News Broadcasting
Raj to launch Tamil news channel on 23 June, invest Rs 200 mn
MUMBAI: Chennai-based Raj Television Network is investing Rs 200 million in its Tamil news channel which is set for launch on 23 June.
Raj News will be the fourth channel in the network, adding to its Tamil general entertainment channel Raj TV, music channel Raj Musix, and Raj Digital Plus.
With bureaus spread across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, Raj News will also have reporters in New Delhi and Mumbai. The Tamil news channel will concentrate more on the South India based stories. For foreign stories, Raj News has tied up with Associated Press.
“We are investing around Rs 200 million and will focus on news across the southern region,” says a source in the company.
Raj News is a free-to-air (FTA) channel and will also be available on direct-to-home (DTH) for subscribers. The channel has already tied up with DTH operators Dish TV and Sun Direct.
Sun TV Ltd. dominates the Tamil Nadu television market with a string of Tamil channels in the GEC, movies, news and music space.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
