MAM
Ashish Mahendru hangs up boots as Sarup Industries CFO
MUMBAI: In what can only be described as the corporate equivalent of dropping a bombshell and swiftly leaving the room, Ashish Mahendru waved goodbye to his role as chief financial officer at Sarup Industries Ltd. on 20 March 2025. Just when you thought the balance sheets couldn’t get any drier, Mahendru’s surprise exit has shaken things up like a martini—stirred, not shaken.
In a terse statement, Sarup Industries confirmed the resignation, stating, “Take note of the resignation given by Ashish Mahendru from the post of Chief Financial Officer And KMP of the company w.e.f 20.03.2025.” Straight to the point, eh?
Mahendru, a chartered accountant by profession, cited personal reasons for his immediate departure, requesting the board to promptly submit necessary paperwork to the registrar of companies, Punjab & Chandigarh. One might wonder if corporate bureaucracy was finally too much for our number-crunching protagonist to handle. Who knew financial statements could inspire such drama?
In his resignation letter, Mahendru graciously reflected on his stint, saying, “I have been fortunate to employ in M/s Sarup Industries limited. I have learnt a lot during my tenure in your organisation and I take this opportunity to thank the board of directors for their support and guidance during my tenure.”
The board meeting to address Mahendru’s resignation lasted just 20 minutes, perhaps indicating the CFO’s decision left little room for debate or perhaps the directors had lunch reservations they couldn’t cancel. Whatever the case, Sarup Industries is now on the prowl for a new financial wizard to crunch numbers and, hopefully, stay a tad longer.
Was it the spreadsheets? Was it the relentless pursuit of EBITDA targets? Or perhaps Mahendru realised life’s ledger has more thrilling entries yet to be explored. Only time—and possibly a tell-all memoir—will reveal the real reason behind this quick exit.
MAM
Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
