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Conference and Expo17-18 March, 2026 Honours Awards Night17 March, 2026

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Board Member Category: Speaker

BENJAMIN SOUBIES

Benjamin brings with him experience working across multiple industries and sectors across the globe. Ben specialises in engaging C-level executives to understand what they need to achieve to drive true business outcomes.

Having worked for TBWA, Gartner and Talkwalker, Ben brings with him a wealth of market research experience to the table. Throughout his career, Ben has advised companies across the world on digital transformation strategy and leveraging innovative tools to their advantage. Today as Managing Director, JAPAC at Talkwalker, Ben works with global brands and organizations to achieve best practice in measuring, analysing and converging third-party and first-party customer data to generate actionable insights and consumer intelligence.

PUNEET GUPT

Puneet Gupt spearheads Times Internet, the digital powerhouse of The Times of India Group, as its Chief Operating Officer. With over two decades of experience in the digital sector, Puneet drives the strategy, vision, and execution across all internet and mobile properties of the group.

A seasoned digital product and business leader, Puneet’s expertise extends beyond his role at Times Internet. He actively contributes to India’s startup ecosystem as:

  • Mentor at Tventures
  • Angel Investor, notably in PregBuddy
  • Advisor to multiple Indian startups

Prior to joining Times Internet, Puneet led product development at hCentive in the USA and helmed Internet Broking for Unicon Investment Solutions upon his return to India.

An alumnus of prestigious institutions, Puneet holds degrees from IIT-Delhi and IIM Calcutta, further solidifying his credentials in technology and management.

Nitin Sethi

Nitin brings deep experience in product design and digital customer experience, which he has acquired over the last 19 years across leading internet companies in India. He is currently leading IndiGo as VP Digital to help the group undergo Digital Transformation. He previously built Quikr.com, Yatra.com, Naukri.com, Indiatimes, Rediff and Bharti Airtel. He is an expert in crafting loveable experience for the consumers through simple and usable products. Nitin mentors many startups and has invested in a few of them, as well. He also likes to speak on Design Thinking on many public forums.

Nitin has won the ‘Design-led Entrepreneurship Awards’ 2017 at TiE 2017. Nitin has been awarded with Karnataka Brand Leadership Award 2017. He got recognized as top digital influencer and made it to Adobe Content 100 list for 2017. Nitin has recently also made it to Adobe Digi100 list for 2018.

Bhaskar Ramesh

Bhaskar Ramesh is a growth leader and digital pioneer recognized for building the platforms that define how India consumes media. He has a track record spanning two decades of scaling multi-billion-dollar ecosystems at the intersection of technology, content, and commerce. As the Business Head of Entertainment [Digital] Revenue at JioStar, he is currently redefining the commercial engine for India’s largest OTT platform, JioHotstar. In an era defined by AI and data-led precision, Bhaskar is responsible for building a modern advertising framework that translates massive scale into measurable business outcomes for brands.

A 13-year Google veteran and a core member of their India leadership team, Bhaskar was a primary architect of YouTube’s revenue growth in the region and was a key bridge between traditional businesses & digital transformation journeys in India. He led the monetization and product strategies that transformed YouTube into a dominant media force. His career is marked by many “firsts” — from building Google’s CPG practice from the ground up to pioneering omnichannel digitization strategies for the CPG, Retail, Auto, M&E and Finance sectors.

Recognized as one of IMPACT Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40,” Bhaskar is a trusted advisor to CXOs navigating AI transformation and also an active angel investor with early stage startups. A frequent keynote speaker at global & India forums, he remains a passionate advocate for how data-driven creativity can revolutionize the future of streaming and commerce.

He is an alumnus of SP Jain Institute of Management & Research & also recipient of Highly commendable award for Post Graduate Leadership at AMBA & BGA 2026 global awards.

SHUBHRANSHU SINGH

A thought leader, and growth catalyst, Shubhranshu has two decades of global brand and category building experience on some of the most admired brands in the world.

He has been instrumental in encouraging path-breaking work, creating much loved IPs, and inspiring large teams to go beyond.

He also has the proven, rare ability to marry the worlds of cultural mainstream, storytelling, and technology rather effectively.

He is a prolific writer and writes a column for several publications particularly on brand building, consumer sociology, technology and trends.

Shubhranshu is currently the Global Head – Brand and Marketing at Royal Enfield and has held leadership positions in global corporations such as Unilever, Visa, Star-21 Century Fox earlier in his career.

