ITV

Category: MAM

  • Anubhav Roda joins PinDrop as partnership director

    Anubhav Roda joins PinDrop as partnership director

    MUMBAI: Anubhav Roda, a seasoned veteran in the sports sponsorship game, has made a power play, joining PinDrop as its new partnership director. Roda, known for his knack for nailing lucrative deals, brings a wealth of experience, having previously juggled partnerships at SportQuake, the International League T20, and even a stint at Deloitte, where he strategised sporting success.

    “From the get-go, Sean and Menino’s data-driven approach hooked me,” Roda quipped, clearly chuffed with his new gig. “. Their vision of empowering brands and rights holders to create measurable, impactful sponsorships aligns perfectly with my own passion for leveraging analytics to drive success.”

    He’s diving headfirst into PinDrop’s impressive roster, which includes the likes of Newcastle United, Rangers FC, and the International Tennis Federation, not to mention forays into the wild west of Web3.

    PinDrop, a rising star in the sports marketing arena, prides itself on its “insights-led” strategy, a fancy way of saying the company actually knows what its team is up to. PinDrop’s  focus on quantifying sponsorship performance has clearly struck a chord with Roda, who sees “tremendous potential” in blockchain’s ability to shake up fan engagement.

    Roda’s CV reads like a sports fan’s dream, with pit stops at the FIFA U-17 World Cup, PwC, and even a stint writing for sports outlets like SportsKeeda and Scroll. He’s clearly not afraid to get his hands dirty, having also managed the commercial side of Minerva Punjab Football Club and Delhi Dynamos FC.

  • The House of Rare’s cool spin on summer fashion

    The House of Rare’s cool spin on summer fashion

    MUMBAI: The House of Rare redefines summer fashion with its SS25 campaign film, ‘White Echoes’, shot in the snow-capped serenity of Kashmir. Known for its innovative storytelling, the brand has delivered a striking juxtaposition of seasonal contrasts—where breezy summer wear meets the frozen silence of winter.

    The House of Rare comprising Rare Rabbit, Rareism, Rare’Z, and Rare Ones—has launched its Spring-Summer 2025 campaign with an unexpected twist. Titled White Echoes, the campaign brings summer fashion into the heart of winter, turning snow-blanketed valleys, misty trails, and frozen lakes into a bold new runway.

    The campaign features The Ruby Edit for women and Summer Layers for men, blending style, comfort, and artistic finesse with a backdrop few would associate with summer fashion.

    Conceptualised and produced entirely in-house, the campaign captures the spirit of pushing boundaries. “This campaign reflects the kind of storytelling we believe in,” said The House of Rare chief business officer Pulkit Verma, “White Echoes is more than a campaign it’s a statement. It reflects our belief that fashion should move people, surprise them, and challenge the ordinary. Kashmir gave us a stunning canvas, but it was the resilience of our crew and the soul of our collections that brought the story alive.”

    The concept sparked from a single question by the brand’s founder, “Why not make summer feel cool by shooting it in the cold?” That seed of inspiration led the team to brave -7°C temperatures in Kashmir, turning adversity into art. The result is not just a campaign it’s an immersive experience.

    The Ruby Edit for women celebrates expressive silhouettes light, flowing, and full of character. Think free-spirited kaftans, breezy brunch-to-beach dresses, co-ord sets that balance ease with edge, and dramatic yet wearable skirts.

    Summer Layers for men leans into texture and tailoring, with bold prints, embroidered shirts from the Tuscan Sun line, and structured pieces from the Guild collection. The looks are rounded off with printed co-ords, shackets, mandarin collar shirts, and versatile denim—designed for modern, unpredictable days.

  • Trupti Prabhu Roy plugs into Greaves Electric, sparking IPO buzz

    Trupti Prabhu Roy plugs into Greaves Electric, sparking IPO buzz

    MUMBIAI: Trupti Prabhu Roy, a PR dynamo with a trophy cabinet bursting with awards, has plugged into Greaves Electric Mobility as the company’s  new lead for corporate communications. Roy, known for her electrifying campaigns and crisis-busting prowess, is set to steer the e-mobility giant’s communications, with a particular focus on its upcoming IPO.

    Roy, whose LinkedIn profile reads like a PR hall of fame, joins Greaves Electric Mobility after a stint as deputy general manager at Greaves Cotton Ltd. Her impressive CV also includes a four-year stint at Six Degrees BCW, where she led campaigns for tech and automotive giants like Ather Energy, JFrog, and ThoughtSpot.

