MAM
Intercell-Virtual Mentor Network names Abhishek Verma as CMO
Mumbai: Ed-tech start-up and online mentoring service Intercell – Virtual Mentor Network announced on Wednesday that it has onboarded Abhishek Verma to its leadership team as chief marketing officer. Verma will lead all marketing and PR initiatives and will help build a compelling brand story and drive user growth.
Intercell is backed by marquee HNI investors, including actor Sonu Sood, who has recently invested in the business.
“I am very excited to be joining the Intercell team,” said Abhishek Verma. “I believe Intercell has a great business model and talented management team that uniquely positions it to capitalize on the changing industry. Mentoring services are the need of the hour and I look forward to working with the leadership to craft a narrative for the brand and drive the next phase of growth.”
Verma comes with 21 years of industry experience, has led marketing teams at Star TV, Sony Entertainment Television and Discovery Channel. More recently, he led the P&L of Freemont Digital, a digital agency with luxury hospitality clients like the Taj Group of Hotels. Verma has graduated from New Jersey Institute of Technology, USA and has an MBA from SP Jain School of Global Management.
“We are delighted to have Abhishek join our leadership team and direct the marketing function towards our next phase of growth,” said CEO Arunabh Varma. “His diverse expertise in building brands will be pivotal to our plans.”
Digital
India leads global adoption of ChatGPT Images 2.0 in first week
From anime avatars to fantasy covers, users turn AI visuals into culture
NEW DELHI: India has emerged as the largest user base for ChatGPT Images 2.0, just a week after its launch by OpenAI, underlining the country’s growing influence on global internet trends.
While the tool was introduced as an advanced image-generation upgrade within ChatGPT, Indian users are quickly reshaping its purpose. Instead of sticking to productivity-led use cases, many are embracing it as a creative playground for self-expression, storytelling and online identity.
From anime-style portraits and cinematic headshots to tarot-inspired visuals and fictional newspaper front pages, the model is being used to create highly stylised, shareable content. Features such as accurate text rendering, multilingual prompts and the ability to generate detailed visuals with minimal input have helped drive rapid adoption.
What sets the latest model apart is its ability to “think” through prompts, generating multiple outputs and adapting to context, including real-time web inputs. But the bigger story lies in how users are engaging with it.
In India, trends are already taking shape. Popular formats include dramatic studio-style lighting edits, LinkedIn-ready headshots, manga-inspired avatars, soft pastel “spring” aesthetics, AI-led fashion moodboards, paparazzi-style visuals and fantasy newspaper covers. Users are also restoring old photographs, creating tarot-style imagery and experimenting with futuristic design concepts.
Local flavour is adding another layer. Prompts such as cinematic portrait collages and Y2K-inspired romantic edits are gaining traction, blending global aesthetics with distinctly Indian internet culture.
The surge reflects a broader shift in how AI tools are being used in the country, moving beyond utility to creativity. As younger users, creators and social media enthusiasts experiment with new visual formats, AI-generated imagery is increasingly becoming part of everyday digital expression.
If early trends hold, ChatGPT Images 2.0 may not just be a tech upgrade but a cultural moment, giving millions a new visual language to play with online.
