MAM
aha collaborates with Sprite for its new campaign featuring Keerthi Suresh
Mumbai: The leading regional OTT platform, aha has partnered with Sprite in a co-branded partnership that is the first of its kind in Telugu-speaking states. The partnership includes a campaign entitled “Friday Night is perfect with Sprite and aha-100 per cent Telugu Entertainment,” featuring national award-winning actress Keerthi Suresh.
It was launched with the idea of positioning Sprite as the preferred drink during OTT consumption on Fridays. Consumers can buy the Sprite bottles carrying the aha logo and scan the QR code to access 24 hours of free aha’s unlimited entertainment.
This offer is exclusive to consumers in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for a limited period. The ad film runs around how Keerthi is dodging her parents’ plan to attend a wedding just to chill at home watching a movie on aha with Sprite. The central insight in this campaign is how critical the Friday fix is for young consumers these days and how aha and Sprite give you that fix.
Launched with a promise to provide non-stop entertainment, this partnership will be instrumental in allowing the audience in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to access the high-quality local content offered by aha and experience the entertainment in their native language. Viewers can watch over 250 films, including blockbusters like Bheemla Nayak, the DJ Tilluseries, and original shows like Dance Ikon and Unstoppable, for free for the first 24 hours before choosing from the platform’s multiple subscriptions.
Commenting on this partnership, aha CEO Ajit K. Thakur said, “At aha, we have always tried disruptive innovations to reach our consumers and make 100 per cent local entertainment accessible. We are happy to partner with a leading brand like Sprite to bring great consumer delight. Our audience can access unlimited Telugu content for free by the mere scan of a QR code on a sprite bottle. We are confident that with partnerships like this, we can bring 100 per cent Telugu entertainment closer to Telugu-speaking audiences where they are.”
Adding to it, aha head of non-subscription revenue Nitin Burman said, “We are thrilled to be working with the prestigious beverage brand Sprite. Sprite’s presence and strong emphasis on entertainment will make it possible for local consumer markets to function by providing appropriate entertainment at affordable prices. This collaboration will allow aha subscribers in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to watch their favourite films, series, and shows on aha gold from the comfort of their own homes.”
Speaking on this engagement and co-branded campaign with aha, Keerthy Suresh said, “I am excited to be associated with aha Telugu. This aha and Sprite partnership is innovative and helps Telugu audiences consume much more entertainment than before.”
Brands
Paytm taps Ujas Shah as vice president for sales, business development
Veteran executive to drive swiping devices and merchant-led growth
BENGALURU: Paytm has appointed Ujas Shah as vice president—sales business development, reinforcing its push to scale offline payments and device-led monetisation as competition in fintech intensifies.
In the role, Shah will lead business development for swiping devices, shape go-to-market strategy and oversee profit-and-loss execution across Paytm’s offline payments stack. His remit includes expanding distribution, tightening merchant lifecycle management and rolling out KPI-led sales systems aimed at improving acquisition and retention.
The appointment reads like an operational signal from the top: execution, discipline and scale now matter as much as growth. Industry executives say device-led payments, long viewed as margin accretive, are back in sharp focus.
Shah is a long-standing Paytm executive, having previously served as national sales head, assistant vice president and general manager for sales. Before joining the company, he held senior roles at Kinara Capital, where he was field sales head, and earlier at Idea Cellular, Tata Teleservices, Samsung Electronics and Asian Paints.
His two decades across telecom, consumer and fintech businesses give him a rare, cross-sector view of distribution-heavy models: an asset as Paytm looks to extract more value from its merchant base amid tighter capital and higher investor scrutiny.
