MAM
O&M makes senior hires; names Alok Sinha as president planning
MUMBAI: With an aim to strengthen its top brass of management, the Gurgaon office of Ogilvy and Mather has made a number of additions to its senior management team – the prime one being the appointment of Alok Sinha as the president – planning.
“As our business gets more dynamic and interconnected every day, we are constantly looking for leaders who can join the dots effectively and enable a better, more integrated creative product,” said Ogilvy North executive creative director Ajay Gahlaut.
Sinha, who comes with over 20 years of experience across fields like research, advertising, media and digital, finds his new position at Ogilvy’s Gurgaon office as a “homecoming.”
“I’m quite excited at the prospect of bringing a ‘no boundaries’ approach to account planning for clients – having traversed the entire spectrum myself. The communication business is at the confluence of two tectonic forces – content and data. Ogilvy Delhi has some of the most prestigious clients and talent in the country and my job is to try help both our clients and our talent effectively navigate this confluence for business success,” adds Sinha.
Priot to this, Sinha led the strategic digital mandate for Mindshare in South Asia, where his focus was on strengthening Mindshare’s planning product and the strong integration of digital thinking on businesses including futuristic projects like the Loop Room. He has also had extensive experience across South East Asia, in a regional communications planning role at Aegis and subsequently as lead on the P&G businesses at Carat, Philippines.
This move was the first amongst a series of new appointments that Ogilgy and Mather’s Gugaon office has undergone. The other key addition to the team is Chandana Agarwal, who has taken up the role of managing partner of the advertising function.
Agarwal has been with Soho Square and Ogilvy Gurgaon for over four years now. In her role as managing partner, she will work with Ogilvy Gurgaon branch head Kapil Arora to steward the advertising business of Ogilvy.
This was followed by bringing Namrata Balwani on board as senior vice president and head of OgilvyOne, Gurgaon. Balwani moves in from Media2win, a digital agency she co-founded, where she was CEO.
“I am excited to lead an amazing OgilvyOne team in Gurgaon. Digital platforms and connectivity, especially mobile, are transforming India at a speed never seen before. This is the best time to not only be a part of the transformation but also lead the charge and OgilvyOne is well poised to do that for all its brand partners,” Balwani said.
Speaking on the new appointments, Arora said, “Over the last three years, the office has grown significantly across disciplines and we felt the need to bring in the right talent to help navigate our clients’ businesses through a rapidly changing environment. Between Alok, Chandana and Namrata, we have some of the best talent at hand, to fuel the creative product and to partner our clients in building their businesses.”
Brands
KKR sixes to power EV charger rollout under VIDA campaign
Cricket meets clean mobility as big hits spark India’s charging growth
NEW DELHI: VIDA, the electric mobility arm of Hero MotoCorp, has teamed up with Kolkata Knight Riders to launch a campaign that turns cricketing flair into real-world impact.
Titled ‘6 for 6’, the initiative promises to install a 6kW fast EV charger for every six hit by KKR during the ongoing Indian Premier League season. The idea is simple but powerful, as each big hit on the field contributes directly to expanding India’s fast-charging infrastructure.
The campaign builds on VIDA’s growing network, which already spans over 5,300 fast-charging points across more than 430 cities. With EV adoption gaining pace, the brand is using cricket’s mass appeal to accelerate both awareness and infrastructure growth.
Explaining the thinking behind the move, Hero MotoCorp emerging mobility business unit chief business officer Kausalya Nandakumar said, “Cricket has an incredible ability to unite and inspire millions across the country. With the ‘6 for 6’ campaign, we are turning every big hit on the field into a step towards a cleaner and a more accessible mobility future.”
She added that VIDA’s expanding fast-charging network and removable battery technology are designed to make EV ownership more convenient and practical for everyday users.
From the franchise’s side, the campaign is also about giving on-field moments a larger purpose. Kolkata Knight Riders chief executive officer Venky Mysore said, “The ‘6 for 6’ campaign exemplifies the potential of sport as a platform for meaningful, real-world impact. By linking every six to the expansion of EV charging infrastructure, this partnership transforms fan excitement into tangible progress.”
As part of the rollout, VIDA has introduced co-branded charging stations in KKR’s signature colours, with a flagship installation unveiled alongside team players. The chargers are designed for quick top-ups, powering VIDA scooters from zero to 80 percent in about an hour, while also being positioned along key highways to support longer journeys.
The initiative also taps into VIDA’s removable battery system, which allows users to charge using standard household plug points, adding flexibility to the charging ecosystem.
By blending the thrill of cricket with the urgency of clean mobility, VIDA and KKR have found a neat way to make every six count twice, once on the scoreboard and again on India’s road to an electric future.
