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<ul><li>Sonu Sood recently received UNDP’s Special Humanitarian Action Award.</li><li>He has emerged as a knight in shining armour and been applauded for his humanitarian work to send thousands of stranded migrants back home during the lockdown. </li><li>His rising affinity on social media has also helped him get popular in the brandverse. </li><li>We speak to experts to find out if the recognition from UNDP will finally help get Sonu Sood longer brand deals and bigger brands now. </li></ul>Sonu Sood, who plays an antagonist in most of his movies, is becoming India’s hero in real life. On September 30, he was honoured with the Special Humanitarian Action Award by the United Nations Development Programme for his selfless efforts to help people in challenging times. In the beginning of the lockdown, Sood and his team launched an initiative called #GharBhejoAbhiyaan that helped thousands of migrants who were longing to come back home. He later launched #<a href="https://twitter.com/PravasiRojgar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1286322666580742144%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.socialsamosa.com%2F2020%2F08%2Fsonu-sood-campaigns-endorsements-through-the-lockdown%2F">PravasiRojgar</a> to help jobless migrants find a job and restore their livelihoods. He sent a few smartphones to students in Haryana who couldn’t afford online classes and helped students stranded across the globe return to the country safely. Soon, newspapers made special cartoons on him to celebrate the knight in shining armour and #Isupporttheherosonusood started trending on Twitter. It is for his philanthropic work that Sood is becoming popular even in the brandverse. Indian brands like Pepsi, Lay’s, Tata Tea Premium, Stayfree India, Edelweiss Tokio Life, Godrej Interio, WhiteHat Jr, ZEE5, to name a few, have approached him to help spread awareness on different social causes. Even in his brand work, Sood has spoken about the importance of wearing a mask, recognising everyday warriors around us, supporting local craftsmen, etc. Since he acted like a ‘Vighnaharta’ during the lockdown, Mangaldeep Agarbatti also approached him during the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. Sonu Sood’s relief efforts for the migrants during the COVID-19 lockdown earned him praise from all quarters. He emerged a hero for his selfless, kind-hearted efforts for the community. It was due to his selfless image and uniqueness that brands started capitalizing on his growing popularity. Ergo, his brand value is also increasing subsequently. According to media reports, Sood is worth $17 million. However, it was only in early September that Acer signed a long-term deal with him. Sharing why the brand decided to on-board Sood, Sooraj Balakrishnan, Head-Marketing, Acer India said, “Apart from his exemplary work in cinemas where he is a well-renowned actor cutting across India, Sonu Sood has stood out in 2020 as an example of selfless service and humanitarian work that positively impacted and benefited thousands, if not lakhs of people in need during the pandemic. His contribution to empowering people echoes with Acer India’s brand mantra of empowering people through technology.” Balakrishnan agreed that Sood’s rising popularity is an indication that the consumers are looking for honest and real work now. He said, “People are looking for brands and public figures who have a purpose to make positive changes with honest and real work. Glamour alone will not sell and people like Sonu have really used his position for the good of people. I can vouch for his humbleness, genuine passion to help, and dedication to the cause during my interactions with him. Acer is proud to have him as our brand ambassador and we wish him more recognition for his work.” Apart from trust, caring, empathetic, relatability, and style, Kalyan Ram Challapalli, Chief Strategist and Founder, WolfzHowl Strategic Instigations, said one should also note his Bollywood-led personality attributes to evaluate him as a brand endorser. he is known for a good body (with muscles etc;), a sense of style (fashion) etc Challapalli said, “Brand Sonu Sood can also include attributes of health, fitness, style and fashion. In addition to this whether it is his “Arundhati” (Telugu – Tollywood Blockbuster) villain portrayal or other such south movies, he also has some traction in South Indian Movies and hence South of India as well (usually not a easy feat for a character artiste to achieve). Hence, Sonu Sood as brand ambassador represents trust, empathy, style, fitness and a pan-national appeal. But with the masses. Hence categories he can be used as a brand ambassador for are possibly: Agri-Fintech, Micro-Finance, Health Foods, Sports and Fitness Categories, Fashion category etc; But at a mass and masstige segments level.” Keeping these attributes in mind, Challapalli said that he can endorse brands in mass and masstige categories. “He can also represent “return to roots” desi culture brands across consumer segments. As a brand ambassador he can take “Ayurvedic or Indian natural products based health - Immunity” to both the higher economic strata