MAM
Kingfisher Airlines launches; first run on 9 May
MUMBAI: In the true Mallya style, the UB Group made its formal entry into the aviation sector on 7 May with the launch of Kingfisher Airlines. The airline will take its first flight on 9 May. Kingfisher will be the first private Indian airline to commence operations with brand new aircraft.
A total of 33 new Airbus aircraft are on order – 10 A 320 and A 319s – with options open to buying a further 20 aircraft. Kingfisher will also have a single class of travel -Kingfisher Class with a total of 174 seats in the A320-200 and 144 seats in the A319s.
As reported earlier by Indiantlevision.com, for inflight entertainment, the airline has got a personal video screen for every seat with 10 audio and 5 video channels.
All the aircraft will also be equipped with an automated external defibrillator, a simple device used to treat sudden cardiac arrest as well as a paperless cockpit. The entry by the UB group into the aviation segment is a project of $ 1.8 billion.
Civil aviation has been the latest area of interest for the UB Group. Speaking at the launch, UB Group chairman Dr Vijay Mallya said, “After the entry of Kingfisher in the civil aviation sector, this too will be a sector that will attract a lot of FDI (foreign direct investment).”
Stressing on the new emerging India, and more importantly the new consumer class of Indians, Mallya stated that that Kingfisher Airlines would satiate in every way the desires of this new emerging class. “We believe we understand consumer needs and aspirations as well as what one calls value for money and Kingfisher will address all the three stated aspects.”
Mallya also said that with the coming of Kingfisher Airlines, the civil aviation sector for the first time will witness a double digit growth. Another interesting point was that this was first time that a true synergy between the public and the private sector company has taken place as Kingfisher airlines has outsourced all their ground activities to Indian Airlines.
Says aviation minister Prafful Patel,”The Indian civil aviation sector must expand and both the public and private sector players need to ensure its growth. The boom in aviation needs to be fueled by these players and the Government will extend all its support and encouragement for the same.”
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.
