Yash Khanna, STAR’s EVP, corporate communications, has put in his papers after a 17 year stint. He is slated to start his own venture, details of which are being worked out.
Speaking about his future plans, Khanna, said, “I have been thinking about it for some time and trying to work things out. I have some business ideas and I am in talks with a few investors.” He added that he will be able to finalise details in a couple of weeks.
Khanna joined STAR in 1992, when it was setting shop here in India. One of the first few employees, he joined in the advertising sales function, which has been his forte. He, along with Peter Mukerjea, the then head of ad sales, looked after the sales for India and the West Asian regions.
Recalling his days handling ad sales, Khanna says that it was challenging to get advertisers used to the new sponsorship models and 30 second spots, as it was a new thing at that time.
Khanna has been a part of many ‘firsts’, not only at the STAR network but also in the television industry, primary being the transition of STAR from a purely English channel to a mass Hindi entertainment channel under Mukerjea’s leadership.
During his tenure at STAR, Khanna has worked in various capacities across functions such as ad sales, marketing, business development, corporate communications, corporate affairs and client relations. “It was a great learning experience. Handling different functions and being a part of the television business at that time was exciting. I have literally grown in the business and learnt new things every day,” he says.
He has undertaken various pivotal projects such as launching the ANZ Grindlays STAR TV World Card, a first of a kind initiative where a media brand and a bank came together to launch a credit card, and overseeing policy matters with various industry bodies.
He moved into a marketing role in 1998. However, since there were only a few Hindi programmes on the channel, it wasn’t a big function. In two years, he moved to head corporate communication and subsequently, corporate affairs.
Prior to STAR, Khanna had a long stint (about 17 years) at Ananda Bazaar Patrika in the ad sales function. He also played a key role in the launch of several titles of the group, including Sunday, Businessworld and The Telegraph.