consumers and the lower economic strata consumers. He can also be a good brand ambassador for democratisation of Insurance, or home loans, or even mutual funds to the masses and to ‘Bharat’,” said Challapalli. Sonu Sood’s social currency Harish Bijoor, Brand-Strategy expert and Founder, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc pointed out that the audience on social media is looking for real heroes now. Bijoor said, “Sonu Sood is the new hero. The new hero of a new generation that is driven more by social media accolades than traditional media praise. Social media seems to recognise the real star as opposed to the promoted star. This works for Sonu Sood. He and his image is pushed by an army of social media participants who chase the real as opposed to the made up.” Sood has 7.3 million followers on Instagram and 4.1 on Twitter. He became the talk of the town during the lockdown. As a result, his popularity on Google Search also peaked. The top searched topics included Sonu Sood Help, Sonu Sood Scholarship, <keyword id="10031923" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="sonu-sood-helpline">Sonu Sood Helpline</keyword>, Sonu Sood hotel juhu, <keyword id="10031921" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sonu-sood-net-worth">Sonu Sood net worth</keyword> 2020. <div type="image" title="sonu sood google trends" msid="78414547" hostid="261"></div> During the period of January to September 2020, Sood was the most searched term in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttrakhand, Telegana respectively. <div type="image" title="india-map" msid="78414550" hostid="261"></div>(Values are calculated on a scale from 0 to 100, where 100 is the location with the most popularity as a fraction of total searches in that location, a value of 50 indicates a location which is half as popular.) Sood’s impact on brand’s social image How will getting someone like Sonu Sood, who is a humanitarian influence, help how people look at a brand? Archana Jain, Founder and MD, PR Pundit, said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has had a deep impact on consumers. Consumer attitudes are changing. New socio-economic behavioural patterns are being witnessed. Global discourse centered around purpose and ethics is taking centre stage and scoring high on relevance in an increasingly values-driven world. An association with Sonu Sood therefore helps brands raise their bar on trust and dependability. Brands are able to foster a meaningful connection with the informed and empowered consumers and attach themselves to the value proposition of humaneness (demonstrated by his philanthropic work).” On how brands are looking for rays of hope in unsung heroes, Jain added, “Universally, people seek heroes in times of distress. With the heightened interest around all-things COVID-19, many brands have been shining the spotlight on heroes who have contributed selflessly for the betterment of society. Some have singled out the unsung warriors and some acknowledged personalities. Sonu Sood will always be remembered as the knight in shining armour who came to save thousands in need in their bleak times.” N Chandramouli, CEO, TRA Research said, “When someone achieves popularity by the work done, a reputation builds around the person - which is transmitted beliefs about respect. This transmitted belief spreads as more many hear about the person, also driving the person to try and achieve greater heights. Brands are self-centered in their approach, and naturally do not take Sonu Sood as an ambassador because of their philanthropic nature, but instead so that his 'goodness' rubs on them too. He has already been seen as a 'messiah', and even non-migrant travel or food based requests come to him, sometimes for books for education or to help a poor farmer's family. Since he has been open and accessible to most such requests, he has become an icon for the poor and needy. This is suff is like a movie-story, and he, the hero who is a do-gooder for society. Brands may not use him in PR too directly, primarily because it will not be appropriate to be seen directly promoting a brand by talking about it. Instead, advertising is slightly more distanced from PR, and therefore his presence as a brand's ambassador, is something that will look more appropriate. PR, as we often say, is essentially a trust building tool, and for Sonu, he has already built all the trust by demonstrating firmness of action.” Will recognition from UNDP help get Sonu Sood more brand deals now? Chandramouli said that Sonu Sood will be now known internationally, which might help him get more brand recognition. He said, “With UNDP's award he joins an exclusive group of international actors in different UN awards who have contributed to society beyond their call of duty, and his name will become more global. He will also come in the consideration sets of international brands which are looking at India as one of their key markets. Being a household name in India, brands will be able to reach their consumers through his endorsements.” Challapalli said that Sonu Sood will get more brands now. However, he is more likely to be approached by massy brands than aspirational.

