MAM
Viiking appoints Omar Qureshi as CCO & biz head
MUMBAI: Viiking Media & Entertainment has appointed Bollywood & media expert Omar Qureshi as chief creative officer (CCO) and business head.
With Qureshi’s appointment, the Group will now enter the digital media and creative content market.
Viiking Ventures and Viiking Media & Entertainment chairman Sachiin Joshi said, “This is the most fabulous handshake to happen in the business of media and entertainment in a long time and will remains so for a long time. We, as a Group, are expanding in the areas of movies, movie content, short and long form content for digital. And who better than Omar – with his immense experience in all these zones – to spearhead these areas. He is a household name with Bollywood and a known face with TV, media and even the audiences. His experience and expertise shall only add greater value to Viiking as a company.”
Joshi further added, “We intend not only to become the biggest players in the digital content space out of India, we will also have the in-house expertise to select and make the best possible content for movies and the music space, that seem to be suffering from dearth of enough creativity. Omar is a master of that territory and we are very excited.”
Qureshi said, “When smart business meets smart content, the result is a spark that can set benchmarks and blaze new trails. With the kind of Group support and resources at the disposal of the Viiking Group, the ventures we are looking at shall be the place to visit, for sampling any kind of content across genres. With a focused eye on Bollywood and entertainment, we shall also foray into other genres.”
“With niche TV viewing going through asphyxiation by the larger GECs, and with content suffering from scarcity of originality, we hope to create shark tanks of expert teams, the best of breed in their domains, who will create businesses that will become a landing page for most consumers. With the Group’s interest in Bollywood and Tollywood movies, also looking internationally, I see a beautiful synergy and an exciting new zone that shall be the mother of all digital content, hopefully, sooner than we think. With the kind of vision, 70mm foresight and drive that Sachiin Joshi has, this seems immensely doable,” Qureshi concluded.
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33 per cent of women believe the salary scale is rigged: Naukri report
Voices @ Work study finds rising calls for equal pay audits and lingering bias
MUMBAI: Progress may be visible in India’s workplaces, but many women still feel the need to tread carefully. A new report by Naukri reveals that one in two women hesitate to disclose marriage or maternity plans during job interviews, worried that such information could influence hiring decisions.
The findings come from the second edition of Naukri’s annual Voices @ Work International Women’s Day report, titled “What Women Professionals Want.” Drawing insights from more than 50,000 women across over 50 industries, the survey sheds light on evolving workplace aspirations alongside the biases that continue to hold women back.
One of the report’s most striking insights is the growing demand for equal pay audits. The share of women calling for regular pay parity checks has climbed to 27 per cent this year, up from 19 per cent a year ago. The demand now stands alongside menstrual leave as the most sought after workplace policy.
Interestingly, the call for pay transparency grows louder higher up the income ladder. Nearly half of women earning between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 1 crore annually say equal pay audits are a priority, suggesting that pay gaps become more visible as women move up the career ladder.
At the same time, confidence and ambition appear to be rising. About 83 per cent of women say they feel encouraged to pursue leadership roles, a significant jump from 66 per cent last year. Cities in southern India appear particularly supportive, with Hyderabad leading the way as 86 per cent of respondents there reported encouragement to step into leadership positions. The education sector recorded the highest sense of encouragement at 87 per cent.
Yet the report also highlights a growing trust deficit around pay equity. Nearly one in three women, or 33 per cent, say they do not believe men and women are paid equally at their workplace. That figure has risen from 25 per cent last year, pointing to widening perceptions of disparity as careers progress.
Bias in hiring and promotions continues to be the biggest hurdle. About 42 per cent of respondents say workplace bias is the main challenge for women from diverse backgrounds. The concern is consistent across major metros, with Chennai and Delhi NCR reporting similar levels.
Reluctance to discuss personal milestones during hiring processes is also widespread. While 34 per cent overall said they hesitate to share marriage or maternity plans in interviews, the anxiety increases with experience. Among professionals with 10 to 15 years of work experience, the figure rises to 40 per cent.
Info Edge group CMO Sumeet Singh, said the data reflects both progress and unfinished work. “Behind every data point in this report is a woman who is ambitious. The fact that 83 per cent feel encouraged to lead is something to celebrate. However, the fact that one in two still hide their marriage or maternity plans in interviews tells us the work is far from done. As India’s leading career platform, it felt not just important but necessary for us to shine a light on these gaps through the second edition of our report,” he said.
The report suggests that while ambition among women professionals is growing, structural changes around pay transparency, fair hiring and supportive policies will be key if workplaces hope to keep pace.
