Category: People

Mumbai: Taboola, a global leader in powering recommendations for the open web, helping people discover things they may like, today released the readership insights for May 2023. Taboola Newsroom uses Topic Insights to analyze real-time audience data to identify some of the intriguing and popular themes that engaged Indian readers throughout the month.

The surge in pageview traffic revealed insights into the diverse interests of Indian audiences in content across sports, and entertainment. Here are some of the key insights revealed from the readership trends for May 2023:

1. Sports:

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is one of the most popular cricket leagues in the world, and the finals are always a huge event. This year’s finals were no exception, with millions of Indians tuning in to watch the match. The excitement for the finals was palpable across the country. In Bangalore, where the match was held, fans were camping outside the stadium for days in anticipation. There was a festive atmosphere in the city, with people wearing team colors and cheering for their favorite teams. The IPL finals are not just a sporting event, they are also a cultural phenomenon as they bring together people from all walks of life and create a sense of national unity. For many Indians, the IPL finals are the highlight of the year.

The Taboola Newsroom also witnessed a surge in readership, with a 424 per cent increase in people reading the key highlights of the finals between Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans. This is a testament to the popularity of the IPL and the reach of Taboola’s platform during key sporting events, when netizens flock to the open web to read articles about their favorite teams.

2. Entertainment:

Cannes Film Festival 2023: Sara Ali Khan, a Bollywood actress, made her Cannes Film Festival début on May 17, 2023. She looked lovely in a black-and-white saree-style costume made by Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla. The costume, which included a bralette blouse and a trailing skirt, was a success with both fans and fashion critics. Khan’s costume was complimented for its contemporary spin on traditional Indian attire. The trailing skirt was a modern interpretation of a traditional Indian dress. Many people complimented Khan for her daring decision to wear a modern interpretation of traditional Indian design, which was perceived as an indication of the growing global appeal of Indian fashion and resulted in a 277 per cent increase in pageviews on Taboola’s newsroom compared to the last 45 days

Met Gala 2023: Indian movie star Alia Bhatt is one of the most popular actresses in India. She has a large following on social media and is known for her fashion sense. When she attended the Met Gala 2023, she turned heads in a custom-made gown by Ralph Lauren. The gown was made of white silk and a voluminous skirt and was accessorized with a diamond necklace and earrings. The news of Bhatt’s Met Gala outfit was widely shared on social media and news websites. Taboola, a native advertising platform, was able to capitalize on this interest by publishing a number of articles about Bhatt’s outfit. These articles were seen by millions of people, which led to a significant 100 per cent increase in readership on Taboola’s newsroom

Netizens in India avidly follow the latest news about their favorite actresses on major news websites, especially during major international galas and film festivals. This presents a valuable opportunity for brands to reach a wide audience and ensure that their advertisements are prominently displayed during these highly anticipated events.

Mumbai: Broadband India Forum (BIF), an independent policy forum and think-tank committed to the development and enhancement of the entire broadband ecosystem in India, is delighted to announce the appointment of Shivnath Thukral, Director and Head of Public Policy at Meta, as its new Vice President. With his extensive experience and expertise in public policy, Thukral will play a pivotal role in driving BIF’s mission to promote high-quality broadband connectivity across the country.

Announcing the new vice president of BIF, Broadband India Forum T.V. Ramachandran said, “With his extensive experience and skills in various projects and assignments, we are confident that he will bring valuable contributions to BIF’s growth and success and take it to the next level of excellence.”

The senior leadership team of BIF now comprises:

1.   Aruna Sundararajan IAS (Retd.), former secretary (Telecom), department of telecommunications, as chairperson;

2.   Ramachandran, CEO & founder, advisory@TVR, as president; 

3.   Ashwani Rana, chief public policy officer, India, Zupee, as vice president; 

4.   Shivnath Thukral, director & head public policy, India, Meta, also as vice president;

5.   Dr. Satya N Gupta, chairman of Board, Bluetown India and BIMSTEC, South Asia, as treasurer.

Broadband India Forum remains steadfast in its commitment to promoting a comprehensive broadband ecosystem in India. The forum looks forward to leveraging Thukral’s expertise to collaborate with stakeholders, advocate for favorable policies, and bridge the digital divide.

