India Today Publishing CEO Manoj Sharma elected AIM president

New Delhi: The Association of Indian Magazines (AIM) has elected Manoj Sharma, CEO (Publishing & Experiential) at Living Media India, as President, and Dhaval Gupta, Director at CyberMedia, as Vice-President for 2025–26 following its Annual General Meeting in New Delhi. 

Outgoing president Anant Nath thanked members and the executive team for their support and said collaborative initiatives in recent years have helped revitalise the magazine ecosystem and reposition magazines as a trusted, multi-platform medium. 

He cited milestones including stronger subscription delivery and distribution networks, an expanded digital storefront, and deeper policy engagement with government ministries. 

AIM listed recent initiatives such as Magazine Post with India Post to strengthen distribution and subscriptions, e-commerce and quick-commerce tie-ups, and collaborations with Indian Railways and IRCTC to widen retail reach. 

It also announced the WAVES OTT magazine store with Prasar Bharati and work on a shared storefront on ONDC. Engagement with the Information & Broadcasting Ministry, the Railways Ministry and India Post has been stepped up. 

The 14th Indian Magazine Congress (IMC 2025) in New Delhi, themed “The Deep Connect: Building Communities, Nurturing Trust, Re-imagining the Future,” brought together publishers, advertisers, media planners, policymakers and global experts. 

The congress saw the unveiling of a WAVES OTT magazine store with Prasar Bharati, a shared magazine storefront on ONDC/DigiHaat, and the “Magazines on the Move” programme with IRCTC to reach premium train travellers. Held alongside IMC, the Magzimise Awards 2025 recognised creativity and impact in magazine advertising. 

Looking ahead, AIM said the new leadership will focus on expanding distribution and subscription strategies, rolling out a national magazine advertising campaign, and foregrounding the relevance of magazines for advertisers. 

The body plans to intensify policy advocacy to secure budgetary allocations for magazines in public libraries and educational institutions, and to urge DAVP to revise and rationalise magazine advertising rates to boost empanelment and deliver a fairer share of government ad spends to the sector. 

“This is a pivotal moment for the magazine medium… The new leadership team looks forward to carrying this work forward with greater energy, sharper focus, and stronger collaborations to grow magazine readership, advertising, and relevance,” Sharma said.