    “Managing communications for all brands under Greaves Electric Mobility, including Ampere and Greaves 3W, and leading strategic messaging and IPO communication efforts,” is how Roy describes her new role. A proper plateful, even for a seasoned pro.

     

  • Threading the Bloom Fabindia brings Chikankari into full spring swing

    Threading the Bloom Fabindia brings Chikankari into full spring swing

    MUMBAI: Spring has never looked so soulful. Fabindia’s latest offering, The Song of Spring, gently unfurls a tapestry of tradition and technology, paying tribute to the age-old art of Chikankari embroidery with a modern twist and a dash of AI.

    Rooted in India’s rich textile legacy, Chikankari has long been enchanted with its whisper-light stitches and poetic precision. In this collection, Fabindia reimagines the heritage craft using AI-generated floral visuals, creating a campaign that bridges the traditional with the contemporary. The result? A collection that feels as fresh as a spring breeze, but with roots deep in culture.

    “The Song of Spring is more than a campaign; it is a tribute to the hands that sustain India’s textile traditions. By honouring its floral essence and displaying its intricate threadwork, we wanted to express the finery of Chikankari beyond the garment and celebrate its inspiration. Including AI crafted floral elements in the campaign visuals that accentuate the craft has brought a fresh perspective to the craft”, says a Fabindia spokesperson.

    From dreamy dupattas to floating kurtas and artfully embroidered tunics, the collection showcases Chikankari at its most elegant. Crafted from airy cottons and fine silks, each piece features signature stitches like Bakhiya, which gives an illusion of shadows, Phanda, known for floral knots, and Jaali, which mimics Mughal latticework. It’s this layered delicacy over 32 types of stitches in some cases that gives each garment its own narrative.

    Embracing soft pastels, earthy tones, and gentle florals, the colour palette of the collection enhances the embroidery’s subtle brilliance. Every garment comes adorned with a Craftmark Tag, a confirmation of authenticity and handcrafted integrity.

    With The Song of Spring, Fabindia doesn’t just showcase clothing it tells a story in thread, blending centuries of tradition with today’s design language. It’s a sartorial serenade to spring, one stitch at a time.

  • Third Wave Coffee adds a pizza twist with a slice of fun and flavour

    Third Wave Coffee adds a pizza twist with a slice of fun and flavour

    MUMBAI: A jingle, a dance, and now pizza! Third Wave Coffee is taking its love for café culture to the next level with the launch of its new range of pizzas, brought to life through the brand’s peppy new campaign “Slice of Joy”. Pairing wood-fired slices with signature brews, the chain’s latest offering is anything but a half-baked idea.

    The star of the campaign is the quirky ‘Sip Sip Bite’ jingle, which has baristas busting out choreographed moves across 140 plus cafés in India. Not just a digital gimmick, the jingle plays out live in-store every day at 1 PM, 4:30 PM, and 7 PM, transforming casual coffee runs into spontaneous dance breaks.

    “At Third Wave Coffee, we’ve always believed in doing things differently – whether it’s how we brew coffee or build community inside our cafés,” said Third Wave Coffee co-founder Ayush Bathwal. “With ‘Slice of Joy,’ we’re inviting customers to experience something new. The ‘Sip Sip Bite’ jingle isn’t just a song – it’s a celebration of our baristas, our culture, and this exciting new chapter.”

    Best known for its premium brews and community-first ethos, Third Wave’s foray into pizza is a cheeky nod to the joy of comfort food done right. Think of it as a match made in heaven or at least in a well-designed café with cheesy slices meeting artfully poured flat whites.

    The pizzas, available nationwide starting this week, aim to serve up more than just food they’re meant to be shared, Instagrammed, and savoured alongside the brand’s signature blends. The campaign is already sparking buzz online, with users grooving along to the jingle and sharing their own Sip Sip Bite moments.

    True to its name, Slice of Joy is a celebration of the simple pleasures of hot coffee, fresh pizza, and the warm camaraderie of your favourite café crew. In a world of grab-and-go, Third Wave Coffee invites you to sip, stay, and maybe even dance.

  • Sawhney jumps ship to Campbell Pacific, eyes Indian media pie

    Sawhney jumps ship to Campbell Pacific, eyes Indian media pie

    MUMBAI: Rajiv S Sawhney, a seasoned tech and digital whizz, has landed a new gig as country manager for India at Campbell Pacific Media, hot on the heels of his stint at Thakral Corp. Sawhney, who boasts a CV sprinkled with big names like Amazon, Yahoo, and even a sojourn with Manchester United, is set to spearhead the firm’s expansion into the bustling Indian market.

