Mumbai: Siddharth Bijapuria has stepped down from his role as Head of Creator Content (Sparks) at JioHotstar, marking the close of a transformative 12-year journey across the Jio and Viacom18 ecosystem.
At JioHotstar, Siddharth led content for Sparks, a breakthrough creator-led initiative aimed at bringing India’s biggest YouTubers and digital influencers into mainstream OTT. Under his leadership, Sparks rolled out 30+ unscripted creator-first shows within a year, accelerating the convergence of the creator economy with premium digital entertainment.
Announcing his exit on LinkedIn, Siddharth shared a deeply personal reflection on his professional journey, stating, “Twelve years ago, when Facebook chat was still a thing, I remember Sonia Huria’s message that simply said “Bombay ayega?” That one line changed my entire life. I still remember walking into the MTV floor in a full business suit. Within minutes Sumeli Chatterjee told me I was “not dressed for Viacom18.” Cut to today, I do not think I even own a suit anymore.
What followed was a blur of launches, leaps, experiments, madness and magic.
Launching MTV Indies and Colors Infinity and the multiple SuperSonics remains one of my fondest memories. Some of the best teamwork I have ever seen. Thank you Aditya Swamy Saugato Bhowmik.
Then came Voot. I launched it in PR and soon jumped into marketing as this OTT baby learned to walk. From there it was a ride across functions. Marketing. Content strategy. Content acquisition. Leaders who trusted me enough to stretch, evolve, fail fast and learn faster. Thank you Gourav Rakshit Gaurav Gandhi Akash Banerji Chanpreet Arora.
Cut to the turning point. Q3 2022. JioCinema.
What began as merchandising support soon turned into leading the growth and retention function across sports and entertainment. Two IPLs. The FIFA World Cup. The Olympics. The scale, the pressure, the adrenaline. These are not just memories. They are milestones etched into my heart rate. Thank you Rohit Tikmany Akash Saxena.
The entertainment launch on JioCinema deserves its own chapter.
One month to build an engine that never slowed down. The next year, again one month to launch the subscription business. Peak JioCinema energy, Pure passion. Pure chaos. Thank you Ferzad Palia.
Bigg Boss has been its own education. Seventeen seasons across four languages. From CAC models to eventually mounting the show. It taught me speed, scale and the magic of teams that breathe as one.
And then my latest assignment, JioHotsar Sparks.
A dozen people who do everything. Create content. Sell it. Market it. Distribute it. Optimise it. Ensure it gets watched. Thirty shows in twelve months. In many ways everything I learned across these twelve years converged here. I have seen nothing like it and I remain deeply grateful. Thank you Kiran Mani Kanishk Khanna.
Across twelve years I journeyed through four cultures within one organisation. I launched channels. Helped built three OTT apps. Worked across seven languages. Mounted tentpoles and live events. Served in nine functions from communications to CSR to marketing to content to growth and retention and eventually head of content for JioHotsar Sparks.
To the leadership, thank you for the trust. To my peers, thank you for standing by me and my unconventional ways. This place has shaped me in ways I am still discovering. It taught me resilience, frugality, a bias for action and the drive to always be more. Thank you Raj Nayak Nina Elavia Jaipuria for always inspiring me. As I move to my next assignment, my heart is full and eyes flowing as I’m leaving home.”
Announcing his next move, Siddharth also shared an update on LinkedIn, “I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Head of Content (D2C Business) at upGrad!”
Siddharth’s diverse experience spans marketing, content strategy, acquisition, growth, retention and live sports across platforms including MTV Indies, Colors Infinity, Voot, JioCinema, and most recently JioHotstar Sparks.
Before his long stint across Jio and Viacom18, he worked with several organisations including Genesis BCW, PR Pundit, Vitcom Consulting, Perfect Relations, Nirvana Hospitality and Wipro BPO.
