FEMALE MOTORISTS SPREAD THE MESSAGE OF WOMEN SAFETY AT “WOMEN’S RALLY TO THE VALLEY” – AN INITIATIVE BY AAMBY VALLEY CITY AND WESTERN INDIA AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION

~Close to 800- 1000 women participants and 240 cars zoom across Mumbai to Aamby Valley City spreading awareness on various social causes ~

Mumbai, 5^th March, 2017: Women’s Day celebrations have kick started early this year! Marking the Women’s Day Celebrations, Aamby Valley City in association with Western India Automobile Association (WIAA) organized the “WOMEN’S RALLY TO THE VALLEY” – A car rally exclusively for women. This rally is one of the most talked about events in town and is supported by JK Tyres. The third edition of Women’s Rally to the Valley witnessed a massive participation of 800 - 1000 women and close to 240 cars that zoomed across the roads of Mumbai making their way to Aamby Valley. Amidst a lot of cheer from the crowd, cars displaying impactful social messages spreading awareness about Women’s Safety started from Hotel Sahara Star.

The rally was flagged off by Smt. Valsa Nair Singh, Principal Secretary, Tourism & Culture, Govt. of Maharashtra. The rally commenced from Hotel Sahara Star and passed through Worli Sea Face, Peddar Road, Chowpatty, Marine Drive, Churchgate and finally culminated at The Aamby Valley City near Lonavala.  The women drivers had a smooth ride as volunteers stationed at every point ensured the safety of all Women Riders. The traffic on roads was also excellently managed with the support of the traffic police officials.

Commenting on this occasion, Mr. Nitin Dossa, Executive Chairman, Western India Automobile Association (WIAA) said, “Since WIAA’s prime focus is creating awareness in society about road safety, we have now taken initiative to create awareness about women’s safety on roads, in public transport and in public places. The WIAA car rally supports the cause of women's safety since this is an issue which needs urgent attention due to the number of growing attacks on women in recent times. The aim is to help women voice their safety concerns to demand a safe city and create awareness amongst the people of the country to build a protective society for women. What better way to celebrate the spirit of a woman than Women’s Day!”

Commenting on this occasion, COL. SAJAL KUMAR SINHA (RETD.), Chief General Manager – HR, Golf & Administration, Aamby Valley City, said, “We salute the spirit of every woman who has always sacrificed her dreams for their commitments towards family and children. It is commendable that 1000 women participants were a part of such a campaign. Hotel Sahara Star and Aamby Valley City would like to thank WIAA and JK Tyres for putting up such a great show every year and spreading awareness about women’s safety. The WOMENS RALLY TO THE VALLEY inculcates the fun and adventure element keeping social message of women’s safety as the central theme. We appreciate the women participants who have come forward for such a noble cause. Last but not the least a big thank you to the traffic police department for ensuring a smooth ride.”

Music Broadcast Limited allots 44.01 lakh equity shares to 15 anchor investors aggregating to Rs. 146.56 cr

Public Offer to open on 6^th March 2017, and to close on 8^th March 2017

Price Band fixed from Rs. 324 to Rs. 333 per Equity Share

Mumbai, 4th March, 2017: Music Broadcast Limited (the “Company” or “Issuer”), in consultation with ICICI Securities Limited (the “Book Running Lead Manager” to the Offer), has finalized allocation of 44,01,158 Equity Shares, to Anchor Investors at the Anchor Investor Allocation Price of Rs. 333 per Equity Share aggregating to Rs. 146.56 crore. 

