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TCH 2022: How can Indian content woo the world?

Published

4 years ago

July 2, 2022

Mumbai: Indian cinema and entertainment has been gradually gaining a share in the global market, with audiences around the world being more receptive to Indian content now than they have been in the past. Spurred, no doubt, in part due to the increased accessibility of the content on online streaming platforms. Despite this, India is yet to score a global hit like Parasite or Squid Game, with a worldwide impact and appeal. How can Indian content woo global audiences better, transcending boundaries and barriers to tell stories that connect with audiences worldwide? Are global co-productions the way forward?

At the sixth edition of Indiantelevision.com’s The Content Hub Summit 2022 held at Mumbai’s JW Marriott on Wednesday, industry stakeholders explore these questions, while sharing their views and insights on how Indian content can play a bigger role in the global cinema & entertainment landscape. The session, “Made in India, For the World” was moderated by film critic, journalist and author Mayank Shekhar and comprised of Friday Filmworks chief executive officer Devendra Deshpande, The Foundry creator-in-chief Vekeana Dhillon, International Media Acq Corp chairman & CEO Shibasish Sarkar, Indian Film Producer Sunir Kheterpal as panelists.

The summit was presented by Viacom18, and co-powered by Applause Entertainment and IN10 Media Network. Aaj Tak Connected Stream is the association partner. Industry partners are Fremantle India, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, One Take Media, Pratilipi, Pocket FM and The Viral Fever. The Indian Motion Pictures Producers’ Association (IMPPA) is our community partner.

Mayank Shekhar kicked off the session by asking the panellists whether any of them had attempted creating anything on a global scale, or content that’s meant for a more global audience. He noted as well that it’s not as though Indian content has not travelled across the world, it just hasn’t broken in the West.

“I don’t think that when we develop a story for a film, we look at the international audience as the primary audience,” Film Producer Sunir Kheterpal responded to Shekhar’s query. In fact, nowhere in the world, except maybe Hollywood or China, do they create movies for international audiences- they just happen, he further said. “So, most of the stuff I end up developing and that goes into production, is for the mainstream Indian audience. And if something comes out of it, great,” he added.

When it comes to storytelling and content, India is just not there yet, where enough people outside (the country) would look to us for original stories, Kheterpal noted.

The DNA of what one looks for in a story is “universal appeal”, said Friday Filmworks chief executive officer Devendra Deshpande, adding that it can be further broken down into whether the story has ‘curiosity’ and ‘awe’. “It’s not about ‘A audience’ or ‘B audience’. Whether it breaks boundaries or not, then depends on various parameters like execution, distribution etc.”

Talking about what international broadcasters are looking for, The Foundry’s Vekeana Dhillon said, “a hyperlocal story with a universal theme, that’s specific but not niche.” Where Bollywood falls into a potentially problematic zone, Dhillon adds, is the ‘Goldilocks zone’- that is, the story can’t be “too hard”, or “too soft” and it has to be just right. Because it doesn’t necessarily mean that we are getting the best product. It means we are getting a product that’s a levelled out, synthesised version of something that’s not quite hyperlocal.

“We develop a lot of content in-house. And one of our stringent rules is to flesh out characters- create human tornados of angst, love, dilemma and complications,” she says, adding that is something that’s going to get you the global gaze.

According to International Media Acquisition Corp’s Shibasish Sarkar, when you write a story, regardless of which country you are from, your first approach is how much audience you want to reach. The great news is that over the last four to five years the ecosystem has evolved and the whole medium of storytelling can now reach an audience, regardless of money, distribution capability or marketing capability.

Post-pandemic, there’s a clear demarcation in audiences’ minds today on what they want to watch in a theatre and what they wish to watch at home, said Sarkar.

When you look at the kind of money that goes into making the kind of movies that Hollywood is known for, is it that they can afford it only because they have an audience across the world. Is that the threshold that India cannot afford to cross, that unless you spend that kind of money you cannot have such a huge market, asks Shekhar of the panel.

The industry experts agreed that the Indian movie industry was more into trying to find stories that would work across the country, rather than targeting a global audience.

“I think we have a bigger battle to win within our country, said Khetarpal. “Even after we cover the Hindi-speaking belt, our next challenge is how do we take our film into the Tamil-speaking and Telugu-speaking audiences.

Devendra Deshpande agreed with Khetarpal, remarking that there’s no metrics which says that spend “X” and you will get “Y” audience. It’s just a matter of time before Indian content goes global, as with technology two major barriers have been breached- One is time- as one can access anything as per convenience. And second is distribution, he noted.

We have to figure out what is our unique selling point (USP), asserted Dhillon. “Bollywood is a brand, however, Indian cinema is far more expansive than that. We have seen the success of the South so we know that. There’s far more vibrancy, far more unique tangents that we can revel in and enjoy across the board as entertainment,” she said.

The industry experts agreed that taking Indian content global is a huge opportunity, because the language has become agnostic today. People have got used to watching content with subtitles, and are consuming it across every other language, be it Indian or any other. With OTTs, Content has acquired an ability to travel, which was not there earlier in the film world.

Related Topics:global content Panel Discussion The Content Hub 2022

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Awards

Hamdard honours changemakers at Abdul Hameed awards

Published

3 weeks ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.

The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.

Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.

The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.

Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.

Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.

Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.

Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.

The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.

Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.

