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Category: People

  • Dentsu India elevates Indrajeet Mookherjee as president

    Dentsu India elevates Indrajeet Mookherjee as president

    NEW DELHI: Dentsu India, the brand solutions agency from the house of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN), has promoted Indrajeet Mookherjee, erstwhile executive vice president, to the role of president, effective immediately. He will continue to report to Simi Sabhaney, CEO, Dentsu India.

    Under the fresh mandate, Indrajeet will lead the agency’s flagship businesses that include Toyota and ITC Foods. He will also take charge of the agency’s Chennai and Kochi offices that service numerous prestigious brands such as MRF, TVS Housing, Waycool, Jos Alukkas and Geojit, as part of their client roster.

    Armed with two decades of experience across some of the leading communication networks in India and Indonesia, Indrajeet has worked with significant marquee brands such as Unilever, Nestle, Mondelez, Apple, Himalaya Herbal and AB InBev. He joined Dentsu India as Executive Vice President in 2016. Prior to that, Indrajeet was Managing Director at Soho Square, Indonesia, a part of the Ogilvy Group.

    Sabhaney said, “Indrajeet is one of our finest managers who leads from the front, a mentor to many and a true partner to clients alike. In the many years I have known him, his ‘never-say-die attitude’ and passion to win has been a driving force for his team. Equally adept at ‘farming’ and donning the ‘hunting’ hat, he has led and consolidated significant new business wins for the agency. I believe, in his new role, Indrajeet will take the agency to greater heights.”

    Mookherjee added, “The last four years at Dentsu India have been career defining in ways I had never imagined. And now we are faced with a new normal where we will see a paradigm shift in the way brands present themselves. It is in times like these when being effective, intuitive and most importantly, demonstrating true partnership with our clients, will be the marker in defining client-agency relationships and I hope to play my part in it."

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  • Mirum India appoints Kalpesh Patel as director of martech services

    Mirum India appoints Kalpesh Patel as director of martech services

    NEW DELHI: Mirum has appointed Kalpesh Patel as director of martech services. Besides leading the Salesforce practice, Patel will also lead other areas of practice such as Sitecore, SEO, UX_UI in addition to other CMS and e-commerce solutions. Patel has more than 23 years of experience in managing and delivering technology solutions to Indian and global clients. Patel has been with Mirum for more than four years now and was earlier leading the technology practice.

    Mirum India is a Salesforce gold consulting partner for over nine years and has successfully executed more than 100 projects. Marketing automation services continues to be a major focus area for the agency. Mirum also has an in-house product engineering team, that has built numerous marketing cloud accelerators.  

    Mirum India joint CEO Hareesh Tibrewala said, “Kalpesh is a very passionate and detail-oriented leader. He brings both: the emotional quotient required to run and manage a large team;  and the discipline and processes required to ensure flawless and timely delivery. Post Covid2019, we expect to see an accelerated requirement for digital transformation for businesses. And under Kalpesh’s leadership, we are set to deliver the same for our clients.”

    “A big thank you to Mirum India for putting faith in me and giving me this big opportunity,” said Patel. “With the martech vertical, Mirum India has now combined all the offerings which brands need on their digital transformation journey. I am excited to leverage my experience in delivering technology solutions for domestic and global clients, to add value to the martech vertical. I am looking forward to my new role and keen on contributing to the success of martech and the organisation.”

  • Patanjali launches Coronil drug for Covid2019

    Patanjali launches Coronil drug for Covid2019

    MUMBAI: Baba Ramdev's Patanjali launched an ayurvedic medicine for treating Covid2019 today at Patanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar.

    Earlier this month, Patanjali Ayurved managing director Acharya Balkrishna had claimed that an ayurvedic medicine developed by the company has been able to cure Covid2019 patients within five to 14 days. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd MD Acharya Balkrishna had announced the launch on Twitter on Monday evening.

    "We've prepared the first ayurvedic clinically-controlled, research, evidence and trial based medicine for Covid2019. We conducted a clinical case study and clinical controlled trial and found 69 per cent patients recovered in three days and 100 per cent patients recovered in seven days," said Ramdev. 

    Ramdev claims that there has been 0 per cent death rate and 100 per cent recovery rate has been observed, around 69 per cent of the people recovered within six days. 100 per cent of the people has recovered thanks to the medicine made by it.

