Master of nonchalance, Diwan Nanda dies

An influential ad professional, he co-founded Rediff

- ALOKANANDA CHAKRABORTY

All hell broke loose because of one flippant comment from the client team. Diwan Arun Nanda told Ruchira Raina—now executive director at advertising agency Rediffusion, and a rookie servicing hand back then in the 90s—who had accompanied him for a presentation in Kolkata, to pack up. As Raina organised the huge A2 sheets of work in her portfolio bag, Nanda told the client team, in their face, they probably didn't know what they wanted.

"You can't build relationships with unending dinners and lunches—that's an unsustainable business model," he explained some months later. "It boils down to the creative product and the expertise an ad agency brings to the table."