The anchor investors include: HSBC INDIAN EQUITY MOTHER FUND (3,15,315 equity shares accounting for 7.16%); NOMURA FUNDS IRELAND PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY - NOMURA FUNDS IRELAND - INDIA EQUITY FUND (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); FRANKLIN INDIA SMALLER COMPANIES FUND             (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); MORGAN STANLEY MAURITIUS COMPANY LIMITED (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); PICTET COUNTRY (MAURITIUS) LIMITED  (3,15,315 - 7.16%); DSP BLACKROCK EQUITY SAVINGS FUND (1,73,070 equity shares - 3.93%); DSP BLACKROCK MIP FUND      (98,595            equity shares - 2.24%); DSP BLACKROCK TECHNOLOGY.COM FUND (38,025 equity shares - 0.86%); DSP BLACKROCK DUAL ADVANTAGE FUND SERIES 39-36M (5,625 equity shares - 0.13%); HDFC TRUSTEE COMPANY LIMITED - HDFC PRUDENCE FUND (3,15,315 equity shares- 7.16%); ICICI PRUDENTIAL MIDCAP FUND (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); RELIANCE CAPITAL TRUSTEE COMPANY LTD. A/C RELIANCE MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT FUND (1,57,635 equity shares - 3.58%); RELIANCE CAPITAL TRUSTEE CO LTD - A/C RELIANCE SMALL CAP FUND (1,57,680 equity shares - 3.58%); HDFC STANDARD LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LTD (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); SBI LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); BIRLA SUN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); INDIA MIDCAP (MAURITIUS) LTD (3,15,315 equity shares - 7.16%); BIRLA SUN LIFE TRUSTEE COMPANY PRIVATE LIMITED A/C BIRLA SUN LIFE SMALL AND MIDCAP FUND (1,51,032 equity shares - 3.43%); and UTI – INDIA LIFESTYLE FUND(1,51,031 equity shares - 3.43%). 

The Company proposes to open on Monday, 6^th March 2017, an initial public offer of equity shares of face value of Rs. 10 each (the “Equity Shares”) for cash at a premium (the “Offer”) consisting of a fresh issue of up to Rs. 4,000 million (the “Fresh Issue”) and an offer for sale up to 2,658,518 Equity Shares by the Selling Shareholders (the “Offer For Sale”). The Offer will close on Wednesday, 8^th March 2017. The Price Band for the Offer is fixed from Rs. 324 to Rs. 333 per Equity Share

The Company, in consultation with the Book Running Lead Manager, may consider participation by Anchor Investors in accordance with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2009, as amended (“ICDR Regulations”). The Anchor Investor Bidding Date shall be one Working Day prior to the Offer Opening Date; i.e., Friday, 3^rd March 2017. Bids can be made for a minimum of 45 Equity Shares and in multiples of 45 Equity Shares thereafter.

The sole Book Running Lead Manager (“BRLM”) to the Offer is ICICI Securities Limited.

The Offer is being made through the Book Building Process in compliance with regulation 26(1) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2009, as amended (“SEBI ICDR Regulations”), wherein 50% of the Offer shall be allocated on a proportionate basis to qualified institutional buyers (“QIBs”). Our Company may, in consultation with the BRLM, allocate up to 60% of the QIB Portion to Anchor Investors (“Anchor Investor Portion”) on a discretionary basis, out of which at least one-third will be available for allocation to Mutual Funds only subject to valid Bids being received from domestic Mutual Funds at or above the Anchor Investor Allocation Price. Such number of Equity Shares representing 5% of the Net QIB Portion (i.e. The portion of the QIB Portion less the number of Equity Shares Allotted to the Anchor Investors) shall be available for allocation on a proportionate basis to Mutual Funds only, and the remaining Net QIB Portion shall be available for allocation on a proportionate basis to all QIBs, including Mutual Funds, subject to valid Bids being received at or above Offer Price. Further, not less than 15% of the Offer shall be available for allocation on a proportionate basis to Non-Institutional Investors and not less than 35% of the Offer shall be available for allocation to Retail Individual Investors in accordance with the SEBI ICDR Regulations, subject to valid Bids being received from them at or above the Offer Price. All Investors (except Anchor Investors) shall mandatorily participate in this Offer only through the Application Supported by Blocked Amount (“ASBA”) process, and shall provide details of their respective bank account in which the Bid amount will be blocked by the Self Certified Syndicate Banks (“SCSBs”).

The Equity Shares offered through the Red Herring Prospectus dated February 22, 2017 (“RHP”) are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE.

All capitalized terms used herein and not specifically defined shall have the same meaning as ascribed to them in the RHP.

