AD Agencies
Aalap Desai launches ad agency – “TGTHR”
Mumbai: In a bold move to redefine the advertising industry landscape, Aalap Desai – former chief creative officer of Dentsu Creative West and Dentsu Creative Experience India – has announced the launch of TGTHR (Together) – India’s first future-focussed, full-funnel ad agency.
This move comes after Aalap’s departure from Dentsu Creative, driven by a burning question: “If you were to leave today, which agency would you like to join?” Fueled by a vision to combine exceptional work with an unparalleled culture, Aalap Desai introduces TGTHR as a place where happiness meets creativity to produce extraordinary results.
Speaking on the launch, Aalap Desai said, “The advertising industry is often filled with a sea of sameness. The saviours of this industry are the sparks of creativity that we see scattered here and there. It is challenging to find the right people for the job. The one who knows how to create a great TV ad might not know how to increase followers on a social handle. The one who has mastery over social media may have no idea about master branding. What if all these talents could come together to form a cohesive whole? If one great creative person is a force, imagine what could be achieved when they all combine as a force multiplier! This is especially true when you create an environment where they can thrive. That’s the idea behind TGTHR. Bring together expertise, talent, and passion to deliver clients unparalleled quality, connectedness, and effectiveness. All the while ensuring that we love where we work.”
TGTHR is a powerhouse of creativity, encompassing expertise from every domain, including mainline (TVC, print, outdoor), digital, film production, design, content, and media. What makes this agency different from everyone else claiming the same thing? The talent. The agency boasts an impressive collective experience of 110+ years in advertising, 550 plus International and National awards, and a track record of delivering over 12,000 campaigns. Headquartered in Mumbai, TGTHR also has branches in Delhi and Bengaluru.
Aalap Desai – a creative force to be reckoned with, held the role of chief creative officer at Dentsu Creative West and Dentsu Creative Experience India. His journey at Dentsu included being the National Creative Director at Dentsu McGarry Bowen India and co-heading the creative team at Dentsu Webchutney Mumbai. Aalap made waves with standout projects like Code Name: Uri, The 8-bit Journo for Vice, and The World’s Most Reported Trailer for Thappad. Throughout his career, Aalap has significantly contributed to agencies like Disney+ Hotstar, Leo Burnett, JWT, DDB Mudra, Ogilvy, and Ambience Publicis. He played a crucial role in shaping the stories of popular brands like McDonald’s, Complan, Huggies, Nerolac, Videocon d2h, as well as youth-focused ones like Early Salary and MTV India.
Aalap’s creative prowess has garnered over 200 International and National awards, including 10 Cannes Lions and 42 shortlists. Noteworthy recognitions include being labelled India’s “Hottest Young Creatives” by Brand Equity in 2014 and making Impact Magazine’s “Hottest 30 under 30” Media Creatives list in 2015. His recent successes include winning several accolades at Cannes Lions 2023 for Mortein’s Suraksha ka Teeka and Vedantu’s The Everything Book campaigns.
Beyond advertising, Aalap Desai has ventured into scriptwriting for feature films, web series, and TV shows like MTV Sound Trippin’. His discerning eye has also led him to serve on the jury for esteemed awards such as Kyoorious, Cannes Lions, and Spikes Asia. He has also directed ad films and short films that has won awards nationally and internationally.
AD Agencies
Abhay Duggal joins JioStar as director of Hindi GEC ad sales
The streaming giant brings in a seasoned revenue hand as the battle for Hindi television advertising heats up
MUMBAI: Abhay Duggal has a new desk, and JioStar has a new weapon. The media and entertainment veteran has joined JioStar as director of entertainment ad sales for Hindi general entertainment channels, adding 17 years of hard-won revenue experience to one of India’s most powerful broadcasting operations.
Duggal is no stranger to big portfolios or bruising markets. Before joining JioStar, he spent a brief stint at Republic World as deputy general manager and north regional head for ad sales. Before that, he put in three years at Enterr10 Television, where he ran the north region for Dangal TV and Dangal 2, two of India’s leading free-to-air Hindi channels. The north alone accounted for more than 50 per cent of total channel revenue on his watch, a number that tends to get attention in any sales meeting.
His longest stint was at Zee Entertainment Enterprises, where he spent over six years rising to associate director of sales. There he commanded the Hindi movies cluster across seven channels, owned more than half of north India’s revenue across flagship properties including Zee TV and &TV, and closed marquee sponsorships across the Indian Premier League, Zee Rishtey Awards and Dance India Dance. He also handled monetisation for the English movies and entertainment cluster and the global news channel WION, a portfolio that would stretch most sales teams twice his size.
Earlier in his career Duggal closed what was then a Rs 3 crore single deal at Reliance Broadcast Network, one of the largest in Indian radio at the time, before that he helped launch and monetise JAINHITS, India’s first HITS-based cable and satellite platform.
His edge, by his own account, lies in marrying data and instinct: translating audience trends, inventory signals and client demands into long-term partnerships built on cost-per-rating-point discipline rather than short-term deal chasing. In a media landscape being reshaped by streaming, fragmented attention and AI-driven advertising, that kind of rigour is increasingly rare and increasingly valuable.
JioStar, which blends the scale of Reliance’s Jio platform with the content firepower of Star, is doubling down on its advertising business at precisely the moment the Hindi GEC market is getting more competitive. Bringing in someone who has spent nearly two decades doing exactly this, across some of India’s most watched channels, is a pointed statement of intent. Duggal has spent his career turning audiences into revenue. JioStar is clearly betting he can do it again, and bigger.