ASHISH BHASIN

An astute businessman, Ashish Bhasin is an industry veteran with over 32 years of experience. Tasked to expand the Global footprint of Aegis Media in India, Ashish joined the London-headquartered Media & Marketing Conglomerate in June 2008. Eventually, he went on to build Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) India from a 50-member team to a 3500-member powerhouse, now the 2nd largest Advertising and Marketing Communications Group in India, overturning for the first time the existing ranking, which has historically been in place for over 80 years. His vision of building a digital-first agency and his One P&L philosophy has proven to be extremely successful. Today, he is CEO APAC & Chairman India, Dentsu and a member of the Dentsu International Global Executive Team. His strong focus on key growth opportunities has resulted in several consecutive years of revenue growth for the business. Conferred with a PhD (Honoris Causa) for outstanding contribution to the Advertising & Media Industry, Ashish serves or has served on most industry bodies in India including as President AAAI, chairman MRUC, Chairman Goafest, BARC, ABC and others.

BABITA BARUAH

With over 25 years of leadership in marketing and communications, Babita is the Chief Executive Officer of VML India, where she leads a powerhouse of more than 1,400 brand, commerce, and technology professionals across six major cities.

Under her leadership, VML India has delivered globally recognized work, including Coca-Cola’s ‘The Girl Who Played the Tutari’ for Coke Studio Bharat, which won a Silver Lion at Cannes Lions 2025. The campaign, featuring Nilaksha Borhade – the first woman to publicly play the Tutari, a traditional Indian wind instrument – was lauded for its innovative storytelling and bold stand on gender equality. Similarly, The Times of India’s ‘Unplastic India’ initiative earned international acclaim for its creativity and social impact.

Babita’s vision is to shape VML India into a future-focused agency, seamlessly integrated across brand experience, customer experience, and commerce. She has built the agency into a destination for ambitious brands and exceptional talent, driving innovation at the intersection of creativity, culture, and technology.

Her career within WPP’s global network has been equally distinguished. She led the Ford International Market Group, overseeing multi-market operations across Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, India, the Middle East, and South Africa. Concurrently, she served as Executive Director at VMLY&R Thailand, where she expanded the agency’s client base and strengthened its strategic capabilities.

Beginning her career as a management trainee at JWT India, Babita went on to lead iconic brands including PepsiCo, Nestlé, Unilever, Kellogg’s, Godrej, Reliance, Kotak Mahindra, and Aditya Birla Group – cementing her reputation as a trusted advisor to leading marketers across industries.

Notable Achievements & Recognition

  • Featured speaker on agency innovation and the future of marketing at Goafest 2024 alongside India’s top creative leaders
  • Honoured in The Pulse Magazine – Superwomen Edition, celebrating visionary women redefining advertising leadership
  • Jury member, Millennial Achievers Awards 2024, recognizing her mentorship and forward-looking leadership
  • Chairperson, Grand Jury of Afaqs! Marketers’ Excellence Awards 2025
  • Regular voice at forums like Adgully’s CMOs’ Charcha on marketing transformation and cultural evolution
  • British Chevening Scholar (2004) – Women & Leadership, UK
  • Invited speaker at Harvard Business School and the Women Economic Forum (Geneva)
  • Super Mentor, WPP Stella India; Former Global DEI Council Member at Wunderman Thompson

 

Leadership & Impact

  • Champion of Gender Equity: Revived SheHour, an initiative for women professionals to collaborate beyond hierarchy—sharing ideas, networking, and building support systems
  • Commitment to Inclusivity: Driving a culture of optimism and productivity through initiatives such as VML Inspire (external thought-leader sessions), Safe Room conversations, and inclusive townhalls
  • Youth Empowerment: Introduced a Young EXCO, giving an alternate voice to senior leadership
  • Global Leadership Continuity: Continues to lead as Regional Client Lead for Ford International Market Group (APAC, AMEA, ANZ), steering multi-cultural teams towards growth-driven solutions

Babita resides in Mumbai with her family. She’s a firm believer that kindness matters above all and she’s a lover of the forests and the wild and all things green. Babita is also a proud mom to 4 adopted dogs and 5 adopted cats.

AKASH DEEP BATRA

Akash Deep Batra is the Executive Director and Head of Marketing, Growth, Customer Experience and Analytics at DBS Bank. Akash leads a team of over 70 functional experts to drive marketing, consumer acquisition through digital and physical channels, portfolio growth through digital campaigns, consumer research & insights, consumer experience (including UI/UX), business analytics, and cognitive banking across the DBS India consumer banking business and brands.

Before DBS, Akash was Head of Brand Communication, Corporate Brand and Digital at Nestlé India. In his 7-year-long stint at Nestle, he was also the head of digital and eCommerce for the Asia Pacific Region. Akash has also worked at Infosys for over 9 years in various roles in business consulting, product management, and technology management functions.

Recognized as one of the Top 50 Marketers in 2021 by the BusinessWorld Magazine, Akash is a frequent speaker at various industry conferences and universities across the world and a commentator on trends & innovations in marketing & technology.

He is an engineer from Kurukshetra University and a management graduate from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB).

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