. Tim Malbon, founding partner of Made by Many, asked several relevant 'What If" questions while at the same time giving an overview of the current state of digital and what to look forward to in the future.

The concluding session of the day was conducted by Maria Eriksson of Hyper Island who highlighting the four fundamental pillars of digital – people, companies, learning and change. "Every agency in India is struggling to define what a digital agency is. What if I told you that digital has nothing to do with digital," she asked.

Commenting on the day's proceedings, Rajesh Kejriwal, founder and CEO of Kyoorius, said: "IAA Kyoorius Digiyatra has been a great success once again. There were a lot of interesting insights and discussions throughout the day about how to humanize digital, and thinking beyond social media," he said. Added Srinivasan K Swamy, president IAA India Chapter & vice-president, development Asia Pacific region of the International Advertising Association, "Digital is gaining much in importance and at IAA we are committed to the digital media," he said.

—In arrangement with MxMIndia.com

Designyatra in Numbers
9th Edition of KDY
2nd Edition of IAA Kyoorius Digiyatra
1520 delegates
18 participating countries
20 speakers
4 Indian speakers
18 sessions
937 repeat delegates
325 students
75 teachers
347 corporate delegates
60 foreign delegates