MAM
Equitas brings in Balaji Nuthalapadi to hardwire its digital backbone
MUMBAI: India’s second-largest small finance bank just added some serious tech muscle. Equitas Small Finance Bank has appointed Balaji Nuthalapadi as executive director – technology and operations, signalling a sharp push towards tech-led transformation, seamless customer journeys and operational muscle.
The appointment, effective 29 March 2025, has received the green light from both the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Bank’s Board. With this move, Equitas is throwing down the digital gauntlet, placing a proven transformation leader at the heart of its operations.
“We are delighted to welcome Balaji Nuthalapadi to our leadership team. His vast experience in banking operations, technology and digital transformation will be a valuable asset as we continue to enhance our operational efficiency and drive innovation. His passion for digital banking, financial inclusion and social impact aligns seamlessly with the values and mission of Equitas Small Finance Bank,” said Equitas Small Finance Bank MD & CEO Vasudevan P N.
Nuthalapadi joins the Chennai-based bank with a CV that reads like a fintech playbook. At Citi Bank, he served as MD & head of centralised controls testing execution. There, he built a 1,100-member India team—one of the largest in global banking—to oversee international controls testing.
Previously, as MD & head of operations and technology for Citi south Asia, he helmed functions across India and southeast Asia, playing a crucial role in expanding Citi’s global hubs in India. An IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, he brings over two decades of hands-on expertise across operations, digital banking, and wealth management.
Now, Equitas is counting on that arsenal of experience to turbocharge its already impressive growth story. With a stronghold in financial inclusion and digital-first banking, the bank sees Balaji as the lynchpin of its future tech playbook.
The question now: how fast can he turn transformation into traction?
Brands
India’s M&E engine accelerates to Rs 2.78 trillion as digital dominance deepens
FICCI–EY flags structural shifts in consumption, with digital ads at 63 per cent, AI reshaping content, and the sector set to cross Rs 3 trillion by 2027
MUMBAI: India’s media and entertainment (M&E) industry has crossed a defining threshold, expanding not just in size but in structure, as digital consumption, data-led monetisation and shifting audience behaviour redraw the contours of the business. The sector grew 9 per cent in 2025 to reach Rs 2.78 trillion, signalling a deeper transformation underway, according to the latest FICCI–EY report Stories, scale and impact.
What was once a broadcast-led ecosystem is now decisively digital-first. Growth is being powered by online platforms across advertising, subscriptions and content consumption, even as traditional formats struggle to keep pace.
“Media and entertainment are no longer discretionary pursuits; they have become essential frameworks through which people interpret the world,” said Ashish Pherwani, M&E sector leader at EY India.
Digital becomes the centre of gravity
The most significant inflection point is the rise of digital media as the industry’s largest segment, overtaking television in 2025, a shift widely seen as irreversible. Digital media crossed Rs 1 trillion in revenues, growing over 30 per cent year-on-year, driven by both advertising and subscriptions.
Digital advertising alone rose 26 per cent to Rs 94,700 crore, accounting for 63 per cent of total ad revenues, up sharply from 56 per cent a year earlier. E-commerce and point-of-sale advertising surged 50 per cent to Rs 22,000 crore, underscoring a pivot towards performance-led marketing.
India’s overall advertising market grew 13.5 per cent to Rs 1.5 trillion, nearly twice the pace of GDP growth, with digital contributing more than the entirety of incremental gains as traditional segments declined.
Screens multiply, attention fragments
Consumption trends reveal the scale of change. Indians spent 1.2 trillion hours on mobile devices in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent of that time devoted to media and entertainment. Video audiences climbed to 572 million, while social media users approached 500 million, reflecting a vast and expanding digital user base.
Connected TV is emerging as a crucial bridge between traditional and digital ecosystems. Time spent on connected TVs surged to 85 hours per month for OTT viewing, while connected TV households reached around 40 million weekly active homes.
Yet this explosion in consumption is not translating evenly into revenues. Online news platforms saw reach decline by 9 per cent, with AI-driven summaries and search reshaping how audiences access information.
Subscriptions rise, but monetisation remains uneven
Digital subscriptions are gaining traction as premium content moves behind paywalls. Subscription revenues rose 60 per cent to Rs 16,300 crore, with 216 million paid video subscriptions across 143 million households.
Still, monetisation challenges persist. Much of India’s digital consumption remains ad-supported, particularly in music streaming, where 178 million users generated 5.98 trillion streams but limited subscription uptake continues to weigh on revenues.
Television declines, but adapts
Television remains deeply embedded, reaching around 745 million viewers weekly, but its economic model is under strain. Advertising revenues fell by more than 10 per cent, while subscription revenues declined 8 per cent, with the loss of 11 million pay-TV households.
Rather than disappearing, television is evolving into a hybrid model, increasingly bundled with digital offerings as the lines between linear and streaming blur.
Advertising and experiences drive growth
Two engines powered industry expansion in 2025, advertising and live experiences. While digital advertising surged, live events emerged as the fastest-growing segment, expanding 44 per cent.
Concerts, large-scale events, weddings and religious gatherings are driving demand for shared, in-person experiences, creating a counterbalance to rising digital consumption. Industry executives increasingly view this duality as complementary rather than contradictory.
Films, music and print show mixed fortunes
The film industry delivered record revenues of Rs 20,500 crore, with over 1,900 releases and 37 films crossing Rs 100 crore at the box office. However, digital and satellite rights values softened as platforms tightened spending.
Music revenues grew 10 per cent, aided by live events and licensing, though streaming economics remain challenging. Print held steady, with advertising revenues rising around 2 per cent, even as circulation declined among younger audiences.
Radio, by contrast, continued to contract, with revenues falling 7 per cent amid declining listenership and advertiser migration to digital platforms.
Gaming, AI and the creator economy reshape the future
Gaming is emerging as a structural growth driver, with Indian developers generating over $1.5 billion in export revenuesand global revenues from India-made games expected to grow 20 to 30 per cent annually.
Artificial intelligence is rapidly embedding itself across the value chain, from content creation to distribution and personalisation. At the same time, audiences are shifting from passive consumption to active participation, increasingly acting as creators, curators and distributors of content.
Three forces, information, escapism and digital self-expression, are reshaping demand, pushing companies towards data-driven, outcome-based monetisation models.
Consolidation and capital flows intensify
The structural shift is mirrored in deal activity. The sector recorded 105 transactions in 2025, up 8 per cent year-on-year, with 73 per cent of deals concentrated in digital and sports segments. Public markets accounted for 35 per cent of deal value, reflecting investor confidence in scalable, tech-led media businesses.
At the same time, content production has entered what executives describe as a “buyer’s market”, with studios cutting back on high-cost projects and focusing on efficiency.
The road to Rs 3 trillion
Looking ahead, the industry is projected to cross Rs 3 trillion by 2027 and reach Rs 3.3 trillion by 2028. Digital advertising alone is expected to contribute an additional Rs 44,600 crore in incremental revenue, while digital subscriptions continue to expand as OTT adoption deepens.
By 2028, new media, including digital platforms and gaming, is expected to account for 53 per cent of total revenues, overtaking traditional formats for the first time. Live events are also set to expand beyond metros into more than 20 cities, reinforcing the rise of experiential consumption.
FICCI president Anant Goenka described the sector as “a powerful driver of innovation, employment, cultural influence and economic growth”, underlining its central role in India’s digital transformation.
The message from the report is unambiguous. This is not a cyclical upswing but a structural reset. Scale is no longer the differentiator. The future of India’s media economy will be defined by precision in targeting, monetisation and engagement, as a converged, multi-platform ecosystem takes shape.