Mumbai: Digitoonz, one of the largest animation studios in Asia, has announced a licensing deal with Shemaroo, one of India’s leading media and entertainment players, for the animation series ATCHOO! S2. It is an Italian-Indian animated television series produced by Studio Campedelli & Cartobaleno and co-produced by Digitoonz. The new season of this series comprises 52 episodes of 11 minutes each. This partnership will enable Shemaroo to obtain distribution rights for ATCHOO! season two.

ATCHOO! is an entertaining series about a little boy named Teo who has this unusual physical disorder. He sneezes whenever he is caught in an emotional situation and then he turns into an animal. And when Teo regains his consciousness, he continues to have some animalistic traits. The series aims to edutain children with a fun and unique learning experience while also instilling valuable life lessons.

Digitoonz CEO Vikas Kumar expressed his excitement about the licensing deal, stating, “We have a very strong partnership with Shemaroo Entertainment, and we are very excited about this distribution deal.”

Shemaroo Sr. vice president – animation, kids digital, L&M – Smita Maroo said on the partnership, “We are happy to partner with Digitoonz for ATCHOO! S2. The series is entertaining as well as educational. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Digitoonz and bringing top-quality content to our global viewers.”

The partnership with Shemaroo is a significant milestone for Digitoonz as it will allow the studio to expand its reach and provide high-quality animated content globally. Digitoonz operates from three locations, including Noida (Delhi NCR), Kolkata, and Connecticut (USA). The studio comprises a team of 600 artists specialised in 2D -3D animation and VFX.

Mumbai: Tata Play, India’s leading content distribution platform, has announced the launch of a new platform service – Har Ghar Startup – for budding entrepreneurs and Start-up enthusiasts. Tata Play and Suniel Shetty’s FTC TALENT have come together to make knowledge on the Start-up sector accessible through Har Ghar Startup. It can help potential entrepreneurs to set up their own business and help existing entrepreneurs to expand by providing access to mentors and aid in getting government funding.

Tata Play’s Har Ghar Startup aims to encourage the culture of entrepreneurship by equipping budding entrepreneurs with creativity, acumen and access to information that is not easily available. Subject matter experts will cover a wide variety of topics to ensure that entrepreneurs have the basic know-how to kickstart or bolster their projects. The program will also provide opportunities for showcasing ideas with merit and getting them shortlisted. The service includes a 24-hour hotline number, hosted by the Institute of Industrial Development (IID) to answer queries and provide information.  

Commenting on the launch, Tata Play MD & CEO Harit Nagpal said, “With this initiative, we aim to help self-starters by connecting them with the best start-up experts from across the country.”

Congratulating Tata Play and FTC TALENT on this initiative, G20 Sherpa GOI Amitabh Kant said, “In the past decade, India has taken massive strides towards creating a quality entrepreneurship ecosystem. Under the leadership of our Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, who envisions India as a global powerhouse across sectors, we have strived to enable a steady rise in the country’s business environment. My heartiest congratulations to Tata Play and FTC TALENT on taking this goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat forward with a unique service like Har Ghar Startup. Tata Play’s precedence and reach through the medium of satellite television will help us reach millions of homes and provide inspiration to every enterprising individual. I hope more and more Indians benefit from such initiatives.”

Har Ghar Startup’s content is produced and curated in association with FTC TALENT and is supported by NITI Aayog and Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL). The library includes shows like Horses Stable, Har Ghar Karobar, Inside Industries, Business Ki Paathshala, Star Startups, amongst others, along with vignettes comprising of titles like Startup shots which captures Quick tips and Startup mantras, to name a few. The service is available on 510 and is free for all Tata Play subscribers. For anytime, anywhere access, the content is also available on the Tata Play mobile app.

Actor and FTC TALENT founder Suniel Shetty said, “As an entrepreneur, I often found myself trying to seek useful information through different mediums with little or no success. After speaking with several other business owners across India, I realised that the lack of accurate information on the subject is a country-wide gap. Har Ghar Startup is my first step towards creating a knowledge-sharing ecosystem for budding and established entrepreneurs. I am excited to join forces with Tata Play to take a step towards making India Aatmanirbhar with this initiative.”