    He also stated that they have done every research.

    "We appointed a team of scientists after Covid2019 outbreak. Firstly, the simulation was done and compounds were identified which can fight the virus and stop its spread in the body. Then, we conducted a clinical case study on hundreds of positive patients and we have got 100 per cent favourable results," Balkrishna said at the launch.

    "After taking our medicine, patients recovered in five to 14 days and then tested negative. So, we can say the cure for Covid2019 is possible through Ayurveda. We are performing controlled clinical trials only. In the next four to five days, evidence and data will be released by us," he added.

    The medicine has been manufactured by Haridwar’s Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd in Haridwar, based on a joint research by Patanjali Research Institute in Haridwar and the National Institute of Medical Science, Jaipur.

  • Tide India announces Ayushmann Khurrana as brand ambassador, launches new campaign

    Tide India announces Ayushmann Khurrana as brand ambassador, launches new campaign

    MUMBAI: Tide, one of the leading fabric care brands in India from P&G, has appointed the very talented and versatile Ayushmann Khurrana as their brand ambassador for India. The partnership has launched with the first Tide advertisement featuring the actor, for the Tide Ultra variant designed specifically for the washing machine.

    Launched in India in 2000, Tide provides ‘Outstanding Cleaning’ and has set a high standard for laundry care. What started as a detergent for hand wash household has now evolved for machine usage as well with the launch of Tide Ultra, now further improved with stain magnets. Tide has always stood for surprising whiteness while adding a bit of humour to the laundry chores with witty advertising, becoming a brand that is quintessentially Indian! Ayushmann Khurrana, who has won millions of hearts with his choice of ‘extremely relatable’ movies, was hence the perfect choice for this partnership.

    The association will begin with a new line of Tide advertisement featuring Ayushmann Khurrana playing different members of a family in a fun, unique manner.  The actor has portrayed all these characters with utmost charm.  

    Excited about this partnership with Tide, Ayushmann Khurrana said, “Tide is an iconic power brand whose values resonated with me. We both believe in spreading smiles and brightening up everyday life. I have loved watching the witty Tide ads all these years. For my first advertisement with the brand, we came together and tried to push the envelope, attempting something unique and engaging. You can see me play the roles of multiple family members in a warm, fun narrative. And this is just the start! It is my pleasure to join hands with a fun brand like Tide, and together we endeavour to keep winning smiles and hearts with all that we do together!”

    Ayushmann Khurrana will be seen in a series of advertisements across television, digital and other mediums.

    The first advertisement has already gone live.

    Link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbx91rySuSo

  • MoneyTap appoints Sujay Das as chief risk officer; aims to build robust credit risk policies

    MoneyTap appoints Sujay Das as chief risk officer; aims to build robust credit risk policies

    NEW DELHI: In a recent development, app-based consumer credit line company, MoneyTap, has appointed Mr Sujay Das as chief risk officer. A veteran in the lending and financial industry, Sujay brings more than 19 years of experience in risk management, analytics and credit policy working in different financial organisations across different geographies. He has built several high performing risk management teams across organisations.

    Sujay’s expertise will play a pivotal role in building innovative credit policies and strategies at MoneyTap in the post-COVID economy, bolstered by data science and statistical modelling. Previously, he served as the head of risk analytics at Bajaj Finserv.

    Other professional stints include 13 years at HSBC in several leadership positions across different functions. Sujay left HSBC as a VP, risk analytics. Prior to HSBC, he worked in GE Capital in the risk management and analytics vertical. Sujay completed his masters in economics from JNU (Jawaharlal Nehru University) in 2001.

    "We are thrilled to have Sujay on board at the focal point of our growth story. Sujay brings to the table an in-depth knowledge of risk management and analytics. We look forward to his astute guidance in maintaining the right checks and balances for our risk policies. As we scale, his inputs will be crucial in reinforcing our strong credit discipline," said Moneytap chief business officer and co-founder Kunal Varma. 

    "In my role at MoneyTap, my focus will be on balancing risk and returns for the company. I will be responsible for institutionalizing best-in-class credit practices and keeping a check on the non-performing assets, despite the high growth trajectory that the business aims for," said Sujay Das on his appointment.

