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Videocon Mobile ropes in Ritiesh Deshmukh for ad campaign
MUMBAI: Videocon Mobile Services has launched its new ad campaign for unlimited tariff plans featuring actor Ritiesh Deshmukh in five different situations and looks.
Videocon will be spending close to Rs 500 million in advertising. The campaign will spread across all mediums including television, print and outdoor. The TVC will be aired on television channels including general entertainment channels.
The campaign, which consists of a series of five ad films each highlighting five different products from Videocon Mobile Services, is ideated by ad agency MWG Tag Ideation and directed by filmmaker Anurag Kashyap.
The campaign features Deshmukh in crucial yet hilarious situations wherein he comes at a point of being disconnected for lack of recharge on his phone. The brand intervenes at this stage, to deliver its message and offering through the tagline Signal Mein Break, Plan Leke Dekh convincing consumers that a smart move of taking the right plan from Videocon Mobile Services can make their life free from looking at the time and destination of call.
Videocon Mobile Services CMO Sunil Tandon says, “Customers who operate in the pre-paid segment are faced with the problem of being disconnected as they often fail to keep a tab on their reducing balance. The campaign thus emphasizes that a customer does not need to watch the meter ticking when they opt for ‘Unlimited Plan’ highlighting the tariff strategy of going ‘Unlimited’ and unrestricted with Videocon Mobile Services.”
MWG Tag Ideation VP, GM Himanshu Saxena says, “The creative challenge was in conveying a simple product in an engaging manner within the ambit of a youth centric brand. We also wanted to break the clutter amongst the otherwise packed mobile services advertising and create a distinctive identity for Videocon Mobile Services.
“In order to make the ad memorable, it was imperative that the correct protagonist be identified. It was important that he be recognized, yet not over-exposed as some advertising faces tend to be. We looked for someone who had a great sense of comic timing while being a great actor and we zeroed in on Ritiesh Deshmukh who is not only a fantastic performer in front of the camera but also has an innate ability to carry of a comic sequence on his young shoulders alone.
“Moreover, Ritiesh has a great connect with the youth befitting the brand image of being youthful.”
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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.
