Event Coverage
FICCI FRAMES: Broadcasting stalwarts feel it is possible to survive the digital wave
MUMBAI: Is the past too old to be relevant in the future, and will it actually ‘perish’ if ‘change’ does not take place?
These questions were discussed by panelists at a session to discuss the formula to Survive the digital wave: Change or perish.
On the dias were The India Today Group Chairman and Editor-in-chief Aroon Purie, Discvery Asia Pacific Managing Director and President Arthur Bastings Viacom 18 group CEO Sudhhanshu Vats, Disney India MD Siddharth Roy Kapur, NDTV Group Director and CEO Vikram Chandra, and Hungama CEO Neeraj Roy, and the session was moderated by Pranjal Sharma with questions also coming from the delegates.
“The fundamental is still the same, produce quality and you will have consumers and that’s the way forward as far as I am concerned,” asserted Purie.
Bastings said staying with the mood of the occurrences is a must. “We cannot only have a channel. We need to have, whatever is there in the ecosystem. Once you have everything you can decide your core business and the rest depending on the performances you can plan your investments,” he added.
During the course of the discussion, the AVOD model was questioned numerous times. Offering content for free is habit forming which might hurt the ecosystem and what is happening to TV now can happen to OTT too a few years later.
Vats, whose Viacom’s digital AVOD offering VOOT was launched recently, said: “The consumer is paying. He may not be paying me but is paying for the data. As the payment mechanism develops, bundling can happen. So to say that the consumer is not paying is actually not a correct conclusion.”
Kapur had a somewhat different point of view as compared to Vats. ‘Waiting for later’ was is not a saleable proposition for him. “We launched 500 channels and did not make consumer pay anything for it. We believe if we form a habit that consumers will later come, pay and watch, does that mean that we open a series of screens and let people walk in for free. I do not think so.”
“Yes, people are watching movies on mobile phones but that does not mean theatre screens are going away” he added
Chandra said there was room for profits and opportunities, “It is possible to monetize and it is possible to make profits. But you cannot put archival content, you need to create content exclusively for that very platform and only then will you taste success. The mindset that I will put archival content on digital is a slightly wrong mindset that the broadcasters have been following.”
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
