Sharleen Dsouza, Veenu Sandhu

Stories by Sharleen Dsouza, Veenu Sandhu

Daewoo plans India comeback in new avatar, to launch electronics, EV

Daewoo plans India comeback in new avatar, to launch electronics, EV

Rediff.com   19 Oct 2023

Posco Daewoo, the South Korean conglomerate whose Cielo sedan and Matiz hatchback were once the pride of Indian car owners, is looking to re-enter India. And its return journey is riding on plans to sell electric bikes and e-cycles. The company termed India's robust economic growth and surging consumer demand as reasons behind its comeback plans, saying they make India "one of the world's most promising consumer markets," according to Y S Choi, general manager, Posco Daewoo South Korea.

With rains at unprecedented low in August, kiranas keep less stocks

With rains at unprecedented low in August, kiranas keep less stocks

Rediff.com   11 Sep 2023

With the rains at unprecedented low in August, kiranas are thinking twice before stocking up on goods. "With August 2023 rain shortfall at almost a 100-year low, we are seeing kiranas stocking up very carefully," Akshay D'Souza, chief of growth and insights at Bizom. He added, "As we look ahead, it does seem that the impact of rains in September will be critical to the sowing season.

Digital disruptor brands likely to reach $10 billion by FY28

Digital disruptor brands likely to reach $10 billion by FY28

Rediff.com   6 Sep 2023

With a 35 per cent compound annual growth rate, the market for these brands is expected to reach $10 billion by 2027-28 (FY28), up from $2.4 billion now.

Televisions Likely to Get Costlier By Up to 10% As Open Cell Prices Rise

Televisions Likely to Get Costlier By Up to 10% As Open Cell Prices Rise

Rediff.com   13 Aug 2023

The cost of open cells has seen an average increase of between 3 and 20%, and is higher for larger screen TVs in July, according to manufacturers of televisions

Pragati Maidan: A Walk In Time

Pragati Maidan: A Walk In Time

Rediff.com   12 Aug 2023

'A microcosm of India, inclusive and welcoming'. For years, Pragati Maidan was the centre of Delhi's social life.

Cheers! You Can Drink Beer In Office!

Cheers! You Can Drink Beer In Office!

Rediff.com   25 May 2023

Beer to be allowed in certain offices in Haryana; other states allow its sale in stores and malls.

Hindustan Unilever, Genpact launch Be.Seen to help minority-owned units

Hindustan Unilever, Genpact launch Be.Seen to help minority-owned units

Rediff.com   23 May 2023

HUL and Genpact aim to enable these businesses to eventually get absorbed into the supply chains of large consumer companies, including that of HUL. In 2021, the maker of Sunsilk shampoos committed to spending Rs 2,000 crore annually with diverse businesses by 2025, Ansu Archana, procurement director, beauty & wellbeing, HUL, told Business Standard. Archana added that the program aligns with Unilever's wide-ranging set of commitments and actions to help build a more equitable and inclusive society.

Reliance Takes Another Bite At Dairy

Reliance Takes Another Bite At Dairy

Rediff.com   18 Apr 2023

This is the Mukesh Ambani-led company's second entry into the dairy segment and it will directly compete with Amul and Mother Dairy.

A Chor-Police Potboiler

A Chor-Police Potboiler

Rediff.com   7 Mar 2023

The Hyderabad Heist is a blow-by-blow account of an audacious theft committed in 2018, and a recounting of how the Hyderabad Police combined technology and human intelligence to crack the case.

The Last Picture: Capturing A Lifetime's Memories

The Last Picture: Capturing A Lifetime's Memories

Rediff.com   26 Nov 2022

Last pictures have that power to transcend time. And last pictures can, sometimes, capture a lifetime, explains Veenu Sandhu.

'We almost went bankrupt'

'We almost went bankrupt'

Rediff.com   9 Nov 2022

'Bottomline, hairline and waistline -- you have to watch them always.'

Advertisements that Indians find 'offensive'

Advertisements that Indians find 'offensive'

Rediff.com   23 Jan 2022

An advertisement showing two women talking about Cars24's promise that you can test drive the car and return it with full refund in seven days if it doesn't work for you has upset a section of men. In the ad, the women say there should be such a policy for husbands, too. "Will same return policy be taken so laughingly as this one if we reverse the #gender? (sic)" asks a complainant to the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). Another complaint, this time against a FreshToHome ad, reads: "Suggest to ban gory and repulsive photos of animal parts in ads - just as photos of accident victims."

2021: What worked with work, or didn't

2021: What worked with work, or didn't

Rediff.com   30 Dec 2021

'During the course of these two years, as new people have joined, we have no mental picture to associate with them and hence, have little connection with them.'

Nykaa's Falguni Nayar: UNAFRAID To Take Risks

Nykaa's Falguni Nayar: UNAFRAID To Take Risks

Rediff.com   28 Oct 2021

Beauty, Nykaa's founder Falguni Nayar realised, is a very long-tailed business and with e-commerce picking up in India, it seemed like a good idea to venture into.

Ad body gets strict with digital media influencers

Ad body gets strict with digital media influencers

Rediff.com   1 Mar 2021

Do away with the grey, and let us have it in black and white. That's the message the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has for digital media influencers. ASCI has brought out draft guidelines for "influencer advertising on digital media", an expanding and so far unmonitored landscape where the lines between personal and promotional content is often blurred. The self-regulatory body wants social media influencers to disclose upfront - through labels or in the case of audio media, by way of an announcement at the beginning and the end of the audio - that the content is promotional and paid for.

A year of living and working in the shadow of Covid-19 pandemic

A year of living and working in the shadow of Covid-19 pandemic

Rediff.com   5 Feb 2021

There is no one way to describe the 12 months that have gone by since India reported its first Covid-positive case on January 30, 2020.

Covid-19 impact: Textile, paint makers roll out antiviral layer to ads

Covid-19 impact: Textile, paint makers roll out antiviral layer to ads

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2020

Almost each of these companies has a different technology to show for the effectiveness against microbes.

Fashion Weeks are coming! Fashion Weeks are coming!

Fashion Weeks are coming! Fashion Weeks are coming!

Rediff.com   31 Jul 2020

'We can go with smaller ensembles -- even 15 or 20 creations from a designer.' 'We are keeping the focus squarely on quality over quantity.' 'India Couture Week is, after all, about the best of the best,' FDCI Chairman Sunil Sethi tells Veenu Sandhu

Urban India's SELFISH response to migrant distress

Urban India's SELFISH response to migrant distress

Rediff.com   31 May 2020

'Politicians's slogans on social distancing, showered like petals from their ivory towers, mock every single moment of pain and distress imposed on the vulnerable down below, at migrant labour stuffed like chickens on goods trucks, trying to get home at all costs,' observes Veenu Sandhu.

Police must be insulated from their political masters

Police must be insulated from their political masters

Rediff.com   27 Feb 2020

The Indian police is governed by the archaic, colonial-era Police Act of 1861, which has no place in a democracy. It was created to make the police subservient to its masters and, consequently, antagonistic to the masses, states Veenu Sandhu.