Elixir India Super Model Hunt 2020 Held at at the Goldfinch Retreat

A Grand event for Miss, Mr and Mrs Elixir India 2020 supermodel hunt was organised by Elixir World Productions House at Goldfinch Retreat, Devanahalli, Bengaluru on 22nd December which witnessed celebrities like Zoya Afroz, Sufi Khan, Raghu Mukherjee, Shashidhar Kote who crowned the winners of all these categories. Mrs. Pallavi Kaushik and Mr. SarthakChoudhary helped groom the participants for the Fashion Show and made sure they looked amazing and confident on stage. The Honourable Chief guests Mr Ritesh Reddy, Mr. Arun, Mr. Priyank, Ms. Kajal Agrawal and Ms. Khushboo Jain were honoured by the Elixir team.

Generally, Beauty Pageants are conventional in its kind, But Elixir Pageant gave opportunity to candidates irrespective of Height, Weight, Colour and their Profession. Elixir India 2020 also proudly provided a stage to participants who were Divorced, Separated, Single Mothers etc to showcase their talent. The participants were picked from remote corners of India like Roorkee, Amravati, Raichur and others.

Dr.Yashashree Chauhan from Nagpur was crowned as Miss Elixir India 2020, Mr. Sanjay Murthy Gowda from Hassan Magge as Mr Elixir India 2020 and Mrs. Aarti Pandey from Bidar was crowned as Mrs Elixir India 2020. The Winners were also awarded with a Holiday trip to Thailand, An Acting Scholarship, Gift Hampers and Acting and Modelling contracts. We are coming up with our next season very soon, details of which will be updated on our website www.elixirworldproductionshouse.in

About Elixir World Productions House:

Elixir World Productions House (EWPH) was started by six women, who are national pageant winners from different parts of India with a vision to fulfil dreams of people who have potential but don’t have any guidance or a platform to perform. Elixir India 2020 is a National Fashion Pageant from the Elixir World Production House.

Half bunch of women see a dream together and craft it into Elixir World Productions House, with a mission to hold hands of dreamers from small towns and cities who don’t get enough guidance & exposure and walk with them towards their first step to success.

We are one of the country’s most esteemed national pageants, Elixir. We are a team who believes that the joy of being creative is beyond words. We Elixir, are a Bangalore based prestigious production house with its local associates all over the country. We have worked with many of the India’s top agencies and marketers.

DGT - MSDE Inks Pact with Microsoft and Nasscom Foundastion for Digital Skilling to Augment the Employability of Young India

* Nearly 1,20,000 students in around 3000 ITIs pan-India can be benefited by this digitized e-learning module via the Bharatskills portal

* The usage of Bharatskills learning platform has increased multifold from around 90,000 users in March 2020 to more than 16.55 Lakh users having accessed the portal as on date

The Directorate General of Training (DGT) joined hands with Microsoft and NASSCOM Foundation to provide a digital content for ITI students and also future-ready employability skilling program for upskilling and reskilling.  Nearly 1,20,000 students in around 3000 ITIs across India can be benefited by this digitized e-learning module via the Bharatskills portal.

DGT in the last two years, collaborated with many digital industry front liners like IBM India Pvt. Ltd., SAP India, Cisco Systems India Pvt. Ltd., Accenture Solutions and Quest Alliance, Adobe, SSC-NASSCOM etc., to enable the students to become industry ready. The Directorate General of Training (DGT) under the aegis of Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) is responsible for implementing long term institutional training to the nation’s youth through its extensive network of about 15,000 training institutes (ITIs) and 33 National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs).  DGT plays a key role in the execution of vocational training schemes and in making ‘Skill India’ dream become a reality.

Commenting on the initiative, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Hon’ble Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship said, “Through the DGT-Microsoft partnership, we are aiming to impact thousands of students by enabling digitization in education and hope it to reach more students and teachers soon.  As the pandemic is compelling fast-track digital transition, these new learning initiatives will empower young learners with technical and market-oriented skills.”

