MAM
Spykar & Hands of Hope unite against child sexual abuse for Tata Mumbai Marathon
Mumbai: Spykar, the trendsetting fashion brand, is proud to announce its collaboration with the Hands of Hope Foundation for the upcoming Tata Mumbai Marathon, slated for Sunday, 21 Jan. Hands of Hope Foundation is dedicated to combating child sexual abuse, and this partnership with Spykar is poised to deliver a substantial and meaningful impact in the fight against this critical issue.
Leading the charge is Rajan Mittal, our esteemed group head, who will be running the entire marathon to champion the cause. In solidarity, 20 to 25 Spykar employees will also be participating, collectively running in support of the foundation’s mission.
Child sexual abuse is a pervasive and distressing issue affecting countless lives. It encompasses various forms of non-consensual sexual activities involving children, leaving deep physical, emotional, and psychological scars. The Tata Mumbai Marathon serves as a critical platform for Spykar and Hands of Hope Foundation to spotlight this issue, fostering awareness and dialogue.
Spykar CEO Sanjay Vakharia expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, “By openly addressing child sexual abuse, we aim to break the silence, dispel shame, and empower communities to recognize signs, provide support, and take preventive measures. Our collective goal is to create an environment where survivors are heard, believed, and supported. Through initiatives like the marathon, we strive to educate and build a culture prioritizing the well-being of children, ensuring they can grow up free from the devastating impact of sexual abuse. Every step in this marathon represents a stride toward a safer, more aware, and compassionate society.”
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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.
