MAM
Ripe opportunity to utilize lockdown for adapting to changing realities
Collectively, we are facing possibly the biggest crisis and turning point in history. This is going to significantly impact the landscape of business, and most importantly the business of communication. Right now, being extra sensitive and showing empathy seems to be key in winning the game of communication. It’s not about individual perceptions anymore; the world is leaning towards a dominant emotion, and everyone is taking it upon themselves to be the harbinger of awareness and sensitivity.
Moreover, uncertainty has become the norm of the times. The Covid2019 pandemic has turned many businesses upside down, and people are struggling to stay afloat. This is as true for marketing and PR agencies, as for any other company facing lost revenue in terms of clients, mounting debts owing to stuck payments, halt of potential business opportunities and much more.
However, despite all of this, I believe that we will emerge out of this stronger and wiser. It’s true that many sectors are facing quite volatile times, but there are also many businesses that have managed to sail through these testing times by virtue of their product offerings.
Moreover, at a time when most PR and marketing professionals have been forced to work from home, there is a huge ripe opportunity waiting for us to utilize this time to adapt to changing realities and prepare for a world post-Corona. How about we double down on our efforts and approach it with an innovative bent of mind. How many times have you wanted to test the effects of digital PR on your business, but couldn’t find enough time to try it out? How much effort have you previously put in training your staff to be more digitally-adaptable? The time is now.
Even big brands are leveraging this time to become the epitome of corporate social responsibility. For instance, legacy adhesive brand Fevicol effectively created a conversation around social distancing as a precautionary measure during the outbreak in order to strengthen bonds in the times to come. From Amul to Bigbasket, all brands, big or small, are leaving no stone unturned to cash in on this great marketing opportunity, while also spreading awareness.
The government has not been far behind either. Leaders are coming together to show they care about the welfare of their citizens. All governments are on a war footing, constantly updating their social media handles, informing people of the pandemic, and assisting them in every possible way.
At a personal level, as the owner of a PR and communications firm, our processes have been streamlined to get the maximum in terms of productivity. Since all of us have been working from home for weeks now, it has given us the opportunity to assess and reassess our priorities and how we work. Right from quick Google calls in the mornings to jot down tasks, to allocating every resource across business functions, including business development, we are ready to fight this out. Instead of putting a halt on our digital efforts, we are continuing to go full throttle. Instead of de-boarding our current clients, we are working with them at reduced budgets, but are also simultaneously chalking out innovative strategies to get better ROI during these times. We believe that during a downturn like this, there is always less competition, which means it is easier and faster to get results if you remain in the game. We are trying our best to maintain the maximum mindshare so that we are in better shape to fight anything once we are past this crisis.
The economy will slowly get back on its feet. We have hope too. We just need to keep working hard towards our goals.
The author is CEO and founder of The Pivotals
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.
