MAM
Advertising Avenues’ Rakshit to receive AAAI Premnarayen award
MUMBAI: The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) will be presenting the AAAI Premnarayen award for outstanding contribution to the industry to Advertising Avenues chairman Goutam Rakshit.
The award will be presented on 21 July in Mumbai. Last year, the AAAI Premnarayen award was given to Lintas India chairman and managing director Prem Mehta.
This award is the most prestigious award the AAAI confers and is akin to being inducted into its Hall of Fame. Rakshit, now joins the ranks of the chosen few who are honoured long before they retire.
Rakshit began his professional career at Cadbury and rose rapidly to head its marketing team. Incidentally, he can take credit for launching the Bournvita Quiz Contest.
After a successful stint at Cadbury, Rakshit joined Clarion Advertising before setting off to start an agency called Advertising Avenues along with Ashok Roy and Gopi Kukde.
Advertising Avenues was one of the hottest agencies in the 80s and has to its credit the path-breaking Onida campaign.
Rakshit has been president of the AAAI and chairman of the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA). He played a major role in bringing and helping organise the AdAsia 2003 in Jaipur. He is now chairman of the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI).
Incidentally, 21 July will also be the date when the AAAI kicks off its Diamond Jubilee celebrations with a seminar wherein the opening speech will be given by BBDO Worldwide CEO Andy Robertson.
MAM
Huella Services appoints Pankajj Rai as vice president – Ad sales
Media veteran with 18 years experience to lead monetisation and partnerships.
MUMBAI: When the ad game gets smarter, companies often look for someone who knows how to sell the story behind the screen. Huella Services has appointed Pankajj Rai as vice president for Ad sales, a move aimed at strengthening the company’s advertising and monetisation strategy as it expands its technology-led media offerings.
Rai brings over 18 years of experience across broadcast and digital media and will oversee monetisation initiatives for Newsroom AI, while also helping shape Huella’s next phase of development in interactive and AI-led advertising solutions.
Based in Delhi NCR, he will work closely with the founders and leadership team to align product capabilities with market needs, while driving partner development and go-to-market strategies for the company’s advertising platforms.
Rai’s career spans senior roles across some of India’s prominent media organisations. Before joining Huella, he served as business head for Wion and Zee Business at Zee Media Corporation. Earlier, he was national sales head at QYOU Media, where he led commercial partnerships and advertising growth.
His experience also includes managing commercial operations for major television brands such as Zee TV, Zee Cinema and Zee Bollywood, with responsibilities spanning North and East India.
Commenting on the appointment, Huella, co-founder and CEO Prrincey Roy said the company is strengthening its leadership team as it prepares for the next phase of growth.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Pankajj at a time when Huella is expanding both its portfolio and ambition. His depth of experience and strategic lens make him an invaluable addition as we build not just better products, but better outcomes for our partners and brands,” Roy said.
Huella Services is currently building technology driven advertising platforms that integrate AI powered content ecosystems with brand engagement, reflecting a broader shift in the media industry towards data driven and interactive advertising formats.
With Rai now leading ad sales and monetisation, the company aims to deepen relationships with advertisers while scaling its AI driven media products in an increasingly competitive digital advertising landscape.
