DDB Mudra Group promotes Amit Kekre and Aditya Kanthy

Both Kekre and Kanthy, senior VPs, have been promoted as national strategic planning heads.

DDB Mudra Group has promoted Aditya Kanthy and Amit Kekre as national strategic planning heads. Both were senior vice-presidents at the organisation.

In their new roles, Kekre and Kanthy will jointly take on the mandate of looking after strategy and planning for all of DDB Mudra offices in the West, North and South as well as Tribal, Rapp and Remedy.

Arun Sharma, head, planning, DDB Mudra Group in Delhi, and Rajesh Sharma, strategic planning, DDB Mudra South in Bengaluru will work closely with Kanthy and Kekre, respectively. Kekre joined Mudra in 2011, while Kanthy has been with the group for nearly a decade.

Kekre says, "Imagination is the beginning of all planning. The last two-and-a-half years I've been with DDB Mudra, I am glad this personal belief has found a turf on which it flourishes. Ours is a truly remarkable team - as adept with tools and processes, as it is with the most fundamental aspect of all communications - exploring people, imagining a different reality, imagining newer narratives. I am proud of our unique and, in more ways than one, 'total' planning offering. Aditya is an amazing mind. The two of us together are only one of the visible signs of DDB Mudra's core pillars; together, we are better."

Kanthy says, "DDB Mudra has a legacy of putting strategic thinking at the heart of the work we do. Over the years our management has displayed a serious commitment to planning by investing in an excellent team across the country and it's been paying off. The product's improved, our clients vouch for the quality of the thinking and the planners have forged deep partnerships with the creative and account management teams. With top class brand, media and activation planning under the same roof, we could lead the way in shaping the discipline. Amit's a terrific partner, we enjoy working with each other and we're raring to go."

Madhukar Kamath, group CEO and MD, DDB Mudra Group, says, "Kanthy and Kekre make a formidable team, both thorough with all facets of strategy planning, yet each with their unique worldview. They have both contributed greatly to strengthening the agency's creative-effectiveness credentials and I am sure together they will take it to greater heights."

Some of the top brands that Kanthy has worked on are Johnson & Johnson, Wrigley's, Volkswagen, Future Group, Godrej, Dabur and ITC. Kekre, at different agencies such as Lowe, Ogilvy, JWT and Grey, has worked on brands such as Johnson & Johnson, GSK Sara Lee, Emirates, Lipton, Simplot Australia, Standard Chartered, Govt. of Australia and Indian multinationals such as Marico, ITC, Godrej, Future Group and Union Bank of India.

The DDB Mudra Group is a part of the Omnicom/DDB Worldwide Group. It comprises of three agency networks, six specialist agencies and 11 strategic business units that offer their expertise under four disciplines (media, OOH, retail and experiential). It has offices in 15 cities and is represented in more than 20 other locations with over 1000 employees.