MAM

Women are smashing stereotypes-But when will the stigma croak?

Published

1 year ago

March 8, 2025

MUMBAI: Do you only appreciate God during festivals, or is the devotion an all-year affair? If faith and admiration are ingrained in us for the divine, why does it stop short when it comes to one of God’s finest creations—WOMEN? Why do we insist on sticking a ‘special’ label on just one day of the year to praise, worship, and acknowledge the achievements of women in male-dominated fields? Newsflash: women don’t magically become remarkable on 8 March and revert to invisibility the next day. Let’s retire the ceremonial fanfare and start giving credit where it’s due—every single day.

In India, women aren’t just breaking the glass ceiling-they’re bulldosing right through it, leaving society scrambling to pick up the shards. They’re running boardrooms, leading billion-dollar empires, and rewriting the rules of success. And yet, the elephant in the room remains stubbornly unbudged: why does gender bias still loom like a ghost that refuses to be exorcised? Women in leadership are no longer the underdog story-they’re the main event. So why does recognition still feel like an annual festival rather than an everyday reality?

Celebrating women once a year and calling it progress is like drinking one green smoothie and calling yourself a health guru. Indiqube executive director & COO Meghna Agarwal gets straight to the point, “Women’s economic participation is not just a social imperative but a strategic one, with the power to significantly boost India’s GDP.” And yet, despite the high-decibel conversations about equality, many women still find themselves playing a never-ending game of ‘prove yourself’ while their male counterparts get automatic upgrades.

The numbers across industries tell an interesting story. In IT, multinational corporations (MNCs) are making strides—mentorship programs and global capability centers (GCCs) have propelled 1,100 women into global roles over five years. In marketing, women hold 60 per cent of jobs in North America and 52 per cent of CMO positions, but only 24 per cent of C-suite roles in UK SEO firms. Advertising remains stubbornly male-dominated, with men holding 71 per cent of leadership positions.

media & entertainment

India’s progress is a mix of wins and gaps. In media & entertainment (M&E), women hold just 12 per cent of leadership roles in top firms, down from 13 per cent last year. However, they shine on streaming platforms, occupying over 20 per cent of head-of-department roles. In advertising, women make up 40 per cent of the workforce but only 30 per cent of leadership positions-though leadership representation in India hit 36 per cent in 2025, surpassing global averages.

Meanwhile, tech and finance continue to lag. Women hold less than a third of tech jobs and only 18-19 per cent of executive roles. In NBFCs and MFIs, women occupy just 12.5 per cent of leadership positions, proving finance still clings to its glass ceilings. Progress is real but moving at a snail’s pace.

Aruna C. Newton

Infosys VP, head of diversity & inclusion, ESG governance & reporting, Aruna C. Newton highlights the slow but steady march forward. “Through our flexible hybrid work model and programs like Restart with Infosys and #IamtheFuture, we continue to unleash opportunities for women to stay intentional about their careers and cement their leadership in technology,” she states. Infosys is gunning for a workforce that’s 45 per cent female by 2030, but the question remains: if businesses can adapt at the speed of light for profits, why does gender equality move at the pace of a sloth on vacation?

The government is also throwing its hat in the ring. Supriya Lifescience Ltd. joint managing director Shivani Wagh points to the Union Budget 2025-26, which allocated Rs 4.49 lakh crore for gender-focused initiatives-a 37.5 per cent boost. “With over 14 per cent of Indian enterprises led by women, women-led entrepreneurship is on the rise,” she states. But there’s a catch. Access to the capital is still harder for women than finding a cab during peak hours. For every woman who secures funding, dozens more are stuck navigating a maze of bureaucracy and bias.

Paper policies sound great, but until the money starts flowing into real businesses, they’re just glorified wish lists.
Tech, of course, remains one of the toughest nuts to crack. Acer India director – commercial sales, Priya Krishnamurthy gets it, “Advancing gender equality is not just a necessity but a catalyst for transformation.”

Translation? If the tech industry wants to stay ahead, it needs to do more than just talk a good game. Until women in STEM are as common as overpriced lattes in co-working spaces, we’re not done yet.

The outdated belief that women lack the ‘testosterone’ to run Fortune 500 companies is about as relevant as a fax machine. Women have proven, time and again, that they can lead with both ambition and empathy-two traits that businesses desperately need. And here’s the kicker: many of the men who once doubted them now report to female bosses. And guess what? The world didn’t end. In fact, it’s thriving.

