MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • Highlights a gamut of loan offerings and financing solutions

    Aditya Birla Finance unveils a new campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Aditya Birla Finance Ltd (ABFL), the lending subsidiary of Aditya Birla Capital Ltd., has rolled out its new campaign – ‘Zaroorat ke waqt pe zaroorat ka paisa’. The integrated marketing campaign highlights a gamut of loan offerings provided by ABFL and positions it as the right financing partner for all the financing needs of consumers, be it SME Loans, Loan Against Property, Business Loans, Personal Loans etc.

     

    Commenting on the launch, Rakesh Singh, Aditya Birla Finance Ltd., said: “At Aditya Birla Finance Ltd., customer centricity has always been at the core of our brand philosophy and operations. We constantly strive to ensure that our solutions enable a smooth financing journey for our customers. Through this integrated campaign, we aim to reaffirm that ABFL is committed towards understanding and fulfilling customers’ needs for urgent funds in a timely manner. We assure customers that we are the financing partner they can count on for quick and hassle-free loan disbursals to fulfil their needs and aspirations.”

     

  • This is the 16th over-the-top partnership of OTTPlay

    OTTPlay Premium collaborates with ManoramaMAX

    By Our Staff

     

    OTTPlay Premium, AI-powered OTT subscription, recommendation and content discovery platform, has announced its 16th OTT partner – ManoramaMAX, Malayalam OTT that delivers the latest movies, TV serials, programmes, web-series, and news from the home of of MM TV (Malayala Manorama Television).

     

    OTTplay Premium, in collaboration with ManoramaMAX will provide video-on-demand and over-the-top (OTT) streaming services of Malayalam movies, MAX Exclusives, and early access to Mazhavil Manorama programmes.

     

    Commenting on the collaboration, Avinash Mudaliar, Co-Founder and CEO – OTTPlay said: “We are concentrating our efforts on expanding our pan India presence, with the goal of capturing a share of the rapidly expanding OTT aggregator platforms across languages. With this collaboration, we are aiming to provide a substantial Malayalam content slate to our audience. In accordance with this approach, we aim to offer our OTT viewers with a wide and exclusive content slate in multiple languages. We are collaborating with the most creative OTT platforms to offer a plethora of exclusive content.”

     

    P R Satheesh, CEO – MM TV Ltd added: “MM TV is glad to partner with OTT Play in distributing ManoramaMAX to its end users. ManoramaMAX is the number one OTT in Malayalam with a significant base in Kerala who keep engaging with the platform enjoying over 400 blockbuster movies and 20,000 hours of entertaining content, live news and exciting exclusive web-series. We look forward to a great innings with OTT Play spreading the magic of ManoramaMAX.”

     

  • Is there a context to the question? Is that reference to ‘making waves’ to an entity we know? Go figure! Meanwhile here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 17 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | If in a race, the #1 is way too ahead of the #2, what does it speak of the competition?

    Bhaskar DasIs there a context to the question? Is that reference to ‘making waves’ to an entity we know? Go figure! Meanwhile here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 17 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

     

    If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

     

    Q. If in a race, the #1 is way too ahead of the #2, what does it speak of the competition?

     

    A. Since I do not know the context of your question, my answer is bound to be very generic. It’s very simple: if the #1 is #1 in a competitive race, I would say they have worked smarter (working harder is hygiene). There are a number of industries where the #1 is more surpetitive (courtesy Edward de Bono) than competitive. In that case, the yardstick like comparing with competition can be a limiting concept to surge ahead. The fact remains, at least in the Indian context, that it’s a perfect competition out there though everyone one has an equal opportunity to outsmart others, which is a function of strategy, culture, talent deployment and selection of choices. In most of the cases, the followers in any business segment suffer from the aforesaid deficiencies.

    So a particular day, #1 may be ahead of #2. But that doesn’t mean #2 is not good. In fact it could well have been making waves in the past. Also, remember, there are many who are very good but who do not compete, because what they are interested in being is a ‘lambi race ka ghoda’, where competing is not important, just doing your thing (running or whatever else) is key.

