MUMBAI: After nearly 14 years climbing Google’s ranks, Neha Barjatya has bid farewell to the tech behemoth. The marketing director announced her departure from Google India on LinkedIn, marking the end of a tenure that spanned the country’s digital transformation from the early mobile internet days to the current artificial intelligence boom.
Barjatya’s stint at Google reads like a greatest hits album of Indian digital marketing. She masterminded campaigns that brought back Hindi cinema’s Mr India with Pixel phones, gamified search with Google Googlies, and launched the country’s Pixel manufacturing operations. Most recently, she shepherded the launch of Gemini, Google’s AI assistant.
But perhaps her most significant legacy lies in Internet Saathi, one of the world’s largest digital literacy programmes. The initiative, a collaboration between Google and Tata Trusts, has reached over 290,000 villages and benefited more than 30 million rural women. Barjatya even took a secondment to establish Frend (Foundation for Rural Entrepreneurship Development), aimed at creating livelihood opportunities for digitally skilled women.
Her career at Google began in November 2011 as head of business marketing and digitising India initiatives. She climbed to marketing director in March 2020, overseeing consumer apps including Search, Gemini, and Maps, alongside platforms and devices such as Pixel, Android, and the Play Store.
Before joining Google, Barjatya cut her teeth at Viacom 18 Media for over five years, following earlier stints at Zee Turner and advertising agency Lintas.
In her farewell post, she credited leaders including Sapna Chadha, Sandeep Menon, and former country head Rajan Anandan for their support. “This company has taught me to push past hurdles, stay grounded in purpose and never lose sight of what’s possible,” she wrote.
Barjatya’s next move remains under wraps, though she hinted at “the next chapter” without revealing details.
