MAM
Muthoot Microfin champions women’s health with awareness drive
MUMBAI: Muthoot Microfin is proving that empowerment goes beyond financial independence, it starts with health. As part of its Women’s Day initiatives, the microfinance leader hosted an extensive online workshop on cervical cancer awareness and menstrual health on 7 and 10 March 2025. Reaching over 850 attendees across 19 states and Puducherry, the sessions featured expert-led discussions on HPV vaccination, early detection, and menstrual cup benefits, conducted in regional languages for maximum impact.
In addition to awareness, Muthoot Microfin is ensuring action. Partnering with Reliance General Insurance, the company is offering free health check-ups for female employees, covering 70 key health parameters. To prioritise convenience, sample collection will be arranged directly from employees’ homes.
Speaking about the initiative, Muthoot Microfin CEO Sadaf Sayeed said, “At Muthoot Microfin, we believe that empowering women goes beyond financial independence; it begins with good health and awareness. As part of our Women’s Day initiatives, we reinforced our commitment to fostering inclusion and supporting women’s well-being through impactful healthcare awareness sessions. Our employees across India benefited from these sessions in regional languages, along with access to essential health check-ups, ensuring they have the knowledge and resources to lead healthier, more confident lives. A healthy woman uplifts not just her family but the entire community, and we are proud to contribute to this positive change.”
Muthoot Microfin has consistently championed employee health, previously running sessions on breast cancer, diabetes prevention, and lifestyle diseases. With plans to expand these initiatives, the company continues its holistic approach to workplace wellness, proving that true empowerment is about financial security and physical well-being alike.
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Abhay Duggal joins JioStar as director of Hindi GEC ad sales
The streaming giant brings in a seasoned revenue hand as the battle for Hindi television advertising heats up
MUMBAI: Abhay Duggal has a new desk, and JioStar has a new weapon. The media and entertainment veteran has joined JioStar as director of entertainment ad sales for Hindi general entertainment channels, adding 17 years of hard-won revenue experience to one of India’s most powerful broadcasting operations.
Duggal is no stranger to big portfolios or bruising markets. Before joining JioStar, he spent a brief stint at Republic World as deputy general manager and north regional head for ad sales. Before that, he put in three years at Enterr10 Television, where he ran the north region for Dangal TV and Dangal 2, two of India’s leading free-to-air Hindi channels. The north alone accounted for more than 50 per cent of total channel revenue on his watch, a number that tends to get attention in any sales meeting.
His longest stint was at Zee Entertainment Enterprises, where he spent over six years rising to associate director of sales. There he commanded the Hindi movies cluster across seven channels, owned more than half of north India’s revenue across flagship properties including Zee TV and &TV, and closed marquee sponsorships across the Indian Premier League, Zee Rishtey Awards and Dance India Dance. He also handled monetisation for the English movies and entertainment cluster and the global news channel WION, a portfolio that would stretch most sales teams twice his size.
Earlier in his career Duggal closed what was then a Rs 3 crore single deal at Reliance Broadcast Network, one of the largest in Indian radio at the time, before that he helped launch and monetise JAINHITS, India’s first HITS-based cable and satellite platform.
His edge, by his own account, lies in marrying data and instinct: translating audience trends, inventory signals and client demands into long-term partnerships built on cost-per-rating-point discipline rather than short-term deal chasing. In a media landscape being reshaped by streaming, fragmented attention and AI-driven advertising, that kind of rigour is increasingly rare and increasingly valuable.
JioStar, which blends the scale of Reliance’s Jio platform with the content firepower of Star, is doubling down on its advertising business at precisely the moment the Hindi GEC market is getting more competitive. Bringing in someone who has spent nearly two decades doing exactly this, across some of India’s most watched channels, is a pointed statement of intent. Duggal has spent his career turning audiences into revenue. JioStar is clearly betting he can do it again, and bigger.
