MAM
Next Big Toon picks ‘final five’ from 230,000 entries
MUMBAI: Cartoon Network’s unique marketing initiative the Next Big Toon has announced its “final five”.
Of the 230,000 entries received for Next Big Toon, Abhishek Datta from Kolkata, PP Sai Ravi from Secunderabad, and three winners from Mumbai – Deepa V. Matprati, Govinda and Rohit Salian – emerged as the five finalists. The five original cartoons created by these kids are Madloo, Terminite, Leo – A Magic Pencil, Compman and Bulby, respectively.
A distinguished panel consisting of celebrated film Lagaan director, Ashutosh Gowariker, advertising personality Piyush Pandey, well-known animation producer Ram Mohan and Cartoon Network representatives Ian Diamond and Anshuman Misra were the judges.
The Next Big Toon judging panel: (from left) animation producer Ram Mohan, film director Ashutosh Gowariker, advertising personality Piyush Pandey and Cartoon Network’s Anshuman Misra and Ian Diamond.
“We are delighted that through Next Big Toon, Cartoon Network has yet again successfully encouraged kids to think laterally and stimulate their creative potential. The rules of entry for the contest were by no means simple, and the 230,000 odd entries that we have received from Indian toonheads is a testament to their inherent creative talent and passion for the medium of animation. Cartoon Network salutes the creative spirit of these young participants,” said Ian Diamond, senior vice president and general manager, Turner Entertainment Networks Asia, Inc.
Commenting on the entries, Ashutosh Gowariker said, “I am just amazed at the talent these kids have exhibited through their designs for the Next Big Toon contest. Not only are they good artists but they are also excellent weavers of a back-story for each character.” .
The five finalists will win an HP Pavilion computer each, a special plaque recognising each of the five finalists’ as creative toon geniuses and exclusive Network goodies. In addition, a three-member Cartoon Network creative services team will travel to meet the five young celebrities to find out more about their lives, their friends, and especially about their original character. The best entry from these five will be converted into an animated short and have the honour of being showcased on Cartoon Network in December 2003.
Launched on 23 June, Next Big Toon is a creative contest giving Indian kids an opportunity to create their own original cartoon character complete with a name, a personality, a family, enemies if required, and superpowers if needed.
The presenting sponsor of Next Big Toon is Joyco, with Laughing Cow Cheese, Kellogg’s Chocos, Atlas Cycles and Hewlett Packard as associate sponsors.
MAM
Ember Cookware appoints Amit Singh as chief of supply chain
10-year veteran to lead operations as brand scales across D2C, quick commerce and retail.
MUMBAI: Ember just handed its supply chain the perfect seasoning because when your cookware is non-toxic and non-stick, the operations behind it better be fast and flawless. Ember Cookware has appointed Amit Singh as chief of supply chain and Services, bolstering its leadership team at a pivotal growth phase. Singh brings over a decade of experience in supply chain strategy, operations and large-scale network buildouts.
He began his career at Singapore-based retail giant Giant Hypermarket before joining Pharmeasy in 2015, where he played a foundational role in building and scaling its pan-India supply chain across B2B and B2C channels. At API Holdings, he later led supply chain operations for North India, managing end-to-end execution across complex, multi-city networks.
In his new role, Amit will oversee Ember’s complete supply chain and service ecosystem including sourcing, manufacturing coordination, logistics, last-mile delivery, post-purchase support and workforce development. His mandate focuses on building cost-efficient, resilient operations that shorten fulfilment times, strengthen inventory management and deliver a consistently high-quality consumer experience as the brand expands nationally.
Ember Cookware co-founder & CEO Siddharth Gadodia said, “Supply chain is where growth either holds or breaks. As we scale across channels and geographies, we need operations that are efficient, resilient, and built for speed, without ever compromising on the consumer experience. Amit has done this before, at real scale.”
Ember Cookware co-founder & CMO Himanshi Tandon added, “As we scale, supply chain efficiency becomes as important as product and brand. Amit’s mandate is to build the operational foundations that make our promise consistent at scale.”
Amit Singh commented, “Ember is building something genuinely different, a category-defining brand with a clear purpose and the ambition to match. I’m looking forward to building supply chain infrastructure that doesn’t just keep pace with growth, but enables it.”
The appointment forms part of Ember’s broader push to deepen leadership across key functions as it invests in its Innovation Lab, proprietary material technologies and operational backbone to support national expansion.
In a kitchenware world where non-stick promises are easy but delivery is hard, Ember isn’t just cooking up products, it’s cooking up an operation that keeps every promise sizzling from factory to fork.
