Brands
Loud and clear Ottoman Plates Up a bold new food brand
MUMBAI: Some brands whisper their way into the market. Others arrive with a megaphone and a manifesto. Fifteen years after launching The Table, Food Matters Group is back with a very different appetite. Its new delivery-first lifestyle food brand, Loud Mouth, is less about what is on the plate and more about who is holding it. And to shape that personality-led play, the group has brought in Ottoman, the branding and creative design studio within the Black Cab Agency Network, as its branding partner.
Founded by Jay Yousuf and Gauri Devidayal, and conceived and creatively led by Alya Vachani, Loud Mouth was built around a mindset rather than a menu. Instead of beginning with cuisine formats or kitchen logistics, the team focused on defining the brand’s voice and its audience: confident, expressive and distinctly uninterested in being told how to behave.
Ottoman’s role was to translate that attitude into a cohesive brand system that could stretch across screens, packaging and physical spaces. Its mandate spans brand strategy and positioning, visual identity, packaging, creative direction, kiosk design, lifestyle merchandising and the Loud Mouth website. The aim was clarity and character over decoration, building a scalable identity that works as fluently on delivery apps as it does in real-world touchpoints.
“Loud Mouth was never a food-first brief. It was about identity, attitude, and community,” said Ottoman co-founder and creative director Imran Udaipurwala. “The food works because the people behind it know what they’re doing. Our job was to build a brand that could carry that confidence without overexplaining itself.”
For Vachani, the brand’s DNA is rooted in everyday utility with personality. “I lived on bowls and wraps in New York. They were quick, filling, and flavour-packed, the kind of food that fit seamlessly into a busy day. I wanted to be able to do the same here,” she said. “Loud Mouth isn’t just something you order, it’s something that fits into your day. It’s the lunch you eat between work calls, the post-workout meal when you don’t want to think, and the comfort food you eat in bed while watching your favourite show.”
Black Cab co-founder Aayush Bansal framed the collaboration as emblematic of how contemporary brands are built. “You start with a point of view, a personality, and a community. Everything else follows. Ottoman’s work helped ground that thinking into a clear, scalable brand foundation,” he said.
Positioned as unapologetically personality-led, Loud Mouth enters a crowded delivery market by attempting to speak before it serves. Early responses to the identity suggest that the bet on voice over volume may be paying off. Across delivery platforms, digital spaces and emerging physical touchpoints, the brand is drawing in consumers who feel seen rather than sold to.
For Ottoman, the project reinforces its focus on culture-first branding, where personality is not an afterthought but the starting point. For Loud Mouth, it marks the beginning of a venture that does not need to shout to be heard.
Brands
YES Bank hands the keys to SBI veteran Vinay Tonse as it bets on a new era
Former SBI managing director appointed as YES Bank’s new MD and CEO
MUMBAI: YES Bank is done rebuilding. Now it wants to grow. The private sector lender has appointed Vinay Muralidhar Tonse as managing director and chief executive officer-designate, with RBI approval secured and a start date of April 6, 2026 confirmed. The three-year term signals the bank’s intent to shift gears from crisis recovery to full-throttle expansion.
Tonse, 60, is no stranger to scale. Most recently managing director at State Bank of India, he oversaw a retail book of roughly $800bn in deposits and advances, one of the largest in the country. Before that, he ran SBI Mutual Fund from August 2020 to December 2022, a stint that saw assets under management surge from Rs 4.32 lakh crore to Rs 7.32 lakh crore across market cycles. Add stints in Singapore and four years leading SBI’s overseas operations in Osaka, and the incoming chief arrives with a genuinely global CV.
His academic grounding is equally solid: a commerce degree from St Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bengaluru, and a master’s in commerce from Bangalore University.
The appointment follows an extensive search and evaluation process by the bank’s Nomination and Remuneration Committee. NRC chairperson Nandita Gurjar said the committee unanimously backed Tonse, citing his leadership track record, governance credentials and ability to drive the bank’s next phase of transformation.
Non-executive chairman Rama Subramaniam Gandhi was unequivocal. “I am certain that Vinay Tonse, with his vast experience as a senior banker, will propel YES Bank to its next phase of growth,” Gandhi said, adding that the bank remains focused on strengthening its retail and corporate banking franchises and expanding its branch network.
Rajeev Kannan, non-executive director and senior executive at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the bank’s largest shareholder, said Tonse’s experience across retail, corporate banking, global markets and asset management positioned him well to lead the lender. SMBC said it looks forward to working with Tonse and the board as YES Bank pursues its ambition of becoming a top-tier private sector lender anchored in strong governance and sustainable growth.
Tonse succeeds Prashant Kumar, who took the helm in March 2020 when YES Bank was in freefall following a severe financial crisis, and spent six years painstakingly stabilising the institution, rebuilding governance and restoring operational scale. Gandhi was generous: “The bank remains indebted to Prashant Kumar, who is responsible for much of what a strong financial powerhouse YES Bank is today.”
Tonse, for his part, struck a purposeful note. “Together with the board and my colleagues, I remain deeply committed to creating long-term value for all our stakeholders,” he said, pledging to build on Kumar’s foundation guided by his personal motto: Make A Difference.
Beyond the balance sheet, Tonse played cricket at college and club level and represented Karnataka in archery at the national championships — sports he credits with teaching him teamwork, situational leadership, discipline and focus. In quieter moments, he reaches for retro Kannada music, classic Hindi songs, and the crooning of Engelbert Humperdinck, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar.
YES Bank has its steady-handed rebuilder in Kumar to thank for survival. Now it has a scale-obsessed growth banker at the wheel. The next chapter starts April 6.
