News Broadcasting
Vijay TV gets up, close and personal with stars
MUMBAI: Seems like the Pongal special really went well with the audience. So much so that Vijay is spin off a show from one of the segments in the festival special.
Taking a cue from the Pongal specialVijay Udan Oru naal aired on 15 January 2004, where the cameras followed Tamil star Illayathalapathy Vijay as he had his breakfast, travelled to the shoot, worked on the set and spent some time with his family, the Tamil entertainment channel will be airing Star Udan Oru Naal every Sunday on 9:30 am.
Starting this Sunday 15 February, an hour long weekly SUON will feature a day in the life of an high profile celebrity. The channel will be trailing the chosen star for the best part of the day.
Audience can witness what the star does from dawn to dusk. The channel has lined up a list of actors, directors , music dirctors from the silver screen and the television as its guest of honour. The list included likes of Vijay, Vikram, Silambarasan, Sneha, and Trisha.
While the audience might have seen the stars laughing, crying and playing roles, but with this venture, Star’s Tamil entertainment arm gives the audience an opportunity to get close to stars from the tinsel world and discover the real person behind the screen persona.
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
