Rediffusion co-founder Diwan Arun Nanda no more

Diwan Arun Nanda, the co-founder of advertising agency Rediffusion and one of the most prominent figures in Indian advertising, passed away on September 6, 2025. He was 82.

Along with Ajit Balakrishnan and Mohammed Khan, Nanda founded Rediffusion in 1973. The agency quickly rose to prominence, creating memorable campaigns for brands such as Airtel, Maruti Suzuki, and Colgate.

After leading the agency for five decades, Nanda stepped down as chairperson in 2023. The role was taken over by Sandeep Goyal, who continues as chairperson and managing director of the agency group.

“Rediffusion’s 50 years has been a dream run. I enjoyed every moment of the very many hundreds of client interactions, the strategy sessions, the creating of the campaigns and the launching of the brands … at the Board level I must thank Ajit Balakrishnan, Suresh Talwar and Sunil Phataphekar, my co-directors for years, for their sage advice always and support to me as chairman,” said Nanda when he stepped down.

Nanda was also the first-ever gold medallist from the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad. He was among the first management trainees recruited by Hindustan Levers (now Hindustan Unilever), where he is credited with creating the famous lightning-strike mnemonic for Rin detergent.

A two-time AAAI President and recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award in the early 2000s, Nanda has served on the Boards of Air India, Eveready, Kingfisher Airlines, Yes Bank and many more.

From 1983 to 1991, Nanda was Advisor to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. He was also Chairman of Dentsu Young & Rubicam, the Asian joint venture of the two advertising giants.