Why India’s Media Grew Fast In Scale But Could Not Translate Into Revenue Growth

At FICCI Frames 2025, Riddhima Bhatnagar of Business Today spoke with Vanita Kohli Khandekar, columnist and media analyst at Business Standard, on why India’s booming media industry still struggles to make money. From 900 TV channels and 60+ OTT platforms to hundreds of newspapers and radio stations, India has seen an explosion in content. Yet, the entire media and entertainment industry stands at just $29 billion, a fraction of what global giants like Disney earn alone. Khandekar says the real problem lies not in viewership, but in monetization and ambition.

She argues that price regulation in television stifled innovation, preventing the emergence of premium programming, while the cinema sector remains underdeveloped with only 8,000 screens nationwide. Streaming alone, she warns, cannot sustain growth.

The solution, she insists, lies in industry-led change, not regulation, through investment in infrastructure, better business models, and audience-driven innovation. India, she says, loves its entertainment, but until it learns to value and pay for it, the sector will remain far from its global potential.