Shri Pravin Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, shared his thoughts on elevating the skilling ecosystem in the country, stating that “Skill Development is constantly being upgraded and modernized in terms of infrastructure, pedagogy, curriculum and technological interventions. We are gradually working our way to upscale the skilling system as per industry expectations and demands. I feel extremely happy to acknowledge the DGT-Microsoft collaboration for the new interventions in felicitating online learning initiatives through digitization in support of students, trainers and self-learners.

DGT has launched an online learning platform called the Bharatskills (https://bharatskills.gov.in) in Oct 2019, a Central Repository for skills providing easy access for the trainees and trainers of the ITI ecosystem, to access updated curriculums and course content of all courses under the Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS), Question Banks, mock/practice papers, learning videos, etc., hence enabling anytime, anywhere learning outside the classrooms. This platform also presents a unique access to a centralized, scalable and a thriving support ecosystem through its industrial partners for the students and teachers who can now learn the newer IR 4.0 skills to meet the demands of the industry.

It is worth mentioning here that during the current COVID-19 pandemic scenario, the usage of Bharatskills learning platform has increased multifold from around 90,000 users in March 2020 to more than 16.55 Lakh users having accessed the portal as on date.

Sharing her views in this regard, Juthika Patankar, Director General (Training) & Additional Secretary , said, “The Directorate General of Training as an organization, is committed to provide quality vocational training through its courses and consequently it is paving its way to provide individualized and standardized learning by adopting new models of learning and skilling. Blended learning is a flexible and adaptable way of engaging the learners, while allowing the trainers to cater to the needs of the students, in a much better way. DGT is absolutely thrilled to partner with Microsoft, the indisputable tech-giant, for its unconditional support in developing comprehensive skills and enhancing the employability of our students as well as the future trainers through its learning modules on futuristic skills.”

Speaking on the occasion, Anant Maheshwari, President, Microsoft India, said, “Empowering the next generation of learners with industry relevant digital skills is critical as we move towards building economic resilience. The last few months have accelerated the need for upskilling and has shown clearly that the future of learning will be supported by technology. Our partnership with DGT and NASSCOM Foundation is built on this foundation of equipping the learners of today with the skills required to thrive in the jobs of tomorrow.”

Ashok Pamidi, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation, said “Blended learning has been a game-changer for all our skill-based programs. With this e-content, we hope to bring this model to the 1.2 lakh ITI students engaged in COPA. Microsoft has been one of our most valuable partners in our journey towards building a digital skills landscape in the country. We thank them for their continuous and unwavering support. We are also extremely proud to collaborate with Directorate General of Training (DGT) to roll out the e-content in 3000 ITIs and NSTIs across India.”

Another testimony to DGT’s relentless efforts is the recent MoU between Directorate General of Training (DGT), Microsoft and NASSCOM Foundation wherein Microsoft has facilitated access to free content available on Microsoft Learn platform for more than 24 Lakh students in the ITI ecosystem, by linking the Global Skilling Initiative (GSI) through the Bharatskills platform. Further, it is supporting the digitization of the entire content of a popular course - ‘Computer Operating and Programming Assistant’ (COPA) through the NASSCOM Foundation and also in conducting faculty development programs to build capacities of the Trainers/Faculties in the NSTIs and ITIs on the newly developed Digitized Blended content and futuristic skills.

The blended content with self-learning digital tutorials and handholding from teachers, is expected to be accessed by more than 1 lakh 20 thousand students pursuing the course across 3000 industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) annually. Hence, this will reduce the number of class-room hours and student-teacher engagement leading to the possibility to train double the existing number of students in COPA course within the same infrastructure. This blended learning mode will help the trainee students to learn basic digital skills at the primary level in a uniform standardized manner and subsequently the advanced level Microsoft Office Technologies including Networking and Cyber Security.

About Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE)

MSDE was formed on November 9, 2014 by the Government of India to focus on enhancing employability of skills. Since its inception, MSDE has undertaken significant initiatives and reforms in terms of formalizing the policy, framework and standards; launching of new programs and schemes; creating new infrastructure and upgrading the existing institutions; partnering with States; engaging with industries and building societal acceptance and aspirations for skills. The Ministry aims to bridge the gap between demand and supply of skilled manpower to build new skills and innovation not only for existing jobs but also for jobs that are to be created. Till date, more than three crore people have been trained under Skill India. Under its flagship programme, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) 2016-2020, the Ministry has trained more than 50 lakh candidates so far.