Israel Ministry of Tourism conducts multi-city roadshow in India

All India, March 3^rd, 2017: Looking to boost tourist traffic from Tier 2 Indian cities, Israel Ministry of Tourism conducted their first roadshow of 2017 in Chandigarh, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad on 18^th, 20^th and 22^nd February respectively. The roadshow was conducted in a networking workshop format with two DMCs from Israel and was attended by over 100 travel agents in each city. 

Commenting on the occasion, Hassan Madah, Director - Israel Ministry of Tourism Indiasaid, “Israel is an emerging destination for the Indian traveller and tourist arrivals has been growing from India to Israel over the last couple of years. We wanted to tap new markets, so we decided to conduct roadshows in Chandigarh, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad this year. The response we received in all three cities has been encouraging and promising. We are working towards increasing our leisure and MICE travellers while continuing our focus on existing segments using different mediums, including investing in advertising campaigns, and continuing to build and strengthen our travel trade relationships in the Indian market.”

Israel achieved a growth of 13% in 2016 over the previous year creating a new record with 44,672 Indian tourists visiting the destination.  The Ministry is hoping to maintain its double digit growth figures in 2017 as well. The country attracts worldwide tourists and is an explorer’s paradise. With archaeological sites, a rich culture, museums, culinary delights, modern attractions and friendly people it has something to offer every kind of traveller.

El Al provides direct connectivity between India and Israel with 4 weekly flights from Mumbai to Tel Aviv. Air India is expected to begin direct connections to Israel this year. Dead Sea, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Eilat, Nazareth, Haifa, Akko, Masada, Negev Desert are some famous tourist destinations of Israel.

Sanatan Satya Channel Launched.

Bharat Upmanyu,son of a freedom fighter, World Renowned Spiritual Guide, Astrologer, Palmist, Writer, Director and Actor...adviser to the country heads, business tycoons and Bollywood superstars believes that Vedas are the ultimate Truth and Sanatan Dharma is the ideal way of leading a peaceful, prosperous life and attaining self-realization.

At the beginning of civilization our ancient saints and sages had recognized the reason for life on earth, the way of living it peacefully and achieving the ultimate goal of self-realization. However all these philosophies were lost over a period of time and have led to the current chaos and confusion regarding, religion, spiritualism, social structure and day to day human life. 

Our correspondent had a very interesting conversation with Mr. Bharat Upmanyu who shared his views about the futuristic India .He shared a very interesting point on population explosion,that in the last 10yrs or so India has shown a massive increase in the human population which can be the end of us because our mother land can take this much weight but when the weight explodes so will she and we will face a disaster.

Through the YouTube channel Sanatan Satya, Mr.Bharat Upmanyu's objective is to make people understand the Vedic way of life and popularize these ancient beliefs in the modern context and also establish their scientific basis so that the youth of today can experience that truth. Today the reason for despair in an individual, family and society in general is the ignorance about the real purpose of Life.

What is Life? What is its main objective and ultimate goal? Vedic saints after scientific research for innumerable years established the Universal truth of Human life to dispel all the confusion and lead a contended life.

Santan Satya means what was always true, is true now and will continue to be so in future. To reestablish the truth is the main objective of this YouTube channel by the same name.

Mr.Bharat believes that we can lead a happier life by knowing, understanding and adopting the Sanatan way of life.

Mr. Upmanyu holds the honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi in great esteem .He was very much sure of his success and had even tweeted to make Narendra Modi the prime minister even before BJP fielded him for the post of prime minister. According to Mr Bharat our prime minister is a combination of Vivekanand,Vallabh bhai Patel, Mahatma Gandhi and Subhash Chandra Bose. He is very much aware about the ground reality; his only mission in life is not for himself but the progress and prosperity of our motherland India. He is selflessly working to make India a great country future ready.

Last but not the least his connect to the youth is the reason to launch Sanatan Satya on YouTube is very well defined, he wants the today’s youth to be selfless people with pure intention about not hurting others with their actions and deeds . The rest will take care of itself.

