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#Throwback2020: Heavyweights in the M&E industry

Published

5 years ago

January 7, 2021

NEW DELHI: In the book of life, people couldn’t wait to turn the page on 2020, but at long last, we have arrived in 2021. There is a lot of energy and zeal in the media and entertainment industry to make a fresh start and rebuild everything back to its pre-Covid2019 glory. No doubt, 2020 was tough, but it has taught us several lessons – like not taking things for granted and being ready to adapt to changes.

Despite all the odds and challenges, content creators, production houses, service providers and broadcasters kept the ball rolling for consumers as the entertainment did not stop. It was available to the audiences in one format or the other. These professionals worked to create relentlessly fresh and differentiated content, organised live sporting events, and kept viewers engaged.

Earlier this week, we read about some of the leading M&E professionals and how they steered the industry for better in 2020. Here is the second part of the series:-

Rajesh Iyer, Viacom18

Viacom18 roped in Rajesh Iyer to handle its regional GEC portfolio which includes Colors Odia, Colors Gujarati, Colors Tamil, and Colors Bangla. As the network stepped into 2021, it launched two new shows in Tamil. Iyer is an old hand at Viacom18 and was part of the launch of Colors in 2008. A veteran in the industry who understands content, market, consumer and revenue, Iyer has been brought in to handle the challenges of the genre and grow the business. He is known for his leadership at Network18 and ZeeL, where he spearheaded new initiatives and launched &TV. The latter was successful in creating a niche for itself in the market within the first three years of its debut.

Rajiv Bakshi, Reliance Big Synergy

In the last 12 months, Reliance Big Synergy CEO Rajiv Bakshi has completely turned the course of the production house. It is no longer just a powerhouse for non-fiction but a creator of all forms of content – be it fiction, web series, direct to digital films, biographies, mythology and more – across multiple languages such as Bangla, Telugu, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and Hindi. The man has high ambitions for the production house and aims to have a strong fiction split in its content production. Bakshi is a veteran in the M&E industry who has seen the business from the lens of a marketer, broadcaster, and creator. He has worked across TV, internet, media, telecom, and consumer durable industries in his career.

Avinash Pandey, ABP Network

In less than two years of donning the mantle of chief executive officer at ABP Network, Avinash Pandey took it on himself to refresh its entire functionalities, building on unique capabilities and starting a fresh chapter in its history. He rebranded ABP’s identity from a premium news network to an all-encompassing content powerhouse. The network stepped into the world of content creation, production, brand solutions, etc, investing in cutting-edge technology to facilitate best-in-class solutions for the clients. Its news channels were also given a fresh look and mission of being limitless in their coverage. Pandey has talked about his intentions to shift network services from FTA to pay.

Apart from these massive overhauls in the core identity of the network, Pandey also rose as a strong voice who not just demanded rights for the broadcasters but also called out the shortcomings of the news industry. He openly dissed the culture of chasing TRPs by news channels, called out the ‘outdated measurement system’ that is promoting dramatic news reporting, and batted for deregulation of broadcasting content.

It was under his leadership that ABP Network sailed through the unique challenges posed by the Covid2019 crisis. In fact, ABP was amongst the very few news networks that did not have to resort to pay cuts or lay-offs.

Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Viacom18

An old hand at Viacom18, Jaipuria has churned out content that drew in and engaged audiences across demographics, whether it was in Hindi GEC, Hindi motion pictures, or kids genre. On the kid’s front, she spearheaded the launch of two new IPs – Bhoot Bandhus and Ting Tong on Sonic and Nickelodeon respectively in 2020. She steered her portfolio through the pandemic when adex dipped.

On the Hindi mass entertainment side, the organisation tapped into its libraries during the lockdown, bringing back shows like Mahakali, Shani Dev, Jai Shri Krishna, Om Namah Shivaya and Mahabharat that evoked nostalgia among viewers. News shows like Pinjara Khubsurti Ka, Molkki and Namak Issk Ka were also planned during this time.

