Mumbai : Content India 2026, a three-day summit organized by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, brought together leading voices from OTT platforms, broadcasters, studios, and production houses to discuss the evolving landscape of Indian and global content. The summit opened with the highly anticipated Content India Copro Pitch, where creators from across the world presented new scripted and unscripted television concepts to an esteemed international panel of judges, including Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra, and Rachel Glaister. The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar and set the stage for fresh ideas and innovative storytelling.
The judges evaluated seven shortlisted projects spanning a variety of genres and formats:
Dirty Minds – A dark comedy-drama set in Mumbai exploring mental health, created by Sundar Aaron.
Djinn Patrol – A coming-of-age mystery set in Delhi neighborhoods, created by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin.
Kanpur X Satori – A techno-thriller following a teenage gaming prodigy, created by Suchita Bhatia.
The Age of Kali – An investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller, created by Shivani Bhatija.
The Masala Quest – A documentary exploring India’s spice heritage, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini.
Respawn – India’s Esports Revolution – A documentary tracing the rise of competitive gaming in India, created by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari.
Scary Goose – A reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear, created by Samar Iqbal.
At the conclusion of the Copro Pitch, two winners were announced – the creators of Djinn Patrol, Miura Kite (Chinatown, Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey), formerly of Participant Media, and Jaya Entertainment (Real Kashmir Football Club) is also attahed ; and the creator of The Masala Quest, Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author, and self-described ‘spice evangelist’. Each received a £10,000 marketing prize from C21 Media to support development and international promotion. These projects exemplify the growing global appetite for Indian storytelling and the creative diversity emerging from the country.
Mr Manoj Dobhal, CEO and Executive Director, Dish TV India said, “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global. India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India. It is a platform where storytellers meet buyers, creators meet investors, and India is ready to host the world’s leading marketplace for content.”
The summit also featured the Content India Trends Report, highlighting current industry dynamics and projected growth in 2026. Leading analysts shared insights into India’s evolving content ecosystem. Daoud Jackson, Senior Analyst, OMDIA, said, “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth. In 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the US, while Indians spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and CTV gain traction, forcing broadcasters to innovate. Games, music, and cinema are also growing, but advertising remains the backbone of the industry. AI-generated content is just 2 percent of engagement, highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetizing effectively from day one and leveraging short-form content and CTV to compete with social platforms and global players.”
Hannah Walsh, Principal Analyst, Ampere Analysis, added, “India has become a global content powerhouse, producing over 24,000 titles in January 2026, with 19,000 available internationally. India now accounts for 12 percent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 percent in 2021, outpacing Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon, and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles yearly abroad. The top markets importing Indian content are Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, the US, and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 percent, while crime dramas and children and family titles are particularly strong. Video-on-demand platforms focus on crime, thriller, reality, and comedy, while linear platforms continue with romance and drama. The Indian ecosystem is highly competitive, expanding fast, and shaping both domestic trends and international demand for Indian stories.”
The summit also hosted sessions, bringing together senior executives from leading platforms and networks to discuss the current state and future trajectory of the Indian content ecosystem. The session explored evolving consumption patterns across languages, regions, and formats, while addressing key challenges in audience engagement, discovery, and monetization.
With the Copro Pitch highlighting fresh storytelling talent, the Content India Trends Report offering deep market insights, and the Thought Leadership sessions providing strategic perspectives, Content India 2026 reinforced India’s growing role as a global content powerhouse and a hub for creative innovation.