News Broadcasting
International Art Machine forays into India, unveils content lineup
Mumbai: International Art Machine helmed by Roy Price has entered the Indian market and acquired the rights for the adaptation of the book series ‘The Shiva Trilogy’ penned by author Amish Tripathi.
The first installment of the book “The Immortals of Meluha” will be translating into a digital series for audiences across the globe. The studio has brought in Oscar-winning filmmaker Shekhar Kapur to direct and Suparn S Varma as the showrunner and director of the series.
Moreover, the studio plans to work on a political thriller with Dibakar Banerjee and a dramedy helmed by Preity G Zinta.
“The premise of International Art Machine is that we are entering a new peak era for Asian original cinema and television,” said International Art Machine CEO Roy Price. “Everything we do supports that vision. India in particular, with its many people and stories, is poised to be a leader in a new multi-polar entertainment world. I could not imagine a better project to start IAM’s life than Shiva, and there is no better dream team to fully realize the potential of Amish’s novels than Shekhar Kapur and Suparn S. Verma. It was meant to be! At International Art Machine our goal is to partner with creators across Asia to produce series that will be game-changers at home and successfully carry the banner of Asian originals abroad. We are very excited about ‘Shiva,’ ‘The Kitty Party’ with Preity G Zinta and ‘Gods’ with Dibakar Banerjee as our first slate in India.”
“Amish’s Shiva trilogy has been India’s great publishing sensation, crossing every age and class. It’s not just mythology, it’s modern storytelling at its best. Lending itself to a beautiful international series,” said director-producer Shekhar Kapur.
Translated across 20 languages to cater to its colossal demand, Amish Tripathi’s Shiva trilogy is the fastest-selling book series in Indian history.
“One couldn’t have asked for a better team than this to take my books into the audio-visual world,” said Amish Tripathi. “Shekhar is an Oscar-winning filmmaker who is among the best living Indian directors. Roy is among the most successful Hollywood executives, having created Emmy and BAFTA-winning series. Suparn is one of the finest young writer-directors in modern India, having helmed the critically acclaimed and hugely successful Family Man 2. I am sure that with a team like this, we will create a web series that is worthy of Lord Shiva.”
“The Meluha trilogy by Amish Tripathi is a genre-defining book and has become part of the pop culture of the country,” commented Suparn S Varma. “I loved the reimagining and the world-building involving two of my favorite gods! The scale of vision and the ambition of our show visually and emotionally is as huge a task but we want to bring to audiences a vision that has never been seen before on screens.”
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.