     

  • Fake patriotism coupled with overwhelming love can make life really tough, writes Ranjona Banerji

    Fake. Again & Again & Again

     

     

    Ranjona BanerjiBy Ranjona Banerji

     

    Is it wilful suspension of disbelief, as one journalist friend described it?

    Or is it a blind following of orders from above, as another pointed out?

    Rank stupidity or greed?

    Evil or weak?

    Could be both or either, but the case of Narendra Modi being a strong contender for the Nobel Peace Prize according to the Nobel Prize committee, is one more tragic piece of evidence in the fall of the Indian media.

     

    A shady website connected to a BJP propaganda website known for its fake news and Islamophobia put out the news that a member of the Nobel committee, Asle Toje, said that the Indian prime minister is a strong contender for the next Nobel Peace Prize.

     

    This “news” was picked up by the mainstream media and presented as news on mainstream websites and by prominent TV anchors on their social media accounts.

     

    The examples presented here are largely from Bennett Coleman’s newspaper The Times of India and its TV channel Times Now. But several others, like CNBC News 18 also featured here, did pick up this “news” from the shady website which was amplified, ha ha ha, by ANI. The BJP High Command’s chosen news agency which knows that news is about to happen before those involved know it’s about to happen.

     

    Toje issued a strong statement saying that he never said what was attributed to him, that it was fake news, and should be treated as all fake news: given no oxygen.

     

    Maybe that’s possible in Norway.

     

    But not in this India, where fake news gets all the help it can to flourish and news itself gets suffocated and suppressed.

    https://www.boomlive.in/fact-check/asle-toje-nobel-peace-prize-narendra-modi-biggest-contender-false-quote-21352

    Media misreport: Nobel committee member did not say Modi biggest contender for Peace Prize

    It is not uncommon for the media to be brazen about errors – we’ve all done it. And I suppose if you are consistently caught out for promoting lies to benefit one person or political entity, you become immune to barbs and embarrassment. That is why the two tweets here from Times Now’s Rahul Shivshankar are bland and minus any self-awareness. He’s editor-in-chief of this TV channel, screams and spreads Islamophobia and lies about India’s growth night after night, attacks anyone who points to people suffering. A little mistake in hoping that his King Emperor gets a big prize is not even a mosquito bite. In fact, one may conjecture there are rewards for amplifying lies, even if you do get caught out.

     

    I am as ever more shocked by the group’s newspaper, The Times of India. I know many readers have nicknamed TOI “toilet paper”, but on the whole print presents much news better than television. I personally find the edits and opinions expressed in TOI largely rubbish and this appears to have been a deliberate decline over the last decade.

     

    But that someone on a desk actually believed something this like – there is no precedence to someone from a Nobel committee leaking information about the next Peace Prize winner – without checking is shocking. Unlike many, I have far more faith in sub-editors and news desks than I do in reporters. Thus, something like this irks even more.

     

    It is also amusing that BJP’s media supporters are so keen for this Nobel Peace Prize. Sometimes they hate foreign interest in India. Bharat is great enough by itself, is their contention. Sometimes they fall over themselves with joy when some foreigner acknowledges something, from a fake award from a suspicious character to Modi to an Oscar for a song. Then they fall apart with rage from any criticism.

     

    Fake patriotism coupled with overwhelming love can make life really tough…

    It also helps one to avoid the news completely.

    Like the news that an Overseas Friends of BJP activist, Sydney-based Balesh Dhankhar, who organised a Modi event in Australia, is being tried for raping many Korean women.

    https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/fake-job-sedatives-a-hidden-cam-sydney-man-accused-of-serial-rapes-20230315-p5csed.html

     

    This news was only picked up by the Indian media after it went viral on social media. Imagine if the accused belonged to any other Indian political party…

     

    Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator. She writes on MxMIndia on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her views here are personal.

     

  • With promotion of Anita Kotwani to CEO Media, South Asia

    Dentsu revitalises leadership bench in India

    By Our Staff

     

    Dentsu India today announces the promotion of Anita Kotwani to CEO Media, South Asia, Dentsu. In her expanded role Kotwani will lead all Dentsu’s Media businesses across South Asia including Carat, iProspect, dentsu X, Posterscope and media investment arm Amplifi.