As Sonu Sood wins a UNDP award, will we see a jump in his brand value?

<ul><li>As Wipro founder <keyword id="6419840" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Azim-Premji">Azim Premji</keyword> turned 75 on July 24, publisher HarperCollins announced that a new biography about his life is in the works. </li><li>Written by Sundeep Khanna and Varun Sood, the book will be called The Man Beyond the Billions. </li><li>There is little known about the book so far and no final release date has been disclosed yet. </li></ul>As the czar of the Indian IT Industry, Wipro chairman Azim Premji, turned 75 on July 24, publisher HarperCollins announced that it’s currently in the process of pushing out a new biography based on him. <div type="twitter" handle="companyoutsider" handlename="sundeepkhanna" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1225408746295160834/Bou_jSWY_normal.jpg" favoritecount="32" retweetcount="4" status="A big salute to Azim Premji on his 75th birthday. Extraordinary businessman, magnificent philanthropist and a great role model for us all." createdat="1595563168000" id="1286511290333057024"></div> “There are some people whose achievements go beyond the normal parameters of success—wealth, power, influence, size of their empires. Premji is one such,” said the CEO of HarperCollions Ananth Padmanabhan. The biography called The Man Beyond the Billions is going to be written by Sundeep Khanna and Varun Sood soon. <div type="twitter" handle="varunstweets" handlename="Varun Sood" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1267420202880266240/UKGcpGSu_normal.jpg" favoritecount="103" retweetcount="10" status="This just got announced. I'll write more in the coming days. Please do read, folks, once its available to read. tha… https://t.co/aN6G1J3ryr" createdat="1595595464000" id="1286646748459360259"></div> Unlike conventional billionaires in India , Azim Premji has donated nearly 75% of his wealth to charitable initiatives. Had he not done so, Azim Premji could have very well been the second richest man in the country following Mukesh Ambani. He was one of the first Indians to sign up for The Giving Pledge led by Warren Buffer and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. According to him, simply being rich ‘did not thrill’ him. For his work, he has also been honored with the Padma Vibhushan, which is one of the highest honours in India, for his contribution to the IT industry.

Azim Premji’s biography announced — here’s all you need to know about it

<keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> is the world’s largest film industry. With more and more films entering the elite 100 crore club, it is obvious that every big name associated with the industry is taking home much more than what their seniors did 20 years back. 
 We had a look at the highest paid <keyword id="2412522" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Singers-of-Bollywood">singers of Bollywood</keyword>, and found out the whopping amounts that they get for singing one song. 
 
Disclaimer: The article has been written after due research, however, some figures might not be accurate, given the dynamic nature of the Indian film industry. 
 
