News Broadcasting
Kareena, Sonam Kapoor, Smriti Irani, Suresh Raina win ‘India TV Yuva Awards’
MUMBAI: Union Ministers Smriti Irani and Kiren Rijiju, Bollywood actors Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor were among youth icons presented with India TV Yuva Awards on Saturday night.
The awards were given away at a glittering event held at Taj Palace Hotel. Following the electric opening performance by Prince Dance troupe, Mr. Rajat Sharma, Chairman & Editor-in-chief, India TV, welcomed the Senior politicians, Bollywood, Television Sports Stars and captains of industry. During his address, he expressed his happiness over the magnanimous growth in the stature of India TV Yuva Awards. He also outlined that this initiative is solely targeted at inspiring the entire generation of future leaders by way of honoring the Achievers who still have a long way to go in their respective fields.
Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju were conferred the India TV Yuva awards for best young politician, female and male, respectively.
Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan presented the award to Smriti Irani, while Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat presented the award to Kiren Rijiju.
Bollywood star Kareena Kapoor as she won the Special Award presented to her by Shatrughan Sinha added a special mention of being really proud to be a happily married young woman & a young working woman while she thanked India TV & its Management for the recognition . Musicians Aman and Ayan Ali Khan were presented Special Award by singer Daler Mehndi.
Sonam Kapoor was presented the India TV Yuva award for best female actor by Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal. Arjun Kumar was given the award in best male actor category by Culture and Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma.
Cricketer Suresh Raina’s brother collected the Sports Icon Award from Minister of State for External Affairs Gen (Retd) V K Singh on his behalf as he is busy playing IPL. Shuttler P V Sindhu got the best female sportsperson award from Congress leader Salman Khurshid.
TV actor Mohit Raina of ‘Devon Ke Dev, Mahadev’ serial fame got the best TV male actor award from Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, while TV actor Digangana Suryavanshi of “Veer Ki Ardaas Veera” serial fame, got the best TV female actor award from Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
In the Music category, Palak Muchhal got the best female singer award from Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, while Javed Ali was presented the best male singer award by Minister of State in PMO Dr Jitendra Singh.
In the Business category, Neha Kirpal, director of India Art Fair, got the the India TV Yuva Award for best female businessperson from Samajwadi Party leader Ramgopal Yadav, while Rahul Sharma, co-founder of Micromax was given the award for best male businessperson by senior Congress leader Janardan Dwivedi.
Manish Paul was at his witty best & proved that why he is rated amongst the best when it comes to hosting large format events. Artistes of Prince Dance Group presented electrifying performances. Famous Punjabi singer Jasbir Jassi belted out a number from his latest album, while award winner Palak Muchhal sang one of her superhit songs ‘Chahoon Main Aana’ from the film Aashiqui 2.
Actor Arjun Kapoor did the signature step from the popular song ‘Tune Maari Entry’ from the movie Gunday, even as a funny onstage-offstage act took place between Arjun, Kareena Kapoor and Manish Paul, soon after the special award was presented to Kareena.
India TV Yuva awards are given away every year to youth icons who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their respective fields, that include politics, sports, music, films, television and business. The awards were instituted in 2013 to honour the most promising young faces of the nation.
The winners were selected by a jury led by Sarod maestro Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan, and included noted personalities like Prasoon Joshi, Vandana Luthra, Prof Pushpesh Pant and India TV Chairman & Editor-in-Chief Rajat Sharma.
Speaking about the awards, Ritu Dhawan, Managing Director & CEO of India TV highlighted her faith in Gen Y, “It is these icons who most certainly are making our country proud now & will keep doing so in the future, while they take India to a new high in the times to come. It is indeed an honour for us to honour the spirit of excellence.”
The gala event was executed by Wizcraft International. Dainik Bhaskar, Pioneer Publicity corporation & C Voter were partners to the initiative which was sponsored by Vimal Pan Masala (Powered by) in association with Dr. Ortho & No Scars.
News Broadcasting
GenNext takes charge as Network18 reshuffles leadership
With Avinash Kaul bowing out, Network18 hands reins to younger leaders, streamlines operations, and pushes data-driven growth across TV, digital and regional markets
MUMBAI: Network18 is redrawing its leadership map just as a long-time lieutenant bows out. Avinash Kaul, a central figure in the broadcaster’s rise since 2014, is leaving after 12 years to pursue “professional and personal goals”, triggering a broad-based reshuffle that puts a younger cohort directly under the top brass.
Kaul joined at a pivotal moment during the company’s transition and went on to scale the television business, combining strategic nous with data-led decision-making and a sharp read of the news landscape. “Avinash has been an integral part of the Network18 story,” the company said, thanking him for his leadership of the broadcast business and wishing him the best for the future.
In his wake, Network18 is betting on what it calls a “young and restless” leadership bench. “The team has taken charge and proved its mettle in quite adverse circumstances,” the note said, adding that “GenNext has seamlessly stepped in as we continue to outperform our peers.”
Operationally, the structure is being flattened. Smriti Mehra, S Shivakumar and Mitul Sangani will work directly with the top leadership, as they did in the fourth quarter. Ganesh Iyer and Abhinay Chauhan continue in their existing roles, while younger executives are being handed wider mandates across social, digital, connected TV and linear.
The reporting lines are being tightened to drive revenue and product momentum. Prabhat Chatterjee, business head–Forbes, and Arun Thapar, president–content and communication for AETN-18, will report to Smriti Mehra, alongside Mallika Nath Handa, who will lead special projects spanning new shows and non-linear properties. Jayesh Gokalgandhi, CFO for AETN-18, will report to Ramesh Damani.
Mitul Sangani will oversee expansion in Hindi and regional markets, with Sidharth Newatia, CRO–ILC, focusing on reach and revenue growth, particularly in tier-II and III markets. Pankaj Soni, head of marketing–ILC, will also report to Sangani while working functionally with Ganesh Iyer.
The group is also consolidating its branded content play. Moneycontrol’s branded content business will be folded into News18 Studio, with Don Zarrar moving to work with Shivakumar while continuing to lead existing studio and Focus teams.
International and platform growth are being bundled together. Pranav Bakshi takes on additional charge of the international business alongside connected TV and social platforms, with Naveen Mathur, who leads revenue management for the international unit, reporting to him. Bakshi continues to report to Puneet Singhvi.
On the technology and operations side, Rajesh Sharma, head of broadcast technology and IT; Rahul Singh, head of events and technical operations; and Bhupender Bhardwaj, head of IT security, will now report to Singhvi. Darshil Parekh, head of sales strategy, planning and operations, will work directly with Ramesh Damani and the top leadership, with Stanley Cyril, who manages digital sales operations, reporting to him.
Data is being pushed to the centre of decision-making. Jitamitra Mohanty, who leads research and analytics, will now work with Santosh Menon to turn audience data into “actionable insights that drive content strategy, product innovation and sustainable viewership growth”.
The message is clear: fewer layers, faster calls, sharper bets. With Kaul’s exit closing one chapter, Network18 is handing the wheel to a younger crew and doubling down on scale across screens. The race, it signals, will be run at full tilt.
