Long before public relations became a structured industry in India with global networks, specialised practices and digital-first communication there were a handful of women who helped build the profession from the ground up.
Often working in a landscape dominated by traditional corporate communication and media relations, these leaders established agencies, shaped reputation management practices and created professional pathways for the next generation of communicators.
From founding some of India’s earliest PR firms to advising corporations through moments of transformation, these women played a defining role in institutionalising public relations in the country. This Women’s Day, Brand Communion looks at some of the founding mothers of India’s PR industry whose work helped write its early history.
Prema Sagar
Prema Sagar founded Genesis PR in 1992 after completing her formal studies in public relations in London. Over the next three decades, she played a defining role in shaping the Indian PR industry from the ground up. Under her leadership, the firm, now Burson evolved into an innovation-first consultancy, introducing several forward-thinking ideas such as integrated communications solutions and the pioneering Live! newsroom model.
Believing that the industry needed a collective voice and shared standards, Sagar founded the Public Relations Consultants Association of India (PRCAI), creating a formal platform for collaboration, best-practice sharing, and professional development within the Indian PR ecosystem. PRCAI recently completed 25 years. She also served as the President and a founding member of PAFI, further strengthening the foundation of India’s public affairs landscape.
Her contributions have been recognised globally. In 2005, Sagar became the first Asian to be inducted into the ICCO Hall of Fame, joining an elite group of global communications leaders.
Beyond the industry, her legacy also carries a strong humanitarian dimension. Inspired by Mother Teresa, Sagar founded the Genesis Foundation, a charitable trust that supports medical treatment for underprivileged children suffering from congenital heart defects reflecting her belief that leadership is most meaningful when it creates a positive impact on lives.
Bela Rajan
Bela Rajan was the founding member of Ketchum Sampark Public Relations (now it got sold and closed) and is among the early professionals who helped shape India’s PR industry. She began her career at Consilium, India’s first public relations consultancy, where she worked with several transnational and multinational clients and gained experience in corporate communications.
In 1994, Bela co-founded Sampark Public Relations Pvt. Ltd. with her husband, NS Rajan. The firm went on to offer communication services across sectors including corporate, finance, healthcare, technology, consumer and brand, infrastructure, and emerging businesses, working across both B2B and B2C communications.
In 2021, Bela and NS Rajan retired from Ketchum Sampark after nearly three decades of building the firm. Alongside her professional work, Bela has also been involved in supporting and mentoring young professionals pursuing studies and careers in public relations.
Praveen Rikhy
Praveen Rikhy was the managing director of MelCole Public Relations, one of India’s early professional PR agencies, and currently serves as the chief consultant at PR Square Consultants. With a career spanning more than three decades, she has worked with a wide range of national and international organisations, including companies, government bodies, and NGOs.
Her work has focused on areas such as market outreach, brand communication, awareness campaigns, fundraising, and crisis management. Over the years, she has also led and managed PR teams working with several multinational companies.
Some of the organisations she has worked with include HP, NYSE Euronext, United Airlines, Delta Airlines, Samsonite, SABMiller, Embraer, FedEx Express, Trident Group, Voith AG, DuPont India, AstraZeneca, Dow Chemicals, Ansal Group, and Rockwell International Corporation, among others.
Nandita Lakshmanan
Nandita Lakshmanan is the founder and chairperson of The PRactice, an independent public relations firm she started in 2000 in Bengaluru. She entered the PR industry in the early 1990s and began her career at Genesis PR after completing her master’s degree from Delhi University.
At the age of 30, Lakshmanan started The PRactice with an initial capital of Rs 35,000. The firm went on to become one of India’s leading independent PR consultancies, known especially for its work with technology companies and large corporations. Over the years, the agency has worked with major clients such as Infosys, HP, Oracle and Lenovo.
With more than three decades of experience in public relations, Lakshmanan has played an important role in building the firm’s strategy and culture, with a focus on mentoring talent and developing leadership within the organisation. She has also served on several industry juries, including the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival (PR category) and the SABRE Awards.
Her contributions to the industry have been recognised through several honours, including the SABRE Individual Award for her contribution to the PR business in India.
Archana Jain
Archana Jain is the founder of PR Pundit Havas Red, a communications consultancy she started in 1998 that specialised in luxury, fashion and lifestyle brands. At a time when most PR firms in India operated as generalist consultancies, PR Pundit focused specifically on premium and luxury sectors, helping international and Indian brands build their presence in the country.
Over the years, the agency worked with several global brands across fashion, beauty, hospitality and luxury retail, supporting brand launches, media relations, events and integrated communication strategies. The firm became known for building communication frameworks suited to the luxury and lifestyle space, contributing to the development of specialised PR practices in India.
In November 2023, Havas Group acquired a majority stake in PR Pundit. Following the deal, the agency was integrated into the network and rebranded as PR Pundit Havas Red, marking the entry of Havas’ global PR network Havas Red into the Indian market.
The move expanded its capabilities while retaining its focus on luxury and lifestyle communications.
Her work helped establish luxury and lifestyle communications as a distinct and specialised area within the Indian PR industry.
Shravani Dang
Shravani Dang has been a prominent figure in the Indian communications industry, known for her leadership across corporate communications and global PR networks. Over a career spanning more than three decades, she has worked across sectors including technology, finance, nonprofits and industrial conglomerates, helping organisations manage reputation, stakeholder engagement and brand positioning in complex and evolving media environments.
Dang began her professional journey in journalism, writing and broadcasting while she was a student, before moving into public relations where she was drawn by the role communications plays in shaping business outcomes, valuations and public perception. During her career, she held senior roles at organisations such as HCL, CARE India, CSC, Fidelity and the Avantha Group, where she served as Vice President and Global Group Head of Corporate Communications.