 

BBC StoryWorks reveals a link between emotions and campaign metrics that can enhance the success of content-led marketing campaigns

·         Serious emotions (fear, puzzlement, sadness) can deepen emotion relationships between brands and consumers

·         Lighter emotions (happiness, surprise) drive consideration and brand image

·         The right mix of emotions drive social media referrals

Mumbai, March 2: No emotion is a bad emotion when it comes to creating content-led marketing campaigns, according to the second instalment of BBC StoryWorks’ award-winning study ‘Science of Engagement’. Building on the findings from the initial report published in January 2016, the focus of this latest research was to explore the connection between emotions and campaign metrics. In doing so the team have produced valuable insights that can help brands understand how best to maximise the impact of content-led marketing campaigns through engaging with various emotions.

Working alongside CrowdEmotion once again, the study applied a combination of traditional research metrics with facial coding techniques, to measure consumer engagement from an emotional perspective.

Nine BBC StoryWorks campaigns, featured on BBC.com, formed the case studies for the research. The campaigns comprised a mix of video, written and one infographic created for a range of clients from HSBC, Huawei, AIG, to Cathay Pacific, Mazda, Hainan and Dassault Systemes. Aside from analysing the emotional impact of these campaigns the research team also took into consideration the length of the content, number of social media referrals coupled with statistical techniques such as correlation analysis to identify the key drivers to each campaign’s success.

The research explored which emotions drove engagement amongst the nine campaigns. Key findings included that when you trigger serious emotions – puzzlement, fear and sadness – a deeper subconscious relationship with the brand occurs. The theory was particularly well demonstrated by ‘Emerging from the Darkness’, a video produced with Huawei featuring artist John Brambitt, who discusses how he paints without being able to see. The content led to a 50% increase in subconscious positivity towards Huawei amongst audiences who had viewed it. The research also showed that triggering serious emotions can help support campaign objectives such as ad awareness, positivity, brand image and consideration. When applied to HSBC’s ‘Going the Distance’ campaign, an article focused on the difficulty of maintaining long distance relationships, ad awareness saw a staggering 217% increase. 

Lighter emotions such as happiness and surprise also played a key role in consumers making purchase decisions, and in driving feelings in relation to brand image and consideration for the brand. For example, Cathay Pacific’s light-hearted video on the evolution of in-flight dining received a 57% increase for both brand image and brand consideration.

The research also highlighted how effective content-led marketing campaigns on BBC.com are proving to be, with the average campaign delivering:

·         30% increase in subconscious positivity

·         49% increase in average brand image

·         56% increase in recommendation

·         50% increase in consideration

Richard Pattinson, SVP, Content, BBC Advertising and Head of BBC StoryWorks said: ‘Emotions drive people’s engagement with brands, both in their desire to be associated with those brands but also in the wish to purchase products or services. Providing a clearer understanding of which emotions should be considered can help drive the brand metrics which are critical to the success of content-led campaigns.

‘Our latest research not only offers guidance on how to best influence audiences but highlights the success BBC Advertising is having with content-led marketing campaigns on BBC.com. A number of the campaigns included in the research received industry accolades, and they also resonate with the audience for BBC.com, which celebrated a record year in 2016 attracting 98 million browsers per month.’

The key takeaways:   

·         Trigger serious emotions to deepen subconscious relationships. Triggering puzzlement, fear and sadness = subconscious positivity. 

·         Trigger serious emotions to meet your campaign objectives e.g. puzzlement, fear and sadness increase positivity by 35%.

·         Intrigue but don’t confuse – the right level of puzzlement will drive recommendation and consideration, too much will deter audiences.

·         Don’t ignore the lighter emotions. Happiness and surprise increase desire to purchase, supporting brand image and consideration.

·         Content marketing has a powerful impact for less well known brands.

·         Clearly label your brand - it adds credibility to the content, consumers are more likely to understand and remember it, it will be more persuasive and have a positive impact on their perception of the brand.

·         Choose video because it drives bigger brand uplifts for example brand images are 5x more effective.

