MAM
Parle Agro launches ‘Smoodh Hazelnut Chocolate’ campaign; provides rich taste to consumers
Mumbai: Beverage giant Parle Agro has introduced a delicious new variant to their disruptive flavoured milk portfolio – Smoodh Hazelnut Chocolate. The new offering is the fourth addition to their widely loved dairy beverage range.
Parle Agro has also introduced a high-intensity campaign for the new offering targeting consumers across India. This includes visibility in 90+ channels, digital platforms as well as across one-third of cinemas across India.
Crafted by combining the irresistible taste of top-quality hazelnuts and chocolate and blended with the goodness of milk, the new Smoodh Hazelnut Chocolate is a wholesome, energy-boosting, and nourishing drink. Its creamy and silky texture coupled with the rich taste of hazelnut chocolate is a complete delight to the taste buds and will light up your day in a healthy way.
Smoodh Hazelnut Chocolate is available in Parle Agro’s classic and convenient, single serve Tetra Pak at the price of Rs 10 for an 85 ml pack. Hazelnut-based offerings are typically priced higher than others. Driven by their resolute mission to bring best-in-class products to consumers across India, Parle Agro has been able to once again, draw on their innovative and technology-driven approach to offer a hazelnut flavoured chocolate milk drink at the incredible value of Rs 10, a price dominated by Parle Agro in the beverage category.
Commenting on the launch of the new flavour, Parle Agro joint managing director & CMO Nadia Chauhan said, “We are delighted to introduce Smoodh Hazelnut Chocolate and bring the rich taste of hazelnut and chocolate to consumers across India. This offering is another unique innovation from Parle Agro and we are confident it’ll see much love and acceptance from consumers.”
Apart from Hazelnut Chocolate, the other three flavours that Smoodh is available in are ‘Chocolate Milk’, ‘Toffee Caramel’ and ‘Coffee Frappe’.
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.
