Sneh Nihalani
Creative Director · Writer · Filmmaker
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ABOUT WORK MORE

Creative Director · Writer · Filmmaker

Sneh Nihalani

I tell stories
for a living.

Some sell brands, others move hearts. I work at the crossroads of advertising and cinema. I've honed my craft at some of the industry's most renowned agencies. I've worked across brands that live in millions of homes. I turn insights into ideas that actually land.

My directorial and writing work has been recognized at major international festivals and awarded.

Raised across small town India, now based in Mumbai, I've lived in many Indias and stolen a little truth from each. My work is a love letter to the ordinary, extraordinary lives of the people I write for.

Currently freelancing from Mumbai, open to creative direction, scripts, and direction work.

McCann Erickson
Ambience Publicis
Rediffusion Y&R
Bates
Contract JWT / VML
Wakaoo Films
Optimystix
Sanjay Dutt Productions
AirtelTata NanoTata MotorsCokeColgatePanteneHaldiram'sKayaKisnaMaricoGoel TMTLakmeNathabitAD by Arvind AirtelTata NanoTata MotorsCokeColgatePanteneHaldiram'sKayaKisnaMaricoGoel TMTLakmeNathabitAD by Arvind

Beyond advertising, I have written and directed Keeda, an award-winning short film that premiered at MAMI and travelled international festivals. Currently, three of my feature films are in development with renowned production houses.

The work.

TV commercials, award-winning radio spots, and campaigns that became part of pop culture.

0
Years
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Brands
Band Baaja Bitiya
EMOTIONAL · BRAND BUILDING

Band Baaja Bitiya

Band Baaja Bitiya is my way of telling a different story where a father's support becomes the real foundation of strength, reminding us that the strongest homes aren't just built with steel, but with the courage to stand by our daughters. With 200 million plus views it is one of most talked about pieces of advertising of 2026.

Haldiram's
EMOTIONAL · EXPORT MARKET

Haldiram's

I wanted to tell it as a journey across seven connected films where every bite carries the beautiful bond between a mother and her son, with a snack at the centre and emotion always at the top.

Lupizyme: Gut Whisperer
HUMOR · LONG FORMAT · AWARD WINNING

Lupizyme: Gut Whisperer

This job takes guts, literally. I made a quirky, long format, award-winning piece that proves no brand deserves boring communication.

AD: Real Reel
FASHION · HUMOR · DIGITAL

AD: Real Reel

This is how I wanted to do a big celebrity collab by making the celebrity DOUBT it.

AD Launch
FASHION · INSPIRING · BRAND BUILDING

AD Launch

I made AD keep up with Raghav Juyal. Comfort that doesn't sit still, stretch that doesn't snap, style that doesn't behave.

AD x Raghav Juyal Summer Collection
FASHION · INSPIRING · SUMMER COLLECTION

AD x Raghav Juyal Summer Collection

AD makes clothes that move. I found the man who refuses to stop. Raghav Juyal is nothing less than a movement himself.

Kisna Diamonds: Date
EMOTIONAL · LUXURY

Kisna Diamonds: Date

I reimagined Kisna as your BFF and a confidant who playfully twists your thoughts, only to bring you closer to your own truth.

Kisna Diamonds: Party
EMOTIONAL · LUXURY

Kisna Diamonds: Party

I reimagined Kisna as your BFF and a confidant who playfully twists your thoughts, only to bring you closer to your own truth.

Kisna Diamonds: Job
EMOTIONAL · LUXURY

Kisna Diamonds: Job

I reimagined Kisna as your BFF and a confidant who playfully twists your thoughts, only to bring you closer to your own truth.

NatHabit: Breathe Life into Beauty
BEAUTY · NATURAL · BRAND BUILDING

NatHabit: Breathe Life into Beauty

I turned NatHabit's "cellular care" into a story you can feel by bringing each cell alive and not just making a claim.

Safewash: The Trial
HUMOR · CLUTTER BREAKING

Safewash: The Trial

Detergent powders on trial for being harsh on clothes serving them the punishment they deserve. As Creative Director, I turned this script developed by my team into a loud, unapologetically funny film crafted for the Tamil market.

Giffy: The War
HUMOR · CLUTTER BREAKING

Giffy: The War

I brought Sathyaraj and Ramya Krishnan out of kingdoms and into kitchens where grease became the new enemy and Giffy and its Bahubali intensity did the cleaning. A super hit campaign in Telugu Market.

L&T: Kitaab
EMOTIONAL · BRAND BUILDING

L&T: Kitaab

Through a writer finding his voice because someone believed in him, I mirrored how L&T Realty values your trust honouring it with every detail, every promise.

