Saurabh Varma appointed CEO, Publicis Communications India

Varma will continue to be the chief executive officer of Leo Burnett, South Asia.

Publicis Communications has announced the appointment of Saurabh Varma as CEO of Publicis Communications India. Based in Mumbai, he will continue to be chief executive officer of Leo Burnett, South Asia.

Varma, as well other country leaders Nakul Chopra and Praveen Kenneth, will continue reporting to Loris Nold, global COO of Publicis Communications, in charge of the APAC and MEA region. In the Indian sub-continent, Publicis Communications comprises Leo Burnett, Publicis India, Law & Kenneth | Saatchi & Saatchi, Orchard India, MSLGROUP, Publicis Ambience, Publicis Capital, Indigo iStrat and Publicis Beehive.

Commenting on Varma's appointment, Nold says, "With (Saurabh) Varma leading our India efforts, I am very confident that we will drive significant acceleration across Publicis Communications, ultimately for the direct benefit of our clients."

"I am thrilled to be given the opportunity to help our creative brands fully leverage the strength of our collective expertise around digital, shopper marketing, PR and production platforms. In my mind, Publicis Communications is first and foremost about giving our clients full access to our capabilities, talent and resources across the country, as our aim is to deliver end-to-end solutions them," adds Varma.

Varma was appointed chief executive officer of Leo Burnett India in 2013, and a year later, he was elevated to a South Asia role. He has around 20 years of industry experience, seven of which were spent as Leo Burnett's chief strategy officer for South Asia, in Singapore.