As part of our Inside the Jury Room series, we interviewed Jennifer Chhor, Head, Omnichannel Content, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Limited, to hear their perspective as a judge this year for the Festival of Media APAC Awards 2026.
In the interview, Jennifer takes a deep dive into how the role of media has evolved in shaping consumer behaviour in recent years and what excites them most about the Festival of Media APAC Award entries this year.
What do you see as the biggest opportunity for media in the Asia Pacific region over the next 12 months?
India will define the next phase of media growth in APAC not because of scale alone, but because of complexity. The biggest opportunity is learning how to win in a market like India where attention is fragmented, language is plural, and culture shifts district by district. Over the next 12 months, the real unlock for media in India will be moving beyond “pan-India reach” to pan-India relevance. Brands that can operationalise regional creativity across Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Bangla and more while still driving performance will outpace those chasing national averages. Media can no longer be a buying function; it has to become a cultural navigation system. India is not a test market anymore, it’s the blueprint.
How are brands leveraging AI in smarter ways to create more impactful campaigns?
The smartest brands in India are using AI not to replace creativity, but to pressure-test it. AI is increasingly being used to decode where stories break, where attention drops, and where cultural nuance matters most. Today, acting with agility is key, organisations and brands that can do that, are winning! What’s interesting in India is how AI is helping brands manage scale without sounding generic from dynamic language adaptation to predicting which creator or format will resonate in which state. We’re also seeing AI drive faster creative iteration, especially in performance-heavy categories like FMCG, pharma, and fintech, where speed is a competitive advantage. The real shift is this: AI is moving from a media optimisation tool to a creative co-pilot, and the brands embracing that mindset are creating disproportionate impact.
Which campaigns or brands do you think have set new benchmarks recently in the APAC media industry?
In India, the most benchmark-setting work recently has come from brands that respect the intelligence of the consumer. Campaigns that feel rooted in lived Indian realities family dynamics, health anxieties, financial aspirations rather than borrowed global tropes. What stands out is not one-off spectacle, but brands that have built content systems where creators, platforms, and media work together consistently over time. Categories like health, BFSI, and beauty are leading this shift, moving from awareness bursts to trust-building narratives. The new benchmark isn’t virality; it’s earned relevance at scale.
What excites you most about this year’s Festival of Media APAC Awards entries?
I’m looking forward to witnessing, the growing confidence of the APAC entries. There’s a clear move away from chasing Western validation towards work that is unapologetically local, yet globally insightful. I’m particularly excited to see how brands are tackling uniquely Indian challenges such as low attention spans, high media inflation, regulatory complexity through smart media architecture rather than big budgets. The best entries will reflect a deeper understanding of Indian and beyond behaviour, not just platform mechanics.
What advice would you give to entrants of the Festival of Media APAC Awards who want to impress the jury this year?
Don’t oversell the idea, prove the thinking. In India, complexity is a given; what matters is how well you navigated it. Show how media choices were shaped by culture, language, and context not just reach or cost efficiencies.
Be honest about what didn’t work and what you changed mid-way. Work that demonstrates courage, clarity, and course-correction will stand out far more than perfectly polished case studies. Ultimately, the jury will reward entries that show how media helped brands earn attention in a country where attention is the hardest currency to win.
