CA Media appoints Rajesh Kamat as COO, Asia

He will shift to Singapore to take up his new role and will continue to oversee India operations as well.

After successfully launching CA Media India, Rajesh Kamat has been promoted as chief operating officer of CA Media, the Asian investment arm of The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG). In his new role, Kamat will relocate to Singapore and report to Paul Aiello, CEO, CA Media Group. Aiello is based in Hong Kong.

Core to his new responsibilities, Kamat will provide strategic guidance to the group's existing portfolio investments in the region. He will also support Aiello in identifying and managing growth opportunities for CA Media in Asia.

Kamat will continue to oversee CA Media operations in India while the senior management team - Vivek Raicha and Rishi Negi - will continue to lead their respective domains, as head of India investments and head of India investee operations.

"Moving from a country role to a region profile is both exciting as well as challenging given the diversity of the key Asian markets and our unique portfolio of assets," Kamat says.

Kamat will assume his new role and responsibilities in Singapore in April.

Over the last three years, CA Media India has built a portfolio of growth investments in the Indian media and entertainment space, including television and film production, live music events, youth media, digital content, intellectual property and graphic novels. In each investment, CA Media has worked with on-the-ground partners and local management teams.

CA Media India's current investments include strategic stakes in Endemol India, Only Much Louder (OML), Graphic India, and a wholly-owned online influencer network, FLUENCE.

"Given what Kamat has accomplished with CA Media in India, I am confident in his abilities to take on this expanded regional role for CA Media throughout Asia. We look forward to the contributions he will make," says Aiello, in an official communiqué.

Peter Chernin, chairman, The Chernin Group, notes, "As we move into our next phase of growth, it is critical to have a structure that supports our operations and continued expansion plans in Asia. Kamat's new expanded role in the region will help the group achieve this objective."

Kamat has had longer stints at STAR India and Colors. Spending five years at STAR India in the initial phase of his career, Kamat handled key positions across various functions including business planning, media buying and planning, commercial, international business and licensing and merchandising portfolios. He left STAR as senior vice-president, commercial and business planning; he was also a part of the executive committee.

After STAR, he joined Endemol India as managing director and one of its biggest successes, Bigg Boss, happened during his tenure. He was largely responsible for setting up the company's India operations.

Later, he joined as CEO of Colors and COO of Viacom 18. He moved on from Colors in 2011, to join CA Media India as CEO, overseeing the Indian investments for The Chernin Group.