MAM
Publicis India names Aman Mannan and Shitu Patil as joint national creative directors
Mumbai: In a bid to strengthen its creative leadership, Publicis India, a part of Publicis Groupe India, has appointed Aman Mannan and Shitu Patil as joint national creative directors (NCDs). In their new roles, the duo will lead the creative vision for all brands at Publicis India, and report to managing director, Oindrila Roy.
Aman has nearly 25 years of experience across leading agencies such as Interface Communication, McCann Erickson, DDB Mudra Group, and Leo Burnett India. Under his creative leadership, these agencies earned widespread acclaim at prestigious events such as Cannes, The One Show, Clios, LIA, ABBYs, and Effies (India and APAC), among others. Additionally, he has served as a jury member at Goafest, Radio Mirchi Awards, and OOH Awards. Aman has worked with a range of brands such as P&G, Unilever, Coca-Cola, Mahindra and Mahindra, Godrej, Sony, Amazon, HDFC Bank, HDFC Life, among others. He has also co-authored the story and screenplay for the popular web show ‘Saas, Bahu aur Flamingo’, earning the nomination for Best Screenplay at the Filmfare OTT Awards.
A dynamic creative leader with 23 years of advertising and branding experience, Shitu joined L&K Saatchi & Saatchi in 2022, starting her second stint with the Groupe. She has worked with leading agencies like Lowe Lintas, FCB and Publicis Ambience. She also successfully ran her own design agency, Plus One. Shitu’s accolades include D&AD, Effies, ABBYs, and Kyoorius awards, along with jury roles at D&AD and ABBYs. Her diverse brand portfolio features Lakme, Raymond, Cartier, Renault, and others.
In the new roles as NCDs, Aman and Shitu will leverage their expertise to lead the agency’s creative vision across all offices in India.
L&K Saatchi & Saatchi and Publicis India CEO Paritosh Srivastava said, “Publicis India has been on an amazing journey of resurgence in the past two years, with a focus on both growth and creative excellence yielding rich dividends. Our impressive portfolio of work and client roster rival that of any top agency in the country. The search for the perfect blend of creative talent and cultural fit was challenging, but in Aman and Shitu, we have found a team of rare creative talent that spans the entire spectrum of creativity. We are confident that these two wonderful people will inspire our teams and clients to new heights.”
Publicis India MD Oindrila Roy added, “Aman and Shitu are a powerhouse of creativity and their experience in delivering award-winning work reaffirms this. We are confident that as NCDs, they will inspire our teams with new energies. We are certain that their creative prowess and strategic acumen will contribute to the continued success and growth of Publicis India.”
Shitu said, “My journey at the agency has been nothing short of exciting and full of learnings. I am thankful to Paritosh, Oindrila, and the entire team for their continued trust and support. I really believe we are as good as our people and my focus is going to be on uplifting and strengthening our teams further to create distinguished work and take both our clients and agency to greater glory. I am excited about this new journey and look forward to closely working with Paritosh, Oindrila and Aman.”
Aman added, “I am looking forward to working closely with Paritosh, Oindrila, and the team to build on the great work they have already done. I hope to create state-of-the-art solutions, placing art firmly at the centre of our endeavours and infusing new-age work with age-old wisdom. I aim to integrate the best practices of cinema writing and thinking into our projects, contributing to the development of a unique voice for Publicis India.”
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.
