MUMBAI: Contract Advertising has roped in Ravi Deshpande as chief creative officer. Deshpande was earlier Lemon Communications national creative director.

"Ravi has had a long and intimate relationship with our agency from as long ago as 1987. He has been part of crafting Contract's unique creative identity," said Contract Advertising CEO Jagdip Bakshi. "Contract has always attracted the most unusual and sparkling creative minds in the country and Ravi's return is a home-coming that all of us at the agency welcome," he added.

While Deshpande was at Contract, the agency won over 400 awards for creative excellence in prestigious national and international fora like Cannes, British D&AD and the Art Directors' Club, New York.

Contract was Agency of the Year thrice at the Advertising & Marketing national awards as well as Agency of the Year at the Abby's in 1999. In his years at Contract, Deshpande was involved with over 300 campaigns. Most fondly, he remembers Chicklet's - 'It works', Phillips Storm and Serenade and Bajaj Sunny Zip.

"Creative excellence is not just about winning awards. For advertising to be relevant, it must ensure that consumers connect with our clients' brands," Deshpande said.

On his return to Contract, he said, "The sincerity with which I was asked to return was irresistible. As is the desire to work with some of the best young talent in the country. As to his future plans, he said "I'm confident that we will add sparkle and make a a clear and perceptible difference to our clients' work immediately."

In the brief years that Deshpande was away, he set up Lemon, which not just measured up to, but exceeded creative standards as we know them in our industry. Deshpande is best remembered for the Standard Chartered Mutual funds 'Retire early' campaign, Cadbury Delite - 'Dudh se dosti kar lo', and the recent 'Zoom' Television campaign.