Category: Podcasts

Five Meryl Streep audiobooks to immerse yourself in

Mumbai: Meryl Streep, the legendary actress, needs no introduction. Chances are, you’ve probably watched at least one of her remarkable performances in movies, if not all. But did you know that her talent extends beyond acting? As we gear up to celebrate the incomparable actress, we have an extraordinary way for you to join in the celebration. We have handpicked five amazing audiobooks on Audible that have been narrated by the legendary actress.

Heartburn

Written by: Nora Ephron
Experience an unruly tale of love gone wrong as Meryl Streep lends her voice to Nora Ephron’s iconic novel. Join Rachel Samstat, a pregnant cookbook writer navigating the aftermath of her husband’s affair, as she hilariously dishes out revenge, therapy sessions, and delectable recipes. Streep’s unmatched talent brings each character to life, making this audio experience a must-listen for fans of comedy and captivating storytelling.

Heads Will Roll

Written by: Kate McKinnon, Emily Lynne
Step into a realm of irreverent humor, outrageous characters, side-splitting moments, a sprinkle of social commentary, and a star-studded ensemble in the Audible Original comedy, ‘Heads Will Roll.’ With Meryl Streep’s impeccable comedic timing and the talents of an extraordinary ensemble, ‘Heads Will Roll’ is a wild ride through a fantastical world where nothing is off-limits. Discretion is advised, but if you’re ready to embrace the absurdity and let the bad times roll, this audio comedy has got you covered!

The Testament of Mary

Written by: Colm Tóibín

Delve into the profound narrative of Colm Tóibín’s acclaimed novel, ‘The Testament of Mary,’ brought to life through the remarkable narration of Meryl Streep. Shortlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize in 2013, this audiobook offers a gripping exploration of an event that forever changed Mary’s life. Tóibín’s masterful storytelling, infused with tenderness and rage, delves into the depths of Mary’s grief-filled exile. Immerse yourself in this captivating audiobook, as Meryl Streep’s brilliant voice acting to the enduring figure of Mary, offers a deeply human perspective on one of history’s most profound stories.

Big Tree

Written by: Brian Selznick

Get ready for an exciting adventure as Meryl Streep takes you on a wild ride in her narration of ‘Big Tree,’ transporting you to a world filled with dinosaurs, meteors, and volcanoes. Louise and Merwin, the adventurous Sycamore seeds, face unexpected challenges after a fire separates them from their home. Streep’s expressive voice and delivery infuse the tale with a delightful sense of hope, making ‘Big Tree’ an absolute must-listen for all. To top it all, the fantastic music by Ernest Troost makes this enchanting journey even more magical.

Haiti After the Earthquake

Written by: Paul Farmer

Meryl Streep narrates Dr. Paul Farmer’s personal recollection of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, breathing life into the story. Woven together with firsthand accounts from Haitians, doctors, and aid workers, this testimony vividly illustrates the immense challenges and extraordinary determination exhibited in the face of adversity. Streep’s renowned acting prowess shines through her expressive voice, as she captures the gravity of the situation, the challenges encountered, and the unwavering resilience demonstrated by the Haitian people and aid workers.

June 22, 2023
Byju’s onboards Vedhanarayanan Ganeshkumar as VP – technology

Mumbai: In a bid to further strengthen its technology vertical, edtech major Byju’s announced on Monday the onboarding of Vedhanarayanan Ganeshkumar as vice president, technology. The company has been investing in the powerful synergy of technology and innovation by scaling its tech team, it said.

“This new appointment is part of Byju’s concerted strategy to further enhance its world-class learning products, and accelerate innovative and impactful learning experiences for students globally,” said the edtech in a statement.

In his most recent stint over 15 years, Vedhanarayanan held multiple senior engineering leadership roles at Amazon Global Technology organization supporting last-mile delivery, supply chain, and customer shipment tracking experience, among others and also played a key role in the growth of Amazon Global Development Center in India.

In his new role, Vedhanarayanan will be responsible for accelerating critical technologies to further scale Byju’s tech and innovation prowess to define the future of learning. He will also build and lead a talented team of engineers, software development managers, product managers, program managers, and more.

“We are delighted to have Vedhanarayanan on board. His strong expertise in tech innovation will further strengthen Byju’s commitment to creating value in students’ lives and providing them with high-quality learning opportunities,” Byju’s president of technology Anil Goel said. “We look forward to working together and supporting him in achieving his goals.”