Solitario Lab Grown Diamonds head of business & strategy Kamini Singh is all about recognising the brilliance of women. “Women are the driving force of change, shaping industries, breaking barriers, and redefining success on their own terms. This Women’s Day, we celebrate their brilliance, resilience, and unstoppable spirit. At Solitario, we believe every woman deserves to shine, not just beautifully, but powerfully, just like a diamond: strong, radiant, and timeless. Let’s Bling it!” she exclaims.

Meanwhile, SIG Group head of market, India & Bangladesh, Vandana Tandan insists that equality needs to move beyond paper promises. “Real progress in any industry depends on recognising and valuing the unique talents of every individual. International Women’s Day provides an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to building workplaces where equal opportunities are more than just a policy, they are a reality,” she says. In other words, let’s ditch the lip service and get down to business.

Apollo Green Energy GM-corporate communications & digital marketing, Aanchal Sharma weighs in on the shift in leadership dynamics. “The stigma around women in leadership has not just changed. It has been challenged by women who refused to accept the notion that they did not belong. This shift has not been a single sweeping revolution but a series of quiet and persistent actions. A woman speaking up in a meeting despite being interrupted. Another negotiating her salary without apology. One balancing ambition with empathy without feeling the need to justify either. These everyday acts, multiplied across millions, have reshaped leadership.”

She continues, “Yet, progress remains slow. Women lead only 1.6 per cent of companies listed in the Fortune India 500, despite businesses with diverse leadership teams being 25 per cent more likely to outperform their peers in profitability. The numbers tell a clear story. When women lead, companies thrive. But leadership is not just about economic success. It is about reimagining workplaces where women do not have to fight twice as hard to be heard, where ambition is not mistaken for aggression, and where success is defined by impact, not outdated expectations.”

So, the million-dollar question: when does the stigma finally disappear? Women are already etching history-it’s society that’s dragging its feet catching up.

Because the future isn’t female-it’s equal. And if you’re still debating that, you’re already in the past.

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Netflix India names Rekha Rane director of films and series marketing

Streaming giant bets on a seasoned marketer who helped build Amazon and Netflix into household names

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Netflix has put a proven brand builder at the helm of its films and series marketing in India, naming Rekha Rane as director in a move that signals sharper focus on audience growth and cultural cut-through in one of its most hotly contested markets.

Rane steps into the role after seven years at Netflix, where she has quietly shaped how the platform sells stories to India. Her latest promotion, effective February 2026, crowns a run that spans brand, slate and product marketing across originals, licensed content and new verticals such as games.

A strategic marketing and communications professional with roughly 15 years’ experience, Rane has spent much of her career building technology-led consumer businesses and new categories, notably e-commerce and subscription video on demand. She was part of the early push that introduced Amazon.in, Prime Video and Netflix to Indian homes, then helped turn them into everyday brands.

At Netflix, she most recently served as head of brand and slate marketing for India from March 2024 to February 2026, leading teams across media and marketing for global and local content portfolios. Before that, as manager for original films and series marketing, she led IP creation and go-to-market strategy for titles including Guns and Gulaabs, Kaala Paani, The Railway Men* and The Great Indian Kapil Show, spanning both binge and weekly-release formats.

Her earlier Netflix roles covered product discovery and promotion in India and integrated campaign strategy to drive conversations around the content slate, product awareness and brand-equity metrics.

Before Netflix, Rane logged more than three years at Amazon in brand marketing roles in Bengaluru. There she handled national and regional campaigns for Amazon.in, worked on customer assistance programmes in growth geographies and contributed to the go-to-market strategy for the launch of Prime Video India.

Her career began well away from streaming. At Reliance Brands in Mumbai, she worked on retail marketing for Diesel and Superdry. A stint at Leo Burnett saw her work on primary research for P&G Tide, mapping Indian shoppers’ paths to purchase. Earlier still, at Orange in the United Kingdom, she rose from sales assistant to store manager, running a team and owning monthly P&L for a retail outlet.

The arc is telling. As global streamers fight for attention in a crowded Indian market, executives who understand both mass retail behaviour and digital habit-building are prized. Rane’s career sits at that intersection.

For Netflix, the bet is simple: in a market spoilt for choice, sharp marketing can still tilt the screen. And with Rane now leading the charge, the streamer is signalling it wants not just viewers, but fandom.

Brands

Orient Beverages pops the fizz with steady Q3 gains and rising profits

Kolkata-based beverage maker reports stronger revenues and profits for December quarter.

