Talent Tracker: Top moves at Tesla, Titan, Zee, Dentsu, and Britannia

New Delhi: The Indian business landscape continued to evolve with a slew of strategic leadership changes across industries. From legacy brands to emerging start-ups, companies bolstered their top teams to navigate shifting market dynamics, drive innovation, and accelerate growth. Here was a round-up of the latest high-profile appointments and exits shaping the corporate narrative this month:

Varun Berry took on CEO title at Britannia

Britannia Industries designated Varun Berry as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately, in addition to his existing roles as Executive Vice-Chairman and Managing Director. Berry, who had joined Britannia in 2013, brought over 38 years of experience from companies such as HUL and PepsiCo. He continued to lead the business amid a challenging FMCG landscape. His appointment followed the company’s Q4 FY25 results, which reported a 4.2% increase in consolidated net profit to ₹559.13 crore and a 9% rise in product sales revenue.

Titan MD CK Venkataraman to retire; Ajoy Chawla named successor

Titan Company announced that Managing Director C.K. Venkataraman would retire on 31 December 2025, in accordance with Tata Group’s retirement policy. Ajoy Chawla, then CEO of the Jewellery Division, would assume the role from 1 January 2026. A Tata Administrative Services (TAS) officer and Titan veteran since 1991, Chawla had held key leadership roles across strategy, watches, fragrances, and new business incubation. His appointment remained subject to shareholder approval.

Tesla India head Prashanth Menon steps down ahead of market launch

Prashanth Menon, Tesla India’s Country Head and Board Chairman, resigned after nearly nine years with the company, just as Tesla prepared for its India entry. He had overseen local operations for more than four years and played a key role in shaping its India strategy. A successor had not been named, and Tesla’s China team was expected to manage Indian operations in the interim. The company continued to navigate challenges such as high import duties and infrastructure limitations ahead of planned launches in Mumbai and Delhi.

Ashish Gupta, Nitin Kohli take charge of Skoda and Volkswagen brands in India

Ashish Gupta assumed the role of Brand Director of Skoda India, while Nitin Kohli became Brand Director for Volkswagen Passenger Cars. Gupta, previously with Volkswagen India, succeeded Petr Janeba. Kohli transitioned from a leadership role at Audi India. The appointments reflected Skoda Auto Volkswagen India’s emphasis on local leadership and growth in the Indian market.

Rohit Suri joins Zee Entertainment as CHRO

Zee Entertainment appointed Rohit Suri as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective 12 May 2025. Based in Mumbai and reporting to CEO Punit Goenka, Suri led talent development, cultural integration, and performance-driven strategies to support Zee’s future-ready vision. He brought over 25 years of HR leadership across tech, consumer internet, and media most recently as Head of Talent at Netflix India and held senior roles across South Asia, APAC, and Europe.

Smita Murarka joins Orange Health Labs as Consumer P&L Head

Orange Health Labs named Smita Murarka as Consumer P&L Head – Brand and Business. With more than 20 years in marketing, she brought experience from Deloitte, Duroflex, and Lifestyle International, with a proven record in leading digital-first brand strategies.

Stellantis India restructures leadership ahead of Leapmotor launch

Stellantis India reshuffled senior roles in preparation for the Leapmotor debut. Kumar Priyesh took charge of sales and network for Jeep, Citroën, and Leapmotor, while Shishir Mishra led partnerships, mobility services, and the pre-owned vehicle business. CEO Shailesh Hazela continued to oversee the overall India strategy.

John Thangaraj joins Dentsu India as Chief Strategy Officer Creative & Media

Dentsu India appointed John Thangaraj as Chief Strategy Officer Creative & Media. Reporting to Amit Wadhwa and Narayan Devanathan, Thangaraj bridged the agency’s creative and media functions to deliver integrated, outcome-led marketing solutions. He brought a strong strategic background from leadership roles at Havas Creative Network and FCB India, aligning with Dentsu’s ‘Innovating to Impact’ philosophy.

LifeWear India appoints Jijith Somasundaran as CEO

With over 30 years’ experience in sales, marketing, and business development, Jijith Somasundaran took charge as CEO of LifeWear India. He led the brand’s expansion in India and global markets (excluding the US). Somasundaran identified strong growth potential and aimed to build deeper consumer trust, supported by brand ambassador MS Dhoni.

Channelplay strengthens leadership with three senior hires

Channelplay appointed Gaurav Arora as Senior Product Manager, Krishna Singh as Strategic Growth Leader (GTM), and Lav Bhardwaj as Business Head – Digital Solutions. The hires aimed to reinforce the company’s focus on offline retail, digital services, and AI-led hiring. Each brought substantial experience across SaaS, FMCG, and digital transformation.

Rupali Shrivastava joins Limelight Lab Grown Diamonds as CMO

Limelight Lab Grown Diamonds appointed Rupali Shrivastava as Chief Marketing Officer to drive brand growth and consumer engagement in the expanding lab-grown diamond segment. Shrivastava brought expertise from previous roles at Malabar Gold and Diamonds and Rio Tinto, with a focus on digital-first brand building, consumer insight, and retail excellence.

Adityan Kayalakal exits Veera

Adityan Kayalakal, Head of Marketing and founding team member at Veera, stepped down and was serving his notice period. Joining in mid-2023, he played a central role in the company’s early expansion to 4 million users. He previously held senior marketing roles at Byju’s and the NBA, with an 18-year career across global content, media, and digital strategy.

Taboola appoints Harpreet Singh as India Country Manager

Taboola named Harpreet Singh as Country Manager for India, following the departure of Kanika Mittal. With over 18 years’ experience, Singh led Taboola’s broader focus beyond native advertising and drove the growth of its new platform, Realize. He previously managed publisher partnerships across India and Southeast Asia, enhancing relationships with leading media houses. Taboola also announced a two-year exclusive partnership with JioNews to scale its content recommendation technology across major categories.

Sushant Barua joins Dentsu Creative Isobar as NCD Art

Dentsu Creative Isobar appointed Sushant Barua (also known as Manik) as National Creative Director Art. Reporting to President Sahil Shah, Barua led the agency’s art and visual design efforts, collaborating closely with CCO Abhijat Bharadwaj to shape its creative identity. With over 20 years’ experience and a globally awarded portfolio, he was tasked with raising the agency’s design craft and mentoring talent across formats and platforms.

Rajni Daswani elevates to Chief Growth Officer People and Business at SoCheers

SoCheers promoted Rajni Daswani to the role of Chief Growth Officer  People and Business. A company mainstay since 2014, she had been instrumental across brand experience, business development, HR, and strategy. In her new role, she focused on scaling revenue and talent efforts, collaborating with co-founders Mehul Gupta and Siddharth Devnani to drive growth and operational excellence.

Sprintexx appoints Uddit Pandey as Co-Founder

Ad tech start-up Sprintexx named Uddit Pandey as Co-Founder. With nearly two decades of experience in programmatic advertising, media strategy, and business growth, Pandey took the lead in building an advanced ad tech ecosystem integrating data, creativity, and full-funnel strategy. His appointment aimed to accelerate client ROI and enable scalable business growth.