     

    This announcement closely follows the appointment of Harsha Razdan, Dentsu South Asia’s new CEO, as the business continues to strengthen its leadership team in the region.

     

    Rob Gilby, CEO APAC, Dentsu, and Interim CEO, India until newly appointed CEO, Harsha Razdan, starts, said: “Anita is a well-loved leader who firmly looks to the future, bringing her people with her on the journey and is fearless in her approach to driving new solutions for clients. The Media opportunity in India is growing exponentially. Anita’s background, coupled with Harsha’s complimentary experience is building a powerful force in our business to drive growth for our clients in this exciting market.”

     

  • A range of teas to honour the distinct flavours inspired by the streets of India

    Tata Tea Premium – Street Chais of India launched

    By Our Staff

     

    Tata Consumer Products Limited launched Tata Tea Premium – Street Chais of India, a range of teas that honour the distinct flavours inspired by the streets of India. The launch ceremony was held at Versova Metro station. The range includes four iconic variants inspired by the signature flavours from the streets of India – Kolkata Street Chai, Mumbai Cutting Chai, Purani Dilli ki Mithai Chai, and Hyderabadi Irani Chai. Rapper and songwriter Aarya Jadhao performed at the launch.

     

    Puneet Das, President – Packaged Beverages (India and South Asia), Tata Consumer Products said: “The Tata Tea Premium Street Chais of India is a unique tea collection that aims to replicate the authentic flavours of the street chai available throughout India. Mumbai boasts a strong tea culture, with many roadside tea stalls and popular tea houses serving a variety of delicious, aromatic teas. The Mumbai Cutting Chai from Tata Tea Premium Street Chais of India is an effort to bring alive the same street chai culture of Mumbai. We are joined by rapper Arya Jadhao, who has crafted a rap that vividly captures life in Mumbai’s bustling metropolis. Our goal with Tata Tea Premium Street Chais of India is to provide a flavourful experience that transports you on a journey through the bustling streets of Mumbai with every sip.”

     

  • With a new logo and brand identity

    Paras Healthcare is now Paras Health

    By Our Staff

     

    Paras Healthcare unveiled its new brand identity campaign along with the launch of its new logo which reflects the commitment to building a healthy Bharat. Paras Healthcare is now renamed ‘Paras Health’.

     

    Speaking on the occasion, Managing Director, Paras Health, Dr. Dharminder Nagar said: “For the last 17 years, Paras Health has been providing affordable, accessible, and high-quality healthcare services to our patients. The goal has always been to be present in any part of the country where there is a need for high-quality healthcare, and the organization has built a reputation for itself as a trusted healthcare provider that puts the needs of our patients first. Our transformation is not just limited to the change in our name and logo but also keeping in mind the future roadmap of Paras Health, which will encompass curative, preventive, and care from not only the hospital but also in patients’ homes.’’

     

    Interacting with the gathering, Group COO, Paras Health, Dr. Santy Sajan, added: “Paras Health’s mission has always been to provide compassionate and quality healthcare services to everyone. We have an exceptional team of people who are passionate about providing the best care for our patients and their families. Our extraordinary team of Doctors, Nurses, and operations team members are our compasses. We strive to improve healthcare services and enhance patient outcomes through Clinical Excellence, empathy, and compassionate care. Our 5 healthcare pillars of Patient-Physician-Process-People-Place will surely continue enhancing trust in our care and commitment to all healthcare needs of our communities.”

     

  • Sana will have a human surrogate editor and hopefully company soon, said Kallie Purie

    India Today Group launches AI collaborative anchor

    By Our Staff

     

    India Today Group’s Vice Chairperson Kalli Purie launched Aaj Tak’s first AI collaborative anchor – Sana at the 20th edition of India Today Conclave2023.

    Aaj Tak AI’s first anchor Sana will bring daily news updates several times a day in multiple languages, next week onwards. In a new show, she will explain one topic of relevance everyday. Sana will also do a show in which the audience can ask questions and she will answer.

