MAM
Shantanu Saran joins Prudent Insurance as CBO to sharpen growth and client relationships
MUMBAI: Prudent Insurance Brokers has roped in Shantanu Saran as its new chief business officer (CBO), marking a strategic move aimed at boosting growth and deepening client engagement in a rapidly evolving insurance landscape.
A seasoned insurance professional with over two decades of experience, Saran steps into the new role with an ambitious mandate: scale the firm’s footprint, drive innovation in service offerings, and strengthen stakeholder relationships. Prior to this, he spent 17 years at Marsh India Insurance Brokers, where he most recently served as MD – sales & claims. Earlier in his career, he was with ICICI Lombard for over four years as area head – corporate solutions group.
In his new role at Prudent, Saran will lead business development initiatives and identify new growth opportunities, while aligning operations with market demands and risk management trends. His appointment aligns with Prudent’s aggressive expansion blueprint and its commitment to delivering comprehensive, client-centric insurance solutions.
“Shantanu’s appointment marks an important step in the company’s growth journey. His track record in building stakeholder relationships, managing P&Ls, and innovating strategic growth opportunities aligns well with our focus on delivering value and trust”, said Prudent Insurance Brokers JMD Pavanjit Singh Dhingra.
Saran holds an economics degree from Delhi University’s Ramjas College and a business administration degree from K.J. Somaiya Institute of Management Studies & Research. His leadership ethos has consistently revolved around delivering measurable outcomes while adapting to changing industry expectations.
“I am honoured to be part of Prudent Insurance Brokers at a time when the industry is evolving rapidly, and client expectations are continuously rising”, said Saran. “Prudent’s strong foundation, client-centric culture, and clear strategic direction make it ideal to build meaningful and long-term value”.
The company views this leadership addition as a pivotal move in reinforcing its industry positioning and enhancing its value proposition.
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.
