MAM
GroupM elevates top HR executives
MUMBAI: GroupM has appointed Sonali Vaidya as HR head for India, while Gaurav Hirey, who held the post earlier, is being moved to Singapore to be a part of the GroupM Regional Talent Team.
Hirey has also been named HR business partner for Maxus (Asia Pacific).
Vaidya will be based in Mumbai and will report to GroupM CEO South Asia Vikram Sakhuja.
Vaidya said, “Talent Management is new to this industry and is in its formative stages. There are huge opportunities for our businesses to realise the benefits of managing talent and hence I am looking forward
to being a part of this journey and delivering delight to our employees and customers.”
Hirey said, “Our success in Talent Management is clearly reflected in the level of satisfaction we are delivering to our clients and our employees who have made us the employer brand of choice. My new assignment gives me an opportunity to learn and share best practices from across the region and it is my belief that the talent function in this industry can make a significant impact on our business and hence our clients!”
Sakhuja added, “Sonali brings a wealth of commercial people management experience to the role. Gaurav has done a fabulous job in the past three years to bring scale, structure and credibility to the GroupM talent agenda that has gone from setting HR systems, to stepping up employee engagement and communication, to scaling up recruitment and performance management. His efforts to make GroupM one of the best places to work in has been validated by the Employer Branding Awards.”
Vaidya has over 14 years of experience in the human resources field across companies such as ABN AMRO Bank, GE consumer finance and ESPN Star Sports. Prior to this, she was with Alchemy Group, a financial services group, where she was group HR head. Her focus is on building an extremely intensive talent management programme to engage and grow GroupM’s talent internally.
In his new role, Hirey will lead the HR activities for the APAC region including recruitment, talent management and development, corporate social responsibility and employee relations. He will also support GroupM talent projects in addition to this. He will report to GroupM Global talent head Angela Ryan and Maxus APAC CEO Neil Stewart.
MAM
Barista partners Ginny Weds Sunny 2 with mango campaign
Cafe chain blends cinema buzz with summer menu and 20 per cent offer.
MUMBAI: Love may brew slowly, but marketing clearly doesn’t especially when coffee meets cinema and mangoes steal the spotlight. Barista Coffee Company has partnered with the upcoming hindi film Ginny Weds Sunny 2 as its official beverage partner, in a move aimed at tapping into youth culture through entertainment-led engagement. The collaboration is not just a logo placement exercise. Instead, Barista is translating the film’s high-energy vibe into its cafés with a themed summer menu titled “Main Hoon Mango”, accompanied by a limited-period 20 per cent discount on combo offerings across outlets.
Actors Medha Shankr and Avinash Tiwary feature in the campaign, seen engaging with the mango-themed menu inside Barista cafés, a visual cue designed to blur the lines between reel and real-life consumption moments.
The strategy reflects a broader shift in how consumer brands are leveraging hindi film industry not just for visibility, but for immersive, on-ground engagement. By embedding the film’s narrative into its product experience, Barista is aiming to drive footfall, especially among younger audiences who increasingly seek experiential touchpoints over traditional advertising.
Barista Coffee Company CEO Rajat Agrawal described the partnership as both a branding and growth play, focused on expanding reach beyond the existing customer base and aligning with evolving consumer preferences.
The emphasis on a seasonal, flavour-led hook mango, one of India’s most culturally resonant ingredients adds a timely layer to the campaign, aligning with summer consumption trends while riding on the film’s promotional momentum.
For Barista, the move is part of a larger positioning shift. Rather than operating purely as a coffee retail chain, the brand is increasingly framing itself as a lifestyle destination, one that intersects with entertainment, conversation and shared experiences. By integrating cinema into its physical spaces, Barista is effectively turning cafés into micro-extensions of the film’s universe, where consumers do not just watch a story unfold but participate in it sip by sip.
The 20 per cent offer further nudges trial, lowering the barrier for consumers to engage with the themed menu while amplifying recall through a tangible incentive.
Brand-film collaborations are hardly new, but their execution is evolving. Where earlier partnerships relied on co-branded ads or product placements, the current playbook leans towards immersive storytelling and retail integration.
In that sense, Barista’s “Main Hoon Mango” push is less about promotion and more about participation inviting consumers to experience a slice of the film within a familiar, everyday setting. As the film industry continues to act as a cultural amplifier, such partnerships underline a growing truth, in today’s attention economy, it is not enough to be seen brands must be experienced.
And if that experience comes with a mango twist and a cinematic backdrop, all the better.