Collage courtesy: <a href="http://www.fotor.com/features/collage.html">Fotor</a>

Highest Paid Playback Singers of Bollywood 2014

<ul><li>The US economy is still firing on all cylinders despite slowing GDP growth in the first quarter.</li><li>Carson Group strategist Sonu Varghese highlighted five economic indicators that show the strength.</li><li>"The workhorse of the US economy remains the consumer, and there's really not much sign of a slowdown," Varghese said.</li></ul>The US economy is firing on all cylinders despite <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gdp-gross-domestic-product-first-quarter-economy-growth-2024-4">a slowdown in first-quarter GDP growth,</a> according to Carson Group global macro strategist Sonu Varghese.Varghese highlighted five economic indicators that show continued underlying strength in the US economy, giving him little reason for concern as the labor market continues to power higher."The workhorse of the US economy remains the consumer, and there's really not much sign of a slowdown as far as household spending is concerned," Varghese said in a note last week. "In fact, services spending, which makes up 45% of the economy rose at an annualized pace of 4%."That 4% growth rate is more than double the 1.8% growth trend seen from 2010 through 2019, according to Varghese, and it represents the fastest pace of growth since the third-quarter of 2021. "The current strength of consumption is directly related to the strength of American household finances," Varghese said.These are the five indicators that give Varghese confidence that the US consumer, and therefore the US economy, remains on solid footing.<h3>1. Income growth is outpacing inflation</h3>Despite elevated inflation, wage growth continues to outpace inflation growth, and that's ultimately a boon for consumers.Disposable incomes grew at an annualized pace of 4.8% in the first-quarter, and employee compensation soared 7.8%. Meanwhile, PCE inflation rose 4.4%."That's the simplest explanation for why consumption continues to run strong," Varghese said.<div type="image" title="Income versus inflation" height="803" width="626" msid="109792200" hostid="261" sizebytes="20070"></div><h3>2. Average hourly earnings are also outpacing inflation</h3>It's not only high-income earners that are seeing their wages outpace inflation. The average every-day worker is also seeing their income grow faster than the pace of inflation."Inflation-adjusted hourly wages are growing even when you look at the average worker, and separate non-managers from managers," Varghese explained.That's important because non-managers tend to spend a greater portion of their incomes from wages, so it's important that they see their wage growth outpace inflation. <div type="image" title="hourly earnings growth outpaces inflation" height="752" width="647" msid="109792202" hostid="261" sizebytes="27276"></div><h3>3. Consumer balance sheets are strong</h3>A continued rise in the stock market and housing prices means Americans are more wealthy today than they have ever been.US consumers held a collective $176.7 trillion in assets as of December 31, and their liabilities have not risen as quickly as their assets have.That means consumers have ample room to spend money and save less, which makes it no surprise that the savings rate of US consumers has steadily declined over the past few years to 4.2% today from 7.4% in 2019."This is not surprising considering net worth is higher. Why save more if you're worth more?" Varghese said. <div type="image" title="Consumer balance sheet" height="696" width="653" msid="109792204" hostid="261" sizebytes="27840"></div><h3>4. Consumer's have capacity to borrow more</h3>Across all levels of the income spectrum, consumers owe less in debt relative to their income than they have in decades.The household debt service ratio, which measures debt payments as a percentage of disposable income, stood at 9.8% in the fourth-quarter of 2024. That's significantly below the 13.3% peak hit in 2007 and the historical average of 11.2%, and it suggests that consumers have ample flexibility to borrow more money and consumer if they have to. "Across all income groups, liabilities as a percent of assets are well below what we've seen historically. In short, households are significantly less levered than in the past," Varghese said.<div type="image" title="Debt service ratio" height="837" width="648" msid="109792206" hostid="261" sizebytes="28142"></div><h3>5. The jobs market is still resilient</h3>"The labor market is the entire ballgame as far as the consumer is concerned. If the labor market deteriorates, incomes fall, consumption falls, and the economy is in trouble," Varghese said.And so far, there are no signs of that happening. "We have the opposite now," Varghese highlighted.The unemployment rate has stayed below 4% for 26 consecutive months, representing the longest streak since the late 1960s. Meanwhile, there is still more than one job opening for every unemployed worker, and weekly jobless claims continue to hover near historically low levels. "Ultimately, here's what's important to keep in mind: consumption makes up 70% of the US economy, and right now consumption is running strong thanks to strong labor markets, which are pushing incomes higher to above the pace of inflation, and higher net worth, which means households can spend more," Varghese concluded.

5 indicators that show the US economy is still firing on all cylinders despite slowing GDP

