TBWA India brings in Kalyan Challapalli to head Disruption

TBWA India has appointed Kalyan Challapalli (pictured) as head, Disruption at the national level. In addition, he will also lead the planning function for the Mumbai office.

Challapalli joins from Contract Advertising, Mumbai where he was head of strategic planning, leading the planning effort on brands such as HSBC, TATA Indicom, Cadbury, Shoppers Stop and Asian Paints among others.

Shiv Sethuraman, CEO, TBWA India Group said, “Disruption is at the core of what we do and I was very keen to find absolutely the right person to lead it. Kalyan is a Disruption practitioner at heart. One only has to look at his career to believe that. From paperboy in rural Andhra Pradesh, to helping a friend run a crockery shop, to being the head of consumer planning at Diageo India, he has had an amazingly disruptive trajectory. His passion for brands, his ‘small town’ roots and his belief in thinking laterally make for an explosive cocktail from which I know our clients will benefit enormously”.

Kalyan added, “Globally, TBWA has championed the cause of its brands through the application of its stellar Disruption philosophy, which is core to the very way they function. The results have been stunning. When Shiv shared his vision and game plan, it became apparent to me that TBWA India is at play. TBWA in India is right now hungry and driven and I strongly believe that it is these basic instincts that bring about stunning success. The humility and the passion of a challenger can be a potent mix to reckon with."