With a career spanning over two decades, Vedharnarayanan brings a track record of ideating and delivering impactful technological innovations across companies like Amazon and Oracle.

“Technology is a powerful instrument that has the potential to transform and reinvent how education is delivered. I am excited to join the highly motivated and talented tech team that forms the foundation of Byju’s,” commented Vedhanarayanan Ganeshkumar. “The company is already delivering cutting-edge technologies and is constantly innovating the educational ecosystem. I look forward to playing a key role in the development of next-generation education technology that makes quality education accessible, equitable, and contextual for every student.”

April 11, 2022
#MediaMinds2 | Emotional pact within our teams helped us survive this pandemic: Aditya Kanthy

NEW DELHI: Having spent more than 17-years of his professional career with DDB Mudra Group, Aditya Kanthy is very proud of two things; the amazing work that the creative powerhouse is constantly churning out and the emotional bond that all the members of the team have developed. And he attributes both these factors to them being able to survive the worst of the financial blows in recent history, in the form of Covid2019. In the latest episode of Indiantelevision.com’s Media Minds season 2, one of the youngest CEOs on the block, Kanthy shares in detail his experience of working in the industry, talks about his role models, and his plans to keep the people culture at the group intact along with getting more serious about diversity inclusion.

“The one thing every human being wants is hope. It’s the fundamental thought of the human experience and we are seeing that play out in our lives, in our work as well. There is human capacity for optimism, for positivity,and for progress. And I think that’s what we are seeing playing out,” he points out.

He added that he is very proud of his team that despite the many physical, mental, and financial challenges of the times churned out great content for brands like Stayfree and Spotify.

Kanthy also noted that going ahead, the group is also going to speed up its process of diversity inclusion.

Watch full episode here:

September 18, 2020
#MediaMinds2 | We prepared last year for the world going completely digital: IBM’s Deepali Naair

NEW DELHI: While the world is still struggling to understand how to take their day-to-day activities online, IBM India was already one step ahead as it enjoys the success of a number of online events, simply by the virtue of being better prepared to handle a complete digital takeover of the world. The company’s CMO for the country and South Asia Deepali Naair shares her thoughts in this latest episode of Indiantelevision.com’s Media Minds season 2.

“Last year in October, when we didn’t even know that Covid2019 was going to happen, my team sat down and said that the world is going completely digital. We, of course, thought that it would take some time for that to happen but we discussed how to prepare ourselves for that moment. What do we need to learn; what do we need to do; what do we need to experiment with! And in February, even before the lockdown, we did a 100 per cent virtual event which was attended by 3500 people.”

She said that their vision and quick actions helped them create properties and a culture that other CMOs also took inspiration from.

Naair also talked extensively about her journey in the industry and the shift between different roles she has taken up in her career spanning over more than two decades. She attributes the success and popularity to her attitude of being a lifelong learner.

“I am a lifelong learner. I approach everything saying let me learn. Let me learn the medium of a podcast, let me learn the medium of digital, which is how I moved to digital and e-commerce much sooner than some of my contemporaries. So that attitude has helped me again that I moved to technology.”

She also shared tips for CXOs who want to get into the personal branding space, stating that having one’s own brand helps even the organisation that one is working for. “I think if you have a large CXO brand you are also available to everybody to reach out to, for them to take an authentic point of view from you.”

Watch the complete discussion here:

August 28, 2020
#MediaMinds2 | 90% automation for DOOH in just 2 years a big leap: Deepak Kumar

NEW DELHI: On the sixth episode of Media Minds season 2, an Indiantelevision.com initiative to discuss with marketing geniuses the current industry trends, their own experiences, and vision for the future, director C Lab, Ambient, Brandscope at DAN, Deepak Kumar talks about the interesting time he has spent building these verticals along with Haresh Nayak and also sheds light on the latest developments in the sector.

He insists that this is the best time to be in the advertising industry and the pause that Covid2019 brought has helped the agencies to reflect and effectively use it.

Kumar also discusses the tools and technologies that the agencies are using to help their clients achieve better results. “Brandscope has got a tool called Ozone which captures the digital sites in the country and has data analytics around it to tell where the site is and relevant consumer data of the area. C-Lab uses something called Star Metrics that helps identify the brand personality of the brand and the influencer to get the perfect fitment. We also look at a geographical heat map that shows the fan base of the star and match it with where the consumers of the clients are.”

