India & SAARC
Leadership Team

Nisaba Godrej is the Executive Chairperson of Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL).

Nisaba has been a key architect of GCPL's strategy and transformation in the last decade. In 2007, she initiated and led Project Leapfrog, which created a playbook for GCPL to accelerate domestic organic growth through innovation and consolidation, and to become a more global company by investing in emerging markets outside of India. Over the last ten years, GCPL's market capitalisation has increased twenty-fold and GCPL has developed a very strong, engaged and ambitious team, and is consistently ranked as a great place to work. She has also institutionalised design driven thinking and directly leads product development.

Nisaba is passionate about identifying and developing the talent required for the Godrej Group's future growth. Through her oversight of the Group HR function for Godrej Industries and associate companies, she has made Godrej a more meritocratic and highly performance driven organisation, while keeping the Group's values front and center. She has also spearheaded the Group's Good & Green agenda to drive more inclusive and sustainable growth. Her previous assignments within the Godrej Group have included the successful turnaround of Godrej Agrovet and the creation of a Group strategy function to oversee the Group's portfolio. In addition to GCPL, Nisaba is on the Board of Directors of Godrej Agrovet, VIP Industries and Teach For India.

Nisaba has a BSc degree from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She is passionate about girls' education, the human mind, design, trekking and equestrian sports. She lives in Mumbai with her husband, Kalpesh, and their children, Zoran and Aidan.

Vivek Gambhir is Managing Director and CEO, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Vivek was the key architect of GCPL's 3 by 3 strategy and has been instrumental in driving the company's efforts to become a leading emerging markets FMCG leader.

He joined Godrej Industries in 2009 as Chief Strategy Officer responsible for guiding overall Group strategy, conducting portfolio analysis and driving special projects. He helped define the CREATE portfolio approach and the 10X10 objective for the Group.

Prior to joining the Godrej Group, Vivek was a partner at Bain & Company, one of the world's leading business consulting firms. He worked with Bain in Boston, Singapore and New Delhi. He was a founding member of Bain's consulting operations in India and led the firm's FMCG practice in India.

Vivek is an Independent Director on the Boards of Metropolis Healthcare Limited and Samast Technologies Private Limited. He serves as President of the Harvard Business School club in India and is an advisor to the Kailash Satyarthi Children's Foundation. Vivek also writes a weekly blog on leadership called 'Monday-8AM'.

He has an MBA from the Harvard Business School and a BS (Computer Science) and BA (Economics) from Lafayette College.

Vivek is married to Roopika, who is a photographer and a social worker. They have three children, Janya, Aarav and Imara.

Naveen Gupta is Business Head - Africa, Middle East and USA, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Naveen joined the erstwhile Godrej Sara Lee in 1996. Post his Management Trainee stint, he was part of the International Operations team which set up business operations in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and South Africa, and expanded the Exports business.

During 2000-04, he worked with the Exports division of Nestle India, and established the Consumer Products division for a Malaysian company in Kuala Lumpur, before returning to Godrej Sara Lee to head International Operations. Over the next four years, he was responsible for growing the business from USD 3 million to USD 20 million.

Naveen was the M&A Head of the FMCG Portfolio Cell of the Godrej Group between 2008-10. He was instrumental in acquiring five businesses for the Group across Asia, Africa and Latin America, valued at approximately USD 700 million. Thereafter, he was the Business Head of Godrej Indonesia (a leading player in household insecticides, air fresheners and baby care) and created shareholder value by growing the business by 3x and profits by 4x in seven years.

He has an MBA in International Business from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi and studied Mechanical Engineering at Delhi College of Engineering.

Naveen enjoys cooking and traveling, and has visited over 60 countries. He is married to Sonali, a primary grade teacher, and they have two children, Bhoomika and Siddharth.

Naveen enjoys cooking and sculpting. He is married to Sonali, who is pursuing a long distance Masters in Early Childhood Teaching from the USA and they have two children, Bhoomika and Siddharth.

Omar Momin is Head - Mergers & Acquisitions and Business Development, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Omar joined the Chemicals business of Godrej Industries Limited in 2001 after graduating in Chemical Engineering from the Mumbai University Institute of Chemical Technology. He worked across different functions of the business, including Operations, Marketing and Supply Chain Management.

Post this, Omar went on to complete his Masters in Management from the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad in 2004. He rejoined the Godrej Group after his stint at ISB and worked as Executive Assistant to the Chairman, Adi Godrej, for two years.

Today, Omar is responsible for driving new vectors of growth for GCPL, including through Mergers & Acquisitions.

Omar is married to Mahnaz and they have a son, Sinaan. He enjoys travelling and music.

Akhil Chandra is Business Head - ASEAN, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Akhil joined GCPL in 2017, with over two decades of rich and varied experience across FMCG and OTC categories across the UK, Southeast Asia and India, with GSK Consumer Healthcare and Reckitt Benckiser Plc.