    Campbell Pacific Media, a “unique independent media consultancy,” is betting on Sawhney’s knack for forging strategic partnerships and navigating the choppy waters of emerging markets. The aim? To leverage his expertise in CRM and new media to whip up customer engagement strategies that’ll have brands and ad tech companies salivating.

    With a network of over 1000+ entrepreneurs, founders, industry experts, agencies, brands & freelance partners, Campbell Pacific is clearly aiming to be the go-to for anyone looking to crack the Asian market.
    Prior to this, Sawhney clocked nearly five years at Thakral Corp, where he steered the ship as vice president and general manager for India and South Asia, and briefly as chief executive officer of Thakral One Solutions. His past exploits also include a stint as a strategy advisor for Manchester United.

    Before that, he was busy at Amazon, leading business development and partnerships in Singapore, and at Yahoo, where he was senior director and head of global partnerships for APAC. He also served as a founding team member and business head at Reliance Group’s Zapak Digital Entertainment, and as head of ecommerce at Times Internet.

    Sawhney’s move signals Campbell Pacific’s ambitious play in India’s burgeoning digital and ad-tech landscape. With his track record, they’re clearly hoping he can score a hat-trick in the Indian market

  • Publicis powers ahead with a pitch-perfect Q1

    Publicis powers ahead with a pitch-perfect Q1

    MUMBAI: Publicis Groupe has come out swinging in 2025, delivering a knockout first quarter with organic growth clockin

    g in at a robust 4.9 per cent and net revenue up 9.4 per cent. Not too shabby in a jittery global economy.
    Despite storm clouds on the macro front, the Paris-based ad titan bagged a record haul of new business—about a dozen juicy wins—keeping the growth engine humming and the champagne flowing. 

    Publicis now confidently reaffirms full-year guidance of four to five  per cent organic growth and a tidy €1.9–€2.0bn in free cash flow (before working capital shifts).

    Since January, the group has splashed out €500m on M&A, snapping up assets in data, digital media and influencer marketing. That war chest spending cements its self-styled “Category of One” status, a blend of consultancy cool and creative chops.

    “We’ve never been in a stronger position to help our clients, in the good times, and even more importantly, in the challenging ones.,” said chairman and CEO Arthur Sadoun, who’s clearly in campaign mode. “Thanks to our unrivalled identity graph and 25,000 engineers, we’re future-proofing clients in the AI era while helping them spend smarter and grow faster.”

    Publicis continues to punch above its weight, proudly touting an industry-high margin of 18 per cent last year, with more juice to come in 2025. Diversified revenues and a connected media ecosystem are helping it dodge economic wobbles while keeping competitors in the rear-view mirror.

    As consolidation looms in adland, Publicis is eyeing not just another year of outperformance—but long-term dominance. Watch this space.

     

  • Upgrad teams up with Seed Group to power AI-led workforce revamp across the MENA region

    Upgrad teams up with Seed Group to power AI-led workforce revamp across the MENA region

    MUMBAI: Dubai’s skyline isn’t the only thing rising high—its ambition to become a global knowledge powerhouse just got a big ‘Upgrade’.

    Upgrad, the Indian edtech heavyweight, and Seed Group, part of The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum. Together, they’ve fired up an AI-fuelled alliance to transform workforce upskilling across the UAE and the broader MENA region.

    The two giants announced a strategic partnership that could reshape how professionals and enterprises across the middle east access new-age skilling, especially in high-demand areas like generative AI, digital transformation, and executive education. With this move, Upgrad—already present in 15+ countries—is planting a firm flag in the Gulf’s growing edtech terrain, ready to turn boardrooms into classrooms and laptops into launchpads.

    “As Dubai invests in human capital development, the need for industry-aligned upskilling has never been greater. Upgrad’s outcome-focused innovative programs in domains like GenAI will bridge skill gaps,” said Seed Group CEO and The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum, Hisham Al Gurg. “In turn, this will empower businesses with the advanced knowledge needed to excel in a high-powered digital economy such as Dubai. The institution’s distinguished expertise in professional education makes it an invaluable addition to our network of strategic partners.”

    Upgrad plans to leverage its portfolio of online degrees, bootcamps and hybrid certification courses to train individuals and institutions alike. From MBAs to machine learning modules, their offerings are engineered for ROI—return on intelligence.

