MAM
Stirred not shaken Fortune whips up India’s next culinary creators
MUMBAI: Some recipes call for more than just salt and spice, they need a pinch of purpose. As part of its 25-year celebration, Fortune Foods served up a piping hot opportunity with its first-ever Fortune Influencer Masterclass, aimed at turning everyday food lovers into full-blown digital culinary creators.
Launched on 10 February 2025, the campaign received an overwhelming 50,000 plus registrations from across India, ultimately narrowing the field to 25 winners who were recently felicitated in a lively Meet & Greet in Ahmedabad. Each winner took home content collaboration deals worth up to Rs 2 lakh, but the real prize was the transformation of passion into profession.
Backed by industry heavyweights like Meghna Kamdar (Forbes Top 100 Digital Star), Vinayak Grover of Lost and Hungry Studios, and Nimisha Rao from Influencer.in, the initiative was more than a class, it was a crash course in digital storytelling. With modules on scripting, plating, video editing, animation, and content strategy, the program mentored aspiring influencers in every dimension of online food content creation.
From a pool of 250 semi-finalists, selected after an initial assignment round, the top 25 were chosen following a multi-stage process judged by Masterchef winners and industry experts. Criteria ranged from recipe innovation and aesthetic appeal to editing finesse and storytelling strength.
The finale in Ahmedabad was a feast for the senses. It featured a special plating demo by Meghna Kamdar, games, and a fireside chat titled ‘The Ingredients of a Great Food Content Creator’, with insights from Mukesh Mishra, joint president at AWL Agri Business Limited, Sunil Chawla, co-founder of Social Beat, and Kamdar herself.
Mukesh Mishra explained the vision behind the campaign, “This wasn’t just about product placement. It was about placing belief in people especially homemakers and food enthusiasts who had creativity but lacked digital confidence. We’ve seen these creators bloom, and we’re thrilled to champion their voices.”
One such voice was Harshika Lalwani from Kanpur, whose journey resonated with many: “As a homemaker, I had quietly shelved my passions for years. This campaign gave me visibility, value, and most importantly my own voice. When I made it to the Top 25, I felt seen for who I am, not just the roles I play.”
The Fortune Influencer Masterclass is more than a marketing campaign, it’s a movement that’s helping shape India’s digital creator economy. It’s where food meets fame, where community meets creativity, and where Fortune truly favours the bold.
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.