Har Ghar Startup is a part of Tata Play’s range of 40+ entertainment and infotainment value-added services suitable across age groups. Tata Play Value Added Services have been providing content across genres like Entertainment, Kids, Learn, Regional, Devotion etc, that ensures every viewer is entertained throughout without any dearth of choices.

Mumbai: GREY group India has appointed Ankit Mathur as the group creative director for its Mumbai office.

He will be based in Mumbai and will report to Sandipan Bhattacharyya, who is managing director and chief creative officer – South Asia. This is another significant addition to the creative force at GREY to underline its approach of offering famously effective creative work through a truly hybrid approach and skillsets.

Mathur brings with him over 11 years of expertise in delivering breakthrough creative work for brands like Uber, Jeep, NIVEA, Spotify, Flipkart, Frooti, and Jio to name a few. His last stint was with Dentsu Webchutney as a creative Director. He has also worked with other leading agencies like Digitas and McCann group on a wide spectrum of brands.

“We’ve been walking the talk on hybrid creative solutions for a while now and demonstrating how the future agency is one where diverse skill sets come together and create ideas for a digital-first world. Ankit has a great blend of strategic prowess, creative purpose and craft to add to the amazing mash-up of talent we have at GREY. He’s totally ready to make some deep dents in the creative universe and he’s found just the right place,” said Bhattacharyya.

On joining GREY group, Mathur said, “The kid inside of me is very proud to share the corridor with people whose work inspired me to join advertising. I see Grey and my goals converge at a simple point – create work that lasts and build platforms for brands that give great opportunities to connect with the audiences in meaningful and delightful ways.”

Mathur has been recognized on the Social Samosa 30under30 list, served as a Shadow Juror for YouTube Awards 2022, and holds a degree in Crafting Creative Communications from MICA. He’s also serving as an Adjunct Professor at Miami Ad School, Mumbai. He lives to do work that gives joy and fulfilment, whether it’s in the output or the process.

Mumbai: ABP’s news anchor Jiya Sharma has quit. She was the face of the show ‘Namaste Bharat’.

Prior to ABP News, she was associated with Zee (UP/UK and MP/Chhattisgarh) for about four years. She has also worked with IBC24, Bansal News, Red FM and Doordarshan in the past.

Mumbai: Over the past century, the world shifted to an economic system in which growth is tied to (over)consumption and a wasteful lifestyle, resulting in environmental destruction. Citizens have evolved into consumers, and governments rely on people’s continuous spending to keep the system running. But what happens when the costs of that consumption-driven system become unsustainable and undesirable—and not just ecologically but also psychologically, eroding life satisfaction?

The answers to these questions and more are in the Havas 2023 Prosumer Report which polled over 12,929 people across 30 markets including Brazil, China, France, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Prosumers are today’s leading influencers and market drivers. They have been a focus of Havas studies for two decades. Beyond their own economic impact, Prosumers are important because they influence the brand choices and consumption behaviours of others. What Prosumers are doing today, mainstream consumers will likely be doing 6 to 18 months from now.

The findings of this recent Report are firmly aligned with Havas’ ethos of putting people, our planet and profit on an equal footing by leveraging business as a force for good.

Here’s how the story goes: In 2023, people are fed up. Faced with escalating inflation, economic inequity, an energy crisis exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, shaken faith in the banking system, and fears of a global recession—all atop the introspection and questioning sparked by the “great pause” of the pandemic—more of us are considering a different approach, starting with changes in how we consume. We want to live with less to have more of a meaningful existence. More free time. More financial security and psychological freedom. More faith that our planet will survive.

A more frugal approach to consumption is in the interest of society and the planet. But how feasible is that? And just how far are people prepared to go? Through our report we’ve identified that frugality is about buying better, reducing waste, cutting back, and becoming more self-sufficient. We’ve discovered what people are happy to do, what they would never do, and even where they believe governments should step in.

