Former Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati gets Padma Shri
Shashi Shekhar Vempati, who led Prasar Bharati (the parent body of Doordarshan and All India Radio), has just been awarded the Padma Shri.
The government recognized him for shaking up public broadcasting and pushing digital innovation in India.
Why is this a big deal?
As CEO (dates not specified in the source), Vempati helped modernize Doordarshan and AIR, launched platforms like NewsOnAir, and worked on cool tech projects like Direct-to-Mobile broadcasting with IIT Kanpur.
He also oversaw Rajya Sabha TV.
What's he doing now?
Vempati hasn't slowed down—he heads committees on science communication and educational media, co-founded DeepTech for Bharat Foundation to boost homegrown tech talent, and is helping build India's own AI models as an Independent Director at BharatGen Technology Foundation.
He even wrote a book about how Mann ki Baat influenced India.