From Birla Opus to HUL and Bata, India’s consumer sector is witnessing one of its busiest phases of leadership transition in recent years, marking a defining year of change for the FMCG industry.
This year, Manish Tiwary took over from Suresh Narayanan at Nestlé India, Sudhanshu Vats took on the mantle of MD at Pidilite from Bharat Puri, and Ajoy Chawla will head Titan as CK Venkataraman retires. These were planned successions.
We also had Hina Nagarajan elevated to Diageo Global, Praveen Someshwar from HT Media take over Diageo India, and Neville Noronha resign as the MD & CEO of DMart, a position then filled by HUL veteran Anshul Asawa.
Speaking of HUL, in less than two years of his appointment as MD & CEO, Rohit Jawa stepped down, paving the way for Priya Nair to return from Unilever Global and become the company’s first female MD & CEO in over six decades of its India operations. Adding to the churn, Ritesh Tiwari, HUL’s CFO, moved to Unilever Global, while Niranjan Gupta, CEO of Hero MotoCorp, rejoined HUL as its new CFO.
If that wasn’t enough, a market holiday brought another headline shift — Rakshit Hargave resigned as head of Birla Opus within 18 months of its launch, only to be announced shortly after as CEO & Executive Director of Britannia Industries.
The latest move brings a fascinating full circle to the FMCG carousel.
Hargave, who left Nivea to join Aditya Birla Group’s paints and building materials venture Birla Opus, had successfully completed a crucial phase in setting up the business — launching six plants that account for nearly a quarter of the industry’s capacity and deploying ₹10,000 crore in capex. His departure comes just as the company stabilses with double digit market share and prepares for its next leg of growth.
Meanwhile, at Britannia, the need for a seasoned operator had been growing. After Gunjan Shah left his role as COO at Britannia in 2021 to head Bata India as MD & CEO, the company hired Rajneet Kohli from Jubilant Foodworks to handle day-to-day operations while Varun Berry continued to drive strategy as MD. Kohli, however, exited last year to join Hindustan Unilever as Executive Director and CEO of its foods & refreshment business, creating a vacuum once again at Britannia.
Now, with Varun Berry, 64, Britannia needed a leader to manage operations and succession planning. Hargave’s appointment is viewed as a strategic fit — his global brand experience, sharp execution focus, and entrepreneurial stint at Birla Opus uniquely position him to lead Britannia’s next growth phase.
Incidentally, Berry also sits on the Board of Asian Paints as an Independent Director. He was appointed in October 2024 for five years. Asian Paints itself is known to be a leadership factory. Kohli, himself traces his roots back to Asian Paints.
The consumer goods world is tightly knit, and this series of leadership swaps proves it. Gunjan Shah’s move to Bata, Kohli’s jump to HUL, and Hargave’s entry into Britannia all trace back to overlapping networks of mentorship and legacy leadership. Berry’s eye for operational talent has ensured that Britannia remains a magnet for next-generation FMCG leaders.
On a side note, there’s also an intriguing connection between Birla Opus and Hargave’s former company, Nivea India. The latter is currently led by Geetika Mehta, who happens to be married to Birla Opus’ Chief Marketing Officer, Inderpreet Singh. Both are seasoned veterans of the chocolate and confectionery industry — Geetika having previously led at Hersheys’ India and Inderpreet at Mondelez — making for an interesting crossover of networks and expertise within the consumer ecosystem.
As for Birla Opus, an equally intriguing question now arises — who will succeed Rakshit Hargave? Having made a significant mark in a short time, his departure leaves a leadership vacuum at a young and ambitious company looking to challenge incumbents like Asian Paints and Berger Paints.
For India’s consumer sector watchers, this carousel of leadership transitions has never been more riveting. As brands evolve and generational change sets in across boardrooms, the next few quarters could reveal a new order of FMCG leadership in India.
