MAM
AndBeyond.Media appoints Dharika Merchant as company president
MUMBAI: AndBeyond.Media, announced the appointment of former Affinity executive Dharika Merchant to serve as President of the company, effective today. In her role, Merchant – a specialist in business development, product strategy and operations, will be focused on driving the execution of AndBeyond.Media’s strategic plan for expanding the businesses reach globally, and scale new heights with innovation to deliver operational excellence.
With in-depth industry experience, Dharika has had a long and successful track record overseeing and executing business strategy and expansion. She joins AndBeyond.Media from her long-standing stint at Affinity, where she spearheaded business teams and handled a multitude of product portfolios ranging from SEM, PPC and standard display to real-time bidding (RTB) and programmatic media buying. A digital maven with deep seeded skills in mobile marketing and media buying, she has provided her customer acquisition and relationship management expertise to a large spectrum of clients that include Direct Advertisers, Ad Networks, Affiliate Networks and Publishers, and has successfully helped businesses achieve their ambitions.
“As AndBeyond.Media forays into this new chapter of global expansion, I am confident that Dharika will effectively lead the business and help scale the company’s growth to its fullest potential,” said Karan Gupta, Chief Executive Officer at AndBeyond.Media. “Her strong management background and extensive leadership experience makes her the right person to oversee AndBeyond.Media’s future growth plans. Through the various positions she has held over the years, Dharika has proven to be an accomplished and trusted leader and brings to this position a strong reputation for developing teams and inspiring businesses to go beyond the ordinary. Her wealth of experience will truly serve as an asset as we continue to accelerate growth and attain new milestones.”
Talking about her new role Dharika Merchant, President, AndBeyond.Media said, “I’m thrilled to join AndBeyond.Media during this exciting time. AndBeyond.Media’s bespoke technology and solutions, I believe, are some of the finest innovative offerings in the programmatic advertising space. I look forward to working alongside Karan, Pankil and the company’s talented employees, and dedicated partners around the world to expand the reach of the business, drive greater value and challenge the limits of innovation”
“Dharika has built an impressive record of accomplishments through the years. Her proven ability to deliver results makes her the perfect choice to help execute our strategic ambitions and drive scalable, sustainable growth,” added Pankil Mehta, Chief Business Officer, AndBeyond.Media.
Merchant’s appointment comes closely on the heels of the appointment of Ashley King as VP Publisher Development and the launch of the New York City office – last week. These announcements come at a period of rapid expansion for the company’s business globally.
MAM
Brands push beyond compliance as trust takes centre stage
ASCI AdTrust Summit 2026 spotlights shift from legal checks to credibility.
MUMBAI: In a world where a disclaimer can be legally sound yet socially suspect, brands are learning that compliance may tick boxes but trust wins markets. At the inaugural ASCI AdTrust Summit 2026, a panel on “Beyond Compliance: The New Currency of Trust” unpacked a growing industry reality: the gap between what the law permits and what consumers accept is widening and fast.
Moderated by Meenakshi Ramkumar of National Law School of India University, the discussion brought together leaders across law, marketing and academia to examine how brands must evolve in a digital ecosystem increasingly shaped by scrutiny, scepticism and speed.
Ramkumar set the tone by highlighting a critical shift, advertising today operates in the same digital space that fuels misinformation, scams and fake news, making credibility harder to establish. “The challenge is not just about what brands do, but the broader context of low institutional trust,” she noted, adding that when violations go unchecked, trust erodes not just in brands but in the regulatory system itself.
This vacuum, she said, has given rise to consumer activism from boycotts to social media backlash as a parallel accountability mechanism.
For Amit Bhasin, Chief Legal Officer at Marico, the distinction was clear, legal compliance is non negotiable, but insufficient. “Compliance is the minimum threshold. The real challenge is staying aligned with changing consumer expectations,” he said.
He pointed to how advertising narratives have evolved from traditional depictions of gender roles to more shared responsibilities reflecting a broader societal shift. “Earlier, it was fine to show one person doing the household work. Today, that may not land well. Consumers expect brands to reflect reality,” Bhasin observed.
He also highlighted internal debates where campaigns that may be legally permissible are still rejected for being culturally insensitive, noting that responsible advertising often requires asking uncomfortable questions before the public does.
If compliance is the baseline, reputation is the battlefield.
Bhasin noted that reputational risk has become a far greater concern than legal exposure, particularly in an era where campaigns can be dissected within hours online. “Earlier, a controversial ad might invite a newspaper editorial. Today, within hours, you’re at the centre of a storm,” he said.
Brands, he added, now evaluate campaigns through a dual lens legal viability and reputational vulnerability with the latter often proving more decisive.
From a healthcare perspective, Satish Sahoo of Cipla Health underscored the complexity of operating within fragmented yet stringent regulatory frameworks, spanning drugs, food, cosmetics and Ayush. “Anything under a drug licence is the most tightly regulated,” he said, adding that this necessitates proactive, not reactive, compliance.
He shared an example from the oral rehydration salts (ORS) category, where Cipla resisted the temptation to position products aggressively despite competitive pressure. “Our product is WHO compliant, and our communication reflects that. We chose not to blur the lines, even if others did,” he noted.
The long term payoff, he suggested, lies in credibility built over consistency, not quick wins.
Yet, as Harsha N of National Law School of India University pointed out, even perfect compliance does not guarantee trust. Drawing from historical and modern examples from exaggerated product claims in the 1800s to contemporary environmental and health advertising, he argued that legal frameworks often lag behind consumer expectations. “A brand can be fully compliant and still be perceived as misleading,” he said, citing instances where fine print disclosures fail to reach or convince the average consumer. He added that larger companies carry a disproportionate responsibility to set ethical benchmarks, even in areas where the law remains silent.
The conversation also turned to digital advertising, where the challenge extends beyond content to how ads are experienced. From algorithmic targeting to personalised messaging, brands now operate in an environment where regulation struggles to keep pace with technology.
Sahoo noted that social media has amplified awareness, with influencers and consumers increasingly scrutinising product claims and calling out inconsistencies. “Awareness has gone up dramatically. People are questioning what goes into products and what brands are saying,” he said.
The role of self regulatory bodies such as Advertising Standards Council of India also came under the spotlight.
Harsha acknowledged that while SROs play a crucial role, they are not immune to criticism, particularly around perceived conflicts of interest and enforcement gaps. “SROs have a higher threshold of responsibility not just to interpret the law, but to anticipate societal expectations,” he said.
He added that failures in self regulation often push the burden back onto government intervention, underscoring the need for stronger, more proactive oversight.
One of the more nuanced debates centred on whether building trust comes at a cost. While Sahoo acknowledged that quality and compliance can increase costs, he argued that companies must absorb them as part of their long term strategy.
Bhasin, however, framed the challenge differently not as cost, but as competitiveness in a market where not all players play by the same rules. “The real tension is when others cut corners and you choose not to,” he said.
The panel concluded with a call to embed trust into business metrics.
Sahoo suggested that organisations must go beyond revenue targets to include consumer equity and trust based KPIs, ensuring that ethical considerations are not sidelined in the pursuit of growth. “Trust sounds abstract, but it can translate into measurable consumer equity,” he said.
As the discussion wrapped up, one message stood out: the rules of advertising are being rewritten not just by regulators, but by consumers themselves. In an ecosystem where attention is fleeting and scepticism is high, brands that merely comply may survive, but those that build trust are the ones that endure.
