Brands
Love is brewing as Barista turns up the romance this Valentine’s season
The café chain rolls out a limited ‘Currently Romantic’ menu from 1 February.
MUMBAI: Cupid has found a new favourite table right next to the coffee machine. As Valentine’s Day approaches, Barista Coffee Company is leaning into the season of love with a limited-edition menu designed to make dates sweeter, coffees richer and moments more memorable.
Branded Currently Romantic, the Valentine’s special menu lands across Barista outlets nationwide from 1 February, serving up indulgent flavours that blend comfort with celebration. The idea is simple: slow down, share a table and let the coffee do some of the talking.
The seasonal line-up includes the Strawberry Brownie Frappe, a playful mix of fruity brightness and chocolatey depth, alongside the Brownie Latte creamy, rich and unapologetically indulgent. For those who prefer to mark the occasion with something to slice and share, the Valentine’s Cake offers a sweet centrepiece built for lingering conversations and second helpings.
Barista Coffee Company chief executive officer Rajat Agrawal said the campaign is rooted in creating warmth rather than spectacle. He noted that the brand’s focus this season is on making people feel special, whether they are stepping out for a quiet coffee, planning a casual date or simply treating themselves to something indulgent.
Beyond the menu, Currently Romantic reflects Barista’s broader brand mood, lively, expressive and built around shared experiences. The café chain is positioning its Valentine’s offerings as moments worth pausing for, where cups, desserts and conversations come together naturally, and yes, photograph well too.
The exclusive menu will be available at select Barista cafés across the country from 1 February, inviting customers to sip slowly, share generously and let romance brew, one cup at a time.
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.