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Most indicators suggest the US economy is humming along.</li><li>Consumers aren't buying it, per the latest monthly survey of how Americans feel about the economy.</li></ul>Indicators be damned: US consumers are still gloomy about the state of the economy.In the latest <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sca.isr.umich.edu/">University of Michigan survey</a>, the consumer sentiment index dropped a whopping 13% from April, after staying roughly the same since January."This 10 index-point decline is statistically significant and brings sentiment to its lowest reading in about six months," said Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu.Researchers found that consumers across demographics were worried that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inflation-cpi-food-energy-gas-prices-consumer-price-index-2024-4">inflation</a>, high <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/when-will-fed-cut-interest-rates-powell-fomc-inflation-relief-2024-4">interest rates</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/labor-market-april-unemployment-rate-job-growth-wages-2024-5">unemployment</a> would get worse in the year ahead.Inflation worries were reflected in survey results that showed consumers predicted a 3.5% jump in prices over the next year, the highest guess about inflation since last November.Americans have remained pessimistic about the economy since the COVID-19 pandemic caused unemployment to spike in the spring of 2020 and triggered the sharpest recession in decades.Consumer sentiment started to rise in the year after the pandemic but tumbled in 2021 and 2022 as inflation took hold of the economy. Since June 2022, the consumer sentiment index has generally trended upwards but is still far south of where it stood before the pandemic, according to the University of Michigan's data.<h2 id="834ed422-9701-4aab-ad4c-7cabbcbefdd4">Losing faith</h2>Leading indicators suggest the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-economy-positive-outlook-forecast-gdp-growth-slowing-strong-signals-2024-5">economy is still cooking</a>, Business Insider previously reported.Carson Group strategist Sonu Varghese said there are five signs that Americans' financial situation is actually quite strong:<ul><li>Incomes are growing faster than inflation.</li><li><a target="_blank" href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CEU0500000003">Hourly earnings</a> are outpacing inflation too.</li><li>Americans are more <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-millennials-net-worth-by-age-all-time-high-2023-10">wealthy</a> than they've ever been.</li><li>Consumers can <a target="_blank" href="https://www.newyorkfed.org/microeconomics/hhdc">borrow more</a> and owe less in debt.</li><li><a target="_blank" href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE">Unemployment</a> remains at historic lows.</li></ul>"Ultimately, here's what's important to keep in mind: Consumption makes up 70% of the US economy, and right now consumption is running strong," Varghese said.Varghese added that's "thanks to" both "strong labor markets, which are pushing incomes higher to above the pace of inflation" and "higher net worth, which means households can spend more."But Americans aren't feeling the strong economy.While inflation has cooled from its heights last year, consumer prices still shot up due to the surge and remain high.Meanwhile, the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-do-interest-rate-hikes-impact-housing-market-rent-mortgages-2024-3">housing market has been rocky</a> due to a lack of inventory and high interest rates caused by the Fed's efforts to bring inflation back under control.Now, the number of home mortgages that are <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mortgage-rates-seriously-underwater-home-prices-south-midwest-housing-market-2024-5">"seriously underwater" </a>— meaning their balance is at least 25% more than the fair market value of the house — is rising, new data from ATTOM.

