MAM
Soumya Sarkar joins MPG as Sr biz director
Mumbai: Havas Media’s flagship brand, MPG India, has appointed Soumya Sarkar as senior business director.
Based in Mumbai, he will report in to MPG – West India executive director Kunal Jamuar.
In his new role, Sarkar will be responsible for managing the planning function across all brands.
Sarkar said, “I am delighted to be joining MPG. The agency has diverse and exciting brands in its portfolio across different categories and I see an enormous potential not only in the offering but the highly energised team under Kunal.”
MPG India MD Mohit Joshi added, “We are pleased to welcome Soumya in the MPG fold. He comes with a solid background in media planning having worked with number of blue chip brands. His presence will be an asset for the Mumbai operations.”
Sarkar comes in with over 10 years of experience in media planning. His last stint was with MEC where he was working as senior business director and was handling clients like Nivea, Novartis and Cox & Kings. Prior to this he has also worked with Lintas Media Group, Starcom, The Media Edge and Carat.
MAM
India wins big at the 2025 Global Best of the Best Effie Awards
The Womb and McCann India take home Global Grand Effies, putting Indian advertising on the world map
MUMBAI: Indian advertising just had its moment. At the 2025 Global Best of the Best Effie Awards, the most rigorous test of marketing effectiveness on the planet, two Indian agencies beat out campaigns from over 130 markets to claim Global Grand Effies, the sport’s equivalent of a world championship medal.
The Womb won for Piramal Finance with a campaign called “NEEYAT: India’s Real Credit Score,” a purpose-led push that took direct aim at systemic bias in the credit sector and reframed how creditworthiness is measured. McCann India won for ESAF Small Finance Bank with “Saving Her Savings,” a campaign centred on financial inclusion for marginalised women. Both wins came from a shortlist of 47 contenders, all of whom had already won gold or grand prizes in their home markets. Only 11 Global Grand Effies were handed out across seven markets. India got two.
The highest honour of the night, the Iridium Effie, awarded to the single most effective marketing campaign in the world, went to eos Products and Mischief @ No Fixed Address for “Women’s Shave.” Remarkably, it was their second consecutive year taking the top prize.
Other global winners included Oreo and Mondelez International for “Oreo Codes” in commerce and shopper marketing, Flamin’ Hot and PepsiCo for “Poker Face” in experiential marketing, and ALDI Australia for “Shop ALDI First” in retail.
The Best of the Best is no ordinary awards show. Entry is restricted to campaigns that have already won a gold or grand Effie at a national level, making it, in effect, a champions’ league of marketing effectiveness. Indian agencies are no longer just brilliant at cracking local markets. They are now setting the global standard.
The world’s best advertisers had better start paying attention.
