News Broadcasting
‘Kashmeer’ to wind up earlier than scheduled
MUMBAI: Kashmeer, the serial, which brought a whiff of fresh air into soap laden Star Plus is winding up in 17 episodes (on 8 May) instead of the scheduled 26.
A love story with militancy and terrorism as the backdrop, Kashmeer was launched with a lot of fanfare on 16 January at 9 pm. One of the mega shows launched by Star Plus at the beginning of this year, it has some well known Bollywood names like Farooq Shaikh, Suresh Oberoi, Salim Shah, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Nirmal Pandey, Smita Jayakar, Lushin Dubey, Neelima Azim, Vineet Kumar, Vishal Singh, Ankur Nayar and Gul Panag among the cast.
“We cut down on the number of episodes because we realised that the story could be wound up in 17 episodes. It is a start to finish series and since there was no story line or characters that we could work on, we reduced the series to 17 instead of the scheduled 26. It is primarily a tale of time, hence we didn’t want to stretch the series needlessly,” says Contiloe Films producer Abhimanyu Singh.
The artistes, some of whom were apparently caught unawares by the announcement, have a different story to narrate though. Well known actor Smita Jayakar has lashed out saying, “I am really disappointed that the episodes have been cut down. We were told that the decision was taken because the channel felt that it was not getting the desired ratings.The serial has got rave reviews and a good response from the audience. If one remembers the so called saas bahu sagas on air also started out with modest TRPs, Kashmeer has definitely fared better. There should be a limit to channel interference….,” she said.
Acclaimed actor Farooq Shaikh agrees. “We all put in our efforts to be part of something different, something significant and of value to our country instead of the same old dreary soaps and we are told that because it didn’t get the expected ratings its being cut down by nine episodes. It is indeed unfortunate,” says Shaikh.
Gul Panag, however, doesn’t see it like that. “While signing the contract, we were told that the series could finish anywhere between 13 to 26 episodes. The serial has Bollywood greats like Suresh Oberoi, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Nirmal Pandey to name a few, who cannot shell out time for a soap that would go on for two to three years. It is a call that the channel and production house have taken.”
Thus, the bottom line is that like all good things, Kashmeer too, will come to an end. The only difference is that the end will come sooner than expected.
Also read:
Star Plus unveils ‘Kashmeer’ next week
‘Kashmeer’ – Guns and Roses
Big money riding on shows launching this month
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.