These 2 charts show just how little faith Americans have in the economy 

The big, fat, Indian wedding is the stuff of dreams.For Krishma Sood Bhojwani, this meant hosting a four-day-long celebration at the JW Marriott in Phuket, Thailand. The bride imported cheese wheels from Italy, sourced Iberico ham directly from Spain, and hired a photography team from Mumbai. She flew in <a href="https://www.wedmegood.com/blog/epic-phuket-wedding-with-head-turning-bridal-looks/">chefs</a> from India and Japan, and had cooks preparing fresh food across 24 dining stations.The wedding consisted of eight events spread across four days, all set against the backdrop of the oceanfront resort where lush jungle meets the province's coastline. The 120 guests, who flew in from around the world and wore black-tie attire and intricately embroidered lehengas, were treated to cocktail dinners by the beach and ballroom parties.Bhojwani had arranged for a floating altar and wore <a href="https://wedbook.in/real-weddings/thailand-destination-wedding-of-a-couple-who-postponed-their-wedding-thrice/">traditional outfits</a> that were made by luxury designers like Sabyasachi, whose <a href="https://www.azafashions.com/products/floral-embroidered-lehenga-set/222913?utm_country=sg&amp;wpsrc=Google%20AdWords&amp;wpscid=&amp;wpsnetn=x&amp;wpkwn=&amp;wpkmatch=&amp;wpcrid=&amp;wpcid=17961464551&amp;wpkwid=&amp;wpscn=&amp;utm_term=&amp;utm_source=google-pmax&amp;utm_medium=cpc&amp;utm_campaign=SGD-ACQ-GOOGLE-PMAX-ALL-MCV-12August2022&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwmouZBhDSARIsALYcouoPDwycaxZa2Np04dLTMyBf5DqDEeZg9yHbJ1QgQ70oSm4Cs6s5uEIaAlgrEALw_wcB">designs</a> can go for $30,000 a piece.As for the cost? Around $400,000 for the wedding events alone, Bhojwani estimates — and that doesn't account for the couple's jewelry and outfits. "I did have a strict budget — money doesn't grow on a tree. We were sharp on cost and didn't spend a dollar over what I said we would," Bhojwani, who's from Australia, told Insider.<div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="3555" width="4740" msid="94268295" hostid="261"></div>In India, the wedding industry is <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/indias-50-billion-wedding-industry-is-gearing-up-for-a-busy-winter/articleshow/78163437.cms">worth</a> a whopping $50 billion, and it's not uncommon for wealthy families to spend astronomical amounts of money on weddings. In 2018, billionaire tycoon Mukesh Ambani <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-12-10/real-crazy-rich-asian-wedding-is-said-to-cost-100-million?leadSource=uverify%20wall">spent</a> a reported $100 million on his daughter's wedding, with guests like Beyonce, Shah Rukh Khan, and Hillary Clinton in attendance.But even for the just ordinarily wealthy, weddings can ring up serious price tags: Indian families are known to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailand-looks-indian-weddings-boost-tourism-revenue-2022-08-31/">spend</a> as much as $800,000 on destination weddings at five-star hotels and resorts across Southeast Asia. Traditionally, the bride's family would bear the wedding costs, but that's now considered an <a href="https://qz.com/2130328/how-hindu-weddings-became-indias-cultural-export/">outdated practice</a> — many families, including Bhojwani and her husband's, choose to share the expenses. As Bhojwani put it, Indian couples typically have a "huge amount of parental support" in financing the costs of their wedding.<div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="4023" width="5365" msid="94268298" hostid="261"></div>Now, as luxury resorts across Southeast Asia emerge from the pandemic, many of them are competing for these lucrative Indian weddings. Many of these establishments are still reeling from the financial impact of the pandemic, and they're sparing no effort to attract the business of wealthy Indian couples to make up for the deficits. After all, that big Indian wedding may just be the tipping factor between ending the year in red or black. <h2>The big business of big Indian weddings</h2>One reason high-end Indian weddings can be so expensive is because they're often not single-day events — Sikh wedding ceremonies, for example, are held over several days, said Vin Ramash, a wedding planner with Singapore-based wedding and events company Alangkaar. <div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding in Phuket." height="4023" width="5365" msid="94268301" hostid="261"></div>"At the higher end, Punjabi weddings start at $100,000 per day, so spending $500,000 is possible," Ramash told Insider, explaining that this is typical of weddings held at premium hotels like Capella, St. Regis, or Ritz-Carlton.But the bells, whistles, and whims of the couple also contribute to the hefty price tag.Hand-made mandaps, or altars, and custom-designed decorations can cost around $40,000, Ramash said — and additional requests like fireworks can cost even more.And then there's the travel element. As destination weddings become more popular among high-net worth Indian couples, many couples are looking to Thailand. Ramash said Alangkaar's tourism partner in the country anticipates 400 to 500 "large-sale Indian weddings" in 2023 alone.