Many people, across the world, are turning toward a lifestyle of more conscious consumption. There is a movement toward consuming less, focusing on minimalism, and embracing the sharing economy. Through our research, we found that 79% of Prosumers – and even 67% of mainstream consumers – believe that they could be happy in a more frugal world. It is even framed as an aspiration.

Trends will always drive behaviour. People strive to have the new and cool thing – but what if that thing isn’t something you’re buying? What if it is a new attitude you’re adopting? 82 per cent of Prosumers say that they admire people who have made the transition to a more frugal lifestyle. With influencers and change-makers taking up the fight against climate change, we could see a shift into an eco-cool era.

While brands can play a much larger role in this new world-order, only eight per cent of Prosumers believe that they are doing the most that they can to combat climate change. Around 84 per cent believe that large companies are better able to make the changes necessary to combat. So, what can brands do to drive this movement?

• Educate the public: Just under 7 in 10 Prosumers consider education key to the fight against climate change. Knowing the impact we have, both positive and negative, is crucial for making informed decisions.
• Make simplicity desirable: A push for this way of living can be bolstered by brand narratives championing simplicity and essentiality; plus elevating those who have elected to live more frugally. 74 per cent of Prosumers and mainstream consumers alike agree that what makes them most happy is being satisfied with simple things.
• Create connections to nature: 63 per cent of Prosumers desire a more frugal life because it means living a life closer to nature. The rise of trends like cottagecore amongst the younger generations are signaling a push toward a more “natural life.”
• Connect people: Consuming more mindfully also means rejecting the rat race of the past half century. For most Prosumers, the ability to work less and spend more time with family is part of the appeal of frugal living.

Our findings show that less is more, evidently. So how can businesses support this shift in people living a more mindful and frugal life, while making the entire experience satisfying and joyful? Going by the Prosumer report, our key findings from India have thrown light on consumer behaviours that precisely reflect the changing paradigm of us as a society:

–          In India, 84 per cent prosumers believe that bigger institutions like brands & businesses, local communities, and government bodies are responsible for causing climate change.  

–          The motivation to adopt a frugal lifestyle is driven by a desire for a healthier way of living (89 per cent) and ecological concerns (70 per cent) more than economic reasons (47 per cent).

–          93 per cent Indians prosumers agree that they will act towards the environment when they can measure the impact of their actions.

–          70 per cent Indian Prosumers feel that we must impose rules, even hard ones, and not wait for everyone’s good will.

–          To live in a more frugal world, we must ban advertising for Fossil Fuel companies (51 per cent), Big promotional events (45 per cent), Fast Fashion (36 per cent), Meat (35 per cent), Plane & Plane companies (28 per cent) and Cars (22 per cent).

–          Prosumers are willing to adopt a frugal lifestyle by saving energy (82 per cent) and reducing their consumption (61 per cent) but are not willing to compromise on lifestyle experiences such as consuming meat or traveling on long-haul flights. 

–          In India, consumers perceive that solution to climate issues will emerge through new technology (69 per cent) rather than changing their behaviour (31 per cent). 

Speaking about the findings, Havas Creative India Chief Strategy Officer Anirban Mozumdar said, “As the world embraces Joyful frugality, the Prosumer Report notes that Indians are ahead of the forefront of the curve. From cultural belief to an urgent need to preserve the planet in crisis, Indian prosumers want to witness the influence of their contributions and make frugal choices not for the sake of value, but for the greater good. What’s even more interesting is their willingness to accept government directives, even they are hard ones. Prosumers also view brands and companies as the most responsible and capable of making the greatest impact.”

Whether practicing frugality or pursuing a luxurious lifestyle, consumers respond to the same motivations:

They want to feel good (internal motivator), be admired by others / look good (external motivator), and derive maximum value and satisfaction from their consumption choices.

For over a century, marketers have been selling a dream that is no longer sustainable—and increasingly less desirable. Rather than enjoy what their money can buy, many consumers feel stressed, overburdened, unhealthy, and dissatisfied.

Businesses and brands have the power—and arguably the obligation—to contribute to a better way forward.

Mumbai: Kyoorius announced the winners of the 2023 Kyoorius Creative Awards presented by ZEE ON 2 June 2023 at a grand awards night.

