News Broadcasting
Cinevistaas readies two new shows for Sahara
MUMBAI: Two years ago, Cinevistaas’ show Draupadi on Sahara Manoranjan was taken off midway. Today, Cinevistaas is ready with two new shows – Saathiya and Zaroorat Hai – for the same channel. While the former will go on air from mid-July, the latter will see the light in about two months time.
Saathiya – Pyar Ka Naya Ehsaas – which will be telecast from Monday through Thursdays from 8:30 pm to 9 pm – is the story of three friends – Kshitij (Amar Upadhyay), Aryan (Sanjit Bedi) and Gayatri (Shraddha Nigam) of strong choices that define their destinies. Upadhyay plays the pampered son of an export baron, Bedi plays his best friend who is a Casanova and Nigam plays a small town girl.
Manini De (Pari of Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin) who plays Bedi’s mother will also have an important role. Says Bedi, “De plays my step mom. There is not much of difference between our ages and that will be fun.”
Bedi was also cast in Cinevistaas’ Sanjivani- A Medical Boon (now in its third year) as Dr Juhi’s (Gurdeep Kohli) best friend, but had opted out after a brief period when the serial had shifted its focus from the Sanjivani hospital to love tracks and soapy matters. “It feels great to be back with Cinevistaas who held no grudges against me because they understood my perspective on why I was opting out. That’s the way it should be,” he says.
Upadhyay, out of Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand when AK Films and Star Plus put their heads together to go for a 20 year leap, says, “I am doing just one serial presently. Playing a rich south Mumbai kid whose motto in life is to eat, drink and be merry will be different from playing the righteous son which I have been doing almost all along in my career so far. The time has come to evolve and grow as an actor.”
According to Cinevistaas creative director Namit Sharma, this show was conceived in June last year when Cinevistaas made the pilot ready and ventured out to have a dialogue with Sahara Manoranjan. “We met Triptii Sharma (Sahara Programming, vice president). She told us that they wanted youth-centric romantic stuff. Since we had readied a pilot for a show on similar lines, we showed it to them. It was soon approved.” The shooting began in February this year, but the momentum really picked up in April and May.
The balance cast includes Iklaq Khan, Saurabh Dubey, Vanita Mallik, Malini Kapoor, Nisha Lalwani, Vishal Sabnani and Ashita Dhawan among others. Binita Desai has penned the story and screenplay (of Kasautii Zindagi Ki, Kutumb and Kum Kum: Pyaara Sa Bandhan fame).
Shankar Mahadevan and Sneha Pant have rendered their voice to the title lyrics which have been set to music by the famous trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.
Says Sharma, “Saathiya could well redefine the meaning of love and friendship. It has been great working with Sahara Manoranjan. They wanted the show almost as it was. Every actor has been cast after making sure that he would fit the role. You may be surprised that Shraddha will portray a small town girl which would mean wearing salwaar kameez type of outfits, but then, we wanted an actress who could emote. As for Amar, we cast him when I had made sure after seeing him in one of the Des Mein… episodes that he could go through a gamut of emotions.”
“There will be no bedroom and kitchen politics like the dailies generally have, there is an immense freshness in the show, the focus will be on youth” said Cinevistaas chairman Prem Kishen.
Zaroorat Hai will be a half-hour weekly starring Farida Jalal, Sushmita Mukherjee, Nitish Pandey, Cyrus Sahukar, Amit Sadh, Hiten Paintal and Vaibhav Jalani (of Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai). “It’s the story of a woman and her five sons. She is desperate to have all her sons married, for only then something will happen which would change her life. All her sons are simpletons, not city sleekers. It’s a slightly goofy family. The comedy that happens with each son’s wedding and the induction of the bahus will be a treat to watch,” promised Sharma.
This one will be directed by Rahul Mewawalla who has directed a comedy for Cinevistaas Mamla Gadbad Hai on Channel 9. This is Sharma’s baby (concept) which he developed with Vijaykrishna Acharya (who also writes Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin).
While Saathiya is 30 episodes ready (that’s quite a bank in contrast to what most other dailies are equipped with), Zaroorat Hai bank has seven to its credit (which is also not a bad score considering that it’s a weekly). “We need to shoot three more episodes before of Zaroorat Hai before Sahara Manoranjan takes a call on the day, time slot and the launch date,” concluded Sharma.
It will be interesting to watch how the rejuvenated relationship (of Sahara Manoranjan and Cinevistaas) withstands the pressures of different kinds this time.
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
