MAM
‘Election drive’ builds Zee Cine Awards excitement
MUMBAI: The excitement is building for the Zee Cine Awards 2004, which takes takes flight to Dubai this year.
Zee Cine Awards 2004 is traveling across India with an exciting opportunity for its viewers to cast their votes and elect their favorite stars by creating an election campaign to select the favourite star – Election Ka Mahol till 15 February.
Zee Cinema business head and Zee Network special projects director Yogesh Radhakrishnan said, “Gali Gali is an on ground promotion to reach the Hindi heartland of India. The marketing effort has been conceived, keeping in mind the preference of the fans of Indian cinema waiting eagerly to vote for their favorite performers making it the most democratic awards of its kind to get closer to our viewers. This time we are approaching our viewers at their door step and giving them an opportunity to meet their favourite stars.”
The voting forms are available at all outlets of Playwin and Panparag. All these floats have ballot boxes where people can cast their votes instantaneously. 40 winners across the globe will be selected to witness the grandiest celebration of the Indian cinema on a global platform.
Zee Cine Awards team is traveling across various cities in a specially designed vans and Tata Sumos with cut outs, posters, placards and handbills canvassing for different contestants, across categories in the key states like New Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat. The campaign is in the form of an election convoy and will cover over 33 cities across the country.
The event is being held on 26 February in association with the Dubai Media City. Over 200 leading Indian film actors, actresses, producers, directors, music directors will attend the event with live performances from megastars including Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta, Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan and Lara Dutta.
Brands
Wipro hires 7,500 freshers, withholds FY27 hiring outlook
Profit rises to Rs 3,522 crore, Rs 15,000 crore buyback announced.
MUMBAI- Hiring may be on, but visibility is off, Wipro is adding talent even as it pauses the crystal ball. The company hired 7,500 freshers in FY26 but stopped short of offering any hiring outlook for FY27, underscoring the uncertainty gripping the IT services sector as it pivots towards an AI-led operating model.
The disclosure came alongside its fourth-quarter earnings, where management flagged volatile demand conditions and refrained from committing to future workforce expansion. Chief human resources officer Saurabh Govil noted that over 3,000 of the total hires were onboarded in the March quarter alone, signalling continued intake despite a lack of clarity on deployment pipelines.
This divergence active hiring without forward guidance reflects a broader industry pattern where talent acquisition continues even as deal conversions remain uneven and client spending cycles stretch. Wipro expects its IT services revenue for the June quarter to range between a decline of 2 per cent and flat growth sequentially in constant currency terms, reinforcing near-term caution.
Chief executive officer Srini Pallia pointed to artificial intelligence as both a disruptor and an opportunity. He said evolving client priorities are pushing the company towards outcome-driven engagements, with Wipro increasingly focusing on a services-as-software model through its AI Native Business and Platforms unit. The shift marks a structural change from traditional headcount-led growth to AI-enabled delivery frameworks.
The company has already committed over $1 billion to its AI ecosystem, with investors closely watching how these investments translate into revenue. For now, the numbers present a mixed picture. Net profit rose sequentially to Rs 3,522 crore, while revenue grew 3 per cent to Rs 24,236 crore. However, core IT services performance remained under pressure, with full-year revenue declining 0.3 per cent in dollar terms and 1.6 per cent in constant currency.
Large deal bookings offered a counterpoint, rising 45.4 per cent year-on-year to $7.8 billion, highlighting a widening gap between deal wins and actual revenue realisation. On a quarterly basis, IT services revenue slipped 1.2 per cent sequentially, signalling continued softness in execution.
Margins, however, told a more optimistic story. Operating margins expanded to 17.3 per cent in the fourth quarter, up from 14.8 per cent in the previous quarter, reflecting improved cost discipline. That said, the company cautioned that upcoming wage hikes and the ramp-up of large deals could exert pressure going forward.
Attrition stood at 13.8 per cent in the March quarter, indicating stabilisation after periods of elevated churn. Alongside its earnings, Wipro also announced a Rs 15,000 crore share buyback, reinforcing its focus on shareholder returns, with a payout ratio of 88 per cent over the past three years.
Taken together, the numbers capture a company in transition investing in AI, maintaining hiring momentum, but navigating a demand environment where growth is uneven and visibility remains limited.