Post a two week long virtual jury session, and the first-ever two-day in-person judging offsite in Alibaug that brought the entire 45+ member jury together, only around 290 entries were shortlisted as winners of a Baby Elephant. 

Out of these Baby Elephant winners, only 81 entries were awarded Blue Elephants, while 1 entry was awarded a Brass Elephant for the Creativity for Good category.

There were no Black Elephant winners at the 2023 Kyoorius Creative Awards.

Five entries were awarded Purple Elephants for the ZEE Equality Award presented by Indian Creative Women.

“My heartfelt congratulations to all the winners this year. The jury debated, deliberated and discussed each entry before them through our comprehensive four-round judging process. While it’s disappointing that there was no Black Elephant winner this year, I do hope this acts as a catalyst for truly disruptive creative work in the future,” Kyoorius founder & CEO Rajesh Kejriwal.

All the award-winning work can be seen at awards.kyoorius.com and kca.kyoorius.com.

The tenth edition of the Kyoorius Creative Awards also commemorated Padma Bhushan music composer, record producer, singer, songwriter, musician, multi-instrumentalist and philanthropist, AR Rahman, with the Master of Creativity award. Instituted in 2018, the Master of Creativity award recognises a stalwart who has continuously contributed to make the marketing and communication industry more creative in whatever they do.

Presented by Zee, the 2023 Kyoorius Creative Awards Night brought together an audience spanning the advertising, broadcast, communications, digital, marketing, media and publishing industries from across India to celebrate the best of Indian creativity. Over 3200 entries were submitted this year to the Kyoorius Creative Awards. The entries come from 381 entrants from 286 companies, including brands, network agencies, independent agencies, creative hotshops, media agencies, production houses, PR firms, event and activation agencies, and even freelancers.   

“From around 900 entries in 2014, to over 3200 entries this year, the Kyoorius Creative Awards have grown steadily to be accepted by the Indian marketing and communications industry. Kyoorius is grateful for the continued participation from brands, broadcasters, publishers and every prominent agency – whether network, independent or hotshop,” said Rajesh Kejriwal, founder and CEO, Kyoorius.

Awards by Kyoorius do not follow a hierarchical structure – there are no golds, silvers or bronze medals. Instead, only the work that deserves recognition wins an Elephant. Hence, there are disciplines and categories with multiple winners, as well as disciplines and categories with none. 

The Kyoorius Creative Awards 2023 was presented by ZEE, with celebratory partner Black & White and is supported by Indian Creative Women. The venue was the Jio World Convention Center, Mumbai.

Mumbai: Bike racing and motosports are no longer limited to adults, and have now taken over as a frenzy amongst kids too.

After the successful launch of the first-ever TVS Racing Experience Centre at KidZania Mumbai last month, 5 May, both the leading brands, KidZania India, a leader in children’s edutainment park in partnership with TVS, one of India’s leading two-wheeler manufacturers, has announced the launch of TVS Racing Experience Centre at KidZania Delhi NCR.

The partnership will see TVS along with KidZania, curate an experience centre at KidZania’s parks in India to provide young visitors with a safe and controlled environment to experience the excitement of racing. The racing experience centre features real-life tracks, high-tech simulators, and authentic racing gears to provide children with an immersive and thrilling experience. Set to become a popular experience at KidZania, the aim is to inspire a passion for racing and provide children with an opportunity to learn about the sport in a fun and engaging way.

To create innovative, engaging, and unforgettable experiences, KidZania has devised three engaging role-plays tailored to inspire and instil the values that make a champion racer. The experience centre will include activities for different age groups to maintain interest and harness learning. Activities such as bike assembly will encourage team participation, while the design studio and assembly point will provide in-depth knowledge about racing motorbikes. The racing simulators will give young visitors a sense of achievement through their first racing licence and a podium photo-op. Visitors can also access the racetrack on a TVS Apache minibike, providing an opportunity to race against other visitors.

