MAM
Burger King strengthens partnership with Mumbai Indians
MUMBAI: Burger King India has announced its association with the upcoming T20 League cricketing carnival, in an exclusive category partnership with Mumbai Indians for the second year in a row. As part of the collaboration, Mumbai Indians will sport Burger King logo on its outfit.
Celebrating this season with a delectable twist, Burger King has curated a special whopper named after the partner team which is available on the menu through this season of Mumbai Indians. The Mumbai Indians Masala Whopper is inspired by the flavourful spices of Indian gravies. This unique offering will be available in restaurants located across Mumbai, Pune, and Gujarat in western region.
Further setting the tone for this cricket season, and taking forward its partnership towards a noble cause, Burger King in continuation with its campaign ‘Sixes for Kings’ shall have an additional exciting element this year. Throughout the season, on every six hit and on each wicket taken by Mumbai Indians player, the brand shall give away Whopper meals to the girls of Avasara Foundation. The partner NGO provides the highest quality education to underprivileged girls in Pune.
Commenting on the partnership, Burger King India CEO Rajeev Varman said, “I am delighted to announce our partnership with Mumbai Indians for the second consecutive year. Cricket has always proven to be the most impactful medium to connect with our guests and strengthen our brand visibility. This season we have pushed the boundaries to engage our fans in an exciting in-restaurant experience. With numerous engagement activities and special menu dedicated to cricket fans, we are sure that our guests will have a Whopper of a time with this association.”
A Mumbai Indians spokeseperson said, “Mumbai Indians is excited to partner with Burger King India for second year in a row. Mumbai Indians endeavour to create meaningful partnership for our fans who can experience the cricket fever through the Burger King."
Avasara Leadership Foundation founder Roopa Purushothaman said, “We are grateful to Burger King for taking forward the ‘Sixes for Kings’ initiative this year as well. Our students are truly grateful for these Whopper Meals and the ongoing support to our organization. The ‘Sixes for Kings’ pledge means a lot to all of us.”
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Abhay Duggal joins JioStar as director of Hindi GEC ad sales
The streaming giant brings in a seasoned revenue hand as the battle for Hindi television advertising heats up
MUMBAI: Abhay Duggal has a new desk, and JioStar has a new weapon. The media and entertainment veteran has joined JioStar as director of entertainment ad sales for Hindi general entertainment channels, adding 17 years of hard-won revenue experience to one of India’s most powerful broadcasting operations.
Duggal is no stranger to big portfolios or bruising markets. Before joining JioStar, he spent a brief stint at Republic World as deputy general manager and north regional head for ad sales. Before that, he put in three years at Enterr10 Television, where he ran the north region for Dangal TV and Dangal 2, two of India’s leading free-to-air Hindi channels. The north alone accounted for more than 50 per cent of total channel revenue on his watch, a number that tends to get attention in any sales meeting.
His longest stint was at Zee Entertainment Enterprises, where he spent over six years rising to associate director of sales. There he commanded the Hindi movies cluster across seven channels, owned more than half of north India’s revenue across flagship properties including Zee TV and &TV, and closed marquee sponsorships across the Indian Premier League, Zee Rishtey Awards and Dance India Dance. He also handled monetisation for the English movies and entertainment cluster and the global news channel WION, a portfolio that would stretch most sales teams twice his size.
Earlier in his career Duggal closed what was then a Rs 3 crore single deal at Reliance Broadcast Network, one of the largest in Indian radio at the time, before that he helped launch and monetise JAINHITS, India’s first HITS-based cable and satellite platform.
His edge, by his own account, lies in marrying data and instinct: translating audience trends, inventory signals and client demands into long-term partnerships built on cost-per-rating-point discipline rather than short-term deal chasing. In a media landscape being reshaped by streaming, fragmented attention and AI-driven advertising, that kind of rigour is increasingly rare and increasingly valuable.
JioStar, which blends the scale of Reliance’s Jio platform with the content firepower of Star, is doubling down on its advertising business at precisely the moment the Hindi GEC market is getting more competitive. Bringing in someone who has spent nearly two decades doing exactly this, across some of India’s most watched channels, is a pointed statement of intent. Duggal has spent his career turning audiences into revenue. JioStar is clearly betting he can do it again, and bigger.
