MAM
New launches in a tough Gujarati TV news market
MUMBAI: Narendra Modi is not only shaping a new Gujarat but also breathing life into a dead TV news market. A slew of Gujarati news channels are getting readied for launch ahead of the assembly elections as Modi weighs his prospects of being named as the next prime ministerial candidate for BJP.
TV9 and VTV are the only two pure Gujarati news channels and their business life has not been too easy so far. But unnerved by the thin ad revenue market pegged at Rs 200 million this year, two leading dailies, Sandesh and Gujarat Samachar, are planning launch of their Gujarati-language TV news ventures in November, a month ahead of the December assembly elections.
“There has been no great improvement in the market potential of Gujarati news channels. But the new launches are extensions of print media businesses. The local print market is quite strong in Gujarat and it has been more or less politically aligned,” says ABCL vice president operations KVN Murthy.
Murthy should know. TV9 Gujarati, the channel owned by Associated Broadcasting Company Ltd, runs the most successful TV news channel in Gujarat from a viewer‘s perspective and its footage has been used by national news networks. Gujarat News Broadcasters‘ VTV launched last year and is still struggling to find space in the nascent Gujarati TV news market while ETV Gujarati airs daily news bulletins in between its main general entertainment content.
The Gujarati news channels also have to adjust to the reality that the national news networks are quite popular there. National news broadcasters have not yet forayed into Gujarat as they realise there is a high level of cannibalisation from their Hindi and English channels. Zee, which runs a clutch of regional entertainment and news channels across India, had an entertainment channel, Zee Gujarati, which it shut in 2009.
“Hindi general news and business channels do well in that market. The Gujarati news market will take time to evolve,” says Murthy.
Aas Pass TV, floated by Gujarat Samachar co-promoter Shreyans Shah, and Sandesh hope to change that feeble marketplace with the backing of their strong print lineage.
Says Gujarat Samachar’s Aas Pass TV director-sales and marketing Nilesh Thakkar, “Compared to the markets in Bengal and
Maharashtra, Gujarat is at a very nascent stage. But there is scope for growth here. Only the right strategy has to be employed and patience is required.”
The right strategy will mean a heavy load of political and crime news. And some industry sources who did not want to be named said paid news will also play a part.
TV9 content head Vikas Upadhyay believes that pure news lineup will not work in Gujarat. “People are not interested in only news. They want a mixed offering. Also, Gujarat is a quiet place. Barring the elections, nothing unusual happens to grab eyeballs. So mixing up content is a good option.”
Which is why TV9 has a cookery show in its lineup. And Aas Pass TV will also have other content that will help in generating revenues.
The ad market for Gujarati news channels is set to expand. Says Thakkar, “There will be a conversion from print to TV news channels in Gujarat. This is what has happened in other regional markets as well and here it will be more obvious as two print players are entering the TV business. We will also be launching AFP (advertiser funded programme) and see great potential in real estate and retail advertisers supporting the local news channels.”
What will also help in Gujarat is that its four main cities – Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara – are turning into mini metros. The spending capacity in these cities is increasing steadily and advertisers will want to capture this market.
The distribution cost will also ease as the main cities of Gujarat fall under digitisation in the second phase. “The carriage cost should fall after digitisation comes in in the next phase,” avers Murthy.
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
