Q] As a media lead, how is media strategy today influencing brand growth and consumer engagement differently compared to earlier approaches?
Media today does a lot more than just build reach for us—it helps us stay close to what people are actually thinking and doing. We try to keep it very consumer-centric. When you look at modern India, especially younger audiences, expectations are changing quickly. So, a big part of our job is to listen and adapt. Media helps us do that better—understanding who we need to talk to and showing up in the right moments. It’s less about talking to everyone, and more about making the interaction count.
Q] What factors primarily influence your marketing and media spends? What is the marketing mix for the brand?
For us, there isn’t one fixed way of looking at spends. It really depends on what the brand needs at that point in time and how consumers are behaving. Some platforms are always important to us, especially where people are spending the most time—like on videos or social media. Beyond that, we keep adjusting based on the role each channel plays. However, one thing we’re very conscious of is how Indian consumers are evolving. People today want products that feel aspirational, but they also want them to be accessible. As a portfolio, we’re always trying to strike that balance without losing what makes our brands distinct.
Q] Which is the medium that has traditionally given you the most returns? Looking forward, which platform are you betting on?
We do look at data and measurement closely, but we also try not to reduce everything to just one metric. Digital has definitely grown for us, simply because that’s where consumers are spending more time. But at the same time, large-scale moments and traditional formats still deliver when used well. So instead of betting on one platform, we try to stay close to where people are and how they’re engaging, and that keeps evolving.
Q] With more and more agencies becoming a part of the brand’s marketing ecosystem, what are some of the big challenges you face in co-ordination and maintaining consistency?
When you have multiple partners, things can get complicated. But honestly, it works best when everyone feels like they own the outcome. We do have structures in place, but alignment, on what we’re trying to achieve, helps. Our teams and agency partners work closely—it’s not always perfectly smooth, and that’s okay. A bit of flexibility actually helps people collaborate better.
Q] How is the brand leveraging emerging trends in digital, social, and offline media to stay ahead in a competitive market?
A big shift that we’re seeing is in what consumers expect from brands. Especially with Gen Z, there’s a clear move: they still want great taste and experience, but they’re also more aware and looking for better choices. That’s something we’re paying close attention to. From a media point of view, it just means we need to be present across the journey—from when someone discovers a product to when they actually buy it. And increasingly, those moments are coming closer together.
Q] Which metrics or KPIs matter most to you when evaluating media campaigns, and how do they shape future strategies?
We look at performance across a few things—how efficiently we’re spending, what it’s doing for the brand, and of course, the business impact. At the same time, we try to go beyond just surface numbers. It’s more useful to understand whether people are actually paying attention to and engaging with what we’re putting out. We always try to balance short-term results with long-term brand-building.
Q] What is the most innovative media plan you have ever had for the brand—where the choice of media took the campaign to another level?
The campaigns that stand out are usually the ones where everything comes together: the insight, the idea, and the way it shows up in media. Having spent close to 15 years at PepsiCo, I’ve had the chance to work on several briefs where that combination has really clicked.
What I’ve learnt over time is that innovation doesn’t sit in one place. It often comes from how media, creative and consumer understanding merge to create something fresh. We’ve had a few recent examples—‘Pepsi Anytime’, ‘Sting Sixes’, ‘Mountain Dew’, ‘Peaks of Courage’ and Lay’s ‘Mitti Ki Chitthi’, where the media wasn’t just supporting the idea, it was actually part of how people experienced it. At the end of the day, it always comes back to understanding what consumers want and finding the right way to meet them there.
Q] What are the biggest challenges and opportunities in today’s media landscape, and how does your team navigate them to deliver impactful campaigns?
One of the biggest challenges right now is just how scattered attention has become. People are everywhere, and they engage differently depending on the platform. For us, that means we have to be a lot sharper about who we’re talking to and why. We spend time understanding specific audience groups, what they care about, what they consume and then, build plans around that.
Content has also become really important. Work that feels real, culturally relevant, and right for the platform tends to do much better. That’s where creators are also playing a big role.
