Vikram Misri: The adman who became India’s diplomatic frontman during Indo-Pak war

New Delhi: At a time when Vikram Misri, India’s Foreign Secretary, is at the forefront of sensitive national diplomacy, few would guess that this seasoned diplomat actually began his career not in diplomacy, but in advertising.

During Operation Sindoor, Misri led India’s diplomatic communication with daily press briefings, becoming the face of the government’s response to the India-Pakistan conflict.

Long before he served three Indian Prime Ministers or represented India in Washington, Beijing or Islamabad, Misri spent three formative years working at top Indian ad agencies, Lintas India in Mumbai and Contract Advertising in Delhi, as well as dabbling in advertising film-making.

After completing his MBA from XLRI Jamshedpur, Misri joined Lintas India in 1986 as a management trainee. 

Colleagues recall him as a sharp, well-spoken young executive in the Mumbai office, absorbing the pulse of India's brand-building world. 

Entrepreneur Sanjeev Bikhchandani, founder of Naukri.com and a former colleague at Lintas, told Business Standar, “Vikram Misri started his career as a management trainee at Lintas in Bombay back in 1986. We were colleagues… He is a super guy doing a fine job.”

Misri’s time at Lintas coincided with a golden era in Indian advertising, a period that saw some of the most iconic campaigns take shape. 

Misri was embedded in the kind of high-pressure, big-idea culture that shaped Indian consumer narratives through the late ’80s.

Following his stint in Mumbai, Misri moved to Delhi and joined Contract Advertising, a then-young and ambitious shop where he continued to build experience in client-facing roles. 

He worked across categories and even ventured into ad film-making, reportedly gaining hands-on experience with production teams. 

Those years at Lintas and Contract gave him first-hand exposure to the mechanics of persuasion, a skill he would carry into negotiating tables and television briefings.

This early grounding in visual storytelling, strategic messaging, and persuasive communication would become a defining trait of his diplomatic style in later years.

The transition of a diplomat with an adman's instinct

In 1989, Misri made a decisive career shift. He cleared the UPSC Civil Services Examination and joined the Indian Foreign Service.

Over the next three decades, he held pivotal roles — including Private Secretary to Prime Ministers I.K. Gujral, Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi, Ambassador to China, and most recently, Deputy NSA and now Foreign Secretary.

His calm, articulate demeanour during press briefings, especially in high-stakes situations like the India-Pakistan ceasefire announcement, has earned both praise and, unfortunately, unwarranted trolling. 

After the announcement of ceasefire understanding with the enemy country, Misri was targeted by online trolls, forcing him to lock his X (formerly Twitter) account. This triggered public support from senior diplomats, politicians and civil service associations.