Brands
Japan’s Kikkoman taps manga magic to introduce soy sauce to Indian consumers
MUMBAI: Global Japanese brand Kikkoman has introduced its signature soy sauce to India’s food tapestry by distributing it to more than 1.5 million restaurants through the cultural exports manga. They launched a new series Varun & Pramod – Their Secret Ingredient for the campaign.
Kikkoman’s soy sauce is not just limited to the big food owners of India but is also accessible for junior chefs, cooks, and culinary school students to add a robust flavour to their platter. It is tapping into India’s manga fanbase to spice up the country’s culinary scene. The campaign using manga series showcases Kikkoman’s creative approach to establishing a foothold in India and influencing the country’s dynamic cuisine.
Using the manga approach to its marketing goal it uses its pivotal character Pramod- a young chef who learns that his job is in threat after changing the restaurant’s menu solitarily. However, his destiny led him to meet Varun who is a renowned restaurant owner’s heir. The two bond over their shared love for cooking and mutually agree to open a restaurant under their belt.
They aim to use this movement to change the dynamics of the food industry by using their secret ingredient- Kikkoman Soy Sauce.
Indian Federation of Culinary Associations and Kikkoman India Industry advisor Chef Manjit Gill complimented this campaign narrative as nostalgic and an enjoyable marketing approach.Talking about the campaign he said, “I strongly believe that Kikkoman’s message will resonate with many chefs in India. There are said to be more than 200,000 chefs in the organised sector alone.”
“I was fondly reminded of my own younger days – when the hero was trying hard, making all possible efforts to make dishes more delicious – using the best ingredients. I look forward to this story reaching out to a wide audience, making a real impact in India. In fact, I’m waiting impatiently for the next episode of this interesting Kikkoman Manga,” Gill added.
Currently, Kikkoman India is directly engaging with top chain restaurants and large format restaurants, gradually increasing its brand recognition and adoption. Given their fresh presence in India its recognition among restaurateurs and the country’s culinary experts is yet to be determined.
This campaign aims to familiarise the Kikkoman brand with Indian chefs who might be unfamiliar with it, encouraging them to experiment with its soy sauce in their recipes, including Chinese cuisine, and ultimately increasing its adoption in the Indian food industry. With this innovative creative strategy Kikkoman’s manga project hopes to leverage their storytelling method to make their sauce as an important ingredient to the recipes in the Indian market.
To make it accessible for all, the Kikoman manga will be available in English, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, and Marathi.
Brands
OpenAI hires Nitin Bawankule as head of enterprise sales, India
Former AWS, Google and Disney+ Hotstar leader to drive AI adoption at scale
MUMBAI: OpenAI has appointed Nitin Bawankule as head of enterprise sales for India, strengthening its leadership bench as it deepens its push into one of the world’s fastest-growing AI markets.
Bawankule, who will join in mid-May, brings more than two decades of experience across cloud, media, and digital ecosystems. Most recently, he served at Amazon Web Services, where he led multiple high-growth verticals and helped accelerate enterprise adoption of cloud and AI solutions in India.
Announcing the move, OpenAI head of enterprise sales, India Nitin Bawankule said he is looking forward to helping organisations transition from “isolated AI pilots to company-wide transformation” and embedding AI into everyday workflows to unlock productivity and better decision-making.
Before AWS, Bawankule held senior leadership roles at The Walt Disney Company, where he led ad sales for Disney+ Hotstar and television networks, driving revenue growth across major sporting and entertainment properties. He also spent over eight years at Google, including a stint as country director for Google Cloud in India.
His appointment comes at a time when Indian enterprises are rapidly scaling AI adoption, moving beyond experimentation to integrating AI into core business functions. OpenAI’s decision to bring in a seasoned enterprise leader signals its intent to capture this opportunity and build deeper partnerships across industries.
With a strong track record in navigating major technology shifts, Bawankule is expected to play a key role in translating AI’s promise into practical, business-ready solutions for Indian companies.
As the race to operationalise AI gathers pace, OpenAI’s latest hire suggests it is gearing up not just to participate, but to lead from the front in India’s enterprise AI story.