Prior to joining GCPL, he was based in London as the Global Head for Analgesics, Cold & Flu for Reckitt Benckiser. His previous assignment was as Managing Director for Reckitt Benckiser India and prior to that, he was the Vice President & General Manager - Asia for GSK Consumer.

In his various general management and senior commercial leadership roles, Akhil successfully led diverse and cross functional teams to deliver transformational double-digit top and bottom line growth across a host of markets and categories.

Akhil has an MA in Economics and an MBA from FMS Delhi and particularly enjoys working with people and large teams. He is married to Madhulika and they have two sons, Armaan and Advait.

José Toscano is Business Head, Godrej Latin America.

He has over 20 years of experience and has worked at leading FMCG companies such as IBM, The Clorox Company, Cepas Group and General Mills. Before joining Godrej, he worked with General Mills for 10 years as Managing Director for the company’s Argentina business.

At Godrej, José has worked across the marketing and sales functions in senior leadership roles and has transformed the business by drawing the focus on consumers, brand development and company culture.

José joined Godrej Argentina as Sales Director in August 2018 and played an important role in the design of a new commercial route-to-market strategy, among other things. Since then, he has taken on higher levels of responsibility, first as Commercial Director and now as Business Head, where he has been intsrumental in building a culture of innovation, fostering international expansion and boosting process efficiency.

As Business Head, he has led the transformation of the Latin America business through the democratization of personal care consumption, delighting consumers with our range of brands.

José has a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and a Post Graduate degree in Negotiations from Austral University.

He is married to Natalia and they have two children Bianca and Benicio. José is passionate about sports, especially tennis and football, and loves travelling with his family to new places to learn about cultures.

Sunil Kataria is Business Head - India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Sunil joined GCPL in 2011, where he successfully led the merger of the sales and marketing organisations of GCPL and the erstwhile Godrej Sara Lee.

He has diverse work experience across the FMCG and Consumer Services sectors in Sales, Marketing and business roles, including a highly successful 12 year stint at Marico Industries. Post this, Sunil served as a Business Head in retail and telecom companies, leading large and complex business operations. Prior to joining the Godrej Group, he was Chief Operating Officer of the Idea Rajasthan Circle, where he headed business operations, was responsible for the P&L, and led a major turnaround of the Rajasthan business.

Sunil is Chairman of the Indian Society of Advertisers and closely associated with the CMO forum, FICCI FMCG Committee and Advertising Standards Council of India.

A graduate in Economics from Delhi University, he is also an MBA in Marketing from the Institute of Management Technology (IMT) Ghaziabad.

Sunil is a staunch practitioner of the spirit of 'Possibility Thinking' and believes that this, coupled with a passion for flawless execution, is the biggest competitive advantage in today's world. An avid reader, he writes Hindi poetry, and loves watching Hindi movies and Hollywood science fiction.

Dr. Sunder Mahadevan is Head, Research & Development, Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL).

He has varied experience and has worked across leading FMCG companies like Dabur, Emami and Colgate Palmolive. Previously at the Dabur Research Foundation, Sunder successfully handled a number of FMCG categories, ranging from soaps, shampoos and hair care, to oral care. He has also successfully set up sensory panels, Technical Consumer Research and Development (TCRD) and is trained in flavour development.

A doctorate in Chemistry, Sunder lives in Mumbai with his wife Suchitra and has two sons, Vighnesh and Varun.

V. Srinivasan is Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Srini started his career as an Executive Trainee at Godrej. In over 25 years, he has held key positions across Godrej Agrovet, Godrej Industries and Godrej Properties. He was closely involved with strategic projects, like the Godrej Soaps IPO, the Transelektra acquisition and the reverse merger of Gujarat Godrej Innovative Chemicals into Godrej Soaps.

As Head of Finance and IT for Godrej Agrovet, Srini played a key role in the acquisition and integration of Goldmohur Feeds, the animal feeds business of Hindustan Unilever. He was instrumental in rolling out the company's ERP in a cost-effective manner and ensuring a robust budgeting and MIS reporting process. He also led the implementation of Economic Value Added (EVA).

Post this, as Chief Financial Officer of Godrej Industries, he worked on a number of strategic cost saving and profit improvement projects for the oleochemicals business, apart from managing the Treasury and Forex. He was responsible for Investor Relations and various capital raising plans, including the first Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) in the Group.

Later, as Executive Director at Godrej Properties, Srini successfully supervised the Finance, Capital Strategy, IT and Legal functions. He played a critical leadership role and was a key part of the company's growth and success.

He is a key member of the Group EVA committee, which oversees the implementation of the EVA system across different companies.

A Chartered Accountant and Company Secretary, Srini has completed middle and senior management courses at IIM Ahmedabad and the University of Michigan, respectively. He enjoys listening to classical music, playing the violin, gardening and experimenting with computers and other gadgets. Srini lives in Mumbai with his wife, Sudha and two sons, Abhishek and Kailash.

