You Never Forget Your First

I worked on my first film as an account executive at Grey Worldwide circa 1947, or some such black and white era, where I was still trying to learn the ropes and grasp the male versus female dynamics in advertising (story for another time).

The account was GlaxoSmithKline, and the brand was Crocin.

We were shooting with Viswanathan Anand, an international chess wizard and truly one of the most remarkable people I’ve ever met. (Seriously, I highly recommend spending time with famous people; it teaches you tons about character - but I digress.)

I’d never handled a full-fledged production piece before, but I think the fact that I’m genetically designed to behave like an obsessive fusspot has generally helped me get the job done on many accounts, including this one.

Sixteen hours of takes and retakes later, it was a wrap. (Viswanathan Anand; great guy but a terrible actor.) The shoot went well, and the client even sent in an email appreciating what a fabulous circus ringmaster I’d make someday. And so, of course, the logical way to conclude my first ever shoot was to just get progressively and debilitatingly hammered.

And THAT’s when I spotted an elephant on the Moolchand flyover and decided that I HAD to ride it. At 2 in the night.

I KNOW! WHAT AN IDIOT!! RIGHT?

Anyway, so we bribed the mahout, and I rode this gigantic, nearly ten-foot-tall animal on an already tall flyover that night. And, stupid as it sounds to the “superior and more responsible ME now,” 19-year-old me felt pretty good that night.

I was very late to work the next day and, of course, bragged about my cool AF elephant story to anyone who listened. I don’t think anyone believed me though.

Anyway, here’s a picture of me; young, dumb, broke, and all of 19 years old, on the night I rode an elephant on the Moolchand flyover.

They say that you never forget your first. :)