    Describing Sana, Purie said: “She is bright, gorgeous, ageless, tireless, speaks in multiple languages and totally under my control. Sana does not take away from the brilliance of real life anchors, who will be mentoring her. Sana will have a human surrogate editor and hopefully company soon.”

    Purie said that it is not a competition between humans and AI and that this collaboration is leading to creative magic. “The future is fascinating and frightening and it is here,” she said. Talking about how media is constantly attacked and referred to as ‘godi media’, Kalli Purie said that there is a lot of pressure on media from political parties, business houses, foreign governments and larger-than-life professionals. “It is not new and not singular,” she said. Giving examples of how India Today has never compromised on the story it tells, she said, “Our credibilty is important to us.”

    Link- https://www.indiatoday.in/india/video/conclave-2023-india-today-groups-vice-chairperson-kalli-purie-launches-aaj-taks-first-ai-anchor-sana-watch-2348518-2023-03-18

  • Picardo brings in 22 years of experience as a P&L Head and Brand Strategist

    Mullen Lintas appoints Sharon Picardo as Exec Dir & Head of Mumbai

    By Our Staff

    Sharon Picardo
    Sharon Picardo

    Mullen Lintas, the creative agency of the MullenLowe Lintas Group, has appointed Sharon Picardo as Executive Director and Head of Mumbai operations.

     

    Picardo brings in 22 years of experience as a P&L Head and Brand Strategist. She started her career as a management trainee with FCB where she worked for 15 years and left as a General Manager. She has worked with other leading agencies like DDB and L&K Saatchi & Saatchi leading the charge for a wide spectrum of brands. She has worked with cross-functional teams for brands like Tata Motors, Amul, Parle, Big Bazaar, Renault, Diageo, NPCI, ICICI Bank, Bharti AXA, among others.

     

    Said Hari Krishnan, CEO of Mullen Lintas: “Mullen Lintas is one of the youngest creative agency brands in India’s top 10. Building brands using the ‘Challenger’ framework, we have managed to create a quiet revolution in terms of creative reputation and growth. Mumbai being our flagship operation, this is a very coveted role in that sense. In Sharon, we found a perfect leader and team player. She has the right blend of experience, knowledge to be able to lead the fabulously talented Mumbai team and consolidate and grow the operations of Mullen Lintas, Mumbai.”

     

  • Every few months, we ask our Wizard with Words a question concerning academics. So we asked Dr Bhaskar Das an education-related brand in the March 20 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | This is the time when a lot of people decide on what postgrad course they should take? Would you still recommend an MBA as against a pure science/ humanities degree which is a deep dive as against a ‘khichdi’?

    Bhaskar DasEvery few months, we ask our Wizard with Words a question concerning academics. So we asked Dr Bhaskar Das an education-related brand in the March 20 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

     

    If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

     

    Q. This is the time when a lot of people decide on what postgrad course they should take? Would you still recommend an MBA as against a pure science/ humanities degree which is a deep dive as against a ‘khichdi’?

     

    A. While doing any course, it cannot follow a calendar or time. It has to follow the inclination of the concerned individual. Where her/his interest lies and where are the opportunities for skilled personal. It is no longer possible to have just one qualification and do multiple jobs as job requirements are continually changing due to accelerated technological change and evolution of corporate requirements

     

    One cannot gloss over a reality that a skill once acquired can serve a purpose of a full lifetime of a career.

     

    The issue is not of doing or not doing an MBA. The curriculum of an MBA has gone through constant adjustments after consultations with industry requirements. So what one has seen an MBA in my time and today has seen a huge difference in pedagogy. Today, the focus is on data science, analytics, blockchain, problem solving, design thinking et al which are actually the flavours of the season in the job market. Even that cannot guarantee a lifelong job because the pace of change is mind-numbing and every two years, if not less, an employee has to plan for a pivot to a new career. Or a new sector. Unless the concerned employee continuously upskills for the new job requirement.

     

    Human beings can’t compete with machines in terms of efficiency and speed, so any job that is repeated twice or any job that has a intermediary would be replaced by machine. Or will get replaced by machines or in the process of getting replaced. Instead of getting panicky about it, one should consider it as an advantage, and continuously upskill to face a rainy day, as and when it arrives.