  • Raj Nayak’s House of Cheer launches Happyness.me to measure happiness

    Raj Nayak’s House of Cheer launches Happyness.me to measure happiness

    MUMBAI: House of Cheer Pvt Ltd, founded by former Viacom18 COO and prominent media personality Raj Nayak, announced the launch of its new division, Happyness.me, a proprietary tool that measures the happiness quotient of corporates and its people.

    House of Cheer managing partner Namrata Tata said, “With over three decades of experience working in business and industry, we have learned that emotion drives us. Emotions motivate us, they inspire, and they energise us to be productive and to take control of our professional lives. We believe that happiness is the primary emotion that can maximise potential and that has not yet been truly leveraged in the Indian workspace."

    Using behavioural psychology, neuroscience, and data-analytics, with inputs from experts in the field, combined with the team’s extensive experience leading large-scale operations, it has developed a unique proprietary service to measure the happiness quotient within an organisation and to provide customised solutions that empower leaders and inspire teams. 

    Having partnered with one of the world’s leading human insights company’s, The Happiness Index, for its technology platform, it is hoping to usher in a new era in Indian business, focusing first and foremost on the backbone of any organisation, it’s people. It is a two-year program with regular happiness audits that will help the CEO and the leadership team to prioritise on the mental and emotional well-being of their people. The goal is to help organisations create a happiness journey and enable them with the happyness.me tool to visualise their company culture and implement strategies to create a happy flourishing working environment.

    House of Cheer has also partnered with the UK government in India for helping it identify the right partner from the United Kingdom in its happiness journey project.

    Her Majesty’s Trade Commission for South Asia, Alan Gemmell said:
    “I’m delighted that Raj Nayak, House of Cheer and The Happiness Index UK are launching Happyness.me, a critical solution for businesses and corporate leaders to explore engaging ways to connect with their employees in the new world. India and the UK are tech powerhouses. This perfect partnership reflects the continuing global attraction of the UK’s creative and tech sectors, bringing together innovative tech with commercial expertise and creative brilliance.”

    The Happiness Index UK co-founder and head of innovations Tony Latter comments: “The future of work will look very different in terms of when, where and how people are working. Whether it is more employees working remotely, flexibly or in a globally distributed model, the challenges of effectively engaging and communicating with your people are increasing and mean that leaders require a new set of emotional skills and insight.

    "We are tremendously excited to partner with the House of Cheer and the team at Happyness.me. At the Happiness Index, we gather feedback from over 80 countries in 23 different languages and have built our own neuroscience based platform using the best artificial intelligence and machine learning. We all know that happy people create happy organisations and we are incredibly proud of the model built by happyness.me that will allow corporates in India to visualise their company culture. Organisations that understand the happiness of their people will thrive. With thriving comes growth and it’s this growth of a company’s people, culture and performance that makes happiness such a powerful force.”

  • India loves advertising more than any other country: Piyush Pandey

    India loves advertising more than any other country: Piyush Pandey

    NEW DELHI: The past few years have generated a heated discussion on the role of creativity v/s the role of technology in advertising and marketing. With machines dominating almost every aspect of the functioning of an agency, there have been debates on understanding the role of human touch and sensibility in the future of communications and how technology can or cannot be a substitute for human emotions. 

    Addressing the same in a free-wheeling fireside chat with Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari, Ogilvy chief creative officer worldwide and executive chairman India, Piyush Pandey said that technology is there to help the advertisers in creating different creative stories. “Technology is not the story,” he quipped. He elaborated the role of human emotions and sensibilities will never go out of advertising and the agencies will have to learn how to strike a fine balance between the two. 

    Speaking about India’s stand when it comes to creative trends in advertising, he said, “‘Trends' is a strange word. I will never compare Indian advertising with any other country. More people in India love advertising than any other country in the world. The cynicism is not there. We might not win Oscars but people appreciate our good movies.”

    However, Pandey also noted that communication, as we know today, has to change for the better. “It has to be more sensitive as communication is not only about transactions, it is also about relationship building. It is not the time to sell, it is the time to build relationships.” 

    He added, “I feel today, a fruit vendor has more sense of communication and tone than most people in the advertising industry.”

    Does it mean that advertising shouldn’t be focussing on delivering ROIs?

