Omnicom announced its strategy and executive leadership for the go-forward organisation, following the historic completion of its acquisition of Interpublic Group on November 26, 2025. Reliable sources have named the new leadership structure for Omnicom in India. IMPACT is following the story closely however official confirmation on the appointments is awaited.
At the helm of Omnicom Advertising India is Prasoon Joshi as Chairman. He will be overlooking the entire creative portfolio for the group. Prasoon Joshi is a highly respected Indian poet, lyricist, screen-writer, and advertising veteran widely regarded as one of the most influential creative voices in India’s advertising and film worlds. Joshi began his career in advertising in 1992 with Ogilvy & Mather in Delhi; after roughly a decade, he moved to McCann Worldgroup (then McCann-Erickson). Rising through the ranks, he eventually became CEO & CCO, McCann Worldgroup India and Chairman of McCann Asia Pacific.
Aditya Kanthy, CEO and Managing Director of Omnicom Advertising Group, will take over as President & MD, Omnicom Advertising India. Until recently, Kanthy was overseeing Omnicom’s creative agencies in the region, namely BBDO, DDB Mudra and TBWA. Aditya Kanthy joined DDB Mudra in 2003 as a strategic planner, rising to Chief Strategy Officer before becoming CEO and Managing Director of DDB Mudra Group in 2023. Under his leadership DDB Mudra Group was ranked Asia’s #1 effective agency by WARC Rankings 2021, became the first Indian agency to be recognised as APAC Agency of the Year at Spikes Asia 2022. In 2024, Aditya served as the Jury President of Creative Effectiveness and Creative Strategy at Spikes Asia.
Parallelly, Dheeraj Sinha, currently CEO of FCB Group India, is set to take charge as CEO of McCann Worldgroup India. Sources have also told IMPACT that FCB will fold into McCann (both part of the earlier IPG network). Other details are awaited. At FCB India, Sinha led the multi-agency network - including FCB Ulka, FCB Interface, FCB Kinnect, FCB Neo and more - and is credited with steering the organisation to major new-business success, including winning the KFC account. Sinha joined FCB from Publicis Groupe in November 2023, where he served as CEO of Leo Burnett South Asia and Chairman of BBH India. Under Sinha’s leadership, FCB India won 10 Cannes Lions in 2025 out of the 56 awarded to FCB globally.
Leading Strategy for Omnicom Advertising India will be Group CEO of MullenLowe Lintas Group (India), S. Subramanyeswar, also known as ‘Subbu.’ Sources close to the development have told IMPACT that Subbu will lead two major positions including Chief Strategy Officer, Omnicom Advertising India and Chief Knowledge Officer, Omnicom Advertising Asia. Under S. Subramanyeswar’s leadership, MullenLowe Lintas Group has achieved significant effectiveness success and is often ranked among the top agencies in India and APAC.
Sources also believe that in India, the group will operate through three global networks —TBWA\Lintas, BBDO Group and McCann— reinforced by the legacy equities of Lintas, Ulka and Mudra. This structure is described as being powered by Omnicom Advertising India's creative and experience innovation engine, represented locally through Kinnect and 22feet Tribal, which are positioned to drive integrated creativity and digital-first solutions. Under this revised structure, Govind Pandey (currently: CEO, TBWA\India) and Prateek Bhardwaj (currently: CCO, Lowe Lintas) will head the operations of the merged TBWA\Lintas.
Chandni Shah and Rohan Mehta, who co-founded Kinnect in 2011, will also take on larger responsibilities in Omnicom Advertising India. IMPACT has exclusively learned from reliable sources that Chandni Shah will step up as CEO of the consolidated Kinnect and 22feet Tribal entity. In parallel, Rohan Mehta will assume a critical new responsibility, spearheading digital integration and capability building across Omnicom Advertising India.
Simultaneously, Josy Paul will continue to serve as BBDO India chief post Omnicom- IPG merger. Under his leadership, BBDO India has grown into one of the country’s most respected creative agencies, known for work that blends sharp brand thinking with social relevance. A highly respected figure in the industry, he was inducted into the Advertising Club Calcutta Hall of Fame in 2020 for his outstanding contribution to Indian advertising. In 2025, he was appointed Jury President for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Lions at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, further cementing his global influence.
And marking a homecoming of sorts will be Rahul Mathew, set to lead as Chief Creative Officer, McCann Worldgroup in the merged Omnicom-IPG entity. Rahul, who currently serves as CCO in DDB Mudra, has served two distinct terms at McCann Erickson once from 2003-2007 as Creative Director and then once again as Executive Creative Director from 2010 to 2013 before joining DDB Mudra as Creative Head in 2014.
IMPACT is closely following the story while formal announcement is awaited.
