fourteen Pitch （Im）Perfect #2
I went on to narrate the script of our campaign’s ad commercial—how it would follow a young woman who has just moved to Mumbai.
She’s starting a new job and feeling completely out of place on her first day.
The city is overwhelming for her and the office feels unfamiliar and intimidating …
until she sits at her desk, exhales and runs her hand over the soft fabric of her linen co-ord set, letting its comfort steady her.
As she glances out of the window, we see what she sees—not the Mumbai skyline, but the view from her balcony back in her hometown.
The glimpse offers her a much needed sense of familiarity and she begins settling in properly.
She kicks off her shoes and sits cross-legged on the chair …
as if she’s starting to feel at home, even though she’s miles away from it.
By the time we concluded our presentation, the room was so quiet I feared we’d put people to sleep. ‘Interesting,’ Rajat said, his face giving nothing away as he motioned for us to take our seats.
Chatter broke out in the conference room as we discussed each other’s ideas and let the pantry staff refill our coffee mugs.
My heart was somewhere in my throat the entire time.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Rajat got up to address the room.
Please, just make it quick and painless, I sent a silent prayer to God.
‘Great work, everyone,’ he began. ‘Truly. I was pleasantly surprised by each of the ideas presented today.’ He turned a page in his notebook. ‘Let’s start with you, Saloni.’
She sat comfortably in her chair, looking at him without an ounce of nervousness on her face.
‘It was really refreshing to see you think bigger than promotional offers … shows that you’re starting to see the merit in brand building.
’ He tapped his pen and added lightly, ‘However, the hook wasn’t as clear as I would’ve liked. It needed some idiot-proofing.’
Saloni shrugged, completely unperturbed by the criticism. ‘Gotcha.’
Rajat nodded at her before shifting his attention to Inayat. ‘Your deck was spectacular. Easily one of the best PPTs I’ve ever seen.’ He looked genuinely impressed—a rare occurrence in the Jharokha office. ‘I just wish you’d focused on the content as much as you did on the packaging.’
Damn, he’s being brutal, I thought to myself, picking at my nails under the table.
Inayat’s smile flickered, but she continued to hold his gaze. ‘I hear you, Rajat.’
‘Good,’ he said, giving her an encouraging nod. ‘Because I see a lot of untapped potential here.’
He began moving around the table, offering individual feedback for everyone’s pitches.
With every carefully crafted critique he delivered, I peeled a little more skin off my cuticles.
When he called Nitya’s idea ‘Relevant, aspirational, but missing an emotional gut-punch’, I realized I’d picked my left thumb raw.
That didn’t stop me, however, from moving on to my right hand as he skimmed through the rest of the team.
‘Wear Your Space ...’ He turned to Tanya, his eyes brightening. ‘Now that was clever. Visually stunning. Conceptually tight. Easily one of my favourites today.’
Tanya straightened in her seat, listening expectantly. Rajat continued, still smiling wide. ‘It’s fresh, super current. And I’m sure it will absolutely kill on social media.’
Before I could cause any more injury to my cuticles, a warm hand closed around mine under the table.
Neil’s fingers pressed down just enough to halt the self-inflicted damage.
Just breathe, Kavya, his hand seemed to say.
The gesture was so tender, so deliberate, that it pulled me out of my spiral.
I exhaled slowly as he withdrew his hand, just in time for Rajat to continue.
‘But …’
I could’ve sworn I saw Tanya freeze.
‘For the hero campaign, we need something that shines across every platform, not just Instagram.’ His tone was measured but kind, and he had a consolatory smile on his face. ‘I still think we should do a mini campaign with it on social media, though.’
She looked crushed. Absolutely defeated. I heard her mumble a ‘thank you’ before she looked away and began blinking rapidly. My heart went out to her.
The room went silent as Rajat closed his notebook. ‘There was one pitch today that did everything I was looking for.’
I stared down at my hands, fighting the urge to attack a fresh corner of my thumbnail. There’s no way he’s talking about you, a cynical voice whispered in my mind.
‘One idea that understood who we are at our core …’
‘One idea that bridged home and fashion seamlessly …’
My pulse jumped and I willed myself to look up to meet Rajat’s eye. ‘And that idea came from Kavya and Neil.’
It was hard to hear his voice over the deafening sound of my beating heart.
‘Jharokha is a home and lifestyle company first. That identity is our foundation. And for our clothing line to succeed, it has to feel like an extension of that foundation, not a departure. “Clothes that feel like home” does exactly that.’
Wait … is this really happening or is my deluded brain making it up?
‘Despite the projector disaster, which you guys should’ve had a backup plan for, by the way …
’ He raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to one side.
‘You still managed to completely floor me. Congratulations, Kavya and Neil.’ Rajat broke into a wide grin and started clapping.
It took a few seconds for everyone else to join in.
Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.
I swivelled in my chair to look at Neil and, for a tiny second, the rest of the room faded away.
He leaned in just a fraction of an inch, his dark brown eyes filled with warmth and pride.
We did it, they seemed to scream directly into my mind.
My chest lurched with the stupid urge to throw my arms around him …
until Rajat’s voice snapped me back to reality.
‘The ad film sounds nice, though I’m sure Nitya would be happy to help you refine the script further,’ Rajat continued, flipping through his notes. A quick look at Nitya confirmed what I already knew—she’d be happy to do no such thing.
‘We could shoot the office scene right here in the building.’ He tapped his pen against the table. ‘Where were you guys thinking of shooting the hometown bit?’
Neil glanced at me before answering. ‘We could do Nasik or Pune? They’re close and the logistics—’
Rajat shook his head, cutting him off. ‘No, they won’t look different enough from Mumbai. We need contrast. Real contrast.’ He turned his attention to me, his brows furrowing together. ‘Kavya, where are you from?’
‘Mussoorie.’
‘Hmmm.’ He rubbed his chin, looking off into the distance. ‘You know what? Mussoorie could work. It has that visual shift … the old homes, the misty hills, the chill in the air … actually, it’s kind of perfect.’
I nodded, too stunned to speak.
‘And since you’re from there, I bet it wouldn’t be tough for you to find a shoot location in ten days.’
‘Ten days?’ The words came out embarrassingly shrill.
‘I know, it’s a tight deadline. But we need to finish the shoot and roll out the campaign in less than a month.’ His voice was moving further and further away. ‘You’ve already done the hard part. Now you just need to execute …’
I barely heard the rest. All I could think was: Looks like I’m going home after all. And I had no idea how to feel about that.