MAM
upGrad launches campaign to drive awareness on professional doctorate degree
Mumbai: The edtech platform, upGrad has rolled out a new digital campaign created around the dated perception of the prefix ‘Doctor’. Conceptualised by The Womb, the new spot is created to make the conversation around pursuing a terminal degree like professional doctorate a mainstream one, amongst seasoned working professionals.
The digital campaign aims to drive awareness around upGrad’s latest Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree offering.
Keeping in mind the market demand, The Womb conceptualised a tongue-in-cheek digital film that addresses the lack of awareness around professional doctorate degrees, through a series of uncomfortable dialogues between the co-passengers on an aircraft, who are seeking help to solve a mid-air health emergency with the help of a doctor.
Directed by Roopali Singhal of Chrome Pictures, the film takes a humorous route to showcase the importance of a DBA for working professionals, who are looking to build expertise in their existing or cross-functional domains.
Designed specifically for working professionals, each of the two 36-month programs offers one-on-one mentorship by international guides, live & interactive faculty, domain-specific sessions, and thesis support across multiple specialisations, through the flexible online learning model to its learners. Golden Gate University, which is ranked among the Top 10 percent Schools in the USA by College Factual, delivers global exposure and a vast professional alumni network to online learners worldwide from the heart of San Francisco’s high-tech and financial district.
The onset of NextGen technologies has organisations hurtling towards the principles of Industry 5.0, thereby resulting in the need for innovative leadership with a DBA degree to maintain a competitive edge, through applied research-based problem-solving capabilities.
With the increasing need to solve real-time business problems through lateral and creative thinking, innovation officers with a Professional DBA degree have witnessed an increase in job opportunities across an array of new roles within senior leadership or the C-suite, as independent consultants, professors, and more, upon course completion. Responding to this demand, the ACBSP accredited Swiss School of Business and Management’s Global Doctor of Business Administration program and WASC accredited Golden Gate University’s Doctor of Business Administration, both powered by upGrad, come with multiple specialisations based on dissertation topics and international academic support for propelling quality and utility-based learning.
Commenting on the launch, upGrad head of marketing Ankit Khirwal, said, “Times are changing and so are our learning requirements. Mid to senior-level professionals who are constantly confronted with newer technologies and skill gaps should look at becoming domain experts instead of just getting an upgrade as a quick fix.”
“This is where we want to support them with the best of content and learning opportunities that come with value-adds like feasibility to learn at your own pace, global university accreditation, and one-on-one thesis supervision to complete the immersive learning experience with upGrad. While the program targets academic interests of learners, it also helps them with real-life applications for attaining maximum career benefits.” he added.
The Womb creative lead Suyash Khabya said, “there’s always a creative challenge at hand when we are working on any vertical led films with upGrad.”
“Unlike celebrity-driven ad films, here the task becomes even more demanding as it requires precise messaging and appealing visual representation for creating impact at scale. We are thrilled to continue our efforts with upGrad as it makes us think way beyond the box and that’s the kind of adrenaline rush, we seek to keep up with the quality outputs,” concluded Khabya.
Brands
Jubilant FoodWorks faces Rs 47.5 crore GST demand, plans appeal
Tax authorities flag alleged misclassification of restaurant services
MUMBAI: Jubilant FoodWorks Limited has landed in a tax tussle after receiving a GST demand of Rs 47.5 crore from the office of the additional commissioner of CGST and central excise in Thane, Maharashtra.
The order, issued under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, relates to an alleged incorrect classification of certain services under the category of restaurant services. According to the tax authorities, this classification resulted in a short payment of goods and services tax for the period between the financial years 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The demand includes Rs 47.5 crore in GST along with an equal amount as penalty, in addition to applicable interest. The order was received by the company on March 13, 2026.
In a regulatory filing to the BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, the company said it disagrees with the order and believes its arguments were not adequately considered.
The company is preparing to challenge the decision and plans to file an appeal. It added that once the redressal process is complete, the demand is likely to be dropped.
Despite the sizeable figure attached to the notice, the company said it does not expect any material impact on its financials, operations or other activities.
The disclosure was signed by Suman Hegde, EVP and chief financial officer, who confirmed that the company received the order at 19:06 IST on March 13 and has already initiated steps to contest it.
The development places the quick service restaurant major in the middle of a tax debate that could hinge on how certain restaurant-linked services are classified under GST rules. For now, the company appears ready to take the matter from the tax office to the appeals desk.