The experience centre provides an immersive and interactive platform for visitors to engage in this activity zone. To ensure the safety and quality of the experience, the racing experience centre follows specific guidelines. For instance, eight children are welcomed at one go for a 15-minute activity, where they will be given a briefing session conducted by the Zupervisor on TVS racing history and the different activities available. Children can choose from four different role-plays, namely RR 310 assembly, RR 310 Design, TVS Racer using TVS Racing Simulator, and TVS Racing @ Racetrack. They will get to participate in these activities within the stipulated time allocated by the brand and are required to finish in time. All participants will receive a memento/souvenir – a photograph with a frame – making their thrilling experience a cherished memory. With such an amazing array of activities and the collaborative efforts of KidZania India and TVS, the experience centre will provide an unforgettable and enriching experience for all young racing enthusiasts.

In an exclusive chat with Indiantelevision.com, KidZania India chief marketing officer Rahul Dhamdhere and TVS Motor Company head business – premium Vimal Sumbly talk about how kids as a consumer segment has evolved, the association between KIdZania and TVS and more.

On the evolution of kids segment as a consumer

Dhamdhere: It has evolved unbelievably. There has been a huge shift of mindset, for the good and also for the bad. Like I said, the touch and feel of what children experienced or what we experienced when we were growing up, is not there anymore. They are mostly technology-based – it does teach them a lot – it teaches them about coding, computers, a laptop, how to play with an iPad, download an app. But that also affects their mobility skills and eyesight. They become more and more isolated from the world. There areare pros and cons – we try to use the pros, the cons are handled by KidZania because it gives them an opportunity to go out. 

There has been a lot of access to information and data which is a great thing. I wish I had that. I am a voracious reader, but I didn’t have Kindle at that time. I used to have books – Famous Five, Hardy Boys, Secret Seven, Asterix, Tintin. Now they are there – but in the tech world, the tech part, which is great. Accessibility is there, kids can access more. We try to wean off the negative part. 

On as a brand which makes bikes for adults, how has it been to cater to a totally different audience such as kids

Sumbly: To be honest, it’s a very interesting segment. The objective was to catch them young. We have been doing a lot of work in the last 40 years for racing in India, and for democratizing racing in India. We are the first brand to build a culture of racing in India. 

We have something called the Rookie Cup, where we get the age group of 13-17 years, and we have almost attracted the age bracket of 13 years and above. We saw that there was a great opportunity at the bottom of the pyramid, that’s where KidZania came into play. Can we bring an experience centre here? Can we bring in the young budding alpha generation into motosports? That was the brand integration here.

TVS Apache is a brand which came from race track to roads. To build that complete integration of the brand and bring this new experience to these youngsters, that’s why we are in KidZania,and that’s why we created this experience zone.

On KidZania’s edutainment section coming up and catering to the needs of today’s children

Dhamdhere: KidZania isn’t just about gaming, it’s about edutainment – education and entertainment, put together. What we do here is unparalleled. For example, we have banks here. We have an IDFC First Bank here – the kids can understand how to encash a cheque, they are given an ATM card – they withdraw money from the ATM and deposit money back into the ATM, the same debit card can be used everywhere else. KidZania also has its own currency called KidZos. So if they deposit KidZos into the bank, they earn a rate of interest – that’s where they are teaching them about financial interest. 

Other than TVS, we have other brands too. We have Parle-G, Kinder Joy, Ferrero. So a kid can actually go and make Kinder Joy – he is taught about what goes into making Kinder Joy, so he understands the value of the proteins, the calories – it teaches the kid about what the product is. Most of the time, the kid goes to the market with the mother, they will choose this product because they know how it is made. That’s the beauty of KidZania – we teach them real-life experiences.

When they earn money, they get a cheque. But what happens when they finish the money? They have to earn it again. So all these establishments have different levels of where kids can earn money and spend money. When you spend the money, your bank balance reduces, so you have to get more money – you got to earn the money. That’s how it works.

On your plans to build on your plans to cater to kids

Sumbly: Our first objective was to make two centres in India – one in Mumbai, one in Delhi. Through these two centres, KidZania has roughly 7,50,000 visitors per year, and this is the audience that we are going to cater to. These number of kids will go to the simulator, they will get the first riding license of their life from here, and this is the first place where they will truly experience the brand Apache. Over a period of time, it will stay in their minds and help us to build the brand to the next level.

