Day 2 of Goafest 2025 brought a fiery mix of creativity, leadership, innovation, and inspiration to the sunny shores of Goa. From redefining the role of the creative leader to challenging traditional media silos, the day brimmed with insights that ignited the minds of India’s advertising, media, and marketing community.

The second half of Day 2 kicked off with an invigorating session titled ‘WTF is Creative Leadership Now?’ under the theme ‘IGNITE THE NEW’, powered by SUN NEO and Amar Ujala. The session featured some of the industry’s biggest names—Bobby Pawar, Sonal Dabral, Senthil Kumar, and Lulu Raghavan—moderated by Rohit Ohri. Bobby Pawar set the tone by calling the CCO the “instigator-in-chief,” while Lulu Raghavan reimagined the modern CCO as a unifier and cultural architect. Senthil Kumar described the CCO as a “playing captain” who keeps the big idea at the center, and Sonal Dabral called for reinstating the CCO as the true creative spine of agencies. Rohit Ohri wrapped up, redefining creative leadership as building collaborative environments where creativity can truly thrive.

This press release also highlighted an impactful keynote by Karan Bedi, Director & Head of Amazon MX Player, who revealed how streaming video ads are now outperforming other formats in brand recall and engagement. With over 1.4 billion downloads and 250 million active users, MX Player is leading the shift as digital video ad spend is expected to rival TV spends by 2026. Bedi emphasized that Amazon MX Player provides advertisers with a full-funnel solution through unique content, rich in-show brand integrations, and contextual ad formats.

At the Gyaan Podium, a knowledge seminar titled ‘IGNITE THE ATTENTION – The Last Unskippable Medium’ by IOAA underscored the power of Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising. With speakers like Shekhar Narayanaswami, Ajay Kakar, Sandeep Bommireddi, and Promita Saha, the session challenged the digital-vs-traditional divide and positioned OOH as immersive, data-driven, and culturally contextual. “You can’t swipe past a billboard,” said Narayanaswami, advocating for phygital storytelling that integrates physical presence with social impact.

In a heartfelt and candid session presented by Network18 titled ‘WHY SO SERIOUS? The Making of Gautam Gambhir’, the cricket legend and Team India Coach reflected on his journey beyond statistics. Moderated by Anand Narasimhan, Gambhir emphasized that “10,000 runs don’t matter—it’s match-winning moments that define you.” Urging young leaders to embrace failures and stay grounded, he added, “Cricket is a part of my life, not my life.”

The storytelling continued under ‘IGNITE THE NEXT’, in a session presented by Amazon MX Player. Actor and entrepreneur Suniel Shetty spoke on discipline and the emotional depth of Hunter Season 2, while Deepak Dhar, Founder & Group CEO, Banijay Asia and Endemol Shine India, delved into creating bold, scalable storytelling formats like Rise and Fall. Moderated by Aruna Daryanani, the fireside was rich with reflections on consistency, audience connection, and localizing global formats for Indian viewership.

Adding a social flair to the evening, Amazon MX Player hosted an exclusive Wine & Cheese gathering. This was followed by the much-awaited Advertising Rocks—a musical talent show by Muzartdisco showcasing the hidden talents of the industry. The Sundowner, powered by Truecaller and BIG LIVE, brought delegates together for some laid-back networking as the Goan skies turned dramatic.

Goafest Day 2 also featured multiple masterclasses including Shahad Anand’s session on 3D creatives in advertising, Sana Shaikh’s showcase of Flipkart Ads’ latest innovations, and storytelling deep-dives by Nick Eagleton and Senthil Kumar.

Screenings at Bioscope – The Cinema included curated content from Amazon MX Player, YouTube Shorts, SET India, and SONY SAB.

The day concluded with the grand ABBY Awards 2025 Powered by One Show, with Broadcaster, PR, Direct, Technology and Digital Craft awards presented by partners including SET India, Sony SAB, Snapchat, ShareChat and Moj. The Gala Dinner by Times Network and the Afterhours party with DJ Melroy presented by Amazon MX Player closed Day 2 on a high note.