India's advertising story has always mirrored the country's own evolution. From the hand-painted hoardings of a newly independent nation to AI-generated avatars and meme-led campaigns on social media, brands have spent decades learning how to speak to a changing consumer. The first episode of The Hook, Alex Mathew and Aayush Ailawadi explore how brands are fighting for attention in the digital age, where content has become the new currency and a smartphone can rival a multi-crore advertising campaign.