In 1992, she took a break from corporate life to start The Creative Writing Workshop, an initiative focused on mentoring children and adults in writing. The programme gained recognition and was invited by institutions including the British Council and several schools. She has also taught communications at Delhi University.
Dang’s contributions to the field have been recognised with several honours, including the Fulcrum Lifetime Achievement Award and the Asian Multimedia Publishing Award for Innovative Corporate Communications in 2009. She has also played an active role in industry bodies, representing India at the European Association of Communication Directors (EACD) in 2013, co-founding the Asia Pacific Association of Communication Directors (APACD) where she served as treasurer, and serving on the board of the Women in Leadership Forum. She has also been part of juries such as the SABRE South Asia Awards.
Neera Radia
Neera Radia was a public relations consultant and the founder of Vaishnavi Corporate Communications, a firm established in 2001 that became one of the country’s prominent corporate communications consultancies. The agency was known for advising large corporate groups and multinational companies on reputation management, strategic communications and policy-related advocacy, reflecting the growing role of public relations in complex corporate and regulatory environments.
Through Vaishnavi Corporate Communications and related entities such as Neucom Consulting, Radia handled communications and advisory work for major clients including the Tata Group, across several of its companies, and Reliance Industries. The firm worked across sectors such as aviation, telecommunications and infrastructure, providing services that ranged from corporate communications to strategic advisory.
Vaishnavi Corporate Communications operated for a decade and built a strong presence in India’s corporate communications landscape.
Sunayna Malik
Sunayna Malik is a communications professional with more than 25 years of experience in public relations, corporate communications and brand strategy, particularly within the technology sector. Over the course of her career, she has worked across both corporate and agency environments, leading reputation management and integrated communications initiatives for organisations operating in India and across the Asia-Pacific region.
She began her career in corporate communications and marketing roles at technology companies including Fujitsu and Xerox, where she served as Regional Marketing Lead. She later joined HCL Technologies, where she spent nearly eight years as General Manager, Corporate Communications.
In this role, she was involved in key initiatives including the company’s IPO, brand repositioning, investor relations and broader marketing programmes, gaining experience in managing communications for a single large global brand.
Malik later moved to the agency side and joined Text100, now known as Archetype, where she has spent more than a decade. She went on to become Managing Director for India and Senior Vice President for Asia-Pacific, overseeing strategy, leadership and business growth in the region. Her work spans multiple areas including public relations, advertising, digital marketing, content strategy, brand positioning and influencer engagement.
Dr. Pragnya Ram
Dr. Pragnya Ram is a senior communications professional with more than three decades of experience in corporate communications, public relations, brand management and corporate social responsibility. Much of her career has been associated with the Aditya Birla Group, where she played a key role in shaping the group’s communications and reputation as it expanded into a global conglomerate across sectors such as metals, cement, chemicals, manufacturing, finance and retail.
Ram holds a PhD in History, along with a master’s degree in History and Sociology, and a postgraduate diploma in Journalism from the University of Mumbai and the Bombay College of Journalism. She began her career at Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals, where she worked in communications and developed internal and external communication strategies supporting product launches and corporate reputation. She later joined Hindustan Ciba‑Geigy, heading corporate communications and managing integrated communications, media relations and analyst outreach, including assignments in Basel, Switzerland.
In 1997, Ram joined the Aditya Birla Group as President of Corporate Communications. Over the next two decades, she held several senior roles, eventually serving as Group Executive President for Corporate Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility. In these roles, she led the group’s global communications strategy, stakeholder engagement, media relations and CSR initiatives, while also overseeing areas such as reputation management, digital intelligence and archival documentation of the group’s legacy.
Beyond her corporate responsibilities, Ram has served on the boards of group companies including UltraTech Cement and Utkal Alumina International. She has also been associated with educational and social initiatives such as Sarala Birla Academy. After stepping away from full-time corporate roles, she continues to contribute through advisory positions, focusing on education, nonprofit initiatives and strategic communications.
Roma Balwani
Roma Balwani is a communications professional with more than four decades of experience in corporate communications, brand management, sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Over the course of her career, she has held senior leadership roles across major organisations in India and abroad, including Vedanta Resources, Mahindra Group and Aptech, working across areas such as media relations, stakeholder engagement, internal communications and strategic reputation management.
Balwani holds a graduate degree in economics and a postgraduate diploma in marketing from the University of Mumbai. She has also completed executive management programmes at the Ross School of Business and Harvard Business School.
She served as Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications at Aptech from 1997 to 2003, where she managed media relations, internal communications, marketing PR, community initiatives and global corporate relations. She later worked in Oslo, Norway as a consultant on business development and communications strategy for e-learning services in the Scandinavian market, including assignments related to corporate partnerships and product launches.
In 2005, Balwani joined the Mahindra Group, where she held several senior roles over nearly a decade, including Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer at Mahindra & Mahindra. In these positions, she led strategic communications, public relations and internal communications for the group’s diverse businesses.
She later joined Vedanta Resources as President of Group Communications, Sustainable Development and CSR, where she worked on aligning communications with sustainability initiatives and led brand strategy, including the rebranding from Sesa Sterlite to Vedanta. She also served on the group’s executive committee. After a period with Strategic Resources Group as a director, she returned to Vedanta in senior leadership roles overseeing brand, communications, CSR and stakeholder engagement until 2022.
Balwani continues to remain active in advisory and mentoring roles. She serves as Chief Mentor at Jombay, Brand Advisor at National Collateral Management Services Limited, and is a member of the media committee at the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She also serves as CEO and Brand Custodian of the Indian Deaf Cricket Association in a pro bono capacity and is co-founder of the RB Foundation. She frequently speaks on topics related to sustainability, ESG, communications strategy and leadership.
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