News Broadcasting
Sahara Samay-Mumbai may launch officially in a fortnight
MUMBAI: Sahara Samay-Mumbai, Sahara Group’s western India-specific news channel, may formally launch in two weeks time, informs channel head Rajiv K Bajaj.
The channel began its test run on 26 September and has been tweaking itself ever since.
“Precisely,” Bajaj says, “we have to settle some distribution problems and technical glitches. Once that is done, we will go on air officially.”
Meanwhile, as a part of its programming initiative, Sahara Samay-Mumbai last week launched the RKB Show – Bajaj’s trademark programme – which takes the viewers live to various parts of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa and tackles on-going social issues.
The three-hour-long RKB Show, which according to a company release is considered the channel driver – is telecast at 7.30 pm everyday.
Besides live coverage, the programme, anchored by Bajaj, brings together celebrities and the common man in Western India and hosts interviews at its studios.
Bajaj says, “We usually take up a raging issue, invite about five to six guest to our studio, hold discussions and try to arrive to a practical conclusion. The latest issue we dealt with was the stamp scam case – we even spoke to deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal on the issue.”
RKB Show has already featured people like Shekhar Suman, Mallika Sarabhai, Suresh Dada Jain, Kripa Shankar Singh, Ranjit Deshmukh, Dewang Patel, Dr Ronu Mazumdar, Amitabh Dayal, Divya Datta and Pinky Advani among other celebrities.
Bajaj says, he began is ‘RKB journey’ with his column, RKB’s the Good, the Bad, the Ugly in the Daily newspaper. “Then when I joined the channel In Mumbai, I started with the RKB Show and brought it with me to Sahara also.”
Other shows in the channel include back-to-back news bulletins beginning with the main Mumbai News Bulletin and special reportage from other centres including Pune, Nagpur and Ahmedabad.
As for the shows Bajaj says, “We are only following the direction of our chairman to provide solutions instead of just focusing on problems.”
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.