Jaipuria is an industry stalwart with over three decades of experience. She steered the network’s growth from a lone kids channel to a cluster of channels.

Aditya Pittie, IN10

Anand Mahindra-and Aditya Pittie-promoted IN10 Media has a bouquet of varied media offerings such as television (Epic TV), OTT platforms (Epic On and Docubay), and production house (Juggernaut. IN10 Media Network also launched kids' channel Gubbare on Children's Day. After the success of its linear broadcast channels in their respective genres – Epic TV and ShowBox – the network ventured into the regional cinema market with Filamchi, a 24/7 linear broadcast channel for Bhojpuri cinema fans across the country.

Meanwhile, Juggernaut Productions worked on Avrodh: The Siege Within that was acclaimed by audiences and critics alike. Pittie has kept the pricing of EpicOn and Docubay far higher than any horizontal or generic OTT. He has positioned the channels as a vertical player with a very specific offering.

Vynsley Fernandes, NXTDigital

An old face in the cable distribution industry, Fernandes was recently elevated as media group CEO of Hinduja group’s NXTDigital. Before his current role, he turned the struggling NXTDigital businesses to profitability within two years of taking on the position of CEO at IndusInd Media and Communications Ltd (IMCL). Now, he will not only run digital TV and HITS business but also broadband and content business.

Fernandes is leading innovation at NXTDigital as the company looks at establishing itself as a digital service provider. While the video segment of the company has around 5.38 million subscribers currently, its broadband segment has achieved yet another milestone under his leadership by crossing half-a-million home broadband consumers. Identifying the need for bundled services, he is highly focused on synergising cable TV or HITS service with broadband that would drive the growth of all services concurrently.

The ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) recently amended HITS guidelines by allowing HITS operators to share infrastructure with MSOs. Hence, Fernandes has identified this as a big area of growth for NXTDigital, the only HITS service provider in the country. As infrastructure sharing can reduce the cost of connectivity significantly, he is looking at leveraging this opportunity in the B2B model.

It was under his leadership that NXTDigital managed to continue its operations smoothly during the Covid2019 crisis under a well-structured contingency plan. It’s one of the few MSOs to have a proper digital payment method for business partners. Fernandes has advocated embracing digital payments, rolling out broadband, hybrid boxes to sustain in the long-term.

Karan Bedi, MX Player

Karan Bedi is heading one of the most successful OTT platforms in India. Within two years of MX Player’s launch, the service has diversified into gaming, short-video, and music segment along with its core OTT offerings. The platform, which currently has over 200 million monthly active users, emerged as the fastest growing OTT entertainment platform during the lockdown, Comscore data indicated.

While it was already recognised as the top entertainment app in India in 2019 by a FICCI report, MX Player has seen tremendous growth during 2020. With a 5X increase in engagement during lockdown, it has also attracted 150 new brands. The platform has focused on tier-2, tier-3 markets from the beginning, which has helped it to grow more post-Covid2019.

MX Player has replicated its OTT success in the short video format too under Bedi’s leadership. It introduced MX TakaTak within a week of the TikTok ban. Already, it boasts 70 million monthly active users and 10 million unique content creators. To solidify its position in the growing ecosystem, the platform is increasing its content library, innovating its offerings and on-boarding well-known influencers.

Siddharth Kumar Tewary, Swastik Productions

When you have ambition like Siddharth Kumar Tewary, you let nothing come in your way. So his decision to set up shooting floors in Umergaon in Gujarat were very futuristic. He was one of the first producers to begin filming after the government drew up SOPs for shoots to begin again, following the lifting of strict lockdown Covid2019 rules. That was thanks to the fact that he owned his own sets in Umergaon, with residences which could even house crew and cast, thus putting them in a safe bio bubble.

