Black and white photo of a young man with dark hair wearing an Argentina soccer jersey with various logos, holding his hand to his head and smiling.

Brands I have worked with:

Graphic with the words 'IN' and 'D' separated by an upward arrow, and the word 'money' below.

Hi, I’m Ritwik.

Born at the stroke of this century, I had a different kind of “Y2K Problem”. Shy on the inside but egregiously expressive on the stage (Yet another “formatting” error it seems). At 17, I failed fantastically at an important assessment. That failure and a comeback thereafter contributed a lot to my hunger to know what lies beyond the surface. What makes us behave a certain way? What influences our choices? Brands entered the fray and I was hooked. Since then, I have been diving deep into how brands function, understanding strategies and figuring out ways of placing brands in people’s minds. Curious, bold and unabashedly goal-oriented.

I’m currently open to work.

Fastrack logo in white on black background.
Black background with a white logo and the word 'TITAN' written below it.
Logo with the text 'Northern Arc' and a design of stars and shapes above it.

What helped IndMoney increase its daily active users?

Problem

The Answer

In 2022, IndMoney had 50 lakh registered users but just 2,50,000 of them opened the app on a regular basis. Offering a large swathe of financial services didn’t help.

Conceptualised and executed IndLearn, a learning module aimed at democratising financial literacy while earning fractional shares.

The idea was to create a section in the app that mimics social media. What makes it addictive? Apart from the dopamine burst it offers, you are there to watch what others are upto.

A certificate of excellence awarded to Arjun Santra for completing a course, featuring gold and white text on a black background, with award icons.
White arrow painted on black background pointing to the right

Social Validation

Streaks to keep you hooked

Thumbnail for a video titled 'How does compounding work | Mini Save' by INDmoney. The thumbnail features a woman with long dark hair wearing a pink top, gesturing with her left hand. The background is blue with white text that reads 'The Power of Compounding (With Mini Save)' and includes an illustration of a money bag, coins, and upward arrows.
A blue backpack resting on a wooden dock with water and trees in the background.

~5,00,000 DAUs

White arrow pointing to the right on a black background.

How do we make McDonald’s burgers healthy?

An XIC Project

Problem

McDonald’s, a brand that looks to appeal for the “child in you” was facing declining sales. This was more prevalent among children as parents got more health conscious and stopped including McD burgers in their children’s lunch boxes. Just introducing protein and millet-based burgers didn’t move the cheese (pun intended).

The Answer

The tension was around parents who want to indulge their children with burgers while also making sure they eat healthy. I didn’t have to look any further. The best way to influence parents about their children is to tap into their parents. If the grandparents in the house can have the burger, the tension is removed and it no longer becomes a “cheat” meal. A millet bun burger is as good as millet rotis with paneer patty inside!

If your Nani can have it, What’s your excuse?

Burger For Your Nani - UGC with #NaniMilletBite

Woman sitting on a bed holding a half-eaten McDonald's burger on a napkin with a red and yellow McDonald's logo, in a room with a nightstand that has a blue water bottle, some bottles, and other items. The text at the top says 'The crime scene' and the hashtag at the bottom is '#Nani'sMilletBurger'.
A woman and girl sharing burgers at McDonald's, with yogurt and apple slices on the tray. The caption reads #NaniMilletBite.
A family of three, including an older woman and a young girl, sitting at a table with McDonald's food. The woman is holding a burger and giving a thumbs up, while the girl is smiling and giving a thumbs up. A man is in the background with a serious expression. The table has a burger, apple slices in a cup, and a paper wrapping. Text above the family shows five yellow stars and says '5-star rating from the family's toughest food critic'.

It’s simple. India needs a third viable option in the telecom sector.

An XIC Project

133 people were asked questions regarding how well their network service providers were staying true to their promise of providing fast and reliable connectivity.

Consumer Perception Survey

I had hypothesised that there was a lingering displeasure amongst Indians with their telecom service providers owing to network congestions and poor nation-wide connectivity.

The survey laid bare the fact that a network provider with a solemn promise of high performance is the need of the hour. India advancing toward a tech-driven future needs such a player with minimum fringes and maximum performance promise.

Introducing

Yukti comes with the sole promise of network superiority. No matter where you are, what you’re doing Yukti keeps you connected always, quite magically. With best in class tower-switching and package-transfer coupled with low-orbit earth satellites, you’ll stay connected always.

A network purely catering to the Utilitarian Drive.

Close-up of the text 'YUKTI' in white letters on a black background.

Why does someone buy Crocs?

*

Why does someone buy Crocs? *

An XIC Project

Problem

If you ask someone who swears by Crocs as to why they wear them, the answer would most possibly be for the comfort. The foam footwear is ubiquitous the world over because of its unique look and all-purpose use. Jibbitz acquisition turned out to be s great deal for the brand as suddenly the “ugly look” it seemingly ordained could now be transformed into a canvas for self-expression. In India, the company has gone ahead with the same global playbook of fashion with “Come as you are” being the watchword. But do Indians actually buy that? Are they comfortable with a footwear that asks you to personalise?

Rashmika Mandanna gleefully perched inside an oyster, Rashmika Mandanna prepping for a Diwali party and Rashmika Mandanna in a whimsical world collecting objet d’art for her shoe. Celebrity collabs and festive campaigns talking of style and comfort tells the India story for Crocs. We asked 63 people from various parts of the country and 35 of them preferred comfort over fashion. Crocs to them is about staying at home and a quick slip-on for an errand. India being value-first market, asking us to wear a shoe with Rs 200- Rs 1,500 (for a pack) trinkets is a bit of a stretch.

Answer

Charts showing reasons people choose Crocs and locations they wear them most often. Reasons include comfort, ease of wear, peer influence, and style/colors. Most wear Crocs for casual daily use, followed by travel/outdoors, with fewer for work or not at all.

Fun, playful and quirky definitely is in-line with the “Come as you are” identity. It fits the bill with pop-infused collabs, but the questions is: Will it tackle the perception of Crocs not being considered as a serious contender for events? Unfortunately, many still see Crocs as not the right fit to be worn at an occasion. Perhaps advertising can only do so much, cheap duplicates have flooded the Indian market. “Why to spend so much more for the original, when I get the same result for something affordable?” The answer lies in going back to the drawing board and coming up with a truly Indian clog, lest growth would continue to stay in the US, UK and China; India is different. If “Born to be free" is the Chinese equivalent of “Come as you are” what would it be for India? Crocs needs to answer!