India’s market research sector accelerates innovation with demographic modelling breakthrough
The Market Research Society of India (MRSI) recently convened its 33rd Annual Market Research Seminar in Mumbai, spotlighting innovation and collaboration within India’s research landscape. The seminar, themed ‘The Power of And,’ brought together over 100 original research submissions, from which 22 papers were shortlisted for presentation, underlining the dynamic integration of technology, creativity, and data in the sector.
Kantar Insights and Bharti Airtel Ltd emerged as the winners for their paper titled ‘Reconstructing Bharat: A Scientific Approach to Estimating India’s Population Demographics at a District Level.’ Their research reflects a significant stride in harnessing scientific methodologies to provide granular demographic estimations across India’s districts, a development of considerable interest to policymakers, marketers, and analysts alike.
The seminar commenced with an auspicious keynote address by Dr. Saurabh Garg, Secretary of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India. Dr. Garg emphasised the transformative role of data in India’s economic ambitions, highlighting the government's vision for ‘Viksit Bharat,’ which aims for a $30 trillion economy and improved per capita income within the next 25 years. He underscored the importance of public-private collaboration, referencing advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, geospatial analysis, and alternative data sources. These innovations are shaping policy through more precise district-level estimates and enhanced data portals, reflecting the government's commitment to data-driven decision-making.
Runner-up accolades were awarded to Knowledge Excel for their study ‘Guardians of the Survey: Fighting Fraud to Protect Research Integrity and Data Quality Benchmarking’ and to Zee Entertainment Enterprises alongside Third Eye Integrated Services for their paper ‘Streaming the Paradox – Gen Z and the Intergenerational Remix.’ These works exemplify the seminar’s broad thematic embrace, from safeguarding research quality to capturing shifting consumer behaviours across generations.
A pivotal part of the seminar was a knowledge panel moderated by industry leaders, including Dr. Ashish Bajaj of Narayana Health and K. Ramakrishnan of Worldpanel by Numerator, who explored how brands can meaningfully engage with India’s diverse sociocultural and economic landscapes. Addressing the audience were other notable speakers such as Aradhana Lal of Lemon Tree Hotels and Karthik Nagarajan, CEO of Hogarth India, who brought varied perspectives on sustainability, creativity, and market insights.
Further enriching the discourse was a panel discussion titled ‘Joys and Dilemmas of Insight in the Age of Technology,’ moderated by Chandan Mukherji, Executive Vice President at Nestlé India. Participants included senior leaders from Toluna India, Hindustan Unilever, Purple Audacity, Smytten, and Bharti Airtel, who debated the opportunities and ethical challenges presented by emerging technologies in consumer research. Soumya Mohanty of Kantar also contributed valuable insights on the evolving client-agency dynamic in the data-rich era.
Nitin Kamat, President of MRSI and Chief Growth & Partnerships Officer at TAM Media Research, reiterated the industry’s commitment to integration—melding creativity with technology, and data with human narratives. Highlighting the seminar’s role as a beacon for insight leadership, Kamat emphasised the need for collaboration to advance market research’s future in India.
The seminar’s Chairperson, Rituparna Dasgupta of Zee Entertainment, reflected on the diversity and maturity showcased, noting the event as a platform for breakthrough academic research and real-world case studies alike. Roosevelt Dsouza, Co-chair and APAC Head of Customer Success at NielsenIQ India, praised the session’s spirited exchanges and the industry’s progress towards excellence.
MRSI, operating as an independent industry body, continues to champion high ethical standards across the sector through its Self-Governance Framework for Ethical Conduct, established by its Professional Standards Committee. This framework mandates compliance with a professional code, ensuring research integrity and fostering trust.
The 33rd Annual Market Research Seminar was led by partner SmyttenPulse AI with support from Toluna, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Kantar, Nestlé, ITC, and Hindustan Unilever Limited, underscoring a collaborative sponsorship model engaging diverse industry stakeholders.
This landmark event not only recognised exceptional research accomplishments but also reaffirmed the Indian market research industry’s role in harnessing data and technology to navigate the country’s complex demographic and consumer landscapes.