Brands
WickedGüd and Shilpa Shetty serve satire with a side of healthy noodles
MUMBAI: When was the last time a noodle ad sparked a nationwide identity crisis? WickedGüd’s latest campaign doesn’t just stir the pot, it flips the lid clean off. The better-for-you food brand, founded by Bhuman Dani in 2021 and backed by Shark Tank fame, has teamed up with actor-investor Shilpa Shetty for a satire-laced series that takes a not-so-subtle dig at celebrity endorsements, questionable ingredients, and the very idea of guilt-ridden comfort food.
Titled Unjunk India, One Kitchen at a Time, the digital campaign’s opening act sees Shetty dramatically refusing a bowl of instant noodles on health grounds, only to be dragged into a fictional media frenzy. What follows is a tongue-in-cheek explainer from the star herself, clarifying her ‘about-turn’ because, well, this brand ditches the maida and palm oil for whole wheat, oats, lentils, and chickpeas. The punchline? “It’s so good, it’s WickedGüd.”
The message may be playful, but the strategy is sharp. With India’s instant noodles market projected to nearly double from 1.88 billion dollars in 2023 to 3.83 billion dollars by 2028, according to Mordor Intelligence, WickedGüd is clearly eyeing a big bite of the Rs 15,600 crore pie but with a side of health. The brand is placing its bets on Gen Z, mindful millennials, and especially young mothers seeking easy, yet nutritious, choices for their families.
“Reinventing comfort food without the guilt has always been our mission,” said WickedGüd founder and CEO Dani. “This campaign reflects that philosophy. It’s about taste and health coexisting, not competing.” The brand’s product line boasts zero maida, no palm oil, and no added chemicals, promising an indulgent experience that doesn’t compromise on well-being.
Shetty, who is both a brand ambassador and investor, doubles down on that thought. “I’ve always believed mindful eating and enjoyment can go hand in hand,” she says. “WickedGüd gets it and I’m proud to be the face of a brand that actually walks the talk.”
The three-part series doesn’t rely on sappy montages or kitchen table nostalgia. Instead, it plays to a sharp, modern audience using irony, storytelling, and self-awareness as ingredients for a campaign that cuts through the ad clutter like a hot knife through cold ramen. With over-the-top news anchors, exaggerated reactions, and a healthy dash of meta-humour, it’s as much a commentary on adland as it is a pitch for healthier eating.
And in a world where celebrity food endorsements are often called out for hypocrisy, WickedGüd isn’t running from the debate, it’s throwing it into the spotlight and seasoning it with satire. That’s not just bold. That’s branding with bite.
Brands
Samsung certifies 1,000 Maharashtra students in AI and coding
The South Korean electronics giant marks its first large-scale skilling push in the state, with women making up nearly half the national programme’s enrolment
PUNE: Samsung has put 1,000 students in Maharashtra through a certified training programme in artificial intelligence and coding, the largest such drive the South Korean electronics company has run in the state and a signal that corporate India’s skilling ambitions are moving well beyond the boardroom brochure.
The certifications were awarded under Samsung Innovation Campus (SIC), the company’s flagship corporate social responsibility programme, which launched in India in 2022 with the stated aim of democratising access to future-technology education. The 1,000 graduates were drawn from four institutions: 127 from Savitribai Phule Pune University, 373 from Pimpri Chinchwad University, 250 from D.Y. Patil University’s Ramrao Adik Institute of Technology and 250 from Anjuman-I-Islam’s Kalsekar Technical Campus. All completed training in either AI or coding and programming, the two disciplines Samsung has identified as the critical pillars of the digital economy.
The programme does not stop at technical training. Soft-skills development and career-readiness modules are baked into the curriculum, a deliberate attempt to close the gap between what universities teach and what employers actually want.
“India’s digital growth story will ultimately be shaped by the quality of its talent pipeline,” said Shubham Mukherjee, head of CSR and corporate communications at Samsung Southwest Asia. “As technologies like AI move from the periphery to the core of industries, skilling must evolve from basic training to building real-world capability. This milestone in Maharashtra reflects how industry and academia can come together to create a future-ready workforce that is both globally competitive and locally relevant.”
The Maharashtra drive sits within a rapidly scaling national effort. Samsung Innovation Campus trained 20,000 young people across India in 2025, hitting its stated target for the year. Women account for 48 per cent of national enrolments, a figure the company cites as evidence of its push for an inclusive technology ecosystem. The programme is implemented in partnership with the Electronics Sector Skills Council of India and the Telecom Sector Skill Council.
Samsung, which is marking 30 years in India this year, runs SIC alongside two other initiatives, Samsung Solve for Tomorrow and Samsung DOST, as part of a broader effort to build what it calls a generation of innovators with both the technical depth and the problem-solving mindset to thrive in a fast-moving digital world.
A thousand certified students is a tidy headline. Whether they find jobs that match their new skills is the harder question, and the one that will ultimately determine whether corporate skilling programmes like this one are genuine pipelines or well-photographed gestures.
