Viacom18, India’s fastest growing media and entertainment network, announced the appointment of Vivek Mohan Sharma as Head of Branded Content.

Vivek will be reporting to Mahesh Shetty, Head, Network Sales, Viacom18, a press release issued by Viacom18 said.

In his new role, Sharma will be responsible for leading the branded content and solutions at the network level.

Individually, he will also be responsible for driving branded solutions for Viacom18’s Hindi Mass Entertainment, Regional Entertainment, and Kids TV clusters leveraging its broadcast and social reach.

In addition to his role, Sharma will also work with existing teams at youth, music, and English entertainment as well as the network’s digital pay VOOT to bring in synergies and dial-up advertiser-funded content-driven growth.

Vivek has two decades of experience in business management, revenue, and marketing spanning across media, telecom, and banking sectors. He has held leadership roles at Mirchi, Idea Cellular, Deutsche Bank and ICCI Bank in the past.

Before joining Viacom18, Vivek worked as Head, Digital Business and worked towards transforming Mirchi into a dominant digital content and solutions brand.

Welcoming Vivek to the team, Mahesh Shetty, Head, Network Sales, Viacom18, said, “We are living in a world full of too many choices which however have increasingly minimal differentiation amongst them. Branded Content has the potential to bring forth this differentiation and connect with audiences in a more engaging and emotional capacity. With his versatile experience in leadership roles across industries, Vivek is best poised to bring collaborations across our brand offerings and create unique propositions for our clients that are relevant and result-oriented.”

Vivek said, “Brands today are looking at creating moments and mindshare that stays with the audience for long. Branded content acts as the bridge, bringing in solutions that truly connect the brand with its customers engagingly and effectively. I look forward to driving value, innovation, and overall growth in my new role at Viacom18.”