MAM

Why the best campaigns today start with insights, not ideas

Published

3 weeks ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: For decades, creative storytelling has been the cornerstone of brand communication. The “big idea” amplified through catchy jingles, striking visuals, and memorable hooks was once the gold standard for relevance and recall. Creativity defined presence, and the loudest, boldest campaigns often won attention.

But the marketing landscape today looks very different.

Audiences are more exposed, more discerning, and far less patient. They are inundated with messages across platforms, formats, and creators, often encountering hundreds of brand touchpoints in a single day. In this environment, creativity alone especially when untethered from real consumer truths is no longer enough to move behaviour. Great ideas are abundant. Meaningful impact is not.

This is where insights matter.

The difference may seem subtle, but it is fundamental. An idea represents what a brand wants to say. An insight reflects what the audience is already thinking, feeling, or experiencing. The most effective campaigns emerge not from cleverness alone, but from the intersection of these two forces.

From creativity to relevance

As the marketing ecosystem becomes increasingly saturated, consumers are growing immune to inflated claims and surface-level storytelling. Even beautifully crafted campaigns can fail if they are disconnected from lived realities. The gap between a brand’s internal enthusiasm and the audience’s actual sentiment can be the difference between attention and indifference.

Insights help bridge this gap. They force brands to pause, listen, and observe to understand emotions, behaviours, cultural contexts, and contradictions. Instead of trying to be remembered through louder branding, insight-led campaigns allow audiences to see their own experiences reflected back at them. When a campaign articulates a problem that feels personal, relevance is created. Trust follows.

Insight is interpretation, not information

It’s important to distinguish between data and insight. Data tells us what is happening. Insight explains why it is happening. While data is measurable and structured, insights are interpretive and dynamic, shaped by real-time sentiment and human behaviour.

Modern consumers are full of contradictions. They demand authenticity while remaining deeply aspirational. They want brands to take a stand but expect nuance, not instruction. They seek transparency, yet are drawn to curated narratives. These tensions are not obstacles, they are opportunities. When understood correctly, they can shape communication that feels timely, credible, and human.

Some of the most effective campaigns today are born not in isolated brainstorm rooms, but through listening to audiences, creators, editors, online communities, and cultural signals. Insights often exist in blurred patterns, but once identified, they can redefine how a brand connects.

A recent campaign we executed for Domino’s illustrates this shift clearly. The brief wasn’t to make a pizza look bigger or louder. Instead, it was rooted in a simple behavioural truth: in Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, sharing food is an emotional act tied to family, celebration, and value perception. The “Big Big 6-in-1 Pizza” became a canvas for this insight. The campaign leaned into regional voices and real sharing moments, allowing people to show how they experienced the product rather than being told why they should buy it. Influencers and celebrities amplified genuine usage, not scripted endorsements. The impact from engagement to footfall to sales came not from a clever idea, but from understanding how people relate to food in their everyday lives.

Shifting the starting point

Today’s consumer landscape demands a shift in perspective from “What should the brand say?” to “What does the audience need to hear right now?” This marks a move away from inward-led marketing toward communication shaped by behaviour, emotion, and cultural relevance.

Brands leading today are keen observers. They notice when perfection stops resonating. They sense when luxury shifts from aspiration to excess. They recognise when influencer content begins to feel repetitive and trust erodes.

Virality, too, is often misunderstood. It is not a strategy to chase, but an outcome. Campaigns rooted in insight do not aim to go viral; they aim to resonate. When content reflects something familiar, a shared truth, emotion, or tension, it travels organically because people see themselves in it.

Ideas attract attention. Insights build connection.

The evolving role of PR

For PR professionals, this shift has redefined success. Coverage volume alone no longer tells the full story. The more meaningful questions today are: Did the communication influence behaviour? Did it align with cultural conversations? Did it address a real consumer pain point?

Insight-first thinking allows these questions to be answered at the planning stage, rather than corrected midway through execution.

In a world where formats and platforms will continue to evolve, what remains constant is the power of authentic communication. The strongest campaigns today do not begin with a brainstorm, but with observation, interpretation, and empathy. That is not just better marketing, it is more responsible, resilient, and meaningful brand-building.

Brands

Ahmad Muneeb elevated to VP – HR centre of excellence at Zepto

Published

3 weeks ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Zepto has elevated Ahmad Muneeb to vice president – HR centre of excellence, placing him at the helm of the company’s total rewards, executive compensation and organisational effectiveness as the quick-commerce firm powers through a high-growth phase.

The move follows his stint as senior director of the HR COE, where he played a central role in preparing the company for IPO readiness while scaling its people analytics capabilities. During this period, Muneeb helped align complex performance management structures with more streamlined and scalable employee experience frameworks.

In his new role, he will steer the design of total rewards strategies, executive compensation planning and organisational design, while also overseeing performance management, employee experience initiatives and people analytics programmes.

Before joining Zepto, Muneeb spent nearly three years at Meesho, where he held multiple rewards and HR business partner roles. Earlier in his career, he worked as a senior rewards consultant at Mercer, advising high-tech clients on compensation benchmarking, pay structures and talent-focused reward frameworks.

He began his hr journey at Cognizant, where he supported compensation programmes for nearly two lakh employees across India and worked on m&a compensation alignment and skill-based pay initiatives. Prior to moving into HR, Muneeb started his career as a software engineer at Netcracker, bringing a technical grounding to his people strategy work.

With a mix of consulting rigour, start-up agility and enterprise-scale experience, Muneeb’s elevation signals Zepto’s continued focus on building robust people systems as it races towards its next phase of growth.