K Madhavan: The northstar of India's media landscape

After Uday Shankar's departure, K Madhavan emerged as the natural successor to lead Disney Star in India, assuming the role of Country Manager and President in 2019. Madhavan, who celebrated his birthday on June 19, held a pivotal position in steering Disney Star India through significant developments in the media industry. 

Prior to his career in media, Madhavan had a background in banking and corporate finance. He joined Asianet Communications Ltd. in 1999 as Director and later became MD and CEO in 2000. In 2008, following Star's acquisition of Asianet, Madhavan joined Star as South Head. 

As Country Manager & President of Disney Star, K Madhavan directs the strategic growth of the company, overseeing Disney, Star, and Disney+ Hotstar operations spanning General Entertainment, Sports, Direct-to-Consumer initiatives, and Studios. His leadership extends to channel distribution, advertising sales, and managing a robust local content production unit that produces nearly 20,000 hours of original programming annually across 70+ TV channels in 9 languages, reaching approximately 700 million viewers monthly.

In the backdrop of Madhavan's leadership, Disney Star India is navigating through potential merger discussions between Disney and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). These talks signify significant implications for the future landscape of media and entertainment in India, underscoring Madhavan's role in potentially shaping the combined entity's strategy and operations.

Previously, Madhavan served as Managing Director of South Business at Star India from 2016, where he significantly developed and expanded the television market in southern India. He oversaw Star's ventures across four southern states and a portfolio of regional channels in Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu. 

Madhavan's tenure at Asianet is marked by his transformative leadership, rescuing the regional broadcaster from crisis in 1999 and elevating it to a global brand. Under his stewardship, Asianet became the dominant player in the Kerala market and expanded internationally, becoming the leading Malayalam channel in Europe and America after merging with Star India in 2008.

In addition to his role at Disney Star, K Madhavan serves as President of the Indian Broadcasting & Digital Foundation (IBDF) and Chairman of the National Committee of Media & Entertainment at CII (Confederation of Indian Industry). He also holds directorships at BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) India and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, further cementing his influence in the broadcasting sector.