Published on: October 13, 2026
Havas India has announced the successful completion of the fifth edition of Spark, its flagship internship programme offering emerging talent meaningful, hands-on exposure to the advertising and media industry. This edition focused on widening access for persons with disabilities and supporting their participation in mainstream advertising and media careers. The cohort included talent with invisible disabilities, neurodivergence and medical conditions.
Over three months, interns worked on live projects across digital, production, content, copywriting and media teams, gaining first-hand experience of agency life through real assignments, collaboration and mentorship. Spark 5.0 maintained the same professional standards, expectations and learning opportunities as previous cohorts, supported by accessible onboarding, regular check-ins and workplace accommodations tailored to individual needs.
The programme reflects Havas India’s commitment to improving the representation of persons with disabilities in advertising and media. Recognising that barriers to employment are often interconnected, Spark enabled participants to contribute and be assessed equitably without compromising the rigour of the internship.
Spark 5.0 is grounded in Havas’ People Experience (PX), the employee-facing framework through which talent interacts and experiences the brand day-to-day. Built around five interconnected commitments, namely Belonging, Wellbeing, Learning, Career and Impact, PX provides a shared foundation for culture and growth. Spark 5.0 brings three of these commitments to life in a meaningful way. Belonging, the foundation of growth, enabled persons with disabilities to contribute as themselves, and as part of mainstream agency teams, with adjustments tailored to individual needs rather than a simplified programme. Career, the pathway for growth, offered hands-on experience through live projects across functions and specialisations, supported by mentorship, collaboration and exposure to end-to-end agency processes. Impact, the purpose of growth, extends beyond the internship by advancing disability inclusion, strengthening Havas India’s accessible ways of working and creating clearer pathways into the industry. Together, these pillars position Spark as a practical expression of how belonging can unlock career opportunities and drive wider industry change.
Speaking about the programme, Vandana Tilwani, CHRO, Havas India, said, “The purpose of this edition of Spark was to create equitable access to opportunity. We wanted the interns to experience agency life in its truest form, working on live projects, contributing as part of a team and being evaluated on their capabilities and progress. At the same time, we recognised that inclusion does not mean treating everyone identically. No two experiences of disability are the same, which is why a one-size-fits-all approach would not have worked for Spark 5.0. We focused on each intern’s strengths, aspirations and support requirements, while ensuring that the quality and rigour of the internship remained consistent.”
She added, “The experience has deepened our understanding of what inclusion requires in practice: thoughtful design, responsive managers and the flexibility to meet people where they are. Our responsibility now is to carry these lessons into how we attract, develop and retain talent across the organisation.”
Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas India, Southeast Asia & North Asia (Japan & South Korea) said, “Advertising and media have a powerful influence on how people and communities are seen. If our industry is to represent society with greater understanding and authenticity, we need a wider range of lived experiences within the teams creating that work. Persons with disabilities remain underrepresented, not because of a lack of talent, but because access to the industry is often limited. Spark 5.0 reflects the kind of industry we want to help build, one where talent is recognised on merit and opportunity is not restricted by inaccessible systems or narrow ideas of who belongs.”
Rana continued, “It is our effort at Havas India to help address that gap through real work, meaningful responsibility and comprehensive pathways. The success of this edition gives us the confidence to expand the programme, while sharing our learnings and encouraging the wider industry to make disability inclusion part of its talent strategy.”
Designing a programme focused on persons with disabilities has deepened Havas India’s understanding of accessible processes, inclusive ways of working and the support required by teams and managers. Through Spark, Havas India aims to contribute to a more representative industry where persons with disabilities are recognised for their skills, ideas and perspectives, and have equitable opportunities to develop sustainable careers.
