MAM
Media professionals wish their best friends a Happy Friendship Day
MUMBAI: Friendship is the purest and most beautiful relationship that two individuals can share. It can evolve from any relation and can even metamorphose into new partnerships. The world is celebrating this relationship today by marking Friendship Day. Globally, people will be appreciating their friends and will be sending them emotional messages and thus, Indiantelevision.com asked the media industry who their best friends are and here are some sweet responses that we got:
i9 Communications head Munmun S Gentle
I have two best friends: Rachana Chhedha aka Rachuwhom I met in class 1, and Deepak Gaur whom I met while we were working for the same organisation 12 years back. Rachna is from the hospitality industry while Deepak is currently working with a publication. These two have been my pillars of strength throughout my journey. It is very important for one to connect with like-minded people who understand you.
Rachana was the one who motivated me the most during my career shift from sales to public relations. She has also taught me how to remain calm and make right decisions even under extreme pressure. And Deepak has been constantly guiding me with work. Whenever I face any crazy challenge professionally, he is my go-to person because he always tells me, and makes me believe that everything will be alright. He will list down enough samples for me to solve my problems. He is the one person with whom I can talk my heart out as I know he will not judge me.
Both these beautiful people make my life simple and they are the people I can confide my thoughts in. I wish them and all a very Happy Friendship Day!"
Mirum India creative director Kishor Shembekar
It is a rare happening that your boss becomes your best friend but I have been fortunate enough to live this in my life. Vivek Shinde was once my boss and is like family now. Our interactions while working made us know each other better as an individual and developed our friendship. We are still in touch and would continue throughout our lives. We have been friends for almost two decades now and he continues to be a guide and a mentor for me since my initial days in the advertising world. Happy Friendship Day, Vivek!
Communicate India founder & CEO Akshaara Lalwani
My best friend is definitely my husband Rishaan. He is probably the best mentor I’ve ever had and the best support system I could have going through my professional journey. When I’m going through a challenging period, he has been extremely supportive, motivating, and gives me the courage to keep going. Your friends and associates might not always call you out when you’re slipping up, or about to drop the ball, but your best friend always will, and Rishaan does that. He also encourages me to focus on my strengths and not let my weaknesses get the better of me. There are days where he completes my sentences and can read my thoughts. He is not afraid to make me reevaluate some of my decisions and pushes me to be a better person, a better professional, and a better leader.
White Rivers Media co-founder Shrenik Gandhi
Mitesh & I go back a long way. Almost a decade back, we did our MBAs together. Coincidentally, we also share our birthdays and that also happens to be the day we launched White Rivers Media 7 years back, on 7 August.
He plays the role of my right-brain. All creative and strategic calls of the company are taken by Mitesh while I look after expansion, operations, and people.
From the first hire to the first client to the first award, to the first fire, to a first big loss, to the first big office, to first new out of city office, to the first 100 employees, the stories are infinite, regrets are none. Onwards and upwards from here. Happy Friendship Day Mitesh!
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.