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A fizzy quarter with a steady aftertaste that’s how Orient Beverages Limited, the company that manufactures and distributes packaged drinking water under the brand name Bisleri closed the December 2025 period, as the Kolkata-based drinks maker reported improved revenues and a healthy rise in profits, signalling operational stability in a competitive beverage market.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Orient Beverages posted standalone revenue from operations of Rs 39.98 crore, up from Rs 36.42 crore in the previous quarter and Rs 33.53 crore in the same quarter last year. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 42.24 crore, reflecting consistent demand and stable pricing across its beverage portfolio.

Profit before tax for the quarter came in at Rs 3.47 crore, a sharp improvement from Rs 1.31 crore in the September quarter and Rs 0.39 crore a year ago. After accounting for tax expenses of Rs 0.79 crore, the company reported a net profit of Rs 2.68 crore, nearly three times the Rs 0.99 crore recorded in the preceding quarter.

On a nine-month basis, the momentum remained intact. Revenue from operations for the period ended December 31, 2025 rose to Rs 117.66 crore, compared with Rs 106.95 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net profit for the nine months climbed to Rs 5.51 crore, more than double the Rs 2.18 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.

The consolidated numbers told a similar story. For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 45.06 crore, while profit after tax came in at Rs 2.06 crore. For the nine-month period, consolidated revenue touched Rs 133.57 crore, with net profit of Rs 4.49 crore, underscoring the group’s improving profitability trajectory.

Operating expenses remained largely controlled, with cost of materials, employee benefits and other expenses broadly aligned with revenue growth. The company continued to operate within a single reportable segment beverages simplifying its cost structure and reporting framework.

The unaudited financial results were reviewed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on 7 February 2026. Statutory auditors carried out a limited review and reported no material misstatements in the results.

In a market where margins are often squeezed by input costs and competition, Orient Beverages’ latest numbers suggest the company has found a reliable rhythm not explosive, but steady enough to keep the fizz alive.

MAM

Washington Post CEO exits abruptly after newsroom cuts spark backlash

Leadership change follows layoffs, protests and a bruising battle over trust.

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: When the presses are rolling but patience runs out, even the editor’s chair isn’t safe. The Washington Post announced on Saturday that its chief executive and publisher Will Lewis is stepping down with immediate effect, bringing a sudden end to a turbulent two-year tenure marked by financial strain, newsroom unrest and public backlash.

Lewis’s exit comes just days after the Bezos-owned newspaper announced sweeping job cuts that triggered protests outside its Washington headquarters and a wave of anger from readers and staff. While newspapers across the US are grappling with shrinking revenues and digital disruption, Lewis’s leadership had increasingly come under fire for how those pressures were handled.

The Post confirmed that Jeff D’Onofrio, a former Tumblr CEO who joined the organisation last year as chief financial officer, has taken over as CEO and publisher, effective immediately. In an email to staff, later shared by reporters on social media, Lewis said it was “the right time for me to step aside.”

The leadership change follows the announcement of large-scale redundancies earlier this week. While the Post did not officially confirm numbers, The New York Times reported that around 300 of the paper’s roughly 800 journalists were laid off. Entire teams were dismantled, including the Post’s Middle East bureau and its Kyiv-based correspondent covering the war in Ukraine.

Sports, graphics and local reporting were sharply reduced, and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended. On Thursday, hundreds of journalists and supporters gathered outside the Post’s downtown office in protest, calling the cuts a blow to public-interest journalism.

Former executive editor Marty Baron described the moment as “among the darkest days in the history of one of the world’s greatest news organisations.”

Lewis defended his record in his farewell note, saying “difficult decisions” were taken to secure the paper’s long-term future and protect its ability to publish “high-quality nonpartisan news”. But his tenure coincided with growing scrutiny of editorial independence at the Post.

Owner Jeff Bezos faced criticism for reining in the paper’s traditionally liberal editorial page and blocking an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 US election. The move was widely seen as breaking the long-standing firewall between ownership and editorial decision-making.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, around 250,000 digital subscribers cancelled their subscriptions after the paper declined to endorse Harris. The Post reportedly lost about $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues slid.

While the wider newspaper industry continues to battle declining print advertising and the pull of social media, some national titles have stabilised. Rivals such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have managed to build sustainable digital businesses, a turnaround that has so far eluded the Post despite its billionaire backing.

As Jeff D’Onofrio steps into the role, the challenge is stark, restore confidence inside the newsroom, win back readers who walked away, and prove that one of America’s most storied newspapers can still find its footing in a brutally competitive media landscape.