MAM
Mallikarjunadas CR is Starcom MediaVest Group India CEO
MUMBAI: Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) has named Mallikarjunadas CR as its new chief executive officer.
Mallikarjunadas takes charge on 25 May and will be based in Mumbai and will be part of the Global Product Committee of SMV Group.
Mallikarjunadas will report to Starcom MediaVest Group India chairman and LiquidThread APAC MD CVL Srinivas.
The branch heads of Starcom Worldwide and MediaVest Worldwide as well as functional heads of SMG’s Insights & Research, Digital and Business Impact functions will report to Mallikarjunadas.
This will be Mallikarjunadas’ second innings with SMG. He had began his career with Starcom MediaVest Group and spent five years primarily on the media planning account of P&G.
Mallikarjunadas moves in from Madison Media, after a four-year stint. He was Madison Media Infinity chief operating officer and Madison Media Research Center director.
Prior to that, Mallikarjunadas was a member of the Simulations practice at Tata Interactive Systems.
Mallikarjunadas also handled advertising and research budget at Asian Paints, as its media and research manager.
Said CVL Srinivas, “In Malli, we have a young and dynamic leader with a strong product orientation and rich client management experience. He has seen the media business from different perspectives and has a very refreshing point of view about the business. We are eagerly looking forward to welcoming him on board and gaining from his experience and expertise.”
Mallikarjunadas said, “I have had the privilege of working at Starcom MediaVest Group in the past. I’m excited to be leading the company at which I started my career. As SMG India charts out a new growth path with Insights & Research, Digital and Content being at the core, I am looking forward to an interesting and challenging assignment.”
Brands
Chinese Wok appoints Havas as integrated creative and media partner
Desi-Chinese chain bets on integrated creative and media muscle to power national expansion
MUMBAI: Chinese Wok is turning up the heat. India’s largest desi-Chinese qsr chain has appointed Havas Creative India and Arena Media as its integrated creative, social and digital media partner, sharpening its marketing firepower as it pushes past 260 outlets and eyes 500 stores across tier 1, 2 and 3 cities.
The mandate is sweeping. Havas Creative India and Arena Media, part of Havas Media Network India, will steer creative strategy, brand campaigns, social media, digital performance marketing and media planning and buying, orchestrating campaigns across atl, digital and in-store touchpoints. The brief: build a unified, platform-led brand system fit for national scale.
Founded in 2015 under Lenexis Foodworks, Chinese Wok has grown into the country’s largest Chinese qsr brand, with a footprint spanning more than 50 cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Lucknow and Hyderabad. Now it wants more. Much more.
Aayush Madhusudan Agrawal, founder and director, Lenexis Foodworks, said the shift marks an investment in integrated brand building that matches the company’s growth ambitions. “As Chinese Wok scales nationally, we are investing in integrated brand building that matches our growth ambition. Havas will partner with us in shaping the next chapter of our journey, where creativity, culture and commerce work seamlessly together.”
The brand is doubling down on its youth-first positioning, amplifying cultural properties such as Wok FM and Crush Hour while building a broader content slate. The pivot away from campaign-led bursts to a continuous, platform-driven narrative signals a more systematised approach to brand equity.
Vikas Iyer, marketing head, Lenexis Foodworks, framed the move as essential to winning over Gen Z. “Chinese Wok has always been a culture-first brand, and as we deepen our connect with Gen Z, integration becomes critical. With Havas, we aim to create sharper campaigns, stronger digital ecosystems, and measurable impact, ensuring the brand stays relevant, visible, and performance-driven at scale”.
On the creative front, Anupama Ramaswamy, managing director and chief creative officer, Havas Creative India, described the brand as “pure fire, fast, flavourful and completely plugged into pop culture”. Her ambition: “to bottle that energy into a living brand platform that fuels everything, from big campaigns to cheeky social chatter to irresistible in-store experiences.” The goal, she added, is “stronger brand love, deeper youth obsession, and work that doesn’t just look good but moves business. More heat. More heart. More hunger”.
Uday Mohan, coo, Havas Media India and Havas Play, said integration is the real unlock. “By bringing together creative, media, and performance under one cohesive vision, we aim to build a brand ecosystem that is culturally sharp, digitally agile, and built for scale”.
Lenexis Foodworks also operates The Momo Co. and Big Bowl, but Chinese Wok remains its flagship and growth engine . As competition intensifies in India’s fast-food sector, scale alone is no longer enough. Cultural fluency, data-driven performance and seamless brand experiences are the new battleground.
Chinese Wok is betting that with Havas in its corner, it can serve up all three — fast, loud and at national scale.
