MAM
Maruti, is the most searched automotive brand reveals SEMrush study
MUMBAI: A recent SEMrush study revealed that during the current downturn, stalwart automotive brands Maruti, Hyundai, and Honda are the 3 most searched for automotive brands. India’s leading automotive brand Maruti was searched an average of 492,626 times each month between January to August 2018 and an average of 452,250 times during the same period in 2019. Hyundai, the second leading automobile brand in India, was searched an average of 309,375 times each month between January to August 2018 and an average of 295,625 times during the same period in 2019. Honda was searched 295,625 times between January to August 2018 and 280,375 times during the same period in 2019.
The SEMrush study reflects that the current slowdown is impacting how many times online searches for automobiles are made. That demand for automobiles is falling is understood, the SEMrush study shows that fewer online searches for automobiles are concomitant with a fall in demand for automobiles. Clearly, when searching for a new automobile Indians use the internet to make a buying decision.
Searches were made for other automobile brands as well. The fourth-highest numbers of online searches were made for Tata Motors followed by Mahindra, Volkswagon, Ford, and Renault. Each of these brands was searched for fewer times between January to August 2019 than during the same period in 2018, except Tata Motors, which was searched more often in 2019 than in 2018.
Several reasons have been given for the slump in the automotive sector of which one is that people are increasingly using ride-hailing services. The SEMrush study shows that view is not quite correct as during the period January to August 2019, there was a huge drop in the number of times people searched for cabs online compared to the same period in 2018. The number of searches made for the 4 leading ride-hailing companies Ola, Uber, Meru, and Mega fell dramatically from 683,825 to 465,350 in the 2 mentioned periods.
Yet ride-hailing companies aren't going anywhere according to the SEMrush study. While people may be searching less often for ride-hailing companies, traffic to the site of ride-hailing company Uber increased in January to August 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. The number of visitors to Uber’s site in January to August 2018 was a little less than 4.5 million while during the same period in 2019 it increased to a little over 5.6 million.
The SEMrush study suggests that a majority of those who know of ride-hailing companies and can use their services already do so as the number of people searching for them online is falling.
Speaking about the results of the study Mr. Fernando Angulo, Head of Communications, SEMrush commented, “Our study has verified that there is indeed a slowdown in the automotive sector. That there is a slowdown isn’t news, yet that it shapes what consumers search for online is something few in India know. Our study verifies that online searches and demand for goods in the economy are strongly correlated; it also verifies that Indians are growing accustomed to learning about products online before buying them.
He further added: The flow of online traffic also highlights consumer behaviour. Traffic to Uber’s website is increasing while the number of those searching for it online is falling. This highlights that there is significant awareness among consumers about Uber's services. Most consumers directly visit the company’s website to use its services and don’t need to perform a search for it”.
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.
