News Broadcasting
ESPN Star Sports bags TV rights for ‘French Open’
MUMBAI: ESPN STAR Sports, Asia’s sports broadcaster, has acquired the exclusive telecast rights to the French Open Grand Slam tournament for a period of five years in South Asia, starting with the next championship in May-June 2007.
Roland Garros (commonly referred to as the French Open) will add to the existing line-up of tennis programming on ESPN and STAR Sports, which already includes the Australian Open, the Wimbledon, ATP Masters Series, the Tennis Masters Cup and other national and Asian level tournaments, asserts an official release.
Speaking on the acquisition, ESPN India Pvt Ltd managing director R C Venkateish said, “We are in the business of bringing top sporting action to our fans and the French Open fits in beautifully with our tennis calendar, making our offering even more satisfying for Indian tennis fans, who will continue to enjoy the international quality production and packaging synonymous with tennis broadcast on ESPN and STAR Sports.”
French Federation of Tennis (FFT) commercial director Michel Grach said, “We are extremely pleased to be associated with ESPN STAR Sports for the telecast of the French Open for the next five years. Being a premier tournament, we are indeed delighted that the leader in international sport will be showing the tournament live in the Indian sub-continent, providing tennis fans a chance to see some of the game’s best in action.”
ESPN STAR Sports has a major share of Indian tennis, being the official broadcaster of the recently-concluded Mumbai Open and having broadcasted earlier this year the Bangalore and Chennai Opens, adds the release.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
