AD Agencies
Boutique agency Infectious Advertising hires Akshay Kapnadak as chief creative officer
MUMBAI: It’s the coming together of two creative guys to build something bigger than the sum of both. Infectious Advertising creative chairman & founder Ramanuj Shastry has roped in veteran Akshay Kapnadak as the boutique agency’s chief creative officer. In his new role, Akshay will work together with Ramanuj to elevate the agency’s creative product to the next level.
An alumnus of the JJ Institute of Applied Arts, Akshay has been building brands and winning awards for close to 27 years. He spent the first 16 years of his career at McCann Erickson Mumbai, starting as a trainee and rising to the rank of executive creative director.
During this time, Akshay built strong teams and developed campaigns for a diverse range of clients, including global brands like Coca-Cola and L’Oréal, and leading Indian brands like Parachute, Pears, Radio Mirchi, and NDTV.
His work has earned both local and international accolades, including Gold at Cannes Lions and The One Show. He has served on juries at Cannes Lions, Clio Awards, AdFest Asia, and Goafest. After McCann, Akshay ventured into independent consulting, mentoring start-ups, and leading design and communication projects across South and Southeast Asia.
Ramanuj and Infectious Advertising CEO & co-founder Nisha Singhani are infectiously excited to have Akshay on board, if you read on and hear what they have to say about Akshay’s joining the agency.
“I worked very closely with Akshay for nearly half a decade at McCann,” says Ramanuj. “He is a fab guy with a brilliant mind and boundless energy. It will be lovely to work together again. Can’t wait for him to join.”
Adds Nisha: “We are thrilled that Akshay has chosen to join us. He is an exciting mind, a lovely person, and aligns perfectly with our values and our mission to deliver impactful ideas for our clients. I’m confident that he will lead us to new creative heights.”
Akshay, on his part , is over the moon on being on-boarded at the agency. Says he: “Infectious has built a reputation for strategic solidity and authentic storytelling. I’m excited to join this passionate team and eager to contribute to Infectious’ vision to build brands with purpose, ingenuity, and integrity,”
The 11 year old Infectious’ leitmotif is: creating work that solves problems facing brands and businesses. Among their clients figure National Geographic, ALD Automotive, Bayer Crop Sciences, UltraTech Cement, Inorbit Malls, IDFC, and TBZ – The Original, and many more. It recently launched its content arm-Epidemik Content, delivering content with best-in-class production that’s value for money, embracing AI and new-age storytelling.
With Akshay being signed on the three are expecting an epidemic of creativity to hit Infectious
AD Agencies
AdTrust Summit 2026 to examine trust, AI and Gen Alpha in advertising
Two-day summit in Mumbai to explore ethics, regulation and the future of advertising trust
MUMBAI: At a time when advertising is navigating a delicate trust deficit, the Advertising Standards Council of India is preparing to bring the industry to the table. On 17 and 18 March, the body will host the inaugural AdTrust Summit 2026 in Mumbai, a two-day gathering designed to spark conversation around responsibility, regulation and credibility in modern advertising.
The summit, to be held at the Jio World Convention Centre in Bandra Kurla Complex, will bring together leaders from advertising, media, technology and policy to examine how brands can build trust in a marketplace increasingly shaped by algorithms, influencers and artificial intelligence.
In an age of deepfakes, dark patterns and blurred lines between content and commerce, the question is no longer just how brands capture attention, but whether audiences believe what they see. The AdTrust Summit aims to unpack that challenge.
Day one will turn its attention to the youngest digital natives. Titled Decoding Gen Alpha, the session will unveil ‘What the Sigma?’, a study by ASCI and Futurebrands Consulting that explores how children growing up in a hyper-digital environment encounter advertising and commercial messaging.
The report presentation will be delivered by Santosh Desai, founder and director at Think9 Consumer Technologies and a social commentator known for his insights into consumer behaviour. The discussion that follows will attempt to decode how Gen Alpha consumes media, interacts with brands and navigates the growing overlap between entertainment and marketing.
In a move that mirrors the subject itself, two Gen Alpha students will also join the conversation, offering a rare perspective from the generation advertisers are trying to understand.
The second panel of the day will shift the focus from observation to implication, asking what the report’s findings mean for brands, agencies and society. Speakers include Karthik Srinivasan, communications strategy consultant; Preeti Vyas, president at Mythik; and Abigail Dias, associate president planning at Ogilvy. The session will be moderated by Sonali Krishna, editor at ET Brand Equity.
Day two moves from insight to regulation. Under the theme From Compliance to Trust, ASCI will release its Ad Law Compendium, a comprehensive guide to India’s advertising regulations.
The day will open with a keynote by Sudhanshu Vats, chairman at ASCI and managing director at Pidilite Industries, followed by a chief guest address by Sanjay Jaju, secretary at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Legal experts from Khaitan & Co., including Haigreve Khaitan, senior partner, and Tanu Banerjee, partner, will present an overview of the current advertising law landscape in India and examine whether existing frameworks are equipped to deal with emerging technologies and formats.
Subsequent panels will explore issues increasingly shaping the industry’s ethical compass. Conversations will range from the limits of persuasive design and the rise of dark patterns, to the growing scrutiny brands face from digital creators and consumer watchdogs.
One session will also feature Revant Himatsingka, widely known online as the Food Pharmer, whose critiques of packaged food brands have sparked debate around transparency and corporate accountability.
Later discussions will turn toward media literacy among Gen Alpha, asking how children can be equipped to navigate a digital world where gaming, content and commerce are becoming indistinguishable.
The summit will conclude with a final panel on the future of advertising, bringing together voices from agencies, legal circles and technology platforms to discuss how innovation, intelligence and integrity can coexist.
For an industry built on persuasion, trust has always been its quiet currency. But as audiences grow more sceptical and digital ecosystems more complex, that currency is under pressure.
Events like the AdTrust Summit suggest the advertising world knows it cannot afford to take credibility for granted. The real challenge now is turning conversation into commitment.
