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ITC teams up with Hungama and Shankar Mahadevan for digital talent hunt
MUMBAI: ITC’s leading personal care brand Vivel Face Wash along with Hungama Digital Media Entertainment and renowned Indian musician Shankar Mahadevan have launched digital talent hunt – Vivel Face Wash presents ‘MOBisur”.
The mobile & internet based talent hunt promises to give every Indian an opportunity to storm the world with their singing talent.
In harmony with its brand philosophy “Choo Lo Aasmaan”, Vivel Face Wash has partnered with Hungama to provide a platform to aspiring singers and give them an opportunity to hone their skills under the guidance of Shankar Mahadevan. The digital talent hunt enables participation from anywhere in the country; all that a participant requires is a mobile phone or an Internet connection.
It empowers the participants to break the queue and forego travelling to the nearest city for an audition. The winners of the contest will get an opportunity to record an album with Shankar Mahadevan which will be released by T Series and Hungama. The winners will also receive Rs 500,000 cash prize.
Nilanjan Mukherjee, Head of Marketing, Personal Care Products Business, ITC, said, “Vivel Face Wash is delighted to present Mobisur, an exciting and innovative platform to discover hidden musical talent. The brand Vivel caters to the intrinsic beauty needs of the modern Indian woman thereby giving her the confidence to fulfil her aspirations.”
Bhushan Kumar, MD, T-Series, said, “It gives us immense pleasure to be able to bring new talent in to the industry. As a music label, we are always looking for fresh talent and with a truly digital talent hunt; we have access to talent across the country. We are looking forward to releasing an album composed by Shankar Mahadevan for the winner of the hunt.”
Speaking on the occasion of the launch, Neeraj Roy, MD and CEO, Hungama Digital Media Entertainmen said,
The reach of Internet and Mobile technology has grown tremendously in the past few years. The aim of “MOBisur” is to create a talent-scouting engine in spaces that haven’t been explored in the past, via an entry ticket that is their everyday communication device.”
5000 talented female participants selected from entrees submitted on the Vivel Facebook page will make it to the second round. Participants have to dial 546465, record their voice on a unique IVR and begin their musical journey. Alternatively they can also log onto the website MOBisur website and upload their video.
The contestants who clear the first stage of the auditions will be given specific tasks by Shankar Mahadevan. Based on their performance in the tasks and the votes secured for each task, they will be chosen for the next round.
There are three tasks in all and after clearing all three tasks the contestants make it to the final round, which is the On-Stage Performance. 10 Finalists chosen on the basis of Shankar’s scores as well as votes will be flown down to Mumbai to perform in front of Shankar Mahadevan and two other prominent personalities, where the final two winners will be announced.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