Goel TMT — Foundation
POWERFUL · TACTICAL

Goel TMT: Foundation

A relevant election-time film that reflects on the nation's foundations, our children.

Haldiram's Holi
MUSICAL · YOUNG LOVE

Haldiram's Holi

A boy, quietly in love, wishes that this Holi she's the first to color him before the world does. With a simple help from Haldiram's, he creates a moment that says everything he can't.

ITC Classmate: Signature
EMOTIONAL · BRAND BUILDING

ITC Classmate: Signature

The pen wasn't just an object it became a window to discovering your identity. Every stroke opens up who you're meant to be.

Avinash Naamkaran
LIGHT HEARTED · BRAND BUILDING

Avinash Naamkaran

Wrote and directed a story where naming a new family member becomes a heartfelt, slightly dramatic moment. Finding warmth, humour, and emotion in something we all relate to.

Tata IRIS
HUMOR · GRASSROOTS

Tata IRIS

I captured a day in the life of a rickshaw driver where the ride may end, but the weight of it doesn't. Told with lightness and heart, the story lingers long after the journey is over.

GOEL: Papa Ji
HUMOR · CLUTTER BREAKING

GOEL: Papa Ji

I wrote a hilariously twisted take on legacy where a home so full of generations has no space left for the newly departed. Turning longevity into comedy, I showed how some homes are truly built to last.

Tata Nano — Awesomeness
YOUNG · SURREAL · MUSICAL

TATA NANO : AUTOMOTIVE

In my view this car was nothing but awesomeness but battling with the perception of a cheap car. The change in communication made a huge difference.

Feature-length writing - stories developed for the big screen.

FEATURE FILM · 2016

The Legend of Michael Mishra

Writing credit on the Hindi feature film The Legend of Michael Mishra (2016). Click to view on IMDB.

FEATURE FILMS · IN DEVELOPMENT

Three Feature-Length Films

Currently three feature-length films from different genres in development with renowned production houses.

Optimystix
Sanjay Dutt Productions
ABP

In the press.

Real coverage from leading publications - campaigns, cinema, and the stories behind the stories.

The Indian Express
SUNDAY EYE · FEATURE

Band Bajaa Bitiya: Meet the people who turned a wedding baraat into protest

An in-depth feature on how Sneh Nihalani & O.R. Radhakrishnan crafted the viral Goel TMT film ft. Gajraj Rao — and the real-life stories that inspired it.

Republic World
ENTERTAINMENT

Gajraj Rao's Band Baaja Bitiya Flips The Script To Support Daughters

Republic World covers how the campaign challenges domestic abuse norms and redefines the concept of honour.

Moneycontrol
POLITICS · CULTURE

Smriti Irani backs Band Baaja Bitiya: "Violence is not culture"

Former Union Minister Smriti Irani shared her personal story of surviving domestic violence while endorsing the campaign.

The Tribune
NATIONAL

BandBaajaBitiya Sparks a Nationwide Cultural Conversation

Tribune India covers the campaign's journey from a branded film to a national movement around strength and dignity.

Kyoorius Creative Awards
AWARD ENTRY · 2023

Official Kyoorius Awards Entry

Project listing on the Kyoorius Creative Awards platform — view the official entry, credits and award submission.

Beast of Traal
BEST ADS OF 2022 · RANKED #6

Kisna — Among the 10 Best Indian Ads of 2022

Beast of Traal's year-end round-up of the finest Indian advertising of 2022 — Kisna's film placed at No. 6 on the list.

Shorted.in
SHORT FILM OF THE DAY

Keeda — Short Film Review

Featured as Short Film of the Day. Praised for its portrayal of group dynamics and tackling HIV stigma without being preachy.

Large Short Films
CRITICS' SELECT

Keeda — #Perfect10 at Jio MAMI

Selected under Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films. Won the #Perfect10 award at Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival.

Campaign India
CONTEST WIN · 2010

Sneh Nihalani Wins the Storyboard Launch Contest

Campaign India reports her Rediffusion Y&R entry won the Storyboard Hindi launch contest, earning a Cannes Lions trip and TV feature.

Business Standard
PRESS RELEASE · 2010

CNBC-Awaaz Announces Winner of Storyboard Launch Campaign Contest

Details witty Hindi translations of ad jargon — "Brainstorm" as "Mastisk choosak aviram bak bak." Assisted by Abhishek Dey & Kashif Memon.

Business Standard
OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT · 2010

All-Expense-Paid Trip to Cannes & Featured on Special Storyboard Episode

CNBC-Awaaz adjudged Sneh Nihalani, Creative Partner-Copy at Rediffusion Y&R, as the winner — earning a Cannes Lions trip and a feature in the special Storyboard episode on the Cannes festival.