Music and Youth
9X Media is NOT UP for sale: Pradeep Guha
MUMBAI: Recent media reports spurred speculations that the Pradeep Guha led 9X Media, which has New Silk Route Advisors as a private equity fund holder, is up for sale. However, refuting all such rumours, Guha tells Indiantelevision.com, “There is no truth behind the published statements. I have read the report myself and I was shocked. Let me clarify that 9XM is not up for sale.”
The network now operates five channels namely 9XM (Bollywood music), 9X Jhakaas (Marathi music), 9XO (International music), 9X Tashan (Punjabi music) and 9X Jalwa (forever young Bollywood music).
New Silk Route holds 80 per cent stake in 9X Media while Guha owns 15 per cent.
“Being a media company that has been operating for so many years, eventually the private equity had to come out at some point. And that’s all that we are talking about at this stage. This does not imply any managerial or operational changes in the network or channel,” Guha explains.
The network was started by former Star India CEO Peter Mukerjea and his wife Indrani Mukerjea.
MUMBAI: Mumbai is about to witness something it has never seen before. The Global Youth Festival arrives on 6-7 December at Jio World Garden with 15,000 attendees and 60-plus experiences sprawled across six sprawling arenas. On its sixth edition, this is no ordinary jamboree—it is a carefully orchestrated collision of wellness, adventure, arts, music, yoga and social change.
Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis will throw open the proceedings with a landmark ceremony, signalling the state’s backing for a movement that has already mobilised youth across 20-plus countries and 170-plus cities. The sheer scale is staggering: 500-plus volunteers powering the machine, 600,000-plus volunteer hours logged across previous editions, and millions of lives touched annually.
The speaker roster is formidable. Diipa Büller-Khosla and Dipali Goenka, chief executive of Welspun India, will share the stage with Malaika Arora in conversations spanning leadership, creativity and culture. Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs Mansukhbhai Mandaviya will also attend, reinforcing GYF’s reach into the corridors of power.
But this is not mere talk. The Solaris Mainstage promises concerts from renowned Indian artists. Innerverse delivers a 360-degree LED spectacle of art, technology and sound. The Love and Care Arena houses hands-on projects spanning women’s empowerment, child education, rural upliftment and animal welfare. India’s largest outdoor sound-healing experience awaits. An inflatable obstacle course, neon drifter karts and open-sky bouldering cater to thrill-seekers.
Some have branded GYF the “Coachella of Consciousness.” Others call it “India’s Largest Sober Festival.” Spiritual visionary Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshji, who inspired the festival, will deliver the Wisdom Masterclass. Every rupee goes to charity.
After Mumbai comes Kolkata on 14 December. New York looms next year. For one weekend in December, Mumbai becomes the epicentre of youth-driven change—and nothing will be quite the same after.
Tickets available on BookMyShow. Visit youthfestival.srmd.org or follow @globalyouthfestival on Instagram.
