![Nachiket Pantvaidya, Ajay Bhalwankar and Tushar Shah expand their portfolios.](https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SPNI.jpg?w=681&h=383&crop=1)
Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has unveiled three leadership changes, amid other management changes.
Nachiket Pantvaidya will become the Business Head of Sony Entertainment Television (SET), marking his third stint with SPNI. He will also continue to serve in his current role as General Manager at Sony Pictures International Productions (SPIP). The company stated that Pantvaidya’s previous responsibilities included managing P&L for SET, developing franchises, and boosting advertising and distribution revenues.
Ajay Bhalwankar will take on additional responsibilities as the Business Head of Hindi-language channel Sony SAB. He has been at SPNI since 2014 and currently heads its Marathi channel. Previously, Bhalwankar served as the chief creative director for the SET channel. The company stated that his leadership has allowed Sony Marathi to see significant growth and “carve a niche in the crowded Marathi GEC market,” helping the channel capture a 9% market share.
Tushar Shah will oversee Sony MAX, Sony MAX HD, Sony MAX 2, Sony WAH and Sony PAL, in addition to his current portfolio as the Business Head of English, Bengali, and Infotainment Channels and the Chief Marketing Officer. He also leads channels such as Sony PIX, Sony AATH, and Sony BBC Earth. With nearly 18 years of experience across two tenures at SPNI, the company added that Shah has been “crucial in the successful expansion of Sony AATH in West Bengal.”
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The role rejigs come after it was announced Neeraj Vyas would exit his role as Business Head of Sony Entertainment Television (SET), Sony SAB, PAL and Sony Max Movie Cluster on August 31 after nearly three decades. According to Sony, he has decided to “embark on a new entrepreneurial journey.”
His departure is closely following the retirements of SPNI General Counsel Ashok Nambissan and CFO Nitin Nadkarni, who leave their posts on the same day in August. N.P. Singh, the MD and CEO of SPNI, is also stepping back and moving into an advisory role. Those departures have all come after the long gestating merger with ZEE Entertainment Enterprises collapsed earlier this year.
Sony Pictures Networks India is the consumer-facing identity of Culver Max Entertainment Private Limited, which is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation, Japan.