Madame Launches Wonder Woman Inspired Collection in Collaboration with Warner Bros

Madame, India’s leading womenswear brand has collaborated with Warner Bros to launch a Wonder Woman inspired collection with a clothing line curated to be as powerful and confident as the iconic DC Super-Hero. The new Autumn-Winter 2020 collection honors the wonder women of India and offers fans of all ages a way to manifest the Super-Hero’s signature qualities of strength, truth, courage and compassion. The Madame Wonder Woman collection is available in stores across India. The upcoming Warner Bros movie ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ with lead played by Gal Gadot is expected to release across India in the fourth week of December 2020 and promises to be a grand blockbuster to close the year.

Madame has carved a unique niche in the women’s apparel and accessories market and is a leading player in the womenswear segment. On the collaboration with Warner Bros, the legendary American media and entertainment corporation, Akhil Jain, Executive Director at Madame said, “Our signature collection of Wonder Woman inspired sweatshirts and sweaters are highly-styled and wonderfully-inventive and allow fans to tap into their own heroic Wonder Woman inner-spirit. Clothing is an expression of one’s personality, and through this partnership we are truly celebrating every Indian Wonder Woman and her energetic, competitive, and compassionate spirit.”

Mr.Vikram Sharma, Head of Consumer Products, Advertising & Partnerships for Warner Media in India, Southeast Asia & Korea, averred “Wonder Woman is the ultimate icon of female expression and empowerment. Timed with the launch of one of the year’s biggest Hollywood blockbusters, we think shoppers looking to make a statement are going to love this new range from Madame.” 

Explaining the Madame Wonder Woman collection’s inspiring designs, Akhil Jain added, “Madame’s Wonder Woman collection uses a bold color palette to express energy and positivity that is aimed at bringing out the best in women who are rearing to go and ready for anything life has to offer. The collection kindles the modern woman’s soul to embrace her feminine form and expression. This collection is so curated that it will blend it in beautifully with every woman’s personal flair and is affordable yet stylish at the same time”.

The Wonder Woman collection is the highlight of the Autumn/Winter 2020 for Madame. It is an ode to the qualities of the modern woman, her strength, courage, truth, compassion and her sense of sense of style and suave. The collection has a mix of garments, from t-shirts to cozy sweatshirts and warm sweaters for the winter days ahead.  The collection has an international appeal with stylish and inventive outlines and textiles to make the collection diverse and extraordinary.

The Wonder Woman collection is the perfect way to tap into the inner wonder woman that each woman is, a perfect showcase of inner resilience, chirpy spirit, and a must-have for all global Wonder Woman spirited fans. It is a gallant collection for the lively modern woman with a feminine sensibility for fashion, well suited for the maximalist empowered woman. “This collection is one of our most memorable collections. Our collaboration with Warner has been a very exciting one and we have maximized this opportunity using our best strengths to offer the best collection we have churned out in recent times. If there is a Wonder Woman in your life, then this is the ideal gift that will sing paeans to her”, said Akhil Jain. Affordable and but super stylish, this collection is a not-be-missed year end addition to the modern woman’s wardrobe.

ChrysCapital-Backed Infogain Acquires AI & Analytics Pioneer Absolutdata

Infogain, a Silicon Valley-based leader in human-centered digital platform and software engineering services, today announced its acquisition of Absolutdata, a San Francisco Bay Area based AI and Advanced Analytics company serving Global 500 clients. Absolutdata’s award-winning NAVIK AI platform and 300 world-class data scientists will significantly enhance Infogain’s ability to engineer superior business outcomes for its clients through the use of cutting-edge AI and Analytics.

Absolutdata has been a leader in utilizing AI and Advanced Analytics to create scalable business impact for enterprise clients across the globe. Using a combination of its proprietary NAVIK AI platform and AI & Advanced Analytics services, Absolutdata enables its clients to grow faster, increase profitable revenue and develop deeper relationships with their customers. Absolutdata has been widely recognized for its innovation and cutting-edge AI solutions.