Rahul Gama is Head - Human Resources, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Rahul is responsible for driving the Human Resource strategy at GCPL. Prior to this, he was the Head of Human Resources at the erstwhile Godrej Sara Lee, and before that, Head of Corporate HR at Marico Limited. He has worked across a variety of sectors, including Manufacturing, Consulting, FMCG, Services and Retail and built expertise across verticals - from handling industrial relations issues and dealing with compensation planning, to creating a talent strategy. Rahul was also instrumental in shaping the HR function for a service business, Kaya Skin Care Limited, during his stint with Marico.

A generalist in HR, Rahul holds a postgraduate degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune. He lives in Mumbai with his wife and daughter, and is passionate about conservation and wildlife.

Darshan Gandhi is Global Head - Design, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Darshan believes in inclusive design principles; that all good design should be accessible. She joined Godrej & Boyce's Interio division in 2006, where she was a catalyst in introducing design thinking, by creating and showcasing a diverse range of products under one platform, with a unique design philosophy. This led her to work for Godrej Industries in 2008, where she was assigned to design SPACE, a prototype office to create a young work culture that inspired the exchange of ideas, innovation and change at Godrej. This was the start of design driven thinking at GCPL.

She formed the GCPLDesignLab in 2009, and was instrumental in applying design led thinking to transform brands with delightful product offerings (in a Godrej way) for a rapidly evolving Indian market. This created a great impact and value for consumers across categories, with reinvigorated brands like Expert, aer, Cinthol, Goodknight and BBLUNT. By leveraging the design tools of need based user-centric segmentation, prototyping and product mapping, Darshan led the development of a unique collaborative approach in line with GCPL’s overall objectives. Today, she and her team of highly skilled designers have extended the same approach to GCPL's brands and categories across Africa and Indonesia. The recent designification of Africa’s leading hair extensions brand, Darling, marks a milestone in GCPLDesignLab’s journey of inclusive design thinking practices as a leading in-house design studio. GCPLDesignLab was awarded ‘India's Best Design Studio Award 2017’ and ‘India’s Best Product Design Award 2019’ .

Darshan is a post graduate from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, and an alumna of the Harvard Business School’s executive education General Management Programme.

Jishnu Batabyal is Head - Planning and Strategy, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Over the last few years, Jishnu has helped build the Strategy function at GCPL and also works with internal business units on various transformation initiatives. Some of his work includes formulating and implementing the Godrej Brand Playbook, helping GCPL formulate its long-term strategy, working on performance improvement of the ASEAN business and driving profitability improvement of the Latin America business.

He also is a member of the Strategic Finance Committee at the Godrej Group and dedicates part of his time to group-level initiatives.

Jishnu joined Godrej Industries in 2014 as a member of the Corporate Strategy team, where he was a key architect in the turnaround of Godrej Industries’ Chemicals Division. Additionally, he also worked extensively with Godrej Properties across multiple areas.

Prior to joining the Godrej, Jishnu was an Engagement Manager at Bain & Company, one of the world's leading business consulting firms, where he served Indian and global clients across multiple industries such as industrials, construction, financial services, technology and private equity.

He has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, where he was a part of the Directors Merit List, and B.E (Hons) in Chemical Engineering from Jadavpur University.

Jishnu is married to Anannya, who is social sector professional, and they have a daughter, Aashni. He is also a passionate runner and aims to run the world’s major marathons by the age of 40.

Anirban Banerjee is Global Head - Innovation and BBLUNT, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL).

Anirban leads the Innovation function and is responsible for growing the new products pipeline, implementing innovation processes and influencing a culture of innovation. He also heads the BBLUNT Consumer Products business, with an ambition to build leadership within premium hair care and styling products.

In his previous role as Business Head - SAARC & Global Exports, GCPL, Anirban set-up and directly supervised the Godrej subsidiary and partner operations in SAARC and was responsible for growing the complete portfolio of Godrej brands in the region. He also integrated all the Exports teams across GCPL globally under an umbrella of Global Exports, deploying a coordinated exports expansion.

Anirban has over 20 years of experience in sales, marketing and nurturing new business and product initiatives with a relentless focus on brand building and consumer centricity. Prior to working with GCPL, Anirban played a major role in setting up the luxury retail brand, Godrej Nature’s Basket. As Business Head, he successfully repositioned the retail business into an Authentic World Food Retail chain and led its initial expansion. He has also worked with Reliance Infocomm and was responsible for widespread marketing of their CDMA services in the National Capital Region. He started his career with AB Electrolux and managed the resurgence of the Kelvinator brand of refrigerators and the introduction Electrolux brand of front-load washing machines and frost-free refrigerators in India. He has been on the Executive Committee of the SAARC Chamber of Commerce & Industry and was a member of the CII Sub Committee on South Asia.

Anirban graduated from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, and completed his Master’s in Business Administration from Symbiosis Centre for Management & HRD, Pune. He loves reading, travelling, exploring and adventure sports. Anirban currently lives with his wife and twin boys in Mumbai.