Mr.Mahendra Swarup whois the former MD and CEO od Times Internet Ltd. has joined Studio Smile Pvt Ltd. as a Chief Mentor

July 22,2006
Mahendra Swarup, former MD and CEO of Times Internet Limited (Indiatimes), joins Smile Interactive as Chief Mentor; Smile set to do Rs. 100 Crore by 2008

Smile Interactive, the largest interactive services company in India, today announced that Mahendra Swarup, former MD and CEO of Times Internet Limited (Indiatimes), has recently joined them as Chief Mentor starting June this year.

Mr. Swarup will join the group as an advisor and will work closely with the top management in guiding the company through its growth initiatives. "I am very pleased to have been asked to mentor Smile Interactive. They are an exciting team of young technology and online media professionals, and are uniquely positioned to tap into the immense opportunities of the Indian interactive space. I look forward to helping them craft their strategic direction for expanding the business," said Swarup.

Founded in 1999, the Smile Interactive group has grown into the largest interactive set-up in India, with offices in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. StudioSmile and Quasar Media, both leaders in their respective industries, are part of the Smile Interactive group among others. While StudioSmile provides Interactive technology & e-commerce services, Quasar Media has grown to become the largest independent interactive media company providing end-to-end services on Online Media, Search and Mobile marketing.

The company is well positioned to expand these services both in India and overseas. It is growing at an excess of 100 % year-on-year and is set to cross a turnover of Rs 100 crore by 2007-08. Major clients include Microsoft, Monster, Makemytrip, Sony, LG, Yahoo, amongst others. Meanwhile, the company is also about to launch other such internet products in the online media and travel space in the current financial year.

“Mr. Swarup brings tremendous organization-building experiences to Smile Interactive,” said CEO Mr. Harish Bahl. “As the leader in the rapidly-growing Indian interactive space, we are at the inflexion point of scaling up our product offerings. The Internet space is finally realizing it’s potential in India, and we are at the forefront of this opportunity,” he says.

The founding team includes CP Singh and Manish Vij apart from Harish Bahl.


Mahendra Swarup Profile

Mahendra Swarup has over 29 years of business experience and has held corporate responsibilities in blue-chip companies like ACC, Nestle India, Sun Breweries–Moscow and PepsiCo India at the senior-most functional levels of Operations, Sales & Distribution, Purchasing/Procurement, Exports and HR. He has also served on the Board of Directors of Computer Point and EMA India, an OEM of Mercedes Benz. Immediately prior to his five-year stint as MD Times Internet Ltd, he was Executive Director on the board of PepsiCo India.