Infogain’s CEO Sunil Bhatia said “Infogain’s acquisition of Absolutdata completes our three-pronged acquisitions strategy to help customers' increasing demand for adopting digital platforms by employing strategy and experience, cloud transformation, and advanced analytics and AI services”.  Absolutdata’s AI & advanced analytics solutions will transform how companies gain insights, make decisions, and drive business growth. I am confident in our teams’ abilities to collaborate, innovate and create significant value for our clients.  We welcome Absolutdata’s clients and employees to our growing Infogain family.  The acquisition will increase Infogain’s presence in additional market segments such as CPG, telecom, and pharma.”

Absolutdata’s CEO Anil Kaul, Ph.D, said, “Companies across the globe are increasingly looking towards a combination of Technology and AI/Analytics to drive scalable, sustained & profitable business growth. The COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated digital transformation across organizations. We are thrilled to be joining the Infogain team as we share a like-minded commitment to driving business success through disruptive technologies. As a unified team and company, we are very well positioned to service our clients’ requirements comprehensively and innovatively, as well as providing tremendous growth opportunities for Absolutdata employees.”

This acquisition, Infogain’s third in 14 months, follows its acquisitions of Houston-based Silicus Technologies and Seattle-based Revel Consulting. Data, analytics and artificial intelligence are strategic focus areas for Infogain and will account for 15% of its revenue post-acquisition.

Infogain’s COO Ayan Mukerji, said, “NAVIK AI represents our first commercially available SaaS platform and is part of our broader strategy of helping our clients leverage digital platforms combined with our transformational service offerings. We aim to double our analytics customer base over the next two years and are confident that this acquisition will help us significantly toward achieving that goal.”  He added, “Infogain in turn will leverage its strategy & experience, data estate and cloud transformation services to expand our footprint across Absolutdata’s customers to help accelerate digital adoption.”

Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati is serving as legal counsel to Infogain in the United States, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. as legal counsel to Infogain in India, and KPMG as the financial and tax advisor to Infogain.  Ernst & Young is serving as the exclusive selling advisor.

About Infogain

Infogain is a human-centered digital platform and software engineering company based out of Silicon Valley. We engineer business outcomes for Fortune 500 companies and digital natives in the technology, healthcare, insurance, travel, and retail industries using technologies such as cloud, microservices, automation, IoT, and artificial intelligence. We accelerate experience-led transformation in the delivery of digital platforms. Infogain is also a Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Gold Partner and Azure Expert Managed Services Provider (MSP).

Infogain, a ChrysCapital portfolio company, has offices in California, Washington, Texas, the UK, the UAE and Singapore, with delivery centers in Austin, Kraków, New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, and Bengaluru. To learn more, visit www.infogain.com .

Store, Save & Share in India, Says Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog at Launch of Digiboxx

Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, virtually launched India’s first Digital Asset Management platform DigiBoxx™ earlier today for the desktop, iOS, and Android systems. During the event, Mr. Amitabh Kant signed up for an account, making him the first user of DigiBoxx. The platform is an Indian digital file storage, sharing, and management SaaS product that provides storage options for business as well as individual users. It provides an easy and secure way to store all the files in one centralized location. It is India’s first indigenous tech startup to enter the Digital Asset Management business with value-added services encouraging entrepreneurs to ‘Make in India’ and ‘Store in India’. 

Commenting on the innovation behind the SaaS platform, Mr. Amitabh Kant said, “This is indigenous innovation at its best. I have always maintained that the Indian tech industry can be globally competitive in all aspects and Digiboxx is such an example. It ticks all the rights boxes for India Inc’s needs but also fills a gap for the MSME universe which is untapped. Now most of India can store, save and share in India without fear of security threats and data localization concerns. I am hopeful that this is the beginning of many more such innovations by Indian startups aligned towards the vision of a Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Our dependence on foreign SaaS products will soon be a thing of the past and Digital India will get a boost with such intuitive solutions”.

