Event Coverage
Music streaming is gathering momentum in India, feel music experts
MUMBAI: At the 6th edition of MixRadio Music Connects, one of the leading panel discussions touched on the topic of streaming music in the country. The objective behind the discussion was to find out what the future of music entailed and study the growth of music streaming in India so far.
The panelists included MixRadio senior product manager Melissa Price, Believe Digital head of sales in Asia Sylvain Delange, RDIO vice president of emerging markets Snehal Shinde, Guevera founder and director of innovation Claes Loberg and was moderated by Times Music chief operating officer Mandar Thakur.
The session discussed the potential of streaming music, a way of delivering music without the need to download files of different audio formats.
Thakur introduced the session by providing a background on streaming. He said, “Often music streaming is looked upon as a tremendous blessing or a mysterious key to the great digital future. But in the last decade or so, we have been losing consumers. However, there has been the emergence of many music streaming services with many different characteristics and potential.”
Speaking about the different services, Shinde added his opinions on what makes RDIO stand out. He said, “We are a radio first service, so it’s all about giving users a laid-back experience and we achieve that by providing users with rich curated radio stations. We play songs that people like to listen to.”
Loberg shared his thoughts about the potential of Guvera, an Australian based music streaming service, which has officially launching in India today. “We have very innovative tools and we will make it easy for users to discover, share and manage the music they love,” he said.
Price talked about the evolution of Nokia Music and said, “We had a long history in the music space. We started our transformation in 2010 when we studied the music streaming space. We focused on determining the easiest way for people to listen to music. Last year, we brought to forefront a feature of Nokia music – Play Me that is the ultimate feature in providing the laid back experience. All you have to do is open the app and it’ll keep you entertained providing your own personal radio station with just one click.”
Price also added that customised meta data can help in the profiling of an artist. She said, “Good representation of the artists is important as it allows people to discover new talents and understand the existing ones. By promoting artists well, people would want to find out more about them. It increases curiosity. Things like images, biographies and Twitter handles are very important. It is important to get the meta data right in order to also know the kind of people you are connecting with to the music.”
Delange, who is heading a team of 10 music label managers in India, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and China, gave an overview of the role of his company in achieving a key market position in Asia. He said, “It’s really about making the product available. Our main role is to deliver the content, in order to make it available and visible on all the relevant platforms. We help the artistes and labels to understand their audiences and the marketing processes. We package the best products and ensure that everything is pitch-perfect in order to get the best results”.
The discussion then moved to the importance of social media in a world that that is increasingly being run by algorithms and lesser by humans.
Shinde opined, “Facebook likes can be quite deceiving but social media does make content accessible to a wide range of people. The artistes themselves have to be constantly in touch with their fan base. They need to engage through their social networks.”
Melissa elaborated on the importance of knowing latest trends and aliasing with bloggers to promote the content. “You need to understand the importance of a fan base. When we deliver music, we are delivering it to the fans. At MixRadio, we have a great team in India that keeps in touch with labels. It is important to know what is trending and what is popular,” she added. In her concluding remarks she said that they were working with significant bloggers who recommended the music to their fans and as a result the number of listeners had increased.
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
