Brands
Cleartrip hijacks your Google Calendar to stop you missing long weekends
MUMBAI: Long weekends are meant for escape. Instead, they slip by unnoticed, buried under emails and spreadsheets. Cleartrip has a fix: hack the very tool that schedules your drudgery.
The Indian online travel agent has launched its Long Weekend Tracker, an industry-first feature that maps every extended break in 2026 directly onto Google Calendar. The campaign promises to ambush travellers with reminders two to three weeks before each long weekend, turning hustle tools into holiday tools.
The logic is simple. Everyone romanticises long weekends, few plan for them. By integrating travel prompts into one of the world’s most-used productivity apps, Cleartrip plants itself at the exact moment intent forms. Calendar events include embedded links to flights, buses and hotels, letting users move from daydream to booking with a single tap.
“We want travel to stay on your mind all year, not just when leaves pile up or life becomes unbearable,” said Govind Bansal, head of marketing at Cleartrip. “Even if travellers forget, Cleartrip won’t, because we won’t let you escape a great escape from your daily routine.”
March 2026 has the most long weekends, making it prime season for getaways, whether short bus trips or longer international flights. By owning long weekends as a planning trigger, Cleartrip is betting it can shift behaviour from reactive to proactive, building consideration across its entire platform.
The tracker works in four steps: download Google Calendar, click Cleartrip’s link (https://cleartrip-web.app. Cleartrip, acquired by Flipkart in 2021, recently emerged as India’s number two online travel agent. With the Long Weekend Tracker, it is positioning itself as the nudge that won’t shut up. Whether that proves helpful or annoying depends on how badly you need a holiday. Either way, your calendar now knows better than you do.
Brands
Devyani International names Sandeep Anand, Robinder Singh in key roles
Pizza Hut and Costa Coffee businesses see leadership refresh from April
MUMBAI: Devyani International has strengthened its senior leadership bench with a fresh set of appointments across its key brands, Pizza Hut and Costa Coffee, signalling a sharper focus on growth and brand momentum.
The company has appointed Sandeep Anand as chief marketing officer and business head for Pizza Hut. His appointment, approved by the board via a circular resolution on April 3, follows a recommendation by the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, as reported by CNBC-TV18. Anand will officially step into the role on April 6, 2026.
He takes over from Vijay Gogate, who currently serves as chief executive officer for Pizza Hut within the company’s operations. The move marks a strategic transition as the brand looks to sharpen its marketing and business playbook in a competitive quick service restaurant market.
Anand brings over two decades of experience across the food and FMCG sectors, with a strong track record in brand building and innovation. His career spans roles at major consumer-facing companies including Domino’s, Zydus Wellness, Zomato, GSK Consumer Healthcare, Reckitt and Ranbaxy, giving him a well-rounded perspective on both scale and agility.
Alongside this, Robinder Singh has been appointed business head for Costa Coffee and the company’s airport operations. He too will assume his new role on April 6, bringing more than 18 years of experience in operations, business expansion and customer experience transformation.
The twin appointments come at a time when Devyani International is doubling down on leadership depth to steer its portfolio through evolving consumer preferences and heightened competition. With fresh faces at the helm of two key verticals, the company appears set to brew up its next phase of growth with renewed energy.
