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#Throwback2020: Top promotions in the Indian news industry
NEW DELHI: While 2020 was marked by many highs and lows for the Indian news industry, some newspersons’ star only rose.Here’s the second part of the year-end series on people’s movements in the Indian news industry,focusing on top-rank promotions within the organisations and those who took on additional charges.
India Today
Dinesh Bhatia was elevated to CEO of India Today Group. He was earlier the group CFO.
Mail Today deputy editor Darpan Singh was named the executive editor for Indiatoday.in. The announcement came after India Today announced the closureofMail Today’s print edition.
Rahul Shaw was promoted to the post of CEO – TV and radio, Salil Kumar to CEO – digital, KR Arora to COO – distribution and international, and Yatendra Tyagi was made TVTN CFO. Manoj Sharma took on the new responsibilityof CEO – magazines, LMI.
India TV
In its decision “to rethink, rework, and retool” its business strategies, India TV announced promotions for four of its key persons looking after business revenue, corporate affairs, television operations, and growth and monetisation aspects.
Sudipto Chowdhury was elevated to chief revenue officer, Puneet Tandon as chief officer – corporate affairs, Rohit Lal as chief officer – television operations, and Gulab Makhija, in addition to his role of CFO, was given the portfolio of CEO for growth and monetisation.
Mathrubhumi Group
After the demise of late chairman and managing director MP Veerendra Kumar, Mathrubhumi Board elected PV Chandran as chairman and MV Shreyams Kumar as managing director. PV Chandran also continues to function as the whole-time director and managing editor.
PV Gangadharan, erstwhile director, was appointed as the whole-time director and Mayura MS was tapped as a whole-time additional director of the company.
Mathrubhumi also announced the elevation of Naveen Sreenivasan as head media solutions TRD (television, radio, anddigital).
Network18
Firstpost business head – English news cluster Azim Lalani was elevated as COO – brand solutions and convergence for Network18 digital. He was also given the additional charge of branded content for CNN-News18. Kishore Ajwani was given the post of managing editor from deputy managing editor.
Smriti Mehra was promoted from the post of COO – business news to CEO – business news cluster. She is now responsible for the P&L of this cluster and CNBC digital. Additionally, News18 Languages product function Sudipto Nandy was tapped as News18.com product head – general news.
Karthik Subbaraman was appointed the managing editor for the network’s digital news operations. Prior to this, Subbaraman was the editor overseeing three southern channels, a responsibility he passed on to Vivek Narayan.
Preeti Sahni was handed the charge of COO – Forbes India; Siddharth Saini shouldered the responsibility of handling English news, business news and Forbes verticals, as well as international business.
The Hindu Group
Malini Parthasarathy was named the chairperson of the board of directors. She took over the reins from N Ram, who stepped down from the position at the age of 75. Prior to this, Parthasarathy had been the co-chairperson.
Additionally, publisher of The Hindu Group’s various newspapers N Ravi was elected as the chairperson of Kasturi & Sons Ltd.
The New Indian Express
The publisher promoted VP – marketing and digital operations Amitabh Bishnoi to VP for digital properties.
The Quint
The Quint announced the elevation of national revenue head Devika Dayalto the position of its chief revenue officer in September this year.
Times Network
Times Network president – strategy and business head – English entertainment cluster Vivek Shrivastava was given the additional charge of the network’s news business. In addition to Movies Now, Romedy Now, MN+, MNX, the news channels Times Now, ET Now and Mirror Now were added to his portfolio.
TV9 Network
TV9 Network strengthened its management team by promoting president Vikram K as COO – south. He will be driving the group’s flagship channels TV9 Telugu and TV9 Kannada. It also announced the appointment of Raktim Das as COO – Studio 9.
Republic Media Network
Group president Bhaskar Das was elevated to chief strategy officer. Group CFO S Sundaram was given additional responsibility as group president. Hersh Bhandari and Priya Mukherjee were also tapped as COOs.
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
