MAM
Leo Burnett India onboards Rajeev Rakshit as executive director, Bangalore
Mumbai – Leo Burnett India, part of the Publicis Groupe India, has announced the appointment of Rajeev Rakshit as executive director, Leo Burnett, Bangalore. Rajeev will be reporting to Leo Burnett – South Asia CEO Amitesh Rao and is entrusted with taking the agency forward to the next level across client relationships, solutions, talent and growth. The appointment comes on the back of the agency’s strong partnerships with Bengaluru based clients including Ikea, RedBus, Kingfisher, Heineken, Lenovo, Acko, Flipkart to name a few.
Speaking about the announcement, Rao said “Leo Burnett is a formidable creative force in Bengaluru with great momentum, energy and ambition, working with some incredible brands, and lucky to have some of the most talented people onboard. Rajeev comes with a distinctive blend of a future facing orientation, maturity and deep industry knowledge, and we are delighted to have him join us in building on the foundation of our Bengaluru operation to take it to greater heights.”
Added Rajdeepak Das, Chief Creative Officer – Publicis Groupe, South Asia and Chairman – Leo Burnett, South Asia says “The Bangalore team energy is infectious and we currently work with some of the best clients of India from there. We already have Pravin Sutar leading the creative mandate from Bangalore and together with Rajeev who comes with solid hands -on experience, and we are confident of building meaningful solutions for our client partners.”
Speaking about his appointment, Rakshit commented, “Having had a substantive stint with Leo Burnett in the past, it feels like coming home. The agency’s inspired creativity, portfolio of iconic brands and numerous client success stories has resulted in its staggering momentum and I am excited to be a part of this journey. I have always admired Leo Burnett’s ability to reimagine and redefine industry norms and look forward to collaborating and contributing to propel the agency towards its next significant milestone.”
Rajeev joins Leo Burnett with over two and a half decades of hands on experience in the field of Upstream Marketing, Strategic Planning, Digital Strategy, Account Management, General Management and Business Head (Country & Region). His last stint was as Group CEO and Managing Partner – Thinking Folks, an independent upstream advertising and marketing solutions organisation. Rajeev has previously worked at Publicis Groupe’s L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, Leo Burnett and Publicis in various stints spanning his career.
He has also worked at JWT/WPP (Global Team Ford) where he was the Managing Partner and India head for GFT an integrated agency created exclusively for Ford; and McCann Erickson India, Saregama (RPG group) and Everest brand solutions.
Brands
Jubilant FoodWorks faces Rs 47.5 crore GST demand, plans appeal
Tax authorities flag alleged misclassification of restaurant services
MUMBAI: Jubilant FoodWorks Limited has landed in a tax tussle after receiving a GST demand of Rs 47.5 crore from the office of the additional commissioner of CGST and central excise in Thane, Maharashtra.
The order, issued under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, relates to an alleged incorrect classification of certain services under the category of restaurant services. According to the tax authorities, this classification resulted in a short payment of goods and services tax for the period between the financial years 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The demand includes Rs 47.5 crore in GST along with an equal amount as penalty, in addition to applicable interest. The order was received by the company on March 13, 2026.
In a regulatory filing to the BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, the company said it disagrees with the order and believes its arguments were not adequately considered.
The company is preparing to challenge the decision and plans to file an appeal. It added that once the redressal process is complete, the demand is likely to be dropped.
Despite the sizeable figure attached to the notice, the company said it does not expect any material impact on its financials, operations or other activities.
The disclosure was signed by Suman Hegde, EVP and chief financial officer, who confirmed that the company received the order at 19:06 IST on March 13 and has already initiated steps to contest it.
The development places the quick service restaurant major in the middle of a tax debate that could hinge on how certain restaurant-linked services are classified under GST rules. For now, the company appears ready to take the matter from the tax office to the appeals desk.
