MAM
Shahrukh Khan voted Samsung-MTV Youth Icon 2005
MUMBAI: The King of Bollywood – Shahrukh Khan has been voted as the Samsung MTV Youth Icon this year. Khan faced competition from people in diverse fields like films, sports, politics, fashion, music and business, who were also in the race for the title. Interestingly, Khan faced stiff competition from tennis ace Sania Mirza.
Khan takes over from Rahul Dravid, who won the title in 2004. Anil Ambani was the first ever Youth Icon in 2003.
Samsung India Electronics Limited regional manager sales R Sanjeev presenting a Samsung SGH- D500 to Shahrukh Khan MTV Networks India MD Alex Kuruvilla said, “The MTV generation was unanimous in it’s decision: King Khan Rules! Only in it’s third year, the Samsung and MTV Youth Icon has become the undisputed measure of the one individual in the whole country who commands the highest respect and admiration of young Indians. And this year it’s Shahrukh.”
Samsung India Electronics Limited regional manager sales R Sajeev said, “Samsung mobiles are targeted at the fun-loving, lifestyle oriented and trendy youth of today. By associating with the Samsung and MTV Youth Icon, we are seeking to further strengthen our relationship with them. Samsung mobiles make a style statement and by partnering with the Youth Icon, this positioning is further re-inforced,”
The voting, conducted from 18 March to 1 May witnessed 100,000+ votes cast online, through SMS and calls. This year, the contenders for the much-sought-after title were Sonia Gandhi (politics), Azim Premji (business), Sonu Nigam (music), Irfan Pathan (sports), Manish Malhotra (fashion) and Sania Mirza (the rising star).
The MTV Youth Icon of the Year 2005 is presented by Samsung with associate sponsorship from Tata Indica V2, Killer, Nescafe, Haier Color TVs and Castrol 4T. The print partner was Outlook, television partner was Headlines Today, radio partner 93.5 Red FM and the ground partner for the event was Barista.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
