MAM
Dentsu Creative Impact ropes in Anupama Ramaswamy and Akashneel Dasgupta as ECDs
MUMBAI: Dentsu Creative Impact, the creative agency from Dentsu Aegis Network that went on to win 23 metals at the Goafest this year, has made two major senior appointments in an attempt to further strengthen its creative product.
The agency has roped in Anupama Ramaswamy and Akashneel Dasgupta as Executive Creative Directors, who will report to Dentsu India Group, NCD Soumitra Karnik.
Prior to joining Dentsu Creative Impact, Ramaswamy was Executive Creative Director at Cheil, Gurgaon and was in-charge of the Samsung Mobile account. In the recent years, Anupama has worked on the launch of the Galaxy J series, Note 4, Grand 2 and the extremely-popular “Fickle is Fun” campaign for Lavie Handbags.
Commenting on her new role, Ramaswamy said, “I am very excited to join Dentsu Creative Impact. I have loved the vibe of the agency since the moment I walked in. Soumitra and Amit have been trying to get the best possible talent, and my mandate here is to have fun while building a vibrant and creative culture. This will involve less rhetoric and more hands-on hard work.”
Some of the agencies that she has worked with include JWT, Lowe, Rediffusion, Havas and FCB. She has worked across a gamut of brands such as Nokia, Airtel, Woodland, Whirlpool, LG, Maruti, Lays and Boost. In her kitty are a number of AdFest Golds, Spikes, Effies, New York Festival and a number of Abby’s. She was part of the One Show Jury in 2012 and is a regular face on the Goafest jury panel over the last few years.
Meanwhile, Dasgupta’s last assignment was at ADK Fortune where he was heading the creative function. Dasgupta started his career in advertising with strategic planning at Mudra.
Commenting on his new role, he said, “It’s an exciting time to join Dentsu Creative Impact where a young new team has taken shape and one cannot fail to notice the energy and enthusiasm. Also, it was a personal desire for some time to work with Soumitra and I am happy that an opportunity has presented itself. Hope you get to hear more from us, soon.”
Talking about the exciting new additions to the team, Karnik too said, “Great work happens when people commit to constantly raising the bar. We are young and tremendously hungry for qualitative growth. To satiate our appetite and to help us achieve our objective, people become easily our single most valuable asset and we cherry pick each one of them. Both Anupama and Akash are just the kind of people Dentsu Creative Impact needs to write its destiny. For me, they are our fantastic acquisitions.”
Echoing a similar sentiment Dentsu Creative Impact SVP and branch head Amit Wadhwa added, “It’s been great going for Dentsu Creative Impact, especially in the last year or so, and one way we can really continue this upward journey is by having the right people around. This holds true even more so when it comes to the creative talent, since that is where the action finally boils down to. I think in Anupama and Akash we have two extremely talented, passionate and at the same time mature heads that will take us to where we intend to go.”
Brands
YES Bank hands the keys to SBI veteran Vinay Tonse as it bets on a new era
Former SBI managing director appointed as YES Bank’s new MD and CEO
MUMBAI: YES Bank is done rebuilding. Now it wants to grow. The private sector lender has appointed Vinay Muralidhar Tonse as managing director and chief executive officer-designate, with RBI approval secured and a start date of April 6, 2026 confirmed. The three-year term signals the bank’s intent to shift gears from crisis recovery to full-throttle expansion.
Tonse, 60, is no stranger to scale. Most recently managing director at State Bank of India, he oversaw a retail book of roughly $800bn in deposits and advances, one of the largest in the country. Before that, he ran SBI Mutual Fund from August 2020 to December 2022, a stint that saw assets under management surge from Rs 4.32 lakh crore to Rs 7.32 lakh crore across market cycles. Add stints in Singapore and four years leading SBI’s overseas operations in Osaka, and the incoming chief arrives with a genuinely global CV.
His academic grounding is equally solid: a commerce degree from St Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bengaluru, and a master’s in commerce from Bangalore University.
The appointment follows an extensive search and evaluation process by the bank’s Nomination and Remuneration Committee. NRC chairperson Nandita Gurjar said the committee unanimously backed Tonse, citing his leadership track record, governance credentials and ability to drive the bank’s next phase of transformation.
Non-executive chairman Rama Subramaniam Gandhi was unequivocal. “I am certain that Vinay Tonse, with his vast experience as a senior banker, will propel YES Bank to its next phase of growth,” Gandhi said, adding that the bank remains focused on strengthening its retail and corporate banking franchises and expanding its branch network.
Rajeev Kannan, non-executive director and senior executive at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the bank’s largest shareholder, said Tonse’s experience across retail, corporate banking, global markets and asset management positioned him well to lead the lender. SMBC said it looks forward to working with Tonse and the board as YES Bank pursues its ambition of becoming a top-tier private sector lender anchored in strong governance and sustainable growth.
Tonse succeeds Prashant Kumar, who took the helm in March 2020 when YES Bank was in freefall following a severe financial crisis, and spent six years painstakingly stabilising the institution, rebuilding governance and restoring operational scale. Gandhi was generous: “The bank remains indebted to Prashant Kumar, who is responsible for much of what a strong financial powerhouse YES Bank is today.”
Tonse, for his part, struck a purposeful note. “Together with the board and my colleagues, I remain deeply committed to creating long-term value for all our stakeholders,” he said, pledging to build on Kumar’s foundation guided by his personal motto: Make A Difference.
Beyond the balance sheet, Tonse played cricket at college and club level and represented Karnataka in archery at the national championships — sports he credits with teaching him teamwork, situational leadership, discipline and focus. In quieter moments, he reaches for retro Kannada music, classic Hindi songs, and the crooning of Engelbert Humperdinck, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar.
YES Bank has its steady-handed rebuilder in Kumar to thank for survival. Now it has a scale-obsessed growth banker at the wheel. The next chapter starts April 6.
