WOW Awards Asia 2017

The WOW Awards and Convention Asia 2017 is set to take place from July 6 to 8, 2017 at New Delhi Aerocity. Asia's largest recognition for excellence in the experiential industry, the WOW Awards Asia 2017 has received entries in 70 categories across 5 groups. The five groups of categories are MICE/Business Events, Experiential Marketing, Event Intellectual Properties, Experiential Celebrations and Experiential Management.

The jury for the WOW Awards Asia 2017 consists of over 60 leading marketers, company heads, consultants, and international industry professionals who will shortly begin judging entries. The entire judging process is being conducted with KPMG in India as the Process Evaluators.

Here are the 23 jury members judging entries for Group B – Experiential Marketing, which has 26 categories.

1. Ashish Rai

General Manager & Head – National Brand Properties, OOH Media & Activations

Idea Cellular

A Brand strategist with over 2 decades of progressive leadership experience across Telecom, FMCG & Alcho-beverages, Aashish has played a key role in building & repositioning of big ticket brands. In his current role at Idea Cellular, he is responsible for building National brand properties & Strategic Associations and driving the Integrated Marketing Communication for the same. At Idea, Aashish has been credited with conceptualizing one of India’s largest on ground Live Music properties to create buzz for the brand.

 

2. Satish Upadhyay

Head- Seller Marketing

Amazon

A brand and marketing enthusiast, Satish, currently heads seller marketing for Amazon. With around a decade of building B2C and B2B brands in India/ Europe and USA, Satish firmly believes that a business has only two functions – Marketing and Innovation (in no particular order!!!) Satish has a keen interest in discussing marketing nuances and has been actively involved in guest lectures at various business schools. He is also an avid sportsperson and paints/ sketches in his free time as he feels that’s the best form of creative expression.

 

3. Avinash Oza

Head - Rural Activation

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd’s, Farm Division – Mahindra Tractors

Avinash Oza heads Rural Activation for Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd’s, Farm Division – Mahindra Tractors. In 2016, he was conferred with “Best Marketing Support” award in Mahindra Tractors Annual Sales & Marketing conference and a President’s Excellerator Award for the launch of “Mahindra Yuvo” tractors Prior to M&M, he had successful stints with BTL agency, Ogilvy Action & DDB Mudra as planning head for their rural wing At Ogilvy, he bagged coveted title of “Young Tiger” in 2006 and in DDB MudraMax his campaign “Birla SunLife - Agent on Track” was shortlisted for Cannes lions 2015.

 

4. Adarsh Saxena

Manager - Rides & Community Marketing

Royal Enfield

 

5. Rachna Lather

Head of Marketing

Motorola and Lenovo Mobiles, India

A dynamic professional with 15 years of experience across Advertising, Brand Communication and Marketing. Rachna is a passionate go -getter, she thrives on energy and creativity and is forever hungry to explore unchartered territories and innovate and experiment with new age ideas. A gutsy youth marketeer, start-up specialist and tech enthusiast, she feels privileged to have worked with some of the best brands in the world like Hewlett Packard, Sony, Virgin Mobile, Micromax, Motorola and Lenovo.

 

6. Kanika Mittal

Head - Marketing and Brand Communications

Reebok India

 

7. Parinda Singh

Head of Marketing

Hindi Movies Cluster Star TV

 

8. Alexander Valladares

Senior Marketing Manager

MTV

Alex is Senior Manager Marketing at the ultimate youth engagement brand - MTV India. Responsible for the marketing and communication strategy of the brand, Alex also conceptualizes and creates monetizable brand IPs for MTV. His most acclaimed projects for the brand include- MTV Campus Diaries, The JunkYard Project, The Many Me Project and others.

 

9. Nida Paloba

GM Communications

Tata Sky

Her role at Tata Sky entails internal and external communication across stakeholders. She is in-charge of press, customer facing social media and crisis communication, along with creative communication on employee initiatives. During her 13 years of experience in communication, she has worked with IDBI Federal Life Insurance and PR firms such as Genesis Burson Marstellar, Gulf Excellence Consultancy (Kuwait) and Ketchum Sampark. She expertise’s in crisis communication management, handling media fronting communications for financial entities, airlines, telecom, broadcasters, jewelers and apparels to name a few. Nida has completed her MBA from MET (Mumbai) and is known for her innovative ideas, strong sense of conviction and an eye for stream lining communication processes.

