Suresh Selvaraj, CEO and ED, to quit Asianet

Selvaraj says he wanted a break for a long time. The sabbatical will come in April.

Suresh Selvaraj, CEO and executive director, Asianet News Network (ANN) will move out of the company to take a long-awaited break. He had joined ANN from the Outlook Group, which saw the longest stint in his career. He was with Outlook for 13 years and left as president.

At ANN, he led Suvarna News 24x7, Kannada News Channel, Asianet News, Malayalam News Channel and Kannada Prabha, the Kannada daily. C Shyam Sundar, erstwhile director, Jupiter Media and Entertainment Venture (the holding company of ANN) will step into his shoes after his departure.

Selvaraj confirms the development and says, "While going to office has always been fun for me, just like going to college was, I wanted to take a break for long." He mentions that he had thought of taking a six-month rest after his assignment at Outlook, but demand and pressure of work didn't allow him to do so.

"I hope this time I am able to go for a long break and then come back all revived and refreshed," he adds.

Selvaraj reported to Rajeev Chandrasekhar, chairman of ANN and Sudhakar Gande, managing director and CEO, Jupiter Capital, the holding company of ANN.

Selvaraj says he finds regional news channels quite exciting as the challenges are of a different kind. Having spent most of his career in the print media, he mentions that electronic media, especially the news bit, is very dynamic. Changes and experiments are welcomed in the beat, which are tougher in the print segment due to its lack of flexibility. "Overall, the ball game is the same on the two platforms, I believe," he adds.

Selvaraj has close to three decades of experience and started his career with BCCL as circulation supervisor in 1980. After about five years, he moved on to other publications including Deccan Herald Media Company (1985-88, sales executive), The Indian Post (1988-90 as zonal manager), Sunday Mail (1990-92 as regional manager), The Statesman (1992-94 as marketing manager), Dalal Street Journal (1994-95 as marketing manager, west) and Sun Magazine (1995-98 as general manager).

Subsequently, he joined the Outlook Group in 1998, where he stayed for 13 years.

"I know only media, where will I go otherwise? I'll be back after a short leisure break," he signs off.