MAM
Megha Tata on Discovery’s work culture, her leadership style, women empowerment
MUMBAI: Megha Tata, a broadcast sector veteran, moved to Discovery in February 2019. Her arrival could come at no better time for the American broadcaster with special proposition genres looking at innovation for growth. At the stage of Indiantelevision.com’s Media HR Summit on Wednesday, she spoke of her leadership style, challenges she is facing as a leader and the company’s culture of treating employees during an engaging chat with Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari.
“What excited me in this role is without a doubt the brand. Discovery is a brand I have grown up with not only as a consumer but also as an industry. Discovery India has been here for 25 years and I have worked here for 28 years. So, both Discovery and I have grown together. So, I have a very fond connection and affinity to the brand,” said Discovery Communications India South Asia MD.
When asked what qualities in her attracted a legancy brand like Discovery, she outlined a few probable reasons. The first was credible experience in the broadcast industry, second her leadership skills spanning previous experiences, and third her ability to listen and communicate properly, getting along with people easily, optimism, positivity and the networks she grew over the years.
Yet to reach the 100-day mark with her new employer, Megha explained how Discovery’s onboarding process helped her grasp an understanding of the organisation in the first two weeks. She also added that it is not exclusive to the top executives but to every new hire.
“I have been fortunate and privileged to have inheriting a fantastic leadership team and we all know any organisation is about people. It’s the people who either make or break the organisation. So, I am a big believer in that and I am a very people’s person and my job is to facilitate thinking and give them a direction and vision,” she pointed out.
The former BTVI COO also spoke about the presence of women in the industry.
“I have been in the media industry for almost 28 years and I have seen the change which has happened when I was an executive to where I am today and many women have grown in this industry. They have grown in multiple departments, we have legal heads who are women and we have women in technical departments. In my previous organisation, we hired the first ever female technical engineer representing a news channel. Having said that, more women need to go out there and ask for what they want,” she remarked.
She also added that a lot of women give up because of self-doubt. Hence, she suggested believing in oneself, acknowledging weaknesses while playing to strengths. According to her, asking for more is important as opposed to being subdued.
In this milieu of flux which is happening with the changes, uncertainties and ambiguities, mobile, agile, and entrepreneurship-level thinking is needed in any organisation. One of the challenges, she feels, is the lack of talent to deal with this ambiguity. She said there is a limited talent pool as well as limited opportunities. Either you get experience or you get that agile thinking attitude but getting a combination is difficult, Megha argued.
Talking about her leadership style, Megha said that she is not a micro-manger but needs be in the loop of the overall process. She likes to empower people she hires. The Discovery India topper said if someone has been hired for a certain goal, she believes in the person’s ability to deliver that particular goal. Trust is very important, she added.
In the context of Discovery’s high focus on people and culture, she said that even the HR department in the company is called as ‘people & culture’. She also added that the culture of Discovery is about inclusiveness, diversity, creating an environment of trust and comfort within employees. She added that she does not have any intent to change that but enhance the exisiting processes.
While Discovery’s growth slowed down in the recent past, she sees that challenge as an opportunity. Whether it is digitisation, NTO impact, leadership in the kids’ genre, Megha seems fearless. She also added that her aim is to grow the kids business to emerge as the top three player, along with having new d2c business that's on the anvil.
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
