News Broadcasting
Priyanka Shah triumphs on Zoom’s ‘Levi’s Diva Quest’
MUMBAI: In a ceremony at Intercontinental The Grand, Mumbai Priyanka Shah of Pune was declared as the winner of the Levi’s Diva Quest.
This was a hunt to find an anchor for Zoom.
The show was judged by a panel of style icons including ace photographer Subi Samuel, makeover specialist and choreographer Achla Sachdev, celebrity tarot-card reader and television host Sunita Menon, ad-film maker Prahlad Kakar, TV host Mini Mathur and fashion designer Rocky S,
Shah will be the new face of Zoom. She has won herself a 1-year contract to host shows on the channel. Dimple Anand from Delhi and Malvika Rane from Mumbai were chosen as the first and 2nd runner-up respectively. Parmita Katkar from Mumbai won the title of ‘The Worldspace Miss Talented’.
Diana Hayden and Zoom anchor Siddharth Kannan anchored the event whuch had performances by Anuradha Pal, Anaida, international artists Nic and Nicole as well as a dance performance by Yana Gupta. The contestants walked down the ramp showcasing the D’damas Vivaha collection and special costumes designed by Neeta Lulla after facing the judges with two rounds – ‘2 min of Fame’ – where the beauties exhibited their talent by doing a filler act to get the loudest applause followed by a rapid Q&A round with the judges.
Attendees at the event included former-Miss India World Sindhura Gadde, the ‘celebrity’ choreographer Hanif Hillal, television actress Kanchi Kaul, choreographer Imam Siddiqui, Nicolo Morea, Rohit Verma, Sherrin Cheroke from the Band of Boys and Page 3 socialite Kishin Mulchandani.
Levi’s Diva Quest has been a seven episode series which has been airing on Zoom every Saturday and Sunday at 9 pmsince 21 October, 2006. The show is hosted by ramp model and an anchor of Zoom Aparna Kumar. The final episode will be a one-hour special and will air on Zoom on 11 November, 2006 at 9 pm.
Zoom business head MK Anand said, “Zoom has set highest standards in packaging and presentations on Indian Television ever since its launch where anchors have been an integral part of this. We are now poised to get into the next stage of our life cycle and there are host of new initiatives both in terms of content and marketing that is slated to launch in October-November this year. Diva Quest is a stepping stone in that direction that we have taken. The launch of Levi’s Diva collection couldn’t have been timed better. We are extremely happy to have them as our associates in this endeavor.”
The Presenting Sponsor for the event is Levi’s Diva Jeans while the Associate Sponsors are D’Damas Vivaah Diamond Jewellery, WorldSpace Radio, Lenovo, Samsung D 900, InterContinental The Grand, Mcdowell Signature & Planet M, and telecom partner for the event is BPL Mobile.
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.
