The Ad Club announces the appointment of Josy Paul, Chairperson & CCO, BBDO India, Minakshi Achan, Head of Brand JioStar, and Mayur Hola, VP Brand at Swiggy as Jury Chairs respectively for Sustainable Development Goals, Branded Content and Entertainment, and Brand Experience and Activation categories.
Josy Paul has been appointed Jury Chair at Abby Awards 2026 powered by The One Club | The One Show in the Sustainable Development Goals category.
Josy Paul is one of the most awarded and influential creative leaders in India, celebrated for redefining advertising through acts that inspire real cultural change.
He co-founded BBDO India in 2008 from the backseat of his car, introducing the philosophy of “Create acts, not ads.”
Under his leadership, BBDO India has created some of the world’s most impactful work – including Ariel’s ‘Share The Load’, Whisper’s ‘Touch The Pickle’, Gillette ‘Women Against Lazy Stubble’, Mirinda ‘Release The Pressure and Visa’s ‘Kindness Is Cashless’ – campaigns that have sparked global conversations around equality, inclusion and mental health.
Josy and his team won the Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Whisper ‘Touch The Pickle’ and multiple Glass Lions Golds for Ariel ‘Share The Load’. Share The Load was twice ranked the World’s Most Effective Campaign by WARC.
Josy’s creative vision has also been recognized with D&AD Yellow and White Pencils, and repeated wins as Campaign’s Creative Person of the Year for South Asia (2013, 2015, 2016, 2025). He was inducted into the Advertising Club Calcutta Hall of Fame in 2020.
Josy has served as Jury President at Cannes Lions 2025 (SDG Category), Jury President at D&AD (2017), Spikes Asia (2014 & 2019), and Dubai Lynx (2022), as well as jury member for the Glass Lions (2016) and Creative Strategy Lions (2023) at Cannes.
Josy’s work reflects his mantra ‘Content is King, Context is King Kong’.
Minakshi Achan has been appointed Jury Chair at Abby Awards 2026 Powered by The One Club | The One Show in the Branded Content and Entertainment category.
Minakshi Achan is a brand storyteller, she leads marketing and creative for one of India’s most influential media and streaming ecosystems.
A creative leader with nearly three decades of experience, she has driven some of India’s most impactful campaigns across categories.
At JioStar, she oversees the brand mandate for JioHotstar, as well as the network’s entertainment and sports businesses.
Her career spans leadership roles across advertising, media, and fashion, including Chief Creative Officer positions at Rediffusion Y&R and House of Anita Dongre.
Mayur Hola has been appointed Jury Chair at Abby Awards 2026 Powered by The One Club | The One Show in the Brand Experience and Activation category.
Mayur Hola builds brands that people don’t just use, they feel something about. Currently he heads the multiverse of brands at Swiggy, as VP Brand. Which basically means figuring out how to stay relevant in a country that changes its mind every 5 minutes.
His career has zig-zagged on purpose. He started out making games, detoured into advertising, then jumped to the other side of the table. Because it’s more fun when you own the problem, not just the pitch.
Mayur led brand at OYO, has been CMO Subway India, and spent considerable time figuring out how to make businesses grow without becoming boring.
What he does is simple to say and hard to do: make things that people care about in the real world. He likes sharp ideas, low nonsense, and building teams and people. He also has a soft spot for food, dogs, football, surfing and anything that feels real and visceral.
Read also: The CTV Budget Nobody Talks About — How Brands Actually Allocate, and Why
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