    Pandey disagreed. “ Which client ever, and sensibly so, would not want sales? You can do a bad piece and run it 50 times a day and you can do something impactful and run it 10 times a day only, to deliver similar sales. That’s what the differentiator is.” 

    He continued, “You have to know the consumer to understand what is the aspect of your brand that the consumer will appreciate. If we can engage a consumer and touch hearts, that always works well (for a brand).”

    The thespian also lauded the good world that many agencies have done during the Covid2019 lockdown with limited resources and lots of constraints. Be it the work for Asian Paints, which he wrote and did the voiceover for, or the work to promote the Aarogya Setu app, Pandey thinks there was a lot of creativity that was unleashed during the lockdown across agencies. 

    “I think agencies everywhere have done a good job during the pandemic, given the constraints. It is a testing time for everybody; much more testing time for communicators than anybody else. Yes, our feet are tied but not our hands, not our pens or computers. My personal favourite piece of work is “Family”, which my brother (Prasoon Pandey) created with Bollywood celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Rajnikanth.”

    The one ad that did not make the cut for him was Memec Ogilvy’s #StayHome for Honda. “You will have to see what the ad was for instead of what the ad was. Instead of showing something remarkable, like shooting with a mini car, and making people wonder how they did it, they just put it out there in the video. When you show how fantastic a director you are, what a fantastic editor you are, then I am looking at you and not the car,” he explained. 

    Pandey, who is not just a globally-celebrated advertising industry champion, but also a cricketer (has played CK Naidu Cup and Ranji in his younger days,) a lyricist (he has contributed to the iconic Mile Sur Mera Tumhara), a scriptwriter (Bhopal Express), a voiceover artist (a number of ads including the latest Asian Paints’ Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai), and an actor (Madras Cafe and a few ads), also touched upon his life and experiences during the chat. 

    Chuckling about the mention of his work outside his home industry, Pandey said, “I am a hardcore advertiser. I am not a voiceover artist not an actor. In fact, I am a terrible actor. I did Madras Cafe for my friend Shoojit Sircar. R Balki also tried a few times to get me into movies, but after testing me for several times, he understood that I can’t do it.” 

    On being asked about his retirement plans, Pandey mentioned that he has never seriously thought about it as he is loving what he is doing currently. He did mention that he will continue writing. 

  • This pandemic has shown that planning is meaningless: FCB Ulka’s Anindya Banerjee

    This pandemic has shown that planning is meaningless: FCB Ulka’s Anindya Banerjee

    MUMBAI: In these unprecedented times, it is easy to lose focus and develop a sense of anxiety or fear. Hence, people around the globe are utilising their lockdown time to invest in personal growth and learning skills. In a special interaction with indiantelevision.com, FCB Ulka executive creative director Anindya Banerjee shares some of his favourite activities, new skills he learnt during lockdown and more.

    Excerpts:

    What are the few things that you learnt during this lockdown?

    • Learnt that people land up in time for virtual meetings (Microsoft teams or Zoom) while being incorrigibly late for meetings in the real world.
    • Learnt that people usually keep video on while on a zoom call with friends and keep the video off while on zoom call with colleagues.
    • Learnt that physical meetings are a waste of time and resources. I’ve now learnt how to present film scripts online and I am liking it.
    • Learnt how to shoot a film without being actually present. It’s tough, but do-able.
    • Learnt how to change the punctured tyre of a car.  

    Have you tried to learn a new game or have you enjoyed playing a game for hours?

    I am learning how to play poker. Although, I suspect, I am a long way off from being proficient at it. I am also enjoying going back to the good old games of the analogue age: monopoly, chess and scrabble.  

    Have you taken time to reflect what you have accomplished in the past years and what goals you'll be setting for the coming years?

    Most people have said that this is a time for reflection. But frankly, with the work pressure, I have had even less time to think of the future. In any case, the pandemic has shown that planning is meaningless.

    Have you made a list of things which you are grateful for?
     
    I wake up in the morning and mentally thank god. I am grateful to be alive. Secondly, I am grateful to my profession that I have my hands full when it comes to work. How many people can stand up and say that?
     
    What business-related book has inspired you the most?

    I love reading. But if there’s one book that has inspired me, and honed my craft more than any other, it is "The Copy Book". In fact, it is the Bible for any advertising person. In every writer’s life, there are moments of fear and utter blankness. 15 minutes on any page are enough to dispel any self-doubt.  

