MUMBAI: Sahara Media & Entertainment Network Vice President (Publicity, Promotions and PR) Prriya Raj has put in his papers citing 'personal reasons'.

Raj, also a well-known management cartoonist, had been with Sahara from early 2001. He was instrumental in injecting the launch of Haqeeqat and Draupadi in May 2001 with creative and media innovation as well as sustaining the same with the newsletter Sampark, DMs, posters, flyers, road shows, promotions, PR and interactive website to build the brand Sahara TV. He was also behind the much talked about tongue-in-cheek campaigns of news programmes of Sahara TV namely Chunav Sangram and Budget Mahapuran.

He was nominated for the award of PR executive of the year at the Indian Telly Awards 2002 by Indiantelevision.com.

An MBA topper from Allahabad University, Raj has earlier worked with S. Kumars as a Publicity Officer, Mitra Prakashan as All India Advertising Manager, ad agencies Mudra as Account Director and R K Swamy / BBDO as Director Client Services. He also co-promoted Momentum as India's first fee-based ad agency and worked with www.123india.com as an advisor.

He has two books to his credit - 'Under The Pyramid' (IBH / 1998) and 'Counter Point' (BPI/1999). He also contributes a regular weekly management cartoon column 'Out Of The Box' in the Hindu.

While he is yet to firm up his future plans, Raj says his stint at Sahara has given him valuable insights into the entertainment business. "This has surely added a new dimension to my overall experience," he says.

About his future plans, he says : "I have not yet firmed up my plans. I need to first take a break, think afresh with a new perspective and then look at the available opportunities to finalise my next course of action."