News Broadcasting
Vh1 brings music festival ‘Vh1 Rock Rules’ from 18 May
MUMBAI: MTV Networks’ international music and lifestyle channel – Vh1, will be rolling out an international music fiesta with Vh1 Rock Rules, featuring three international bands and 12 local bands.
The music fiesta will begin 18 May and culminate on 3 June in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.
Apart from the who’s who of Indian rock, the 15-band line-up stars three international bands – Haven (UK), Empire Dogs (Sweden) and a finale from the Aussie band Taxiride.
While, on the national front, the rock acts includes – Pentagram, Parikrama, Helga’s Fun Castle, Them Clones, Oritus, Nakshatra, Synaps, Parousia, Lounge Piranha, Vayu, Level 9 and Messiah.
On 18 May, Haven and Helga’s Fun Castle will perform, followed by Empire Dogs and Vayu on 25 May and finally Taxiride and Pentagram will perform on 1 June in Mumbai at Velocity.
In Delhi, Haven, Nakshatra and Them Clones will perform on 20 May, followed by Empire Dogs, Parikrama and Oritus on 27 May and finally on 3 June Taxiride, Level 9 and Messiah will perform at Elevate.
On 2 June, Taxiride, Synaps, Parousia and Lounge Piranha will perform in Bangalore at Palace Grounds.
Last year, Vh1 held Vh1 Hip Hop Hustle, wherein the channel brought in hip hop band Flipsyde as well as two international DJs Noname and Mentat. While the event was restricted to Delhi and Mumbai, Vh1 has now added Bangalore to the tour rock map.
Vh1 India VP and general manager Keertan Adyanthaya said, “Vh1 Rock Rules is slated to delight rock fanatics in India. We are not only bringing fresh new international talent to India but also providing a platform for Indian rock bands to reach their fans. It’s a clear indication that India is now on the world tour map and Vh1 is playing a major role in fostering this phenomenon.”
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
