Cable TV
Pix launches next month with a variety of films
MUMBAI: The English movie channel from Sony’s stable Pix launches on Saturday 1 April with a range of films that it believes will tell stories to engage viewers.
The films from different decades cover romantic comedies to dramas, war films and Westerns. While the lineup is reasonably strong, it remains to be seen as to how many English movie viewers tune in to watch films from the past. A lot of these films represent the mood of that period and some of their kind are no longer being made by Hollywood today.
One of the films that will be showcased is The Horse Soldiers on 18 April at 10 pm with John Wayne, William Holdern and Constance Towers. A Union Cavalry outfit is sent behind confederate lines in strength to destroy a rail/supply centre. A doctor is sent along with them who causes instant antipathy between him and the commander.
The secret plan for the mission is overheard by a southern belle who must be taken along to assure her silence. The Union officers each have different reasons for wanting to be on the mission.
Man, Woman And Child on 22 April at 10 pm stars Martin Sheen and Blythe Danner. A man with a wife and two daughters learns that he has a son. It seems that a few years ago while visiting France, he had an accident and he had an affair with the doctor who treated him. Now, he has learned that she just died and is informed of his son. He confides to his wife, she then suggest that they bring him over. While there all sorts of tension begin to arise. How will this affect them?
The channel will also showcase the Emily Bronte classic Wuthering Heights on 23 April at 8 pm with Anna Calder Marshall and Timothy Dalton. The Earnshaws are Yorkshire farmers during the early 19th Century. One day, Earnshaw returns from a trip to the city, bringing with him a ragged little boy called Heathcliff.
Earnshaw’s son, Hindley, resents the child, but Heathcliff becomes a companion and soulmate to Hindley’s sister, Catherine. After her parents die, Cathy and Heathcliff grow up wild and free on the Moors and despite the continued enmity between Hindley and Heathcliff they’re happy– until Cathy meets Edgar Linton, the son of a wealthy neighbour.
The theme of Exodus which airs on 16 April at 8 pm starring Paul Newman, Eva Marie Saint and Ralph Richdardson is the founding of the state of Israel. The action begins on a ship filled with Jewish immigrants bound for Israel who are being off loaded on Cyprus. An Intelligence officer succeeds in getting them back on board their ship only to have the harbor blocked by the British with whom they must negotiate.
Pix will also showcase the war film The Beast with Jason Patric, Stephen Baldwin and Kabir Bedi. During the war in Afghanistan, a Soviet tank crew commanded by a tyrannical officer find themselves lost and in a struggle against a band of Mujahadeen guerrillas in the mountains. The film looks at the Soviet ‘Vietnam’ experience and is told for both sides.
More war comes courtesy The Battle Of Britain with Michael Caine and Harry Andrews. In 1940, the British Royal Air Force fights a desperate battle against the Nazi Germany Air Force for control of British air space to prevent a Nazi invasion of Britain.
The drama Crazy In Alabama stars Melanie Griffith, and David Morse. An abused wife heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially motivated murder involving a corrupt sheriff.
Fans of Woody Allen can check out Manhattan Murder Mystery. Larry and Carol are fairly normal New Yorkers who have sent their son off to college. They meet an elderly couple down the hall and later in the week find that the wife has suddenly died. Carol becomes suspicious of Paul who seems to be too cheerful and too ready to move on. She begins her investigation. Larry insists she is becoming too fixated on their neighbour. Ted, a recently divorced friend helps her investigation and Larry begins to become jealous of their relationship and agrees to help her.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
