Page 79 - Avendus Huran Flipbook 2026
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Take us back to the exact moment or conversation that made Saregama is a century-old institution. How did you mentally
you decide to commit your energy to Saregama. What was the reframe that legacy into a modern content and tech play, and
problem or opportunity you felt you could help solve? what was the first concrete change you pushed to prove that
reframing would work?
The turning point for me wasn’t a single dramatic conversation
– it was an accumulation of small realizations about what The reframing happened when I stopped thinking about what
Saregama could become. When I started looking at the music we own and started thinking about how people use music
business in the mid-2010s, India was undergoing a massive in their lives today. That shift pushed us to analyse behaviour,
digital shift. Jio had reshaped data access, smartphones were not just catalogue.
proliferating and you could feel how content consumption was The deeper insight was this: in a world overflowing with
about to explode. Yet the industry was still operating with a options, people don’t necessarily want more choice – they want
traditional mindset.
less friction. They want ease, emotion and familiarity delivered
Saregama had extraordinary assets, but it needed a clear, seamlessly.
forward-looking strategy that matched the pace of India’s The initial move wasn’t technological – it was philosophical:
digital evolution. That’s where I felt I could contribute – by make consumer convenience the center of every decision.
reframing Saregama not as a ‘heritage music label,’ but as a
content-tech company with a significant early advantage. This principle eventually inspired Carvaan, which distilled
thousands of songs into a simple one-button experience.
Our early bet on large-scale digitization cemented that Instead of offering everything, we offered the right things in the
conviction. And when Carvaan emerged – a product born from easiest way and it resonated instantly.
deep consumer insight about simplicity and emotion, it proved
that innovation doesn’t always mean disruption. Sometimes, This insight shaped everything that followed – digitization
the boldest move is to offer the most intuitive solution. priorities, playlisting, metadata clean-up, distribution strategy
and even new content investments. Every decision began with:
That’s when I knew this was where I wanted to invest my Does this make the consumer’s life easier and more delightful?
energy: combining deep emotional connection with a sharp,
modern, tech-enabled content strategy. That mindset shift showed that even a long-established brand
can lead in a digital-first world by focusing on what truly matters
to people.
Even a long-established brand can lead
in a digital-first world by focusing on
what truly matters to people.
Uth Series 2025 • U40 Business Leaders | 77
