MAM
Makemytrip and Zomato serve hot meals right to train passengers’ seats
MUMBAI: No more soggy samosas in foil packets, train travel in India just got a gourmet upgrade. Makemytrip has teamed up with Zomato to bring meals from 40,000 plus restaurant partners across 130 plus stations straight to passengers’ seats.
The move rides a wave of appetite: in FY 2024–25, more than 90,000 rail passengers used Indian Railways’ e-catering services daily, a 66 per cent year-on-year growth. With its new ‘Food on Train’ service, MakeMyTrip is banking on its Live Train Status tool to nudge travellers into ordering at just the right moment, ensuring breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks arrive piping hot.
The partnership has already been soft-launched with encouraging results, showing travellers lean towards travel-friendly meals. To add festive flavour, passengers booking rail journeys on MakeMyTrip this Diwali will also get a complimentary coupon redeemable on Zomato orders.
“Over the past few years, we have been growing faster than the industry in train bookings, driven by customer-centric innovations. Food on Train is another step to enhance the journey,” said Makemytrip CBO & CMO Raj Rishi Singh.
Zomato, which has already served 4.6 million plus orders across 130 plus stations as an IRCTC-authorised food partner, sees this as a natural extension. “This collaboration makes meals seamless and enjoyable, delivered directly to your seat,” said Zomato VP for Product Rahul Gupta.
Beyond food, Makemytrip is also reshaping every stage of the train journey with tools like route extension assistance, seat availability forecasts, seat lock, trip guarantee, free cancellation, live PNR updates, and real-time tracking.
From steaming biryanis to paneer rolls, rail journeys may never taste the same again because now, your favourite restaurant is only a station away.
AD Agencies
WPP appoints Hephzibah Pathak CEO of WPP Creative India
Ogilvy India chair takes charge of unified creative model in key market
NEW DELHI: WPP has appointed Hephzibah Pathak as chief executive officer of WPP Creative India, putting a local leader at the helm of its newly created creative operating model in one of its most important growth markets.
The move brings clarity to how WPP’s global restructuring will play out in India, weeks after the group unveiled WPP Creative as part of its Elevate28 strategy. The unit sits alongside WPP Media, WPP Production and WPP Enterprise Solutions, and is designed to simplify what the company previously described as an overly complex structure.
Pathak, who continues as executive chairperson of Ogilvy India, will represent all agencies under the WPP Creative umbrella in India. Her role centres on driving integration across brands, expanding capabilities and ensuring clients can tap into the network’s full talent pool without friction.
WPP said Pathak will work closely with agency brand CEOs to “enhance integration, expand capabilities, and ensure seamless client access”, while maintaining the distinct identities of its agencies.
The portfolio under WPP Creative includes leading networks such as VML, Landor, AKQA and Grey, along with Burson and its affiliated firms. Leaders across these agencies will now report into Pathak, even as each brand continues to operate independently within a unified system.
The appointment also formalises a dual-track strategy in India, preserving agency identities while accelerating collaboration. Pathak is expected to work closely with media leadership to align creative and media capabilities, reflecting growing client demand for integrated, multi-market solutions.
WPP Creative global CEO Jon Cook has described the unit as “not an agency” but an operating system that helps creative, design and PR brands work together more effectively. The group has been clear that it is not merging or phasing out legacy agency brands, instead aiming to reduce complexity on the client side.
Pathak brings nearly three decades of experience within the network, having joined in 1997 and held roles ranging from Mumbai office head to chief client officer. She made history in 2024 as the first woman to lead Ogilvy India in its 95-year presence in the country.
Her expanded mandate positions India at the centre of WPP’s Asia-Pacific strategy, with a focus on strengthening brand presence, deepening client relationships and unlocking growth in a fast-evolving market.
The appointment signals WPP’s intent to move beyond the traditional holding company model towards a more integrated, AI-enabled structure. With Pathak now steering WPP Creative India, the group appears set to test whether simpler structures can indeed deliver sharper creative outcomes.