 

10. Ankit Dhingra

Associate Director- Marketing

Myntra

Ankit Dhingra has worked with Coca-Cola South West Asia, and managed Marketing for some of the coolest brands in 5 Countries (Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Maldives). He’s also worked on the Biggest Experiential Marketing Campaign in the World (FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour in 2013), and also highly efficient low cost activations and brand experiences, too. He is currently busy helping build Brand Myntra.

 

11. Jordan Waid

Vice President, Brand Experience

Freeman XP

Jordan's passion lies in creating compelling stories and satisfying the need to invent everything, new scenarios, new concepts, new rules, and new ways of thinking. His unique background of architecture, digital media, and film allows him to constantly challenge experiential communication models with fresh ideas that engage at all levels for some of the biggest brands on the planet. An inspired thought leader, Jordan’s creative vision, insight, and conceptual thinking starts and ends with a user-centric approach. It is Jordan’s job to diagnose the brand, the brief, the challenge, the goal, and with that identify the right channel.

 

12. Siddharth Banerjee

Executive Vice President - Marketing

Vodafone India Ltd.

Siddharth Banerjee is an experienced consumer business leader across Telecom and FMCG for the past 17 years and is currently the Executive Vice President (EVP) -Marketing and Head of Brand, Insights, Media, Activation & Digital at Vodafone India. At Vodafone India, he is responsible for leading the organization towards becoming a digital company which serves customers across mobility - enterprise and financial inclusion & m-commerce solutions and also ensuring that Vodafone remains a brand of choice & a lovemark for India. In his 15 years of a challenging, diverse FMCG / CPG career, Siddharth has worked across Country P&L roles and Global / Regional Brand Marketing roles.

 

13. Rajneesh Bhasin

Managing Director

Borges India Private Limited

Rajneesh Bhasin is the Managing Director of Borges India Private Limited; a fully owned subsidiary of Borges International Group. Rajneesh heads the India operations for Borges and is responsible for establishing it as a leading player in the Olive Oil Category. This he intends to do by building a strong pan India distribution network for Borges and supporting the same through brand launches, promotions, etc which will in turn help build consumer franchise for both the category and the brand. Rajneesh has over 15 years of experience with a sound background in FMCG sales and marketing.

 

14. Ayushman Chiranewala

Head of Marketing

Fastrack, Titan Company Limited

An Alumni of Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development, Ayushman graduated with a Masters in Marketing and Finance. In 2008, he joined Titan Company Limited and was responsible for area sales of brands such as Fastrack Watches and Eyewear, Tommy Hilfiger and Hugo Boss. In 2009, Ayushman then took on the role of Brand Manager at Sonata. In 2011, Ayushman joined Titan’s International Business Division as Brand Manager, and later took over the role of Country Manager for Titan’s global markets, where he overlooked the sales and functioning of the Gulf countries and the United States.

 

15. Tusharr Kumar

Head - Marketing, Communication & PR

Ducati India Pvt. Ltd.

Tusharr Kumar is a passionate motorcyclist and currently heads Marketing, Communication and PR for Ducati India Pvt. Ltd. A graduate from St. Xavier’s College Mumbai, before joining Ducati, Tusharr has seven years of experience across various sectors including Automobile, FMCG, Branded Entertainment and Live Events. While working at Parle Agro, Tusharr managed the company’s iconic brand’s Frooti and LMN. His interest for the independent music and the live entertainment scene took him to Only Much Louder Entertainment. At Ducati he is part of the key start-up team responsible for setting up the brand in India.

 

16. Abhinav Sharma

Brand Manager

adidas Running, India

Abhinav Sharma is an avid runner and currently the Brand Manager for adidas Running, India. He has been in this role since April 2015. This is his second stint with adidas, he previously managed Market Activations, and Retail Marketing for adidas in New Delhi from 2013 to 2015. He has worked in Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, Titan Industries, SABMiller India in a career spanning 7 years. He specialises in Digital Marketing, Brand Communication, Retail Marketing, Brand/Market Activation and Financial Modelling for Retail Businesses. In his current role, he is responsible for formulation of the multi-channel sell out strategy for the adidas Running silo and then executing the same.

