The end of idealism

Annihilation of idealism is how I would like to describe my entrance into advertising as a client servicing personnel. I was a good "well rounded" individual.

My first day in the real world as a trainee in one of the ad agencies was an eye opener especially when Mahatma Gandhi's "see, hear, speak no evil" idea was shattered to glittering little pieces as I had to "lie" to one of our clients that my boss, who was sitting right there in front of me, a cup in hand reading the morning paper and shaking his head from left to right at me, was busy in a meeting.

And from there on began the dizzying journey of dodging and passing the ball between the client, boss and various suppliers. Where were the "one should never lie" and "truth always wins in the end" concepts, which apparently seemed to have the opposite effect in my case? I was getting groomed to reach the top, meanwhile having nightmares of deceiving my Class I teacher.

They say never carry your professional life in your personal dealings but here I was, the epitome of the aforesaid amalgamation. I started saying to my bosom pals how much they meant to me when I wanted to get some "inside information" about their agencies. Or when I went out for lunch with my boss during appraisal time and actually told him what a genius he was, when in reality all I wanted to yell was: "You Moron!" What a slick woman they were making of me.

After three years, I hoped to pass with honours. I had excuses coming out of my mouth like popcorn popping out of the machine. Every excuse was an ingenious mind at work.

All those "great" people who our teachers and parents so much wanted us to follow, took a back seat and greed drove the wheel of fortune.

Oh, you might want to know as to what happened to the "Tobacco Kills" organisation I had joined so enthusiastically, dreaming to make a clean man out of a tobacco chewer.

Well, there I was, working on an ad film for a brand of chewing tobacco, slogging day and night so that our client was happy with the sale and our agency with the stipulated 15 per cent. Well, all I can say is that we did add the statutory line: "Tobacco chewing may be injurious to health".

I woke up every morning and stared at the wall in front of me where my mom had pasted a sheet with lines about seeing and speaking the truth. I read it every day and happily got up to get ready for "work".

— The writer is a Gulf News reader based in Dubai.

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