·         Showcasing the right emotions will drive social media referrals. 55% of consumers who express happiness, puzzlement and fear are likely to share content.

Methodology:

The study involved five markets – Hong Kong, Australia, Germany, the US and Singapore – and 9,136 participants.

World Renowned Dutch DJ AFROJACK Remixes Ananya Birla’s “Livin’ The Life”

The Official Remix To be Launched Worldwide on UMG’s Global dance imprint PM:AM RECORDINGS

Mumbai, 2^ND March 2017: Since the November 2016 release of Ananya Birla’s debut International single “Livin’ The Life” on Universal Music Group, the single has crossed 2.5 million audio streams while the music video has been viewed over 5 million times on VEVO/YouTube. The single also peaked at a high #11 on the Shazam Top 100 India songs chart which is a tough chart especially for a brand new artiste with an English song!

Riding high on this success story, the single is now officially remixed by world renowned Dutch DJ AFROJACK. The brilliant remix with Afrojack’s inimitable EDM stamp on it elevates the song further and takes it to a whole new level. To support the Remix, there will be a Music Video which will soon launch on Ananya’s VEVO channel.

The remixed single will be released Worldwide on 3^rd March`17 on Universal Music Group’s dance imprint PM:AM Recordings - a global dance network supporting established labels Virgin EMI, Island, Polydor, Astralwerks, Casablanca, AfterCluv and more. Ananya is the first Indian artiste to be released on PM:AM Recordings which is home to some of the biggest dance records from artists including Tiesto, Alesso, Jonas Blue, Afrojack, SEEB, Sigma, Axwell / Ingrosso, Martin Solvieg to name a few.

Sharing her excitement on the release of the Official Remix, Ananya Birla says “Music has always been my magic. It’s an artist's dream to get their work remixed by Afrojack! I hope this track gets people on their feet, dancing! I want to convey a heartfelt message through an upbeat track. I am very grateful to PM:AM Recordings for having given me the opportunity. Devraj has been my mentor through it all and I would like to thank him and the entire UMI team. I want to continue to make and release music for as long as I possibly can. I hope my music can inspire people and touch their lives in a meaningful manner".

Afrojack added, “Music has the power to broaden horizons, I made this remix to try and show the potential of unexpected collaborations". 

Devraj Sanyal Managing Director and CEO, Universal Music Group, South Asia stated, “We are thrilled to have Ananya as the first Indian artiste to get a worldwide release through PM:AM Recordings! It’s a huge moment and we are confident that this will open up doors for many more of our exciting new talent! To see the single being pushed in territories well beyond our shores is simply awesome. With this, we truly believe that Ananya is well on her way to achieve loads of success with her music and UMG will be right beside her mentoring and guiding her all through this very exciting journey!”

The Official AFROJACK Remix of “Livin’ The Life” will be released digitally worldwide on 3^rd March`17 exclusively on PM:AM Recordings via the Universal Music Group.

About Ananya Birla:

An alumnus of the University of Oxford, at 17, Ananya founded Svatantra Microfinance Pvt. Ltd, which lends micro credit to rural entrepreneurs, predominantly women clients, through affordable and innovative financial and non-financial solutions. She followed up with Mpower, an initiative that aims to reach out to individuals with mental health disorders and their families by raising awareness, alleviating stigma, advocating prevention, fostering education, and providing world class holistic services. Most recently, Ananya launched a premium lifestyle platform,Curocarte, which uses e-commerce to curate authentic, unique and premium handmade products from all around the globe and uses design to contemporize products for the 21^st century lifestyle.

HERSHEY'S REVEALS ITS 'DARK AND EXOTIC' SIDE WITH THE LAUNCH OF PREMIUM CHOCOLATE ‘BROOKSIDE’ IN SELECT CITIES

Hershey India Private Limited offers its consumers an ‘exotic’ new high with the launch of its new premium chocolate ‘Brookside’ this December. Chocolate consumers in India can now treat their palate to an exquisite taste with the unveiling of the globally famed chocolate brand 'Brookside'. After having internationally spun it's magic for over 50 Years, Brooksideis Hershey India's venture into premium range of chocolates. It is  yet another addition to the slew of enticing new products launched by Hershey’s this year like Hershey’s Milk Booster, Hershey’s Milk Shakes and Hershey’s Spreads.

