New Delhi: Japan’s Nippon Paint has appointed Sharad Malhotra as the Managing Director of Nippon Paint India, a strategic leadership move aimed at strengthening the company’s India-centric operating model and accelerating market expansion. The appointment takes effect from December 1, 2025.
Malhotra succeeds Jon Tan and will report to Wee Siew Kim, Group CEO of the NIPSEA Group — the Asia Pacific arm of Nippon Paint Holdings. He becomes the first Indian to hold the top leadership position in the company’s Indian operations, highlighting Nippon Paint’s growing emphasis on local leadership in one of its most important markets.
With over 15 years at Nippon Paint, Malhotra has played a pivotal role in building key business segments, including automotive refinish, wood coatings and light industrial coatings in India. He also sits on the company’s board and has been instrumental in expanding into adjacent product categories.
Under his leadership, Nippon Paint India plans to consolidate all paints and coatings businesses under a unified operating model, designed to enhance manufacturing flexibility, operational leverage and a cohesive pan-India distribution footprint. The company operates seven manufacturing plants across the country and is expected to deepen its presence beyond traditionally strong southern markets into high-growth urban and semi-urban centres.
In his new role, Malhotra will oversee the overall strategic direction and growth agenda of Nippon Paint’s India operations, with a focus on scaling market penetration, sharpening segmentation and driving sustainable expansion across all product segments.
The leadership change comes as the Indian paints and coatings industry continues to expand amid rising infrastructure activity and growing consumer demand. Nippon Paint, ranked as one of the largest paint companies globally, views India as a key growth hub within its Asia-Pacific footprint