News Broadcasting
Indian reporter wins hearts in the UK
MUMBAI: Birmingham-based Sangat TV is suddenly on everyone’s radar due to its reporter Upinder Randhawa’s distinctive and live style guerrilla journalism in action.
Loaded with just a camera and microphone, Randhawa, moving around the city and broadcasting, has become a popular face during coverage of the riots and disorder in Birmingham this week. His emotional reporting over the city’s condition, in the grip of rioters and looters, has struck a chord with television and social network audience alike.
“I don’t care if I lose my life because at the end of the day it’s about humanity,” he said to viewers in a broadcast, appearing to be visibly distressed. “It’s very emotional and ridiculous what I’m
seeing.”
The footage of his team giving cops a lift to chase a suspect has been shown by BBC, Sky and other outlets.
A Facebook page has now been started in his honour – “Upinder Randhawa from Sangat TV is a Legend”. It is already liked by more than 5,500 people and admiration is pouring in from Indians across the globe.
The station was started on 1 September last year. It is a religious channel showing news and community-based programmes which rely on donations for funding.
The channel wanted to shift focus on news within two to five years, but now the station owners are expecting it to happen a lot sooner.
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.
