News Broadcasting
‘Raamkhilavaan’ team makes one more satire for SABe
MUMBAI: After Raamkhilavaan CM n family , a spoof on Bihari chief minister Laloo Prasad Yadav which ran into rough weather, SABe TV is poised to air another satire called Public Hai Sab Janti Hai .
A lampoon on the prevailing deplorable social, political and economic conditions in the country, PHSJH has been written and produced by Ashwini Dhir who also wrote Raamkhilavaan ….
“We have highlighted current issues like Manisha Koirala and the Ek Choti si Love story controversy, the Salman Khan accident, Bal Thackeray’s fiery speeches and their impact, Veerappan and the unending games he plays with not one but two states, to name a few. The serial aims at presenting the third man’s perspective and focus on what the general public has to say, ” says scriptwriter Dheer.
“The serial is a tongue -in -cheek view of what the common man thinks of the media savvy politicians, Bollywood celebrities, the fourth estate and their quest for fame and money. We want to specify the fact that the common man can no longer be taken for granted, ” elaborates Dheer.
The similarity with Raamklhilavaan does not end here. The serial has the same cast as the one that had to be pulled off air in early October following a court ruling against Sabe TV – Vineet Kumar, Sushmita Mukherjee and Sanjay Mishra, who played the lead protagonists in Raam… play the principle characters in PHSJH. The serial will be aired Mondays and Tuesdays at 8:30 pm starting from 18 November 2002.
“Public Hai Sab Janti Hai’ is an answer to Raamkhilvaan which is still dawdling in the courts of Patna .We are sure that Raamkhilavaan will see the light of day. It may take time; but in a democracy no one can suppress the freedom of expression,” says a channel official when asked if the channel was walking a tightrope by opting for another satire after the Raamkhilavaan debacle.
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.
