Hindi
Centre keen to promote documentary TV channel: Dasmunsi
MUMBAI: Renowned Manipur filmmaker Aribam Syam Sharma is to receive the V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award for contribution to the documentary film movement in the country.This was announced here last night (Sunday) by Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh at the inauguration of the Tenth Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) for Short, Documentary and Animation Films at a simple function presided over by the Information and Broadcasting minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi at the National Centre for Performing Arts.
Sharma is a film director, actor, critic, and music director. He came to limelight with his award-winning film Imagi Ningthem (My Son, My Precious) that received the grand Prix at International Film festival at Nantes in France in 1982. His other acclaimed films include Ishanou, the official selection (un Certain Regard) for Cannes Film Festival 1991, and Sangai-The Dancing Deer of Manipur declared as the “Outstanding Film of the Year 1989” by the British Film Institute. He has directed nine Manipuri feature films and 26 non-feature films. They include Sanabi (The Frey Mare) in 1996, Rajarshee Bhagyachandra of Manipur and Gurumayum Nirmal.
Maharashtra Cultural Affairs Minister Ashok Chavan, joint secretary (films) VB Pyarelal in I&B ministry, Indian Documentary Producers‘ Association president Jahnu Barua, Aribam Syam Sharma and actress Vidya Balan were among the others present at the inauguration.
The CM expressed satisfaction that Mumbai continued to be the permanent home for the MIFF as the city was “the motherland of movies.” “Let MIFF ignite many more movies,” he added.
Dasmunsi announced that the Films Division had restored as many as 6,000 old prints and only 1,000 prints were left to be restored and digitized. Responding to the demand for a separate documentary TV channel, he said that he had discussed the matter with Prasar Bharati and also asked them to give time every Saturday for promoting the classical arts of the country. But he said he would clear within a week any proposal by a private entrepreneur for a channel for documentaries.
Interestingly, however, the minister did not respond to a proposal made almost two years ago by the Films Division for launching a separate documentary channel.
Dasmunsi regretted that television news channels appeared to have run short of serious news and were mingling news and entertainment.
Chavan said that the government supported the documentary format as a means of purposeful communication.
Earlier, Barua strongly reprimanded the authorities for not being able to create an exhibition outlet for documentary films and the television channels including Doordarshan failing to give adequate time for showing meaningful documentaries. He said one reason for this was the lack of unity among documentary filmmakers who were unable to put proper pressure on the government and create a proper platform.
Kuldeep Sinha, chief producer of the Films Division that organises the festival in collaboration with the I&B ministry and the Maharashtra state government, said he hoped to work towards an annual MIFF.
A total of 44 films from 16 countries including India have been shortlisted for the international competition while 54 films from 14 states have been selected for the national competition.
Sinha today revealed that a total of 228 films from 37 countries had been received for the international section and 543 films had been received from within the country.
Apart from the competition sections, a total of nine international films will be showcased in other sections and 13 Indian films will be shown in the special screening section.
Referring to the fact that MIFF had become the third largest documentary festival in the world, Sinha said that the tenth edition this year – the festival commenced in 1990 and is held every alternate year – will have several new features.
Being held from 3 to 9 February, MIFF will have separate sections of films from the SAARC countries, South Africa and Brazil.
There will be a “Best of Festivals” section for selected films from some renowned documentary, short and animation film festivals and Oscar winning and nominated films, a retrospective of films by jury members, a section of classics featuring films of great masters of documentary films which will have films made by great masters like Bert Haanstra, Robert J Flaherty, Francois Truffaut, Istvan Szabo, Kristof Zanussi and Ritwik Ghatak. This package will be organised with the support of National Film Archive of India.
Hindi
GUEST COLUMN: Why film libraries & IPs are the new engines of growth
Unlocking value through catalogue strength and IP synergy
MUMBAI:In a media landscape defined by fragmentation, platform proliferation, and ever-evolving audience behavior, the economics of filmmaking are undergoing a fundamental shift. No longer confined to box office performance, a film’s true value is now measured across an extended lifecycle that spans digital platforms, syndication networks, and global markets. As content consumption becomes increasingly non-linear and algorithm-driven, film libraries and intellectual properties (IPs) are emerging as strategic assets, capable of delivering sustained, long-term returns. For Mohan Gopinath, head – bollywood business at Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd., this transformation signals a decisive move from hit-driven models to portfolio-led value creation. In this piece, Gopinath explores how legacy content, when intelligently repurposed and distributed, can unlock recurring revenue streams, why the interplay between catalogue and original IP is critical, and how media companies can build resilient, future-ready entertainment businesses.