     

    Net-net the objective should be clear before deciding on the course. and plan for horizontal and vertical depth of expertise to remain perpetually relevant.

     

  • If you have a suggestion of who are the people in media and advertising who have done phenomenally well in the first three months of the year, please mail us

    Announcing the 2023 MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year

     

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    We are still in March, but on the basis of suggestions received, we are announcing the 2023 MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year. The award will be announced in December this year.

    As our readers are aware, over the last few years, the MxMIndia Mediaperson of the Year has earned the reputation of being the most credible barometer of the highest performer(s) in the fields of advertising, media and marketing in India in a calendar year.

    Realising that many award shows are held at the end of the year and hence there is a tendency to only recall and accord importance to those who make an impact in the latter part of the year. MxMIndia instituted a process where we reviewed people and entities through the year by having periodic reviews and compiling the various high performers at the end of every quarter. We didn’t do that too often last year, but this we did.

    Hence this announcement as we get closer to the end of March, 2023

    If you have a suggestion of who are the people in media and advertising who have done phenomenally well in the first three months of the year, please mail us at pradyuman [at] mxmindia.com.

    We will not reveal your identity, and save your suggestion/nomination carefully.

     

     

  • … about poverty, social hatred and government incompetence in case some muck falls on you-know-who, writes Ranjona Banerji

    No real stories in the mainstream media!

     

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    Ranjona BanerjiWhat makes a great headline story?

    There are so many swirling around that it’s had to choose.

    Like the Khalistan supporter Amritpal Singh who is on the loose?

    Or the conman from Gujarat who pretended to be from the PMO and got all sorts of official benefits including Z plus security and five-star luxury in Kashmir.

    Or the newly-made national highways which have consistently cracked under the pressure of grand inaugurations?

    Or how the wife of a former CM of Maharashtra and current deputy CM of Maharashtra claimed to have been cheated by a designer friend who she let into official homes for many years?

    Or the Invest India CEO who had to resign because of supposed financial hanky-panky?

    Don’t get me wrong. These have been in the news, or else how do we know about them. But they haven’t been THE news.

    Take the Invest India story. This is a government agency, set up to help those who want to invest in India. Its managing director and CEO Deepak Bagla is accused of, well, not doing any work. An audit was begun by the Commerce Ministry a year ago. Bagla has resigned for “personal reasons”, after he and his team apparently had a first class party at the recent World Economic Forum at Davos.

    But please note, the lack of outrage or even leaking of salacious details or even investigation of what went wrong, apart from in the business pages and websites.

    How about Kiran Patel? What courage and cool thinking! Used the PM’s name and officials all over our most sensitive areas opened their hearts and minds and our pockets to him. Patel made three trips to Kashmir, met officials and made them give him reports, until a local district magistrate flagged something as suspicious. Patel was arrested from a five-star hotel.

    This is a story but not THE story.

    Because, how can we?

    THE story could be that the Prime Minister inaugurated a road. THE story is not that the Bengaluru-Mysore expressway got flooded soon after because once Modi has come and gone, the story is over. Some locals just have to deal with it. THE story is now that the PM and the Japanese PM, Fumio Kishida ate “gol-gappe” together. Personally, I’d have given him real Gujarati khandvi and explained it as Indian veg sushi. Tastes much better than Delhi gol-gappe anyway, but that’s just me.

    Anyway. These are our stories. They have within them depths and layers and fun and excitement and shock and horror, all of which would have kept us journalists busy for days.

    We know that we are not going to do the real stories in the mainstream media, about poverty and social hatred and Central incompetence. Now it looks like we cannot even do the scandal-scam stories in case some muck falls on the Great One and subsidiaries around.

    And we know why. This is a tweet from Aroon Purie, once the person who set the gold standard of Indian journalism by his group’s own admission. I have worked with the group and in the old days, it did set a standard.

    But like most of the Indian media which was brave in the past as long as it could oppose a Congress-led government and wear all attacks with pride, we now have a set of groupies sucking up to the Supreme Leader.

    Like the owner of India Today makes clear, all you have to do is connect the dots…

     

    Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator. She writes on MxMIndia on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her views here are personal.