Brands
Brands support Genesis Foundation’s Rhythm & Blues Festival
MUMBAI: A musical rollercoaster of pop, rock, Indian classical, Bollywood hits and more, a euphoric extravaganza of dance, music, friends and fun and a gratifying experience of contributing to a noble cause – the 6th edition of Genesis Foundation’s Kasauli Rhythm & Blues Festival delivered on all counts. The event saw participation from close to 600 supporters and music enthusiasts from different locations.
#KasauliRnB, which features in the list of some of the most-anticipated music festivals of India, is a confluence of artists, music-lovers and supporters of Genesis Foundation’s cause. Proceeds from the Festival go into the treatment of critically ill under-privileged children with heart disorders. Supporting the Foundation on this journey are supporters like Fitbit and Monster.com, all of whom have contributed to making this effort successful.
The spectacular evening of day 1 began with the performance of the renowned band, Late too Soon, who played rock and pop numbers. Their energetic performance was followed by Rajeev Raja Combine, an Indo-Jazz fusion band, which had people on their feet. And then came the electric performance by Nasya, who played a combination of popular Sufi, Haryanvi and Punjabi folk dedicated to all the attendees from the neighborhood. Headlining on day 1 were ‘Swatantra Rock’ band Eka, who left the audience breathless with their high-octane performance. The night ended with an after-party with the original fusion king, Lesle Lewis, who has composed some of the most iconic anthems of the generation. The pull of the music, the ambience and the Festival’s cause managed to lure even his excellency Shri VP Badnore, the Honourable Governor of Punjab along with his family.
On the second day, as the sun cut through the mountain breeze, Tritha Sinha led a group of people in a session of Meditation with Music, leaving them rejuvenated and ready for the day. In the afternoon, it was time for a dance – a dance of fingers on drums and tambourines – led by the Delhi Drum Circle.
The evening’s performances began with Kamakshi Khanna Collective, who brought the smoky blues to #KasauliRnB. Following her was Neeraj Arya’s Kabir Collective, a band whose lyrics are inspired by the verses of the famous poet, Kabir. Their performance had the magic of soul-searching philosophy as well as all the elements of classic rock. As the sun set, Jonita Gandhi performed to some of the latest Bollywood numbers like ‘Breakup Song’, Ed Shereen’s ‘Shape of you’ and popular AR Rahman’s Mayya Mayya that left the crowd roaring for more. Everyone was up and dancing and singing along. And then, the grand dame of Indian rock and roll took stage. Usha Uthup, whose powerful and resounding voice has made people of all ages fall in love with her music, had the audience wishing the night would never end as she sang song after song that was familiar and well-loved. Songs like Jaane Ja Jaan, Dum Maaro Dum, Monica, Oh my Darling left the audience asking for more. With her performance and after the weekend’s entire electrifying line-up, the Festival reached a crescendo, and trended at No.7 on desktop and No. 3 on mobiles pan-India on Twitter.
Talking about the event, Genesis Foundation founding trustee Prema Sagar said, “Kasauli Rhythm & Blues Festival has become a force to reckon with and we are happy and grateful for the relentless support that we receive each year. It is heartening to see that even though people come here to enjoy, they want to contribute to our cause whole heartedly. I’d like to thank everyone who was able to make this Festival such a success. We hope to see you in the coming years as well.”
Jonita Gandhi said, “We had a blast as the audience was really warm and they were very appreciative of the different styles of music. We always love to perform among such a great crowd, so happy that they enjoyed and so did we. Thank you to GF for inviting us. This is a very important cause as we need to spread awareness about this issue and I think it’s a great initiative that they are supporting. A cause like this is something that always brings people together and tonight is a perfect example of that. Hopefully this event will help support their cause in the best possible way. I’m glad to contribute for it.”
“It’s been a great journey of over 48 years with music. Genesis Foundation is and has been doing the best thing in this world, which is giving life to those who need, and helping little kids get a chance to smile again. My music has always been about spreading love and so I relate to the cause even more. I am thankful to GF for having me here,” said Usha Uthup, the headliner performer at #KasauliRnB.
