MAM
Times OOH chief gets billboard industry throne
MUMBAI:The billboards plastering India’s chaotic streets have found their new overlord. Narayanaswami Shekhar, chief executive of Times OOH, has been crowned chairman of the Indian Outdoor Advertising Association, handing the Times Group executive sway over an industry grappling with digital revolution and regulatory squeeze. Earlier the vice-chairman, he takes over from Jagran Engage COO Pawan Bansal.
Shekhar’s ascent to the top of IOAA puts him at the helm of a lobby group that corrals more than 80 per cent of India’s leading outdoor media barons and boasts 220-plus members scattered from Mumbai’s traffic-choked arteries to Bangalore’s tech corridors. The association’s bread and butter involves fending off municipal crackdowns whilst championing the interests of companies that transform India’s urban jungle into a kaleidoscope of consumer messaging.
The appointment comes as India’s outdoor advertising sector—worth billions of rupees—faces an existential reckoning. Digital screens are rapidly displacing static hoardings, whilst smartphone ubiquity threatens the traditional model of ambushing commuters with roadside pitches. Meanwhile, courts and municipal authorities have launched periodic crusades against “visual pollution,” threatening the very billboards that fund the industry.
Shekhar’s new perch positions him as the industry’s chief evangelist at a pivotal moment. His Times OOH stable operates across India’s major cities, where the company’s digital displays compete for eyeballs against everything from Hindi film posters to political propaganda. The challenge now is ensuring outdoor advertising remains relevant in an increasingly screen-saturated landscape.
For the Times group, Shekhar’s industry chairmanship represents a strategic coup. The media conglomerate can now influence regulations and standards that directly impact its outdoor advertising arm, whilst positioning itself as the sector’s thought leader.
The association’s core mission—protecting and promoting outdoor advertising interests—takes on fresh urgency as Indian cities grapple with beautification drives that often view billboards as urban blight rather than legitimate business infrastructure.
MAM
Stayfree launches campaign for night-time period protection
New film highlights how Secure Nights pad helps women sleep better during periods.
MUMBAI: Stayfree just turned period nights from restless to restful because when the pad works overtime, even your sleep gets a well-deserved promotion. Stayfree has unveiled a new digital campaign spotlighting the distinct needs of period nights compared with days. The film, conceptualised by DDB Mudra, shows how many women use the same pad day and night, leading to frequent wake-ups from leak worries, poor sleep and drowsy days that follow.
Research cited in the campaign reveals that nearly 67 per cent of women on their periods experience sleep deprivation on some nights due to discomfort and anxiety. The ad gently illustrates this cycle: a woman tosses, checks for stains, and drags through the next day fatigued.
The campaign promotes Stayfree Secure Nights, designed specifically for night-time use with NightLock Technology for superior absorption, 2 times better coverage, a wider back, and a soft feel. It promises up to 100 per cent leakage protection while sleeping, allowing uninterrupted rest so women wake up fresh.
Kenvue, vice president marketing and essential health business unit head Manoj Gadgil said, “Many women unknowingly compromise their sleep quality by using day pads at night. Poor period sleep doesn’t just affect the night; it can impact how women feel and function the next day. Stayfree Secure Nights addresses specific night-time needs with reliable protection.”
The campaign will run across Youtube, Meta and leading OTT platforms, encouraging women to recognise the day-night difference and switch to night-specific protection.
In a world where periods already demand enough stamina, Stayfree isn’t asking for extra effort, it’s quietly handing women the one upgrade that turns restless nights into recharged mornings, one peaceful sleep at a time.