On the event of the launch, Mr. Vivek Suchanti, Chairman, DigiBoxx™ said, “We are honored to have Mr. Amitabh Kant launch Digiboxx and register (NITI Aayog) as our very first user. We are determined to make the Government’s #MakeInIndia (#VocalforLocal) and #Aatmanirbhar campaign a reality. With Digiboxx we are geared to provide data protection and contribute to the growth of the digital engagement landscape in India. Our efforts will ensure over 5000 engineers and 10 million users are impacted in the near term reiterating our commitment to India.” 

Arnab Mitra, CEO, DigiBoxx™ added, “Not only does Digiboxx help save data that is accessible from anywhere, but it also helps in the seamless sharing of data with partners, social media pages while retaining the admin rights of that document. So, It can save, control, and monitor who is accessing data in real-time. Digiboxx is all-encompassing Digital Storage Cloud which ensures data security for all Indians. It has been conceptualized and designed basis real feedback from the industry and will ease work processes for individuals and companies in a post COVID world of enhanced digital engagement. Considering the efficiency metric and the promised pricing, it is good news for the 600 MN+ internet users of the country.”

DigiBoxx™ consists of a file-sharing feature named 'InstaShare' that intends to make the user's life easier by allowing them to share, large-size documents, high-resolution images, videos, PDFs in real quick time by registering in the app. The feature is highly user friendly and will take just seconds to share any file. It has free 2GB storage space and the file shared stays for 45 days in the DigiBoxx. It is the first of its kind cutting edge solution introduced by India. The product and services are committed to the Make in India / Aatmanirbhar vision of the Government of India, and overall sentiment across the business circles to build India as a technological powerhouse with home-grown digital innovations. 

About DigiBoxx™

DigiBoxx™ is an intelligent Indian digital file storage and sharing platform that’s secure, fast, intuitive, and easy on the pocket. With a goal to make digital asset management go vocal for local, we have built a robust technology that’s world-class and yet keeps in mind the flavors of India. DigiBoxx™ÿ is the first of its kind cutting edge indigenous digital asset management SaaS platform introduced in India. It is a tech startup founded and promoted by Arnab Mitra, MD, LIQVD ASIA along with Ashish Jalan and Vivek Suchanti, Concept Group.

FGII Adopts an Innovative Approach to Drive Literacy Amongst Underprivileged Children

Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited (FGII) has teamed up with ‘Room to Read’ an NGO that helps underprivileged children to improve literacy and inculcate the habit of reading. Through this partnership, the company plans to set up libraries and donate books to underprivileged children from the society.  

As a part of its responsibility towards community development, FGII will use its uniquely designed annual report to raise funds for the NGO backed schools. One can contribute to this cause by ordering this book on Amazon.in and Flipkart.com. The amount contributed by an individual shall be directly contributed to the NGO partner. In addition, Future Generali India Insurance vows to match the amount ‘Rupee for a Rupee’ thus doubling the impact of the initiative. .  

Anup Rau, MD & CEO, Future Generali India Insurance said, “FGII is known for its innovative products and empathetic approach. We wanted to thank our people who have stepped up during these difficult times and delivered excellent results on various fronts. Their dedication and hard work deserve a superhero status, and this report is in a way, a gesture of our gratitude. It is also special and close to our hearts for the cause that it embraces. We are hopeful that in a small way, we would be able to add value to the lives of these children.” 

Amazon link: Future Generali Annual Report 19-20: A World of Captain FG 

About Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited 

Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited is a joint venture between Future Group – the game changers in Retail Trade in India and Generali – a 189yearsold global insurance group featuring among the world’s 60 largest companies*. The Company was incorporated in September 2007 with the objective of providing retail, commercial, personal and rural insurance solutions to individuals and corporates to help them manage and mitigate risks. 

Future Generali India has been aptly benefitting from the global Insurance expertise in diverse classes of products of Generali Group and the Indian retail game-changer Future Group. Having firmly established its credentials in this segment and effectively leveraging on the skill set of both its JV partners, Future Generali India has evolved to become a Total Insurance Solutions Company. 

