MAM
Maxus and Metalworks buoyed about inaugural Melt 2015
MUMBAI: It’s that time of the year when professionals will congregate to celebrate the first edition of Melt 2015, a two day festival of creativity, advertising, media, digital and marketing industry.
Marketing and communications brand Maxus along with Metalworks, (the global R&D division of Maxus Global) is participating at the festival. Media professionals will witness effective and new age sessions by Maxus South Asia head of digital Unny Radhakrishnan, Metalworks strategist Alex Jasper, Provolv CEO Nick Martin and Maxus India director creative technology Harish Shankaran.
At their booth Metalworks will display state of the art technological innovations and products, which would bring about a revolution of change in the field of modern technology.
Some of the products and services include:
Provolv Sens: A batting cage so that people can try it out and compete with others to get a demo of the technology.
Provolv Stumpshot: Demo of the casing and app.
Playground Project: Showcased on screen and table, this is something that Metalworks is trying to achieve.
VR technologies: A showcase of Zeiss VR, Google Cardboard, Samung Gear VR to showcase VR.
Apart from displaying their newest technologies, Maxus India and Metalworks will work closely to conduct sessions and workshops with demos for prospective clients.
Maxus South Asia managing director Kartik Sharmasaid, “It is a fantastic opportunity for Maxus to be a part of this excellent event. With expectations of a large footfall and the presence of marketers, advertisers, students and the fraternity, Maxus will be very successful to create an impact along with Metalworks by showcasing the newest and most innovative products and services that have been developed. We would be showcasing an interesting mix of innovations and new tools that our enablers for brands in India to truly be future ready.”
Shankaran added, “We are excited to be a part Melt and give a glimpse into what we really do. We expect a healthy reaction from the crowd and are looking forward to build a good standing in the industry. With state of the art technologies that we have, we are sure the response will be encouraging. We aim to bring about a tremendous change in how technology is used, perceived and executed and have thus decided on live demos which will help enhance the experience.”
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.