Brookside is a deliciously crafted chocolate made up of an intriguing combination of smooth dark cocoa rich chocolate on the outside and exotic fruit flavors on the inside. This heavenly mix gives you an extraordinarily delicious taste in every bite. The irresistible taste lingers in the mouth as your senses dive into an enticing & unique chocolate experience.

Hershey’s looks to ride on the substantial growth being witnessed by the Indian chocolate category in the premium space & the consumer's willingness to explore unique and differentiated products. Chocolate lovers are becoming more discerning and are constantly on the look - out for superlative tastes and experiences. Therefore, Brookside chocolates have been crafted to give Indian consumers a first of its kind experience through a combination of dark cocoa rich chocolate & exotic fruit flavoured centre.

Brookside chocolate will be available in three exotic fruit flavours namely Blueberry & Acai, Raspberry & Goji and Pomegranate.

Commenting on the same, Mr Praveen Jakate, MD, Hershey India Pvt Ltd said, “These are exciting times for us at Hershey’s India. Over the past few months, we ventured into several attractive categories like milk additives, milk shakes and chocolate spreads, through differentiated products offering delicious taste and fortification, under the Hershey’s brand. We have now entered the growing premium chocolate category with our globally acclaimed brand Brookside. Brookside is an extraordinarily delicious chocolate with an intriguing combination of dark cocoa rich chocolate and exotic fruit flavors. We are confident that chocolate lovers would simply fall in love with its amazing taste experience.”

Brookside will be available in large stores in select cities across India. The attractive standee pouch packaging depicts the artisanal combinations.It is priced at Rs.50 for 33.3g single consumption pouch and Rs.140 for 100g multi-consumption re-sealable pouch respectively.

About The Hershey Company

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY), headquartered in Hershey, PA., is the largest producer of quality chocolate in North America and a global leader known for bringing goodness to the world through its chocolate, sweets, mints and other great-tasting snacks. Hershey has approximately 22,000 employees around the world who work every day to deliver delicious, quality products. The company, which has more than 80 brands around the world that drive over $7.4 billion in annual revenues, includes such iconic brand names as HERSHEY’S, REESE’S, HERSHEY’S KISSES, JOLLY RANCHER, ICE BREAKERS and BROOKSIDE. Hershey is focused on growing its presence in key international markets while continuing to build its competitive advantage in North America.

At Hershey, deliciousness does not just mean providing delicious products to customers. 120 years ago, Hershey is committed to operating in a fair, ethical and sustainable way to achieve excellent operations and have a positive impact on the society. This means improving life for employees, consumers and communities and ultimately creating a better future for children in need. As a manifestation of this commitment, the company founder established Milton Hershey School in 1909. The school is managed by Hershey Trust Company. Students can enjoy education, housing and health care at the school and grow healthily. They are the direct beneficiaries of The Hershey Company's success. 

Badrinath and his Dulhania celebrate their endless love affair with Singapore and SilkAir

 

Mumbai, 27 Feb, 2017: The Singapore Tourism Board (STB), together with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, organized a press conference today to announce their close collaboration with Dharma Productions for a major Bollywood movie, ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’. The movie features key scenes and songs filmed in Singapore. The film, directed by Shashank Khaitan and starring Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt & Varun Dhawan, will hit the screens on Friday, March 10, 2017 across India.

Despite filming taking place even over the Diwali holidays in November last year, the two stars Alia and Varun had an enjoyable time shooting in Singapore. They were pleasantly surprised by the destination’s varied offerings in dining, retail, attraction and entertainment. While the city impressed them, they also appreciated the friendly atmosphere provided by the people of Singapore for a successful shoot. As a city that constantly evolves and provides a plethora of filming locations with convenience, it continues to be an exciting destination for Bollywood movies.

