Event Coverage
Softly, softly the India strategy at Mipcom 2005?
CANNES: So what of the India story? Understated seems to sum it up.
The most active appear to have been Zee’s English language acquisition team who picked up a slew of properties for the three channels Zee Café, Zee Studio and Zee Trendz. Bharat Ranga , Zee Cinema, Zee Music business head, was more selective in his purchases picking up a much smaller package of foreign language films.
As for Sony Entertainment Television India, EVP and business head Tarun Katial has picked up a telenovela from RCTV International titled “My Three Sisters” and is actively looking at two more properties from Venevision International. And keeping his interest in the reality genre going, the buzz is that he may well take away another format from this trip to Cannes.
Did Star India pick up any material? Not that we know of. But given that it has a slate of stuff that it picked up earlier yet to go on air, that is not necessarily a surprising development. RCTV International for one has offered three titles from its library but no decisions have been made there.
Meanwhile, the 13-member strong production company “alliance” Sparks Network, of which India’s Optimystix is the first production house in Asia to join, is also hoping to manage a sale of one the 31 properties that it got to Mipcom. One Indian broadcaster has shown a keen interest in “Comedy Club”, a format developed by Spain’s Globomedia, Sparks Network president & CEO Nicola Soderlund told Indiantelevision.com. Incidentally, Sparks used the Mipcom platform to formally announce the addition of Optimystix to the network.
Bollywood getting hot in Hollywood
One area though that saw more action as it were was on the Bollywood front. Indian companies distributing Bollywood titles have welcomed Hollywood’s new interest in Indian cinema. Among the biggies Sony Pictures Entertainment has unveiled a new initiative to expand local language production in India. The studio is co-producing its first Indian film Saawariya (Beloved) with director Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
UK-based Indian film distributor Suman Film’s head of acquisitions Vimal Gupta says the Sony co-production with Bhansali can only be good for the industry, a view echoed by WEG India Pictures international sales director Avinaash Jumani.
Suman Films, meanwhile, has sold its title Bollywood Top 10 in Russia. On the other hand WEG India Pictures has sold the feature film Because Its Fate in the UK, UAE, The Netherlands, Mauritius and Fiji.
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