    If you three wishes, what would you change in the world?

    • I would change people’s mindset about wastage. Wastage is the biggest crime today and it should be punishable by law.
    • I would make comics tax-free. Everyone loves reading comics. They are simple, entertaining and easy to read. A comic book can go a long way in eradicating illiteracy.

    What habits helped you become successful?

    Success is a highly contentious topic. Who’s to decide what is successful and what is not?

    What mindsets have helped you?

    The world is full of super talented people. And I know I am not one of them. So, I try and over-compensate it by working twice as hard.

    If you had the chance to start your career over again, what would you do differently?

    I am in advertising for the love of advertising. We influence society, thoughts and in many ways, I believe we are far ahead of the curve when it comes to changes. It’s an entertaining business and I get paid for it. Why would I want to do things differently?

  • Monk Media Network promotes Faaizah Husain as head of business

    Monk Media Network promotes Faaizah Husain as head of business

    MUMBAI: Award winning Content 360 Agency, Monk Media Network has today announced the promotion of Faaizah Husain as the head of business of the agency.

    Husain, who was earlier AVP client servicing, joined the agency in 2016 and since then has played an integral role in creating robust roadmaps for the growth of the agency clients.

    In her expanded role, effective immediately, Husain will be responsible for revenue generation and client relationships across all verticals of Monk. This role becomes more significant in the context of the restructuring currently underway at Monk to expand its content offerings.

    Monk Media Network founder and CEO Ashish Patkar said, “Faaizah has been an absolute rock star from the day she joined Monk. Her ability to always try to think what’s right for the client makes her extremely popular with all our clients. Faaizah definitely has the potential to take on and deliver in her expanded role and I look forward to partnering her to drive better value for all our clients.”

    Husain commented, “Businesses and brands are changing more rapidly than ever before. My core challenge will be to transform and optimise our business offerings to complement our client’s needs. I am thankful to Ashish for showing such faith in my abilities and hope to achieve newer heights alongside him and team Monk.”

    Husain is an experienced brand partner having about 10 years of experience and a demonstrated history of working in the digital and traditional advertising industry. Skilled in brand management & communication, business development & retention, internal & external stakeholder relationship management and cross-functional management, she has worked with Havas Worldwide and Lowe Lintas prior to joining Monk Media Network.

  • Havas Media Indonesia appoints Satyajit Sen as CEO

    Havas Media Indonesia appoints Satyajit Sen as CEO

    MUMBAI: Havas Group Indonesia has bolstered its leadership strength with the appointment of Satyajit Sen as Havas Media CEO. In his new role, Sen’s mandate will be to accelerate Havas Media Indonesia’s journey of transformation and exponential growth with a focus on collaboration, new business momentum, and building and leading future-ready teams. He will report to Havas Group, SEA, India and north Asia chairman and CEO Vishnu Mohan.

    A media and marketing professional with 29 years of experience across leading and challenger brands across verticals, Sen joins Havas Indonesia from Samsung India where led the media management function from 2014. While at Samsung, Satyajit is credited with consistently improving performance and effectiveness of ad spend in turbulent market conditions.  Prior to Samsung, Sen was the CEO of ZenithOptimedia Group India where he successfully grew the business, consolidated key accounts and built the performance marketing team from scratch.

    Mohan said, “Satyajit’s proven expertise in delivering value across the spectrum of media services encompassing digital, content and data coupled with extremely strong leadership skills will build on what we have already achieved in Indonesia, which has a strong portfolio of media clients like Indofood, Grab, and Godrej and take Havas Indonesia forward in its next phase of growth and expansion. His experience encompassing both brand and agency will be huge advantage in a critical market like Indonesia. I am delighted to welcome Satyajit to the Havas family and I am confident that he will propel Havas Indonesia in its next phase of evolution.”

    “This is an interesting opportunity in changing and challenging times. Havas has been a pioneer in integration with its Village model of organisational structure and this multi-dimensional approach to marketing and advertising is exactly what clients are looking for. I am extremely excited to be a part of Havas Group’s futuristic agency model and looking forward to working with the team to start a new chapter for Havas Media in Indonesia,” said Sen.

    Sen’s appointment is effective immediately and he is based out of Jakarta.