Explaining his rationale for including Singapore in the movie, Director Shashank Khaitan highlighted, “Singapore offers an interesting mix of a unique multicultural society interwoven into a dynamic city that pulsates with modern vibrancy – something that works well with the characters of Badri and Vaidehi as they embark on a journey of self-discovery. It’s not just a destination but Singapore is intricately woven into the essence of the plot”.

Talking about Singapore’s association with the movie, G.B Srithar, Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East & Africa, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said, “We are happy to be associated with Badrinath Ki Dulhania, a movie that will appeal to all segments of Indian society with its over-arching theme of love and the joy of life. Over the past few decades, Bollywood movies have helped build an emotive connect among the Indian audiences with Singapore. We believe through Badri and Vaidehi, they will re-discover Singapore’s variety of experiences and evolving cityscape. Keeping in line with the movie’s theme, we are pleased to welcome Indian travelers to begin their endless love affair with Singapore, by visiting and re-visiting Singapore for memorable holidays.”

Alia’s character in the movie goes through a transformation in Singapore, where the story of her involvement with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, unfolds. SilkAir is also the official airline partner for the movie. Speaking about the association,

SilkAir’s General Manager for India, Jagdish Bhojwani also added, “SilkAir is happy and excited to be associated with the Bollywood project. India is a key market for us and we continue to view it as one with great importance. We strongly believe that the association will help us reach out to more people as we embark on efforts to spread our wings across India.”

Currently, SilkAir and Singapore Airlines have combined operations from 11 Indian cities, namely Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram and Visakhapatnam connecting to over 100 destinations via its hub, Singapore

About Badrinath Ki Dulhania

Badrinath Ki Dulhania (BKD) is an upcoming Indian romantic film directed by Shashank Khaitan and produced by Karan Johar under the Dharma Productions banner and presented by Fox Star Studio. Starring Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt and Gauhar Khan, the film marks the second installment of a love franchise that began with Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (2014).

About the Singapore Tourism Board

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is a leading economic development agency in tourism, one of Singapore’s key service sectors. Known for partnership, innovation and excellence, STB champions tourism, making it a key economic driver for Singapore. We aim to differentiate and market Singapore as a must-visit destination offering a concentration of user-centric and enriching experiences through the “YourSingapore” brand. For more information, visit www.stb.gov.sg  or www.yoursingapore.com or follow us on Twitter @STB_sg (https://twitter.com/stb_sg).

About SilkAir

As the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, SilkAir operates the Singapore Airlines Group’s narrow-body fleet and extends the Group’s network by seeding and developing new, exotic destinations in Asia-Pacific.

The airline took to the skies in February 1989 as Tradewinds the airline, before evolving into SilkAir in 1992. In its early days, the airline catered to passengers holidaying in exotic destinations within South East Asia, including Phuket and Tioman. As the carrier developed, regional business destinations such as Phnom Penh, Yangon and Kuala Lumpur were added.

Today, the full service airline operates almost 400 weekly flights to 53 destinations in 14 countries with Vientiane and Luang Prabang in Laos and Fuzhou in China added to its network recently.

For more details, visit silkair.com or http://www.facebook.com/SilkAirIndia

WIRC of ICAI for the year 2017-2018.

Western India Regional Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India at its 321^st meeting held on Friday, 24^th February 2017 has elected the following Regional Council Members as Office Bearers of WIRC of ICAI for the year 2017-2018.

1) CA. Vishnu Agarwal, Mumbai - Chairman

2) CA. Sarvesh Joshi, Pune - Vice-Chairman

3) CA. Aniket Talati, Ahmedabad - Secretary

4) CA. Pradeep Agrawal, Baroda - Treasurer


It is also informed that CA. Balkishan Agarwal, Surat has been elected as Chairman of the Western India Chartered Accountants Students Association (WICASA) for the year 2017-18.

Rasna Introduces New Ad Campaign ‘Pyarelal Ka Bachpan Ka Pyar’

• Ad campaign dedicated to Rasna’s decades journey of spreading love
• Ventures into baked sweet snack category with Rasna Vitos  
• New powder facility at Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh to boost 20% production capacity

Mumbai, 23rd February, 2017: Rasna, world’s largest manufacturers of instant fruit based concentrate today announced its new advertisement campaign ‘Pyarelal Ka Bachpan Ka Pyar’. This campaign aims at celebrating the brand’s journey of spreading love for decades across generations. Rasna also announced its entry in the baked sweet snack category with the launch of Rasna Vitos.  

