Yash Raj Films (YRF), India’s premier legacy entertainment company, has appointed Usha Rachael Thomas as Head of Communications Strategy. She will report to Akshaye Widhani, Chief Executive Officer, Yash Raj Films.
In her new role, Usha heads YRF and its talent agency’s outward-facing narrative, spanning press, social media strategy, brand voice, talent positioning and image management while strengthening the company’s relationships & footprint with global and local media. Usha will spearhead communication strategies across YRF’s various business ventures.
Akshaye Widhani, CEO, Yash Raj Films, said, “As YRF’s businesses continue to grow globally, how we tell our stories to the world matters as much as the stories themselves. Usha brings a combination of adaptive & agile newsroom instinct sharpened across two decades of leading communications for some of India’s biggest media and entertainment giants. Her perspective will be instrumental as we shape communications strategies, built for scale and across all our businesses. We look forward to the value she brings to our leadership team.”
Usha brings extensive experience across journalism, communications and brand strategy. A former journalist with Indiantelevision.com and HT Media, she led Public Relations and Corporate Communications at STAR India’s Hindi, Bangla and Marathi GEC division, Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) across its Hindi GEC, Cinema, FTA and Premium clusters, and MX Player, building integrated strategies across some of Indian television’s most iconic fiction and non-fiction properties, spanning OTT, film, celebrity brand campaigns and corporate mandates.
Throughout her career, Usha has led award-winning campaigns recognised with an Abby Award Gold for the pioneering #ZeeforAll initiative around the satellite premiere of Dangal, which included an industry-first accessibility feature for visually challenged audiences, and a Cannes Lion for “The End” campaign by Lux, among other notable industry honours. She has also led one of India’s first OTT business case studies, on MX Player, in collaboration with MICA, published by Ivey Publishing, listed by the Harvard Case Centre, and featured on Ivey’s Bestsellers 2025–2026 list.
Usha will also be responsible for building out positioning strategies in PR & Social Media for all YRF Talents, including Rani Mukerji, Ayushmann Khurrana, Sonam Kapoor, Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda, Sharvari, Vaani Kapoor & Shreya Chaudhry.
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