For all these years, we thought that a film is successful if it performs well in theatres. There are opening weekend numbers, box office milestones, and distribution footprints that gave a good picture of how the movie has done commercially and also tell us about its cultural impact. However, there are multiple platforms today, always-on content ecosystem, which has caused a shift. Today, the theatrical performance is not the culmination of a film’s journey but merely the beginning of a much longer and more dynamic lifecycle.
Film libraries today are emerging as high-value, constantly evolving assets that deliver sustained returns well beyond initial release cycles. This becomes a point of great advantage for legacy content owners with diverse catalogues, to shape long-term business outcomes.
According to FICCI-EY, the media and entertainment industry of India achieved a valuation of Rs 2.78 trillion in 2025 which is expected to reach Rs 3.3 trillion by 2028 through a compound annual growth rate of approximately 7 per cent and digital media will bring in more than Rs 1 trillion to become the biggest sector which generates about 36 per cent of overall market revenues.
This shift is the expansion of distribution endpoints. We know how satellite television was once the primary secondary window but today, it coexists with YouTube, OTT platforms, Connected TV, and FAST channels. Each of these platforms caters to distinct audience demographics and consumption behaviors, helping content owners to obtain more value from the same asset across multiple formats.
For instance, films that had great reruns, now find continuous engagement across digital platforms. On YouTube, classic Hindi cinema continues to attract significant viewership, reaching audiences across generations and geographies with remarkable consistency. At Shemaroo Entertainment, this is reflected in our film library shaped over decades as part of a long association with Indian entertainment. From classics such as Amar Akbar Anthony to much-loved entertainers like Jab We Met, Welcome, Dhamaal, Phir Hera Pheri, Dhol, Golmaal, and Bhagam Bhag, many of these titles continue finding new audiences while retaining their place in popular memory. Their enduring appeal reflects how culturally resonant stories can continue creating value over time. Similarly, FAST channels have created curated, always-on environments where catalogue content can continue to thrive through star-led and genre-based programming.
This multi-platform approach has very well transformed films into long-tail IP assets which are capable of generating recurring revenue across advertising, subscription, and syndication models.
The evolution of audience behavior is equally important. Nowadays, it’s more important to find what’s more relative than what’s recent as viewers are more influenced by mood, memories, and algorithmic suggestions than by release schedules. Even if a movie was released decades ago, it can trend alongside a newly released movie, if surfaced in the right context. Thoughtful packaging, whether through festival-based playlists, actor-driven collections, or genre clusters, allows catalogue content to remain dynamic and continuously discoverable. Shemaroo Entertainment has built extensive film libraries over decades and its focus has mostly been on recontextualizing content for the consumption of newer environments. This process doesn’t just include digitization and restoration, but also re-packaging of films as per platforms.
Syndication itself has evolved into a key growth driver. In perspective, when looking at the domestic market, curated content packages continue to find strong demand across broadcast and digital platforms. Meanwhile, in the international market, especially in markets like Middle East, North America and Southeast Asia, the appetite for Indian content is opening up new monetization avenues. Here, the ability to package and position catalogue content effectively becomes as important as the content itself.
Importantly, the need to re-package catalogue content does not diminish the role of new content. In fact, originals and fresh IP are essential to sustaining the long-term value of a film library because they act as discovery engines that bring audiences into the ecosystem, while catalogue content drives depth, retention, and repeat engagement.
This interplay between the “new” and the “known” is what defines a robust content strategy today. While new films generate spikes in consumption, catalogue titles offer familiarity and comfort. These are factors that are increasingly valuable in an era of content abundance and decision fatigue. This is also shaping our strategy, drawing value from both a deep catalogue assets and a growing focus on original IPs to strengthen long-term audience engagement and build more predictable revenue streams.
There is growing recognition that long-term value in entertainment will be shaped not only by how intelligently existing content continues to live, travel and find relevance, but also by how consistently new stories are created to renew that ecosystem. In that sense, film libraries and original IP are not parallel bets, but reinforcing engines of growth. For media companies, the opportunity lies in making these two forces work together, because that is increasingly where more resilient and predictable businesses are being shaped.
Note: The views expressed in this article are solely the author’s and do not necessarily reflect our own.
