SapientNitro strengthens team in India

The agency has hired Surjo Dutt and Sharan Sabhachandani Sharma.

SapientNitro, a part of Publicis.Sapient, has expanded its leadership team in the Indian market with two senior appointments.

Surjo Dutt joins SapientNitro as creative lead for the Northern region and Sharan Sabhachandani Sharma joins as client services lead for the Western region.

The new additions strengthen the agency's ability to serve the growing demand among brands for its integrated creative and technology services.

The agency's new business wins in India include Taj Hotels, Godrej, William Grant, DBS Bank and DHFL.

"SapientNitro's connected capabilities across business, creative and technology enable brands to answer the needs of today's always-on consumer," says Rajdeep Endow, managing director, Sapient, India.

Based in Delhi, Dutt has more than 16 years of experience in the industry, and a reputation for creating engaging brand stories for clients including Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Slice, Tropicana, Frito-Lay, Nokia, Airtel, Hero Motocorp and UNICEF.

In his last role, he was vice president and executive creative director at JWT and was the youngest executive creative director in the South Asia region. Under his leadership, the JWT creative team won multiple Effies for Pepsi and Frito-Lay, and Abbys for Pepsi and Hero Motocorp.

On his appointment, Dutt says, "Brands' needs are rapidly evolving to address the always-on consumer. SapientNitro is uniquely positioned to help clients address today's market with its differentiated blend of creative, omni-channel commerce and technological expertise. The passion and vision of the agency to create cutting-edge, integrated creative and technology solutions is inspiring, and I am thrilled to be a part of this team."

Sharma comes to the agency with almost a decade of industry experience. Prior to joining SapientNitro, Sharma was business head for P&G's Fabric & Home Care brands, Tide & Bonux, at Leo Burnett.

She has worked in India, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore as well as in Toronto, where she handled Gain (P&G's $1 billion laundry brand) for the USA & Canada markets.

On joining SapientNitro, Sharma says, "I'm extremely excited to be a part of the SapientNitro family. The agency operates in a unique place at the intersection of story and technology, helping brands create immersive and engaging experiences."

SapientNitro India recently won two awards at Goafest 2015 in the Digital Abby category - a silver and bronze, respectively, for the DBS Bank 'Chilli Paneer 2' interactive film and Manipal Global Education's digital revamp.