Speaking on the launch of the new ad campaign, Mr. Piruz Khambatta, Chairman & MD, Rasna Pvt Ltd, said, “Over the years, Rasna has unveiled some of the most remarkable and lovable campaigns. Our latest campaign has been created keeping in mind our journey of over generations wherein we have spread love and served more than 120 billion glasses. Unlike earlier campaigns wherein our mascot has always been a girl child between 3 to 8 years, this time, we have roped in two iconic Bollywood veteran actors. I am confident that their charm as Rasna’s 60 year old grand man and grand lady, will amplify the overall impact of our ads.”  

Rasna’s ‘Pyarelal Ka Bachpan Ka Pyar’ campaign is spread in three parts including teasers followed by ad films of 2 minutes, 40 seconds, 30 seconds and shorter durations. For the first time, fruit juice concentrate maker has roped in veteran Bollywood actor Ram Sethi, also popularly known as Pyarelal and Daisy Irani. The ad film captures the affection between the two actors in different time periods and the journey of Rasna in their lives as a unifying factor. The latest ad campaign is conceptualized by Scarecrow Communications, produced by Chrome Films and explores different formats and platforms in order to cater to the interest levels of people of all age groups.  

Considered as one of the most trusted original Made in India brand, Rasna is a market leader with 85 % share in the powdered drink segment. Now, Rasna has strong plans to chart its next phase of double digit growth and expansion of overall product portfolio.

In the press conference held in Mumbai for the new ad campaign, Rasna launched Rasna Vitos, a baked sweet snacks. According to market researcher Euromonitor, sweet and savoury snacks have grown by 26%, highest within packaged food segment between 2010 and 2015. Sensing this opportunity, Rasna is planning to target the sweet snacks segment with focus on kids coming from school. As of now, Rasna Vitos will be available in chocolate and strawberry flavours.

“Vitos is our answer to the huge opportunity in the evening snacks and kids back from school segment. This product will drive the proposition of evening snacking in a tasty and healthy manner. Unlike fried chips and namkeens with 40% fat, Vitos is not fried but baked and made with Ragi and wheat with 14 nutrients making it an ideal health supplement for kids. Rasna has kept its promise of healthy tasty product for the masses that too at an affordable price of Rs.10 per pouch. The focus will now be on increasing the penetration of Vitos by levering our robust marketing and distribution network.” added Mr. Piruz Khambatta on the launch of Rasna Vitos.  

Rasna has also announced in the press conference regarding setting up of new powder facility at Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh which would add another 20% to its capacity to its double digit growth plan. Currently, the brand has nine manufacturing facilities across India. This new facility will be integral for Rasna to not only strengthen the market share in the powder drink segment, but also compete with fruit drinks.

Remarkably, Rasna has not increased the MRP of its product from its launch in 20 years and is still available at Rs.2 per glass. In recent research done by MRSS India (Majestic Market Research Support Services), Rasna has stood out with the highest recall orange drink - aided and unaided recall, which is another great achievement.

About Rasna Private Limited

Rasna today is one of the largest FMCG company manufacturing fruit based soft drink concentrate in the world. Rasna has 3000 people working for it directly and indirectly and exports to 533 countries. Rasna has won numerous awards viz. Rasna got Most preferred Brand 2003&2004, consumer world award 2014,ITQI Belgium superior taste award 2008,Monde Selection Quality award 2012, Most promising brand of the year 2014-15 (Soft Drinks)Food & Beverage Sector Asia, to name a few. Rasna has more than 80% market share in its category unlike any other Indian company. Rasna has strong sales and marketing track record with more than 300 TVCs with 100% recall aided and unaided. Rasna is available in 1.8 million outlets with 9 manufacturing facilities across the country, 35 warehouses, 2500 stockist.