Unveiling India's Most Influential Women In Media, Marketing & Advertising

Each demonstrating a unique story of her own, these leaders are exemplars of grit, glory and gumption

Year 2022 is witnessing the true power of the women of today- undaunted, ambitious, breaking the biases and also leading by example.

This is noticeable, especially in the media, marketing and advertising sector that had been navigating through tumultuous times in the past years.

While these women leaders quintessentially exude extensive business acumen, they also associate themselves with impactful initiatives that have impelled us to celebrate these powerhouses of talent. As Hillary Clinton says, 'Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world," our women leaders are breaking the ceiling, following their dreams and fearlessly writing their own stories. 

BW Marketing World's '20 Most Influential Women 2022', is an initiative supported by BW Businessworld that tracks not only their overall work done, initiatives undertaken, the always-on avatars but who have also steered their companies towards growth in the year gone. 

In its second edition this year, we celebrate the most influential women icons from the media and marketing fraternity.

20 Most Influential Women In Media, Marketing & Advertising 
Anita Nayyar, COO - Media & Communications, Patanjali
Anupriya Acharya, CEO - South Asia, Publicis Groupe
Aparna Purohit, Head of India Originals, Amazon Prime Video
Asha Kharga, Chief Customer & Brand Officer, Mahindra Group
Deepali Nair, Director Marketing, IBM India
Deepika Warrier, Chief Marketing Officer, Diageo India
Divya Karani, CEO - Media, dentsu South Asia
Hitu Chawla, Chief Marketing Officer, Microsoft India
Jasneet Bachal, Chief Marketing Officer, Yes Bank
Jyoti Deshpande, CEO, Viacom 18 Media
Megha Tata, Managing Director – South Asia, Discovery Communications India & President - IAA
Monaz Todywalla, CEO, PHD
Monika Shergill, VP- Content, Netflix
Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director & Chief Marketing Officer, Parle Agro
Nandini Das, CEO, Lodestar UM
Rashi Goel, Director Marketing, Amazon
Roshni Das, Marketing Director, Intel
Shalini Raghavan, Group Chief Marketing Officer, Nykaa
Swati Bhattacharya, Chief Creative Officer, FCB India
Tanya Dubash, Executive Director and Chief Brand Officer, Godrej Group


The Brand Builders

Our wonder women in this category have cemented and strengthened their brand's presence in the technology space- Roshni Das, Marketing Director, Intel; Deepali Nair, Director Marketing, IBM India; Rashi Goel, Director Marketing, Amazon and Hitu Chawla, Chief Marketing Officer, Microsoft India.

Industry veteran such as Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director & Chief Marketing Officer, Parle Agro, is also on the list alongside Tanya Dubash, Executive Director and Chief Brand Officer, Godrej Group; Deepika Warrier, Chief Marketing Officer, Diageo India and Jasneet Bachal, Chief Marketing Officer, Yes Bank.

Some of these leaders took on new roles in the recent past- Asha Kharga, Chief Customer & Brand Officer, Mahindra Group; Anita Nayyar, COO - Media & Communications, Patanjali and Shalini Raghavan, Group Chief Marketing Officer, Nykaa.


The Media Mavericks

While the Indian media stood sturdy and resilient, there also mushroomed new-age content companies that initiated change in the overall landscape. Our four dynamic divas that held on to key roles include Jyoti Deshpande, CEO, Viacom; Megha Tata, Managing Director – South Asia, Discovery Communications India & President - IAA; Monika Shergill, VP- Content, Netflix and Aparna Purohit, Amazon Prime Video. 


Agencies' Boss Women

Even as the media saw turmoil in 2020 & 2021, agency business in India remained buoyant and adaptable to a great extent. Much credit goes to the fearless forces behind it-  Anupriya Acharya, CEO - South Asia, Publicis Groupe; Nandini Das, CEO, Lodestar; Monaz Todywalla, CEO, PHD; Divya Karani, CEO - Media, dentsu South Asia and Swati Bhattacharya, Chief Creative Officer (CCO), FCB India.

BW Marketing World's '20 Most Influential Women' is an annual initiative to celebrate the leadership spirit of women captains in the media, marketing & advertising sector in India.