Monster.com MD – APAC & Middle East Sanjay Modi said,“The passion and enthusiasm of team Genesis Foundation (GF) is inspiring. It just goes to prove that when you love what you do, you put your heart and soul in it to make it a success! With the Kasauli Rhythm & Blues (RnB) festival, GF has found the right track to reach out to people for the noble cause of helping the underprivileged children. Like Billy Joel said, ‘Music in itself is healing, it is an explosion of expression of humanity. It’s something we are all touched by.’ I am glad to be a part of yet another season of RnB and strongly believe that it is important for each individual to understand their responsibility towards the society and work towards its betterment.”
Fitbit India in an official statement commented, “It has been a pleasure to be a part of the 6th Kasauli Rhythm & Blues Festival as the title sponsors and to be associated with Genesis Foundation for the third year. We are happy to have been a part of this fantastic journey with the Foundation team towards spreading smiles through the treatment of critically ill children. We would like to congratulate the GF team for yet another brilliant edition of the KRBF – that is now amongst the best music festivals in the country. We witnessed amazing interest from the audience at the Fitbit booth at the festival and partnering with the Genesis Foundation is in line with our endeavour to empower people to lead healthier, more active lives by providing them with data, inspiration and guidance to reach their goals.”
Brands
Big Bowl appoints Lyxel & Flamingo as social and media partner
QSR brand eyes next growth phase after crossing Rs 100 crore ARR milestone
MUMBAI: Big Bowl, one of India’s largest bowl-format quick service restaurant brands from Lenexis Foodworks, has appointed Lyxel & Flamingo (L&F) as its social and media partner as it prepares for its next phase of growth.
The partnership comes after the brand crossed the Rs 100 crore annual recurring revenue milestone in 2025 and aims to help accelerate its journey towards Rs 150 crore ARR in its fifth year since launch.
Big Bowl currently operates more than 250 kitchens across 50 cities and has emerged as a major player in India’s organised bowl-format food segment. Built around hearty portions and delivery-first convenience, the brand offers a wide mix of Indian, Chinese and fusion bowls designed for quick, affordable and portable consumption.
As urban consumers increasingly gravitate towards easy-to-carry and value-driven meal formats, the company sees the bowl category as a scalable format aligned with modern eating habits.
With the appointment of Lyxel & Flamingo, Big Bowl plans to consolidate its social media and digital media operations under a single partner. The move is intended to sharpen its digital reach, strengthen youth-focused storytelling and improve performance marketing outcomes.
Lyxel & Flamingo, one of India’s largest independent digital-first agencies, manages more than 350 brands and oversees advertising spends exceeding $100 million across its network.
Under the mandate, the agency will handle Big Bowl’s social media strategy, content development, digital performance marketing, media planning and buying, as well as campaign amplification across platforms.
Commenting on the partnership, Lenexis Foodworks founder and director Aayush Madhusudan Agrawal said, “Big Bowl has scaled rapidly to cross Rs 100 crore ARR and established itself as one of the largest bowl-format brands in the country. As a delivery-first, digitally native brand, our next phase of growth will be driven by sharper performance systems and stronger brand storytelling. Consolidating social and media with Lyxel & Flamingo allows us to integrate data, creativity and media precision as we scale towards our next revenue milestone.”
Lenexis Foodworks marketing head Vikas Iyer, added that the delivery-led category requires content, media and performance marketing to work closely together.
“With Lyxel & Flamingo, we aim to build a sharper social voice, stronger acquisition systems and measurable impact, ensuring the brand scales not just in presence but also in precision,” he said.
Lyxel & Flamingo chief executive officer Dev Batra, said the agency will combine data-driven marketing with creative storytelling to support Big Bowl’s growth. “Big Bowl brings the flavour, and L&F brings the fire. Our strategy combines data-led performance with engaging storytelling to help build a strong digital brand presence while delivering measurable business results,” he said.
With this partnership, Big Bowl is looking to strengthen its position as a digitally driven QSR brand, blending brand-building with performance marketing as it scales within India’s rapidly growing organised food delivery market.