He also shared that the vertical will soon be announcing a new technology to aid this.

August 14, 2020
Media Minds 2 | Want to be an Indian network that travels the world: Suveer Bajaj, Pratik Gupta

NEW DELHI: Starting a digital agency at the young age of 19 and over a dozen years later transforming into a full-fledged integrated creative and tech solution-providing network has made FoxyMoron and Zoo Media co-founders Suveer Bajaj and Pratik Gupta wise beyond their ages. The duo sat down to share their inspiring journey, thoughts on current industry trends and plans for an international expansion on the fresh episode of Indiantelevision.com’s Media Minds 2.

Gupta said, “We started off as just wanting to do something for three months. Now, we have been at it for over twelve years. It’s been one of the most real journeys that you can think of and it’s been an absolute pleasure.”

The duo grew the network from flagship FoxyMoron to a vast network including content studios, production house and everything else that the current digital ecosystem requires, under the umbrella of holding company Zoo Media.

Bajaj highlighted, “We like to be a full-service agency and we like to offer our clients holistic solutions but of course the breadth of digital as an industry also kind of diversified and found areas for specialities as time progressed. So, in 2016 we spun off a creative technology company called Phosphene, which dabbled in the space of AR, VR, MR, does a little bit work with AI, ML, NLP, image recognition. In 2017, we spun off our own production house called The Rabbit Hole, In 2018, we partnered with a marketing technology company called Noesis Technology that works in the space of marketing tech; we also spun off a talent management and influencer management company called Pollen. In 2019, we spun off a small consultancy company called Doyen Oink Consulting that works, that aims to work with young companies, startups, that want to work with us as a network for our expertise. Last year, we also spun off a media company called Mammoth Media that dabbles in the space of media assets and IPs but not for brands.”

The duo, which believes that India has a great potential to be a trendsetter and leader in the martech, ad tech, and advertising, marketing space, wants to be an Indian network that goes international. “We do see international networks that come to India and consume a large chunk of the market share and while of course, we are a small drop in the ocean and it will take us generations to keep building out this vision, but we should be very excited of taking our vision to the world and becoming an Indian network that starts going from India to the world.”

Watch the full episode here:

August 7, 2020
#MediaMinds2 | Havas Group India Group CEO Rana Barua talks about digitisation and programmatic advertising

MUMBAI: A prominent face in the media industry, Rana Barua is a veteran with more than two decades of experience in the marketing industry. Having worked across agencies like Ogilvy, JWT and Creativeland, he is about to complete two years as Havas India CEO and has been doing some great work for the agency.

Barua believes in defining tasks that are short-term while keeping long-term plans in mind. He is also obsessed with time-oriented goals.

In the fourth episode of Media Minds 2, Barua talks about how the industry, including Havas, has been very aggressive about mergers and acquisitions in the past two-three years.

Elaborating more on the same Barau said, “Acquisitions may come down but will still be on. It will give you a certain edge. I see mergers happening more than acquisitions. When I say mergers, which is why I am splitting mergers and acquisitions, I see mergers because I can see certain companies merging into each other.”

Speaking about his future plans Barua shares, “We are being cautious about every form for the next few months in terms of every form of cost. What we are doing is very measured, we are ensuring that there is no ad-hocism, there is no upheaval or any kind of unplanned thoughts going on. So, if we are in the month of July, we are very clear how August and September have to be for us. There is is a lot of conversation that keeps happening between the senior management and the people who are running the show in the group.”

Watch the complete episode here:

July 31, 2020
#MediaMinds2 | IGL founder-CEO Yash Pariani talks about evolving e-sports ecosphere in India

NEW DELHI: Covid2019 turned out to be a rather interesting and better time for the e-sports ecosystem, leading to large jumps in user numbers as well as tournament viewership and Yash Pariani’s Indian Gaming League was one of the beneficiaries there.

In the third episode of Media Minds 2, Pariani sits down to talk about how the lockdown led to a rise in the popularity of e-sports and catalysed the way for its further growth, going ahead.

Speaking about the same, Pariani shares, “Casual games will definitely see higher traction compared to your expert first-person shootouts or your strategy games; that has got the highest number of traction during the lockdown. Ludo will be number one, second will probably be PubG and followed by Call of Duty. I would say these three games, based on our platforms and statistics have seen the largest growth as well.”