*As per Fortune Global 500 Ranking (2017) 

*Future Generali India Insuranceiscertified ‘Great Place to Work’ (December2019-November 2020) 

About Generali Group 

Generali is an independent, Italian insurance Group, with a strong international presence. Established in 1831, it is one of the largest global insurance providers present in over 60 countries with total premium income exceeding €68 billion in 2017. With nearly 71,000 employees in the world and 57 million customers, the Group has a leading position in Western Europe and an increasingly significant presence in Central and Eastern Europe as well as in Asia.

Fincare Small Finance Bank Partners with Go Digit Insurance in India

Fincare Small Finance Bank, a new-age Rurban bank focused on providing smart banking solutions, announced its association with Go Digit Insurance. With this partnership, Fincare SFB will now be able to cater to the critical financial protection need of customers and make insurance services accessible to its target customer segments.

The byte-sized products, specially designed for digital banking customers, will offer high value insurance products with a hassle-free on-boarding process.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Rajeev Yadav, MD & CEO, Fincare Small Finance Bank said, “At Fincare, all our initiatives are driven by customer centricity. This partnership will help us strengthen relationship with our customers and meet their insurance needs at a time when it’s most necessary. Go Digit’s digital expertise combined with our innovative digital solutions, we aim to empower our customers to make smart choices.”

Jasleen Kohli, Chief Distribution Officer, Digit Insurance, said “Our mission at GoDigit is to simplify insurance & to create products that customers really need. Given, the current global situation, we are trying to cover people against any unforeseen crisis and help them in protecting their assets. With this partnership we hope to offer meaningful products to Fincare’s customers. We are glad that Fincare shares the same outlook towards using technology to transform people’s lives & simplify processes. The idea is to handle these unpredictable times in the best way possible, through simplified insurance as an instrument.”

Under this partnership, currently the products offered will be:

* Digit’s Motor Insurance policies, where the customers can opt for both two-wheeler and four-wheeler vehicles against accidents, fire, natural disasters etc.

* Insurance policies for Home and Shop, where the customers can cover both their structure and contents against fire, natural disasters etc.

* Digit also offers a Zero-touch Claims enabled by Audio Claims, Soft-copy Document submission & 24*7 customer care assistance.

About Fincare Small Finance Bank

Fincare Small Finance Bank commenced banking operations on July 21, 2017 under Section 22 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, after receiving the final license from the RBI in May 2017. Fincare SFB has been included in the Second Schedule to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, published in the Gazette of India dated April 13, 2019.

Fincare Small Finance Bank aims to transform banking for its customers through simple products, automated processes and instant decisions and transactions. Powered by technology, Fincare SFB has set the vision to be the first of its kind ‘Rurban’ Bank which, on the one hand, caters to the banking needs of the base of pyramid, mass retail and micro & small enterprise segments, thus enabling their financial inclusion, and on the other hand, provides modern, innovative and digital solutions to the digitally-savvy, metro and urban customers.

As of 30th November 2020, Fincare SFB serves over 26.5+ Lakh customers in 19 States / Territory, has deposits worth Rs. 5,162 Crore, its loan book stood at Rs. 5,370 Crore and has a workforce of 7,910.

About Digit:

Go Digit General Insurance Limited is a new-age general insurance company founded by Mr Kamesh Goyal and backed by the Fairfax Group, one of the largest financial services groups in the world. It has raised three rounds of funding amounting to $140 million from Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings and $84 million from three growth equity investors— A91 Partners, Faering Capital and TVS Capital. This combined investment has brought its total funding to $224 million.

Headquartered in Bengaluru, Go Digit General Insurance Limited has partnered with some of the leading companies like Cleartrip, Sterling Holidays, SOTC and Policy Bazaar. It has been named as ‘Insurance Start-up of the Year – India’ at the Insurance Asia Awards 2020 and ‘General Insurance Company of the Year 2019 and 2020’ award at Asia Insurance Industry Awards, Singapore. During the ongoing pandemic, it has been able to service several commercial and industrial establishments and secure its employees and customers through relevant health insurance solutions. It has also featured in the Top 25 Indian Start-ups Lists by LinkedIn in 2018 and 2019 and was in CB Insights’ Top 250 fastest growing fintech companies globally list in 2018 and 2020.