There is already a lot of fan-loving amongst adults for the brand Apache; now these youngsters will join us and the journey will become complete.

On racing for kids – is it something which the parents are open to as a game/sport?

Dhamdhere: They are open to it. You can see the way motor-racing or go-karting has grown – this is something that you cannot prevent. Over time, it’s a realization, that this is what kids want to do. I always wanted to do it, but I didn’t have the opportunity to ride a small bike. But here I’m giving them the opportunity to do it.

The kind of habits, job opportunities have grown – when I was growing up, there was only a BCom and an MBA. Now kids are becoming racers, they are joining the IPLs of the world, and smaller kids are doing other sports. And this is one of the biggest sports that has come up. But the beauty of it is that we are giving them the opportunity to understand about racing, and the safety angle.

Kids are at impressionable age right now, we might as well talk to them now. 

On your focus on branding, community – what are your future plans for TVS Racing?

Sumbly: TVS Racing is our strong pillar, we have a huge pedigree around it, so we are building it form strength to strength. Be it being a part of Dakar Rally, One Way Championship, One Way Asian Championship – so we are building this. 

Now we want to catch them young, and build a championship for the youngsters, between KidZania Mumbai and Delhi – which will be run for two months, about how they assemble the bike to the simulator. We will select the top 10 kids from both locations, and they will compete – the top three will be taken to the One Way Championship to watch it, and also take them to the factory where these motorcycles are made. 

On the kind of innovations that would be disrupting the edutainment category for kids

Dhamdhere: We are experts at it. We know exactly what kids want. And the whole way in which KidZania is designed – it talks to children. There are simple principles kept in mind – the duration of the kid’s interest is not more than 20-25 minutes. If you go anywhere here in KidZania, the duration of each experience is 20-25 minutes, because then the attention shifts. We have to fit the innovation within it, that’s the beauty of it. 

We have brands here. We have an education brand that came up with the idea saying, I don’t want to do a kid’s A for Apple, I want a creative marine biologist. The kind of experience we are doing or we are bringing, or the opportunities of role-play are moving in with the times. Here, kids are designing their own bikes, they are putting their bikes together – that’s the innovative bit, as compared to TVS simply putting a display. Along with innovation, this is co-creation – co-creation between KidZania and TVS. Companies know their brands, positioning, and ethos; we know how kids must be spoken to.

We would also be tying up with a car brand. Earlier we used to make a kid understand how to sell a car – the kid became a dealership or car engineer, was told about the car and was required to sell the car to the parent. But now, we’ll be taking the leap from there. 

On the shift in strategy – what has instigated this shift in strategy, and what is the new strategy all about?

Sumbly: In TVS, we are focusing on premiumization in a way that the products which are very differentiated in design, very differentiated in terms of technology. And we wanted to bring this motorcycle to motorcycling. Anybody can sell a motorcycle, but motorcycling is about the motorcycle, the gear, your community – it’s the entire ecosystem, the 360 degree experience to a consumer who gets into buying a product. So he not only buys the product, he buys the whole experience.

On your views about racing as a sport in India, and how do you see it building up in the country- for men, women and kids too?

Sumbly: For us, racing is gender-neutral. Somehow, motosports in the minds of people is unsafe. But what we are building, is motosport as a safe profession, provided you follow a particular curriculum. Like how you go to primary school, secondary school, college, university – it’s the same thing. First, it’s KidZania, then they go to Rookie, then Racing Academy, and then they can become professionals. So, we feel that through this, motosports will become more chosen as a profession going forward, plus racing will be more democratized. Also, our CSR – safe and responsible riding will become more prominent.   

Mumbai: Tata Play, the subscription-based satellite television company, has elevated Abhishek Pathak to SVP & head (content), wherein he would be handling strategy, business development, and partnerships.

Pathak mentioned on LinkedIn, “Building Tata Play for the present and the future as a new member of the Greater Leadership Team. Elevated to SVP & Head – Content.”

He was previously with Tata Group as senior manager (corporate brand). Pathak also served as manager (special projects) at Taj Group of Hotels, and has worked with Abbott as its brand manager.