    “We are making significant investments to expand our footprint across global markets. We are proud to launch this partnership with Seed Group, a market leader in driving innovation, so there is no doubt that with the support of the Seed Group leadership strategy in the UAE and MENA, we will drive stronger adoption of AI-led upskilling. Acquiring new-age hands-on capabilities has become a global imperative and is essential for both individuals and organisations to remain competitive. Business and government leaders across the UAE’s economy are recognising the growing influence of AI on organisational capabilities and are increasingly looking to invest in advanced technologies,” said Upgrad CEO – International consumer business Myleeta AgaWilliams.

    Over the years, Upgrad has carved out a reputation as one of Asia’s most formidable skilling machines—earning global nods from GSV and the FT for its growth and impact. And now, with Dubai acting as its regional launchpad, the company aims to support governments, enterprises and individuals with future-proof education that moves beyond theory and into execution.

    In the coming months, the alliance will roll out initiatives aimed at creating a digitally capable and highly competitive workforce—one that’s ready to tackle the demands of tomorrow’s AI-first economy. For MENA, it’s a catalyst for a smarter, sharper labour force that’s globally fluent and locally relevant.

  • Taapsee Pannu becomes Nivea’s first Indian global brand ambassador

    Taapsee Pannu becomes Nivea’s first Indian global brand ambassador

    MUMBAI: Nivea India, the country’s most trusted skincare brand, has unveiled cinema star Taapsee Pannu as its first-ever Indian global brand ambassador, launching a new era of skincare innovation with the Nivea Soft Daily UV moisturiser.

    The latest product from Nivea blends 48-hour hydration with 88 per cent UV protection, offering a fuss-free solution for modern consumers who crave lightweight, non-sticky skincare that performs. With its nourishing blend of Vitamin E, Shea Butter and Jojoba Extracts, the Daily UV variant retains the fast-absorbing texture of the original Nivea Soft, now supercharged for sun protection indoors and out.

    To celebrate the launch, Nivea released a cheerful TVC featuring Pannu enjoying sunny moments with friends, highlighting how easily the product slips into everyday life protecting and hydrating without missing a beat.

    “I’ve always believed that skincare should be simple, effective and effortless. With Nivea Soft Daily UV, I get the hydration my skin needs and the UV protection it deserves, all in one lightweight formula. It’s the perfect daily companion for fresh and glowing skin!” said Pannu.

    Nivea India marketing director Shweta Dalal added, “With Nivea Soft Daily UV, we’re addressing the growing need for everyday hydration with added UV protection in a formula that remains true to the much-loved Nivea Soft experience.”

    The launch also coincided with a high-profile visit by Beiersdorf global CEO Vincent Warnery, to India in February. His meeting with Pannu marked the beginning of her global ambassador journey, reinforcing Nivea’s long-term commitment to India and highlighting the nation’s growing Nivea Soft Daily UV is now available online and at retail outlets across India, priced at, Rs 165 for 50ml, Rs 325 for 100ml, Rs 520 for 200ml.
     

  • Airtel and Blinkit team up for 10-minute SIM delivery, KYC in your home

    Airtel and Blinkit team up for 10-minute SIM delivery, KYC in your home

    MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel and Blinkit have cooked up a speedy new service, delivering SIM cards to customers’ doorsteps in a mere 10 minutes. This ground breaking partnership, a first for any Indian telco, is now live in 16 cities, promising to get customers  connected quicker than a rabbit out of a hat.

    “Simplifying customer lives is central to everything we do at Airtel.Today we are thrilled to partner with Blinkit for 10-minute SIM card delivery to customers’ homes across 16 cities and in due course of time we plan to expand this partnership to additional cities.” declared Airtel CEO Siddharth Sharma, CEO – connected homes and director of marketing, Airtel.

    For a paltry Rs 49 convenience fee, customers can choose between prepaid or post paid plans, or even port their existing number to Airtel. Once the SIM arrives, a quick Aadhaar-based KYC process gets them up and running, all from the comfort of their own homes.

    “To save customers time and hassle, we’ve collaborated with Airtel to deliver SIM cards directly to customers in select cities, with delivery in just 10 minutes. Blinkit takes care of the delivery, while Airtel makes it easy for customers to complete self-KYC, activate their SIM, and choose between prepaid or post paid plans. Customers can also opt for number portability, all at their convenience,” said Blinkit founder & CEO Albinder Dhindsa.”No more queuing in shops, no more waiting around. We deliver the SIM, and Airtel handles the self-KYC. It’s a win-win.”

    The service is currently available in major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore, with plans to expand further. And if customers get stuck, Airtel’s help centre is just a tap away on the Airtel Thanks App, or a quick call to the support line. But, they better be quick, the SIM needs to be activated within 15 days.