<div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="3580" width="4773" msid="94268303" hostid="261"></div>"Couples love destination weddings in Thailand because of the value you get for every dollar you spend. People want an experience — it's not just about status," Ramash, who plans weddings in Singapore, Bali, and Phuket, added. Bhojwani and her husband had initially planned to host their wedding at the Intercontinental Hotel in Phu Quoc, Vietnam. After lockdowns, travel restrictions, and four postponements, they finally decided to host their wedding in Thailand.Vendors and planners in Phu Quoc failed to understand what they wanted for their wedding "no matter how hard we negotiated," Bhojwani said. The planners and venue in Thailand, meanwhile, "understood the vision, the scale, the grandeur, and experience" she and her husband were looking for.<div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="3881" width="5174" msid="94268305" hostid="261"></div><h2>Tourism boards and luxury hotels are fighting for weddings</h2>Given the pent-up demand, and in an effort to get back to pre-pandemic business levels, tourism boards and luxury hotels are prioritizing marketing campaigns that target the ultra-luxe destination Indian wedding segment. That means that destinations like Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Maldives are often vying for the same big-budget weddings.Resorts are leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to become the destination of choice. Hotels are catering to all sorts of demands from the wedding parties, including making special arrangements for religious rituals like providing a Hindu priest to solemnize the wedding. In some instances, they've even offered to rebook guests at sister venues if a bigger wedding party wants to book out the entire property. Tourism boards are getting in on it, too.For Thailand, wedding revenue is embedded into the tourism revenue for the year. Thailand expects a 600 billion to 700 billion baht, or $16 to 19 million, boost to tourism revenues this year from luxury weddings and honeymooners, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailand-looks-indian-weddings-boost-tourism-revenue-2022-08-31/">reported</a>, citing a senior tourism official. Indian tourists are the "priority" this year, Tanes Petsuwan, the deputy governor of Thailand's tourism authority, <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Travel-Leisure/Thai-tourism-eyes-Indian-weddings-as-Chinese-spending-dries-up">told</a> Nikkei Asia.<div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="2250" width="3000" msid="94268475" hostid="261"></div>Other tourism boards, like Indonesia's, are also on the prowl to woo these glitzy-eyed couples. These exclusive weddings can cost anywhere from $200,000 to $500,000, Sanjay Sondhi, the CEO of Om Tourism and the head of Indonesia's tourism board for India, told Insider. Indonesia tourism board officials often collaborate with the biggest wedding planners in countries like India, and in some instances are even present when resorts are pitching to the prospective brides and grooms. The fruits of this labor can be sweet. For one high-profile wedding slated to be held in the tropical island of Bali, talks are now revolving around a chartered flight for around 250 guests, Sondhi said. The couple was previously mulling a destination wedding in Thailand. <h2>Hotels lay out the red carpet</h2>With the main Indian wedding season, which runs from October to December, just around the corner, hotels are seeing a pick-up in inquiries.Demand for Six Senses properties across Southeast Asia for Indian destination weddings has been on the rise, with Six Senses Uluwatu in Bali being the absolute "favorite," Agnes Poon, the director of sales and marketing for Six Senses in Asia, told Insider. In August, the five-star resort held the wedding for a high-end family based in South India, Poon said. And in late 2021, the hotel chain <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/celebrities/story/vicky-kaushal-katrina-kaif-s-wedding-suites-in-six-senses-resort-costs-rs-7-lakh-per-night-exclusive-1882458-2021-11-30">hosted</a> the wedding of Bollywood stars Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal. The wedding took place at the chain's flagship property in India, Six Senses Fort Barwara.Poon said queries are coming in for minimums of 200-250 rooms at the resort, which rests on the famed limestone cliffs of Uluwatu and opens up to sweeping views of the Indian Ocean.To be sure, it's not just Indian weddings that are big business. The global wedding services industry generated $160.5 billion revenues in 2020 and is expected to generate revenues of $414.2 billion in 2030, per an Allied Market Research <a href="https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/wedding-services-market-A15864">report</a>.Luxury hotel Capella Singapore has weddings scheduled for every weekend of the year, Victoria Lim, a content marketing specialist at Capella Hotel group, told Insider. Demand for venues is topping pre-pandemic levels — but the type of demand is also diversifying. Capella is seeing an increase in small and intimate solemnization, especially for couples who put their weddings on pause due to the pandemic, Lim said. <div type="image" title="Krishma Sood Bhojwani's wedding." height="3843" width="5124" msid="94268478" hostid="261"></div>But for many of those taking the traditional big Indian wedding route, it's worth it to dish out — even if they had to change their plans multiple times along the way."I've always dreamed of having a beautiful wedding," Bhojwani said of her April wedding. "It was really hard, it was delayed for three years but we got there in the end. It's definitely worth it."

