Brands
Asian Paints launches Aks-e-Kashmir edition to honour Kashmir’s artistic legacy
MUMBAI: In a celebration of Kashmir’s rich cultural heritage, Asian Paints has launched a special festive edition of its Apex Ultima Weatherproof pack, aptly named ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’. The pack, released just in time for Eid, encapsulates the beauty and tradition of Kashmir, blending art with cutting-edge performance.
The ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’ pack beautifully showcases the iconic symbols of the valley, such as the tranquil shikaras of Dal Lake, the vibrant tulip gardens, intricate pashmina embroidery, and the region’s renowned botanical gardens. It also features elements of Kashmir’s rich history, including the famous kahwa vessels, mughal baari, and the delicate saffron flowers. Every detail of the design pays homage to the valley’s artistic legacy, drawing inspiration from its traditional textiles and detailed woodwork.
“Kashmir is more than a place it’s a feeling, alive in its stories, colours, and traditions that reflect resilience, beauty, and heritage,” said Asian Paints MD & CEO Amit Syngle. “With the Apex Ultima ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’ special edition pack, we are not only celebrating the region’s culture and craftsmanship, but also honouring the spirit of its people, their perseverance, and the legacy they continue to build.”
The ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’ edition is a fusion of artistic elegance and the superior weatherproof protection Apex Ultima is known for. The paint has been engineered to withstand India’s extreme weather conditions, ensuring that homes remain beautiful and durable.
“Apex Ultima is engineered to shield homes from India’s extreme weather conditions ensuring that every home’s beauty and durability is maintained, “Syngle continued. “By bringing together strong performance with the artistic essence of Kashmir, this special edition pack captures the unique blend of strength and elegance that defines the valley’s cultural spirit.”
Through this special edition, Asian Paints continues its tradition of celebrating India’s diverse heritage with limited-edition packs. With ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’, the brand not only offers protection but also shares the enduring beauty of Kashmir’s stories and craftsmanship.
Watch the ‘Aks-e-Kashmir’ video here,
Brands
Rakesh Menon joins Paytm as avp – lending
Fintech product leader takes on new role after building digital lending, payments and credit products across fintech ecosystem
MUMBAI: Rakesh Menon has joined Paytm as assistant vice president – lending, taking on a new role focused on strengthening the company’s lending and credit products.
Prior to this, Menon worked at Profectus Capital Pvt Ltd as chief manager – payments based financing and digital lending.
At Profectus, he designed and launched digital credit products for merchants with variable cash flows, including overdraft-linked and revenue-share lending models. He led end-to-end LOS–LMS API integrations with payment partners and aggregators, enabling real-time underwriting, disbursal and repayment workflows.
He also worked on funnel optimisation initiatives using journey analytics, improving onboarding, KYC and disbursal conversion by 35 per cent. He developed ecosystem partnerships for transaction-data-based credit assessment and automated settlement systems, and collaborated with credit and data science teams to strengthen risk models and early delinquency detection.
Menon standardised partner onboarding and API frameworks, reducing go-live timelines by 40 per cent and improving digital scalability.
Before Profectus Capital, he worked at PayU as senior manager – presales lead – enterprise business from August 2022 to August 2023. He set up a national presales function for fintech and digital commerce clients, aligning solutions such as EMI, BNPL, BBPS and offer engines to merchant requirements.
He also helped improve conversion rates by around 15 per cent through merchant persona mapping, demo frameworks and structured sales playbooks, working closely with product and go-to-market teams.
From April 2019 to July 2022, Menon served as business unit head – SMB – direct acquisitions at Worldline, where he built the SMB online payments vertical from scratch. The business scaled to Rs 2,500 crore in annual transaction volume, growing at 45 per cent year-on-year.
During this period, he introduced paperless onboarding processes including eKYC and eSign, developed partner dashboards and CRM automation systems, and integrated platforms such as Shopify, WooCommerce and Tally to expand merchant adoption.
Across roles, Menon has worked across digital lending, payments and merchant financing, with experience in product development, ecosystem partnerships, API integrations and fintech-led growth strategies.
At Paytm, he will focus on scaling lending products and strengthening digital credit infrastructure within the company’s financial services ecosystem.
His appointment comes as fintech firms continue to expand their lending and embedded finance offerings in a competitive market.
