Devraj Sanyal is an Indian businessman and musician. Since 2011 he has been the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of Universal Music Group & EMI Music, India & South Asia, based in the company headquarters in Mumbai.He is also the Managing Director of the group's Publishing business "Universal Music Publishing Group" for the same region. He is charged with the management and operational running of all Universal Music Group businesses in the region. Sanyal runs the Universal Music Label, Universal Music Publishing, EMI Music and their allied businesses as its MD and CEO. In August 2019, he co-founded Mass Appeal India, the first ever global imprint for Indigenious HipHop in a joint venture between Mass Appeal USA, the label cofounded by legendary hiphop artists NAS and founder CEO Peter Bittenbender. Sanyal has differentiated the Indian & South Asian opco of Universal Music Group by aligning it with a host of profitable allied non-traditional businesses such as Live, Merchandising, Branded Content, Artist Accelerator & Intellectual Properties. Sanyal has been a performer in heavy metal bandBrahma since 1994 which has led to some media dubbing him "the heavy metal CEO". Sanyal is also a judge on TV talent showThe Stage.
Career
Devraj Sanyal began his career in the early 1990s in the event & sponsorship management business in the early 1990s with his own company "Curtain Raisers. In 1995 he moved to the inception team of Elle Magazine in India to look after advertising & brand. He then moved to the Times of Indiain 2001 to set up the Group's Below the Line Businesses and creating the company 360 Degrees. Sanyal spent the next 9 years at Percept Limited as COO & then CEO of PSE. Sanyal is credited as the Co-founder of Sunburn & the India Fashion Week. In 2011 he moved to Universal Music Group, India & South Asia, now reporting to Adam Granite, EVP Market Development, Universal Music Group & continues as its Managing Director & Chief Executive till date. Devraj Sanyal has also been recognized as part of Business Today’s Top 25 CEO's under 40 and is a recipient of the Udyog Ratna Award in India for 2013. He was recently awarded the FAME leadership award for Media & Entertainment for the year 2014. Devraj serves as one of the judges of India's first and only All English Talent Shows on Colors Infinity, now in its 3rd Season.
Personal life
Sanyal is married to Nikita Sanyal and has a 13-year-old daughter, Sera.