2020 was the year, when he broke out, getting commissioned to produce Bahubali for Netflix and a show for Hotstar, even as he continued to produce for television. Swastik Productions also launched two new series Devi Adi Parashakti for Dangal and Deva Shree Ganesha airing on Star Pravah. He recently partnered with Sony Pictures Networks India for exclusive rights to license and distribute its content catalogue in CEE/CIS countries as well as China and Japan.

Hiren Gada, Shemaroo

When the Maroo family – the promoter of content aggregation and distribution company Shemaroo – pole vaulted Hiren Gada as CEO in 2018, he was a little known entity. A shy reserved executive, he preferred to play a role behind the scenes, helping grow its international syndication business and keeping a sharp eye on finances. Two years into his job, he has transformed the organisation along with his sister Kranti Gada who is the COO,

Hiren first focused on bringing in outside industry professionals into Shemaroo, thus fostering its evolution from being family owned and run to a professional one. In 2020, he took some gutsy punts, launching a free to air general entertainment channel Shemaroo TV in order to help draw in advertising money and help grow the company. He had taken even sharp risks just as 2019 was ending, by flagging off an OTT platform called ShemarooMe and MarathiBana –a Marathi language free to air channel, a little before that. He also announced his intention to help small budget films get launched on an OTT with ShemarooMe Box Office which will serve as T-VoD window for the company.

Despite expanding Shemaroo’s portfolio of offerings, he has ensured that his content deals with other platforms are kept in place.

Today, Shemaroo’s products cover two channels, an OTT service ShemarooMe and a T-VoD service, making it a player which more than counts in the TV industry.

Kalli Purie, India Today Group

The vice chairperson of the India Today Group is one of the most powerful women in the India’s media and entertainment industry. Purie is part of several industry bodies such as Barc and NBA and has been relentlessly working towards shaping the industry for better. In 2020, she restructured the top management of ITG to ensure that the group sails through these times with minimal impact. Purie also brought back ITG’s star anchor and editor Prabhu Chawla to host the much popular show Seedhi Baat.

(Please note that the placement of the M&E leaders in the story is not in pecking order)

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Awards

Hamdard honours changemakers at Abdul Hameed awards

Published

6 days ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.

The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.

Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.

The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.

Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.

Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.

Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.

Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.

The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.

Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.

MAM

Why the best campaigns today start with insights, not ideas

Published

6 days ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: For decades, creative storytelling has been the cornerstone of brand communication. The “big idea” amplified through catchy jingles, striking visuals, and memorable hooks was once the gold standard for relevance and recall. Creativity defined presence, and the loudest, boldest campaigns often won attention.

But the marketing landscape today looks very different.

Audiences are more exposed, more discerning, and far less patient. They are inundated with messages across platforms, formats, and creators, often encountering hundreds of brand touchpoints in a single day. In this environment, creativity alone especially when untethered from real consumer truths is no longer enough to move behaviour. Great ideas are abundant. Meaningful impact is not.

This is where insights matter.

The difference may seem subtle, but it is fundamental. An idea represents what a brand wants to say. An insight reflects what the audience is already thinking, feeling, or experiencing. The most effective campaigns emerge not from cleverness alone, but from the intersection of these two forces.

From creativity to relevance

As the marketing ecosystem becomes increasingly saturated, consumers are growing immune to inflated claims and surface-level storytelling. Even beautifully crafted campaigns can fail if they are disconnected from lived realities. The gap between a brand’s internal enthusiasm and the audience’s actual sentiment can be the difference between attention and indifference.

Insights help bridge this gap. They force brands to pause, listen, and observe to understand emotions, behaviours, cultural contexts, and contradictions. Instead of trying to be remembered through louder branding, insight-led campaigns allow audiences to see their own experiences reflected back at them. When a campaign articulates a problem that feels personal, relevance is created. Trust follows.

Insight is interpretation, not information

It’s important to distinguish between data and insight. Data tells us what is happening. Insight explains why it is happening. While data is measurable and structured, insights are interpretive and dynamic, shaped by real-time sentiment and human behaviour.