On his future plans for IGL, Pariani quips, “Eventually, our goal is to have multiple best teams with our roster but for that, we wanted to first identify all the players. So, within the nearby future, we want to ensure that we have multiple tournaments occurring where we are able to give casual gamers a chance to actually prove their worth and climb our leaderboards. Based on that, we will be able to help identify who are the consistent players that are performing better than others and then establish and help those players and curate an international future for them as well, as a career option so that they can take part and represent India in future tournaments.”

Watch the complete episode here:

July 24, 2020
#MediaMinds2| Advertisers must make ethical call on pandering to sensationalism: Vikram Sakhuja

NEW DELHI: Publishers of today are under more extensive scrutiny than ever. Consumers are far more aware and aren’t hesitant to question the sensationalism that they are peddling in the name of information and entertainment. Even some of the brands, globally, have started taking cognisance of the matter and have started pulling away ad monies from certain platforms like Facebook for hate speech and problematic content. This has given rise to an interesting discussion in the media and marketing ecosphere around what roles can advertisers play to curb this issue.

Madison Media & OOH group CEO Vikram Sakhuja, addressing the question in Media Minds season two, shared that there are two ways to look at the current scenario from an advertisers’ standpoint: brand health and ethics.

Comparing the situation to when he started his career with P&G in the late-80s, he stated that at that time the debate was about quantity v/s quality, which was also based on the core idea of the environment in which an ad is seen.

“When Aaj Tak started, advertisers used to think that most ads on the channel are of undergarments and whether it’s suitable for my brand health to be visible there. At that point in time, the school of proper marketing told me if a consumer is seeing a particular programming, then they are there for a reason. And if they see your ad, it shouldn’t be a problem. In the case of P&G, in the early 90s, the quantity was always more important than quality.”

He adds that while in today’s time that quality vs quantity debate has got blurred because of tools like social media where ads are no longer seen as an interruption, but there is another debate that has started around what sort of content is surrounding a brand’s ad or branded content. “It is actually very important to actually raise this question even from a brand health standpoint,” he said.

Addressing the situation from an ethical standpoint, he shares that advertisers have to make the call around whether they want to pander to sensationalism or fake news.

“Even though it has, maybe, nothing to do with the brand ad that is placed next to it, the reason this sensationalising (happens) is because advertisers are going to come because of more eyeballs. So, if you take an ethical position on that and say, even if the eyeballs come there, I will not pander to that kind of sensationalism, it will, in fact, dry up the oxygen in that room, rather than give them more oxygen. Then you are actually disincentivising those same publishers from trying to take that strategy to monetise their business,” he added.

He said that as an agency head he will warn the advertiser if there is inflammatory content on a certain publisher’s channel or website, but he will leave the final decision on the brand head.

Apart from this, Sakhuja talked about his favourite subject – data, the need for a unified metric system in marketing and his plans for his agency going ahead.

July 17, 2020
#MediaMinds2: ILN CEO Angad Bhatia on the unique mix of content & commerce

NEW DELHI: Standing at the unique crossroads where commerce meets content, MensXP founder and Indiatimes Lifestyle Network CEO Angad Bhatia is leading one of India’s top content platform to a completely new realm. His world of content-led-commerce is driven by editorial data and works on the foundation of community-building that can rally behind the unique stuff his in-house production team is creating.

Opening season two of Indiantelevision.com’s Media Minds, Bhatia shares his thoughts on content, commerce, and content-led-commerce in terms of the modern world, how the Covid2019 pandemic has impacted his plans of curating brick-and-mortar shops for a range of products led by content properties like iDiva, MensXP, and What’s Hot.

Speaking about the publishing company’s foray into the unique world, he says, “We definitely see a surge in demand and of course the convenience of online is going to contribute to a major share in the industry. I think what we have done is that we have taken this opportunity to our advantage and we have really thought very deeply; if we have to create products, which are genuinely going to last longer, to be built on tenets of environment, affordability and can last longer.”

Highlighting the process that goes behind creating these unique products, Bhatia notes that his team looks that the white spaces that exist in the marketplace through editorial works and then include the community of millions of followers in taking decisions about what products they require. “We don’t have a robust strategy to tell us what our sourcing should be or we are not mining external data. All we are doing is mining around (editorial) data and figuring out what type of products we should be creating and sourcing.”

To know more about his model of content-led-commerce and his thoughts on current industry trends, watch

July 10, 2020