Indian weddings are big money &mdash; and luxury resorts across Southeast Asia are competing to draw them in to make up for their Covid deficits

New Delhi, May 2 () Internet companies like Urban Company, MakeMyTrip, Dunzo, HealthifyMe and Zomato are changing their social media handles and app icons to promote wearing face masks as a hygiene practice amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Apna Mask initiative -- an effort by StartUpVsCOVID (a startup community with over 1,000 members) -- is promoting homemade masks and aims to drive behavioural change to ensure that people wear masks and stay protected as they step out of their homes. The #ApnaDeshApnaMask campaign was kicked off by startup industry stalwarts like Rajan Anandan of Sequoia India, Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Alok Mittal (Indifi), Vishal Gondal (GoQii) and others. They were later joined by celebrities like Vidya Balan, Dia Mirza, Juhi Chawla, Divya Khosla Kumar, Juhi Parmar, Deepshika Deshmukh, Sonu Sood, Shama Sikander, Preetika Rao and others. Within a span of two weeks, the initiative has garnered 100 million outreach across digital platforms, including WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The team working on the campaign also reached out to various organisations to support the initiative, especially as parts of the country get ready to come out of the lockdown which has been extended till May 17. "Urban Company, MakemyTrip, Dunzo, HealthifyMe, Zomato, Redbus, Ixigo, MoneyTap, MyUpchaar, Bounce, RazorPay, Medanta, WittyFeed, LBB, Porter, Meesho, Daily Hunt, 1mg, Paytm Games have changed their social media handles while some are changing the app icons as well," a statement said. These brands are also inviting more companies to join the initiative. "Given the immense response we have received, we will have more brands join #ApnaMask in this critical initiative. We believe some of these steps will be helpful in building habit changing behaviour towards wearing homemade masks," Poonam Kaul, co-founder of ApnaMask, said. In a separate statement, Crowdera -- an online fundraising platform -- said it is offering its premium syndicated fundraising technology solutions for free to companies and NGOs working to help the COVID-19 affected individuals, families and health workers. "Crowdera will be extending its support through offering its products and services worth almost USD 150,000 (Rs 1 crore) free to organisations aiding the affected...The solution will help corporations and NGOs to quickly syndicate with their own employees, influencers, other foundations, or charity partners to raise funds 10X more than through a regular crowdfunding campaign," it said. Under this pledge, Crowdera has already extended its support to companies like Rapido, Repos, BYJU'S, SirfTaxi, and Tartl to engage their employees and partners in fundraising for the COVID-affected workforce. SR ABMABM

Apps don face masks to promote healthy practices amid COVID-19

This Diwali there were plenty of fireworks at the Indian <keyword id="25892" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="box-office">Box Office</keyword>. And these fireworks were delivered by none other than the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer <keyword id="43845" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Happy-New-Year">Happy New Year</keyword>. 
 
Happy New Year, which is directed by Farah Khan, also stars Boman Irani, Sonu Sood, Vivaan Shah, Abhishek Bachchan and Deepika Padukone 
The movie released on October 24, 2014 and raced on to collect Rs 44.97 crore. The movie managed to earn Rs 100 crore in just 60 hours and has already been crowned the fourth highest grosser of 2014. 
 
However, the movie could not sustain this momentum on Monday and ended up netting Rs 15 crores, which took its overall tally to Rs 123.86 crore. 
 
Nevertheless, we cannot rule out the fact that Happy New Year has the potential to topple the collections of Dhoom 3 (which had recorded Gross collection of Rs 542 crore) and earn the title of Bollywood’s Top earner movie. As of now, Shah Rukh Khan starer Chennai Express is at the second position with total gross earning of Rs 422 crore. 
 Another movie that we feel has the potential to enter the Rs 500 crore club is Aamir Khan-starrer <keyword id="6396827" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="PK">pk</keyword>, which is scheduled for a December release. 
 
(All figures courtesy <a href="http://www.koimoi.com/">koimoi.com</a>)

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