MAM
IVM podcasts launches alexa skill for cyrus broacha
MUMBAI: IVM Podcasts, India’s premier podcast network announced that its popular show, Cyrus Says will now have its own official skill on Amazon Alexa. Listeners of Cyrus Says can now play the popular podcast on their Amazon Echo or any Alexa-enabled device with the convenience of voice.
Hosted by the inimitable Cyrus Broacha, the show covers various elements of life in urban India including politics, sports, civic sense, traffic, kids, food and a host of other themes. This cricket season tune in to LANSO (Left-Arm-Not-So-Orthodox) – a topical edition of his podcast that airs every Wednesday by just saying “Alexa, talk to me about cricket”.
The skill can also be accessed with the Alexa app available on iOS and Android. Once enabled use simple voice commands such as “Alexa, open Cyrus Says”, or “Alexa, ask Cyrus says to play the latest podcast” to start listening.
Speaking on the association, Amit Doshi, founder of IVM said, “Making the skill available on Amazon Alexa is very exciting since it’s a sign of larger audiences adopting podcast as a medium of consuming content. It’s a seamless way to listen your favorite podcast with an official skill and I’m certain that fans of Cyrus Says will be very pleased with this development.”
Cyrus Broacha, TV and theatre personality, comedian and host of the show said, "Wow Cyrus Says is on Amazon Alexa? Keep in mind Cyrus himself is not available. Just Cyrus Says. Ask Alexa to play me, I mean Cyrus Says."
“It is exciting to see huge interest in podcasts and that Alexa Skills are enabling this adoption. We are delighted to see IVM onboard a popular name like Cyrus Broacha with a Alexa Skill focusing on cricket and other important topics”, says Dilip R.S., Country Manager for Alexa Skills, Amazon India.
While podcasts are a fairly popular medium of content consumption in the west, the Indian market is still playing catch-up. Over the last 4 years, IVM has been creating audio content and building a consumer base for the medium by creating engaging content and has collaborated with over 50 podcasters to garner 10 million listens so far.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