 

17. Prashant Sukhwani

Senior Marketing Manager

Bunge India Pvt Ltd.

Prashant Sukhwani looks after the brand strategy and ATL/BTL campaigns for all products under the Bunge India portfolio, including its premium sub brand Dalda Oils. He has also been instrumental in the conceptualization and execution of numerous rural marketing campaigns for Dalda which have registered a staggering impact for the brand.

 

18. Vivek Srivatsa

Head-Marketing for Passenger Vehicle Business Unit

TATA MOTORS Ltd.

Vivek B Srivatsa, joined Tata Motors in July 2016. As the Head-Marketing for the Passenger Vehicle Business Unit, he is responsible for the creation of the brand and positioning strategy for the passenger vehicle portfolio. With over two decades of experience, Srivatsa has in the past, worked with Renault, Maruti Suzuki and Philips Electronics. Prior to this role, he was Marketing Director for Renault, Middle East. His extensive experience involves working in diverse functions across Channel Sales, Distributions, Corporate Sales, Product Management and Marketing Communications.

 

19. Sonia Huria

Head- Corporate Communications & CSR

Viacom18

One of the youngest leaders at Viacom18, Sonia Huria drives communication, brand messaging and corporate social responsibility for Viacom18 across all its business lines. Having honed her skills at leading PR consultancies Genesis Burson Marsteller and Weber Shandwick, Sonia joined Viacom18 in 2008 to launch the premium GEC COLORS and since then has spearheaded the launch of some of the biggest shows of Indian television and the expansion of the group’s business interests. A highly decorated professional herself, Sonia leads one of the country’s most awarded communication teams in the Media and Entertainment industry today.

 

20. Mahesh Kanchan

Marketing Head

Carlsberg

Mahesh is a marketing professional with varied experience in FMCG category from Personal Care to Foods & Beverages. Have handled marketing for iconic brands like No.1 McDowell’s Whisky with the UB Group, Huggies with Kimberly-Clark Lever, Kissan & Knorr for Unilever and Nutrine, Jumpin, Maha Lacto, Sofit & Hershey for Godrej Hershey Ltd. He currently serves as the Marketing Head for Carlsberg in Asia, and specialises Lead marketing & sales function, turnaround ailing brands or nurture, develop and grow nascent brands & categories.

 

21. Maneesha Khanna

Associate Director - Head Media and Digital Marketing

Pepsico

Maneesha Khanna is a digital marketing and media professional with 15 years of core experience in media strategy, sourcing, innovation, building some of the biggest media, digital & sporting platforms in India, activations, agency relationship management & driving the ad production process. She has led large teams across the biggest brands in India with intensive cross category experience that adds to a rich & diverse outlook. She has built strong professional relationships that help create winning partnerships and set up successful ecosystems. Khanna is high on energy & passion, with a strong focus on efficiency & effectiveness while driving the communication agenda across businesses.

 

22. Chaitanya Rele

VP – Head of Marketing

Havmor Ice Cream Ltd.

Chaitanya Rele is the VP - Head of Marketing at Havmor Ice Cream Ltd. Before joining Havmor, Chaitanya has worked with Publicis India as a Managing Partner. Over the last 16 years Chaitanya has worked for clients across the board from telecommunication to FMCG and manufacturing to fashion. In the past, he has worked with Kyoorius, Saffron Brand Consultants, Addikt & Fitch. In his current role at Havmor, Chaitanya plays a key role in developing and strengthening the Havmor as a brand across India. He has experience in branding, content strategy and retail, having worked on a variety of brands across the world.

 

23. Debosmita Majumder

Head of Marketing

PUMA India

Debosmita Majumder is a Communications Specialist with over 11 years of work experience in the industry. Her fields of experience span from Public Relations and Marketing Communications to Corporate Communications and Brand Communications. She has worked across various markets and sectors including lifestyle, healthcare and sports with a special focus on understanding consumer behavior. Since August 2015, Debosmita has been the Senior Manager Marketing at the Global Footwear Brand PUMA in India where she handles the marketing and communication for all categories including Running, Training, Teamsport, Motorsport and Sportstyle. She is currently based out of Bangalore.