Broadband
Broadband to become a fundamental human right: TRAI chairman
MUMBAI: Broadband will become a fundamental human right and it will be difficult to imagine life without broadband connectivity, said Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (tRAI) chairman R S Sharma. He was speaking at a virtual conference organised by Broadband India Forum.
He said that it is time to make investment to boost fixed-line broadband so as to support areas such as education, work from home, etc. While it is a fact that the country has achieved a lot in mobile, we still have a long way to go in the field of fixed-line broadband. It is essential to give reliable connectivity, he said, adding that what lies ahead is a digital future. Connectivity is an area of paramount importance.
Many things like the role of technology that the Covid2019 pandemic has taught the country will become permanent, and they will be good for the country, he said, adding that in the changing context TRAI will approach all the regulations with a new perspective.
He said that what this crisis has taught us will become permanent in this country; it will be actually good for us. “I believe digital transaction is always better because it is cost-effective, environment-friendly, instantaneous, frugal, and last but not the least it is contactless."
He said that after the pandemic broke out, people depended on IT and communication technology much more than physical infrastructure such as road, rail, or air transports.
Work-from-home has become a norm and it will remain so in the immediate future. We are going to see tele-medicine, e-commerce, etc. Schools have started teaching students from home, Sharma said.
He added that we have to live in a world with minimal human contact all the while enabling economic growth and socialising.
Department of Telecom joint secretary Hari Ranjan Rao informed that efforts are going on to implement a national optic fibre map so that investors can decide where they want to invest and build capacities.
Broadband
Zoff Foods extends Shilpa Shetty partnership into ninth year
Spice brand reinforces trust-led positioning amid growth and funding push.
MUMBAI: Nine years, one flavour and the recipe clearly still works. Zoff Foods has extended its long-running association with Shilpa Shetty, marking nine consecutive years of her as brand ambassador as the company scales its presence across Indian households. What began as a digital-first collaboration has gradually evolved into a defining element of the brand’s identity. Over nearly a decade, the partnership has mirrored Zoff’s own journey from an emerging challenger to a fast-growing FMCG player with a widening footprint across e-commerce, quick commerce and offline retail channels.
The logic behind the continuity is straightforward. In a category where trust and familiarity drive purchase decisions, particularly in spices and ready-to-cook segments, long-term associations tend to carry more weight than short bursts of visibility. Shetty’s positioning as a fitness-conscious, health-aware public figure aligns with the brand’s emphasis on purity and quality factors that are increasingly shaping consumer choices in modern Indian kitchens.
The extension also comes at a time when Zoff Foods is entering a more aggressive growth phase. The company recently raised $2 million in a Pre-Series B funding round led by JM Financial Private Equity, with participation from Aman Gupta, signalling a push towards expanding distribution, product innovation and market reach.
Company executives have positioned the continued partnership as a strategic anchor amid this expansion, reinforcing brand recall while entering new markets. For Shetty, the association remains rooted in shared values around authenticity and ingredient integrity attributes that resonate strongly with increasingly mindful consumers.
In a market crowded with new-age brands and shifting loyalties, Zoff’s approach suggests a different playbook: build slowly, stay consistent, and let familiarity do the heavy lifting. Because sometimes, in both branding and cooking, it’s not about reinventing the dish, it’s about perfecting it over time.
