Music and Youth
India’s Next Top Model gets sponsor heavy in third season
MUMBAI: MTV India’s Next Top Model season boasts a range of partners such as Livon Serum, Oppo, Lotus Make-up and Hike Messenger. The show, produced by Bulldog media and entertainment, will air every Saturday at 7 pm.
CBS Studios International has licensed the India format rights for the worldwide hit dramality series America’s next top model to Mumbai-based Bulldog media and entertainment for the third season.
Viacom18 COO Raj Nayak believes that MTV’s youth connect and creative prowess is the reason for sponsors lining up year after year. He said, “Fashion is one of the cornerstones of youth culture. And when the country’s biggest youth brand sets out to find the country’s next big fashion icon in the form of India’s Next Top Model, it is but natural that brands pertaining to fashion, beauty and lifestyle would want to be associated with us.”
The upcoming season of India’s Next Top Model where ‘Fashion gets Tough’ follows the journey of ten beautiful young girls as they transform into ramp-ready professional models. The show will be presented by Malaika Arora and judged by India’s original supermodel, Milind Soman and Bollywood’s favorite photographer Dabboo Ratnani while the contestants get mentored by the perfectionist, Anusha Dandekar and tough task master Neeraj Gaba.
Viacom18 head youth, music and english entertainment channels Ferzad Palia said, “Since the time of its inception, India’s Next Top Model has been a superhit with audiences across the country. The very fact that we have contestants participating in the show from across the country – including the North East, is a testament to the fantastic reach and wide appeal this show has.”
Bulldog co-founder and executive producer Akash Sharma said: “Epecially adapted for the Indian audience, India’s Next Top Model is a transformation series not a modeling competition, where we take ordinary girls and follow their journey to the top of the high stakes world of fashion/ modeling.” His aim is to replicate the success of America’s Next Top Model, now in its 24th season, in India too.
Talking about Livon’s returning partnership with the show, Marico chief marketing officer Anuradha Aggarwal said, “The Livon girl believes in being vivacious, vibrant and looking fabulous at all times – Livon wants to be this young girl’s constant companion, to give her salon finish hair, anytime, anywhere. Through this collaboration we wish to connect with the young millennials and provide them with a platform to showcase their talent, and offer them an opportunity to find the model within.”
Oppo Mobiles India Pvt. Ltd brand director Will Yang said, “Oppo is a young and fashionable brand and it is always a pleasure to associate with youth-centric and fashionable shows like India’s Next Top Model. Oppo is an emerging brand and collaborating with this show will help both of us in reaching out to the young audience and embark on a new journey in the fashion world.”
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.
