In the second episode of 30 Years On, Avian co-founder Nitin Mantri and now president (APAC), We. Communications, group CEO at Avian We. (also past president ICCO & PRCAI ) is candid about the deal that folded his agency into We. On why he picked culture over the bigger cheque, who else courted him, and why he'd still choose the same route over an IPO today.
He's equally upfront on the crises that proved PR's worth (Enron, Cadbury, a Lever's near-miss he half-wished had blown up), the Niira Radia moment that professionalised government affairs, and the firms he's backing to win next. Throw in a ₹6,500 first salary and a Maruti 800 he never got to drive, to his move into the international PR arena as president ICCO and you have a builder's-eye view of three decades of Indian PR.
Listen in.
Key Takeaways
1. The We. sale was about cultural fit, not the cheque
Mantri says selling was never the plan when he founded Avian — it evolved as he hit growth gaps and wanted to expand. He met We around 2016/17, was drawn to it being an independent network rather than a holding company (he'd worked in a holding-co in the UK and knew the downsides), and flew with Nikhil to Seattle in April 2017 to meet Melissa Waggener before deciding. The deal took roughly a year to close. The hook for readers: he was courted by more than one suitor and still didn't pick on price.
2. He'd still choose We today — over IPO or PE
Asked whether the newer routes (Value 360's listing, PE money into On Purpose/The Practice/Kaizen) would have tempted him, he concedes raising your own money via IPO is attractive "100%" but comes with heavy regulation and compliance, and PE comes with the pressure of an eventual exit. His verdict: he'd still have partnered with WE.
3. The Niira Radia moment professionalised government affairs
He frames the Radia episode as a genuine inflection point. Rather than a stain on the profession, Avian treated the surrounding period as an opportunity — they took their government-affairs offering to market around the same time, insisting on doing it "the right way." He credits this era as the start of professionalising the policy side of PR.
4. Crisis is where PR proved its worth — including one that never happened
He runs through the era-defining reputation crises: KFC protests, the Coke/Pepsi pesticide row, the Cadbury worms issue and Enron. The standout anecdote is a Hindustan Lever brand his team prepped so thoroughly for a potential crisis that part of him half-wished it had blown up, just to use the work — a vivid line on the value of preparedness
5. The firms to watch are tech/AI-led — plus The Practice, Kaizen, Value 360
On who makes the grade next, he's clear the winning type is highly tech- and AI-enabled, and he doesn't see many there yet in India. Named picks: The Practice (strong "firepower" in its people now), Kaizzen ("not small anymore"), and praise for Value 360's IPO as good for the whole industry. He closes on a survival thesis: agencies last only if they keep up with the times.
6. Quickfire — first PR salary, car, his mentors and DEI
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