MAM
Aditya Mehendale promoted as national creative director at Schbang
Mumbai: Digital marketing agency Schbang has promoted Aditya Mehendale as national creative director, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In this new role, Mehendale will oversee the creative products in India for the agency. He will be also responsible to maintain synergies across both North and South zones in India.
He joined Schbang as a creative strategist six years ago. He was earlier the creative director of the agency.
Mehendale crafted various communication strategies for brands such as Fevicol, Amazon Prime Video, Ashok Leyland, Mattel, Castrol, Jio, and Raw Pressery.
“Aditya is a brilliant creative mind and has proven time and again his ability to understand the customers’ requirements and translate them into a fine creative product,” said Schbang’s founder Harshil Karia, as quoted by media reports. “The work that Schbang has done over the last seven years has had his touch on it. I am delighted with the celebration, it’s a growth story that means a lot to us. We wish Aditya all the best in this new role,” he added.
Speaking on his new role, the media reports quoted Mehendale saying, “It’s been awe-inspiring to be part of a journey that has taken us from being a fledgling agency seven years ago to one of the most dominant independents in India. “As I step into the big shoes of overlooking our entire India creative portfolio, I thank Schbang for its unshaken faith and confidence in me and intend to do my best to strengthen our position as an India-born creative powerhouse.”
Brands
Airtel, Jio, Vi quietly raise tariffs with tweaks ahead of major hike
Airtel, Jio and Vi test subscriber response with subtle plan changes
NEW DELHI: India’s top telecom operators, including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea, are quietly reworking their prepaid plans in what appears to be a calculated run-up to a broader tariff hike expected later this year.
Rather than announcing headline-grabbing price increases, the operators are opting for subtle tweaks that are less likely to trigger immediate consumer backlash. Industry observers describe this as a “testing the waters” approach, where small changes help gauge subscriber sensitivity while gradually improving revenues.
Among the most visible moves is plan pruning. Airtel has discontinued its popular Rs 799 pack, widely seen as a high-value offering, while nudging up the price of its Rs 859 plan to Rs 899. The changes may seem marginal, but across millions of users, they translate into meaningful revenue gains.
Reliance Jio, on its part, has taken a sharper route by slashing the validity of its Rs 195 plan from 90 days to just 30 days. The price remains unchanged, but the value per day has dropped steeply, effectively raising costs for consumers without altering headline tariffs.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea is restructuring its “NonStopHero” packs, limiting unlimited data benefits to night hours in several circles. The move trims usage flexibility while keeping plan positioning largely intact.
Another common tactic is bundling. Operators are increasingly pairing plans with OTT subscriptions such as streaming services, framing price adjustments as value additions even when the core offering remains largely unchanged.
The broader goal behind these moves is to lift ARPU (Average Revenue Per User), a key profitability metric in the telecom business. Airtel is targeting an ARPU of around Rs 300, up from roughly Rs 250, while Jio is under pressure to demonstrate stronger revenue growth ahead of a potential IPO. For Vodafone Idea, the urgency is more immediate as it seeks higher cash flows to fund 5G expansion and manage outstanding dues.
Industry estimates suggest that these incremental changes are a precursor to a larger, industry-wide tariff hike of 15 to 20 per cent, likely towards the end of 2026. The delay in announcing a full-scale increase is partly due to macroeconomic concerns, including inflation and volatile fuel prices, which could dampen consumer sentiment.
The push to monetise 5G is also gathering pace. After investing more than Rs 3 lakh crore in next-generation networks, operators are expected to gradually phase out free 5G data and reposition it as a premium service.
For consumers, the impact is already visible in small but steady increases in monthly bills. For telcos, however, this is a carefully choreographed build-up, easing users into higher spending before the bigger pricing reset arrives.