Modern consumers are full of contradictions. They demand authenticity while remaining deeply aspirational. They want brands to take a stand but expect nuance, not instruction. They seek transparency, yet are drawn to curated narratives. These tensions are not obstacles, they are opportunities. When understood correctly, they can shape communication that feels timely, credible, and human.

Some of the most effective campaigns today are born not in isolated brainstorm rooms, but through listening to audiences, creators, editors, online communities, and cultural signals. Insights often exist in blurred patterns, but once identified, they can redefine how a brand connects.

A recent campaign we executed for Domino’s illustrates this shift clearly. The brief wasn’t to make a pizza look bigger or louder. Instead, it was rooted in a simple behavioural truth: in Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, sharing food is an emotional act tied to family, celebration, and value perception. The “Big Big 6-in-1 Pizza” became a canvas for this insight. The campaign leaned into regional voices and real sharing moments, allowing people to show how they experienced the product rather than being told why they should buy it. Influencers and celebrities amplified genuine usage, not scripted endorsements. The impact from engagement to footfall to sales came not from a clever idea, but from understanding how people relate to food in their everyday lives.

Shifting the starting point

Today’s consumer landscape demands a shift in perspective from “What should the brand say?” to “What does the audience need to hear right now?” This marks a move away from inward-led marketing toward communication shaped by behaviour, emotion, and cultural relevance.

Brands leading today are keen observers. They notice when perfection stops resonating. They sense when luxury shifts from aspiration to excess. They recognise when influencer content begins to feel repetitive and trust erodes.

Virality, too, is often misunderstood. It is not a strategy to chase, but an outcome. Campaigns rooted in insight do not aim to go viral; they aim to resonate. When content reflects something familiar, a shared truth, emotion, or tension, it travels organically because people see themselves in it.

Ideas attract attention. Insights build connection.

The evolving role of PR

For PR professionals, this shift has redefined success. Coverage volume alone no longer tells the full story. The more meaningful questions today are: Did the communication influence behaviour? Did it align with cultural conversations? Did it address a real consumer pain point?

Insight-first thinking allows these questions to be answered at the planning stage, rather than corrected midway through execution.

In a world where formats and platforms will continue to evolve, what remains constant is the power of authentic communication. The strongest campaigns today do not begin with a brainstorm, but with observation, interpretation, and empathy. That is not just better marketing, it is more responsible, resilient, and meaningful brand-building.

Brands

Ahmad Muneeb elevated to VP – HR centre of excellence at Zepto

Published

6 days ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Zepto has elevated Ahmad Muneeb to vice president – HR centre of excellence, placing him at the helm of the company’s total rewards, executive compensation and organisational effectiveness as the quick-commerce firm powers through a high-growth phase.

The move follows his stint as senior director of the HR COE, where he played a central role in preparing the company for IPO readiness while scaling its people analytics capabilities. During this period, Muneeb helped align complex performance management structures with more streamlined and scalable employee experience frameworks.

In his new role, he will steer the design of total rewards strategies, executive compensation planning and organisational design, while also overseeing performance management, employee experience initiatives and people analytics programmes.

Before joining Zepto, Muneeb spent nearly three years at Meesho, where he held multiple rewards and HR business partner roles. Earlier in his career, he worked as a senior rewards consultant at Mercer, advising high-tech clients on compensation benchmarking, pay structures and talent-focused reward frameworks.

He began his hr journey at Cognizant, where he supported compensation programmes for nearly two lakh employees across India and worked on m&a compensation alignment and skill-based pay initiatives. Prior to moving into HR, Muneeb started his career as a software engineer at Netcracker, bringing a technical grounding to his people strategy work.

With a mix of consulting rigour, start-up agility and enterprise-scale experience, Muneeb’s elevation signals Zepto’s continued focus on building robust people systems as it races towards its next phase of growth.