MAM
Zubin Gandevia to take over as managing director NGC Asia
NEW DELHI: Having spun a success story in India with National Geographic Channel (NGC), it’s time for the organisation’s MD Zubin Gandevia to move ahead to play larger role for NGC in Asia as its managing director.
Nikhil Mirchandani, who was heading the ad sales for NGC Network India will be appointed the MD of NGC Network India on 1 January, 2006. Mirchandani will be taking over from Gandevia who will move to Hong Kong.
Gandevia will take on the management responsibility for the National Geographic Channel and A1 Channel businesses across the territories of Hong Kong, Taiwan and South East Asia besides continuing to oversee the India and Middle East businesses.
He will continue to report to Ward Platt, Group MD Asia for National Geographic Channels International and Fox International Channels, who will be based in Tokyo from October of this year.
Speaking to Indiantelevision.com after the changes were made official today, Gandevia said, “It’s quite gratifying to see the channel today from where we started in 1999 when there was no focus.”
According to Gandevia, the Indian market presently contributes about 40 per cent to NGC’s overall Asian revenue kitty.
Gandevia has been the MD of NGC India since 1 January, 2000. He also spearheaded the successful launch of The History Channel in India in 2003.
Talking about his priorities in the new assignment, Gandevia said that he would try to understand the cross cultural markets.
“Also, being in the regional headquarters, it would help in making the parent organisation understand the Indian market better on broader issues,” he explained
Mirchandani has been responsible for building the ad sales team for National Geographic Channel and The History Channel and growing revenues by over 300 per cent over the past 12 months.
As NGC India MD, Mirchandani will be in charge of both National Geographic Channel and The History Channel for the Middle East, India and its neighbouring countries and will continue to head ad sales for all these regions.
Agreeing that Gandevia’s would be a “tough act to follow” in India, Mirchandani said that the overall focus of NGC would remain the same in India, while continuing the effort to grow the channel shares.
“For the last six weeks, NGC has been the No 1 channel in the infotainment genre and the revenue has come in at the expense of a mix of other genre like movies, infotainment and to some extent even general entertainment,” Mirchandani said.
MAM
Lessons from global media markets on building enduring content franchises
Rose Audio Visuals COO and CFO Mitesh Patel.
MUMBAI: The global media landscape has undergone a fundamental shift. Success today is no longer defined by a single hit show. It is defined by the ability to build intellectual property (IP) that travels, evolves, and compounds over time.
At Rose Audio Visuals, this shift is central to how we think about content pitching and creation. We are no longer in the business of just making shows. We are in the business of building IP ecosystems.
From Hits to Franchises
Globally, the most successful content is designed to extend beyond its first outing. It travels across: Seasons, Platforms (TV → OTT → Digital), Formats (series → spin-offs) Shows like Stranger Things and Money Heist are not just successful series they are multi-layered franchises with global recall, fan engagement, and long-term monetisation. The key learning is simple: If content cannot scale beyond one season or one platform, it remains a project not a franchise.
Local Stories, Global Impact
One of the most powerful global trends is the rise of culturally rooted storytelling. Platforms today reward local authenticity combined with universal emotion. Stories that are deeply regional are no longer limited by geography they are amplified by it. Consider the global impact of Squid Game or India’s own Sacred Games. The takeaway is clear: The more authentic the story, the greater its potential to travel if the emotion resonates universally.
Monetisation Begins After the First Window
A critical global learning is that the true value of content is not realised at launch, it is realised over time.
Strong franchises unlock multiple revenue streams: Licensing, International remakes, Brand integrations, Digital extensions , Events and immersive experiences
Global players like The Walt Disney Company have mastered this approach, turning content into long-term ecosystems that extend far beyond the screen.
The first window is just the beginning. The real value lies in what follows.
At Rose Audio Visuals, we increasingly evaluate projects not just on commissioning value, but on their long-term franchise potential.
The Rise of Creator-Led Franchises
An important global shift is the emergence of creator-led IP ecosystems.
Creators today are not just content producers they are building full-scale franchises across platforms, formats, and businesses.
A powerful example is MrBeast. What started as YouTube videos has evolved into: Multiple content formats, Global audience scale , Brand extensions and businesses, High-impact experiential content This is a fundamentally different model digital-first, audience-owned, and infinitely scalable.
This model is still in its early stages in Indian but it represents a massive opportunity.
The next wave of Indian content franchises may not come from traditional studios alone but from creators who think like media companies.
Balancing Data with Creative Instinct
Streaming platforms today are deeply data-driven. Data helps Identify emerging genres, Predict audience behaviour , Inform commissioning decisions However, global experience shows that data alone does not create hits. Data informs scale, but storytelling creates impact.
Talent is the Foundation of Franchises
Enduring franchises are rarely accidental they are built through long-term creative partnerships. Globally, there is a clear focus on nurturing Actors, Writter, Show runner and director. Franchises are not built on scripts alone they are built on creators. This is an area where we continue to invest deeply building long-term relationships with talent rather than project-based collaborations.
Multi-Platform Thinking from Day One
Content consumption today is inherently multi-platform. A successful show must be designed not just for its primary platform, but for: Short-form extensions, Social media amplification, Digital-first engagement. Every show today needs a second life beyond its original format.
India: A Market at an Inflection Point
India today stands at a unique moment in its content journey.
We are seeing significant opportunity in Regional markets (Telugu, Tamil, Marathi and others) Emerging formats such as micro-dramas, Scalable, franchise-driven fiction IP
India does not lack stories. What we have historically lacked is structured franchise thinking something that is now beginning to evolve.
The Way Forward
The biggest lesson from global markets is this: The future belongs to companies that do not chase hits, but systematically build franchises. Because while hits may deliver immediate success, franchises create long-term value, recall, and compounding growth.
At Rose Audio Visuals, this belief shapes how we develop, greenlight, and scale content across platforms.
For content companies today, the question is no longer “Will this show work?” It is: “Can this become a franchise?”
A Personal Note
Having worked across content, business, and strategy, one thing has become increasingly clear to me, the most valuable companies in our industry will not be those that create the most content, but those that create content that endures.
Building a franchise requires patience, conviction, and a long-term lens something that the industry is only now beginning to fully embrace.As we continue this journey at Rose Audio Visuals, our focus remains simple: to move from volume-driven creation to value-driven storytelling. Because in the end, stories may start conversations but franchises build legacies.
