Satish Rajwade to lead Marathi language business at JioStar

Rajwade will be reporting to Sumanta Bose, Head of Cluster, Entertainment (Star Plus and Bharat, Bengali, Marathi and Gujarati) in his new role

by e4m Staff
Published: Nov 15, 2024 12:08 PM | 2 min read

Satish Rajwade has been tapped to lead the Marathi language business for the newly formed JioStar Joint Venture (JV) between Reliance, Viacom18 and Disney. He will be reporting to Sumanta Bose, Head of Cluster, Entertainment (Star Plus and Bharat, Bengali, Marathi and Gujarati) in his new role.

A seasoned filmmaker and storyteller, Rajwade has written and directed Marathi-language films such as Ti Saddhya Kay Kartey and Aapla Manus, the latter being produced by Viacom 18 Motion Pictures. He has also written and directed the Marathi film franchise Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai. For the last six years, Rajwade has served as Content & Programming Head for Star Pravah Marathi.

Disney Company solidified a joint venture (JV) that is poised to reshape India's media and entertainment landscape. This significant merger, approved by the NCLT Mumbai, the Competition Commission of India, and other global regulatory authorities, unites Viacom18's and JioCinema's media assets with Star India, creating a media conglomerate valued at approximately Rs 70,352 crore (US$8.5 billion). RIL has further invested Rs 11,500 crore (US$1.4 billion) in the JV to bolster its growth.

RIL, as the majority shareholder with a 56% stake, leads the JV. Disney holds 36.84%, while Viacom18 contributes 46.82%. This strategic alliance brings together some of India's most beloved entertainment brands, including Star, Colors, JioCinema, and Hotstar, under a single entity. The newly formed media powerhouse will operate over 100 TV channels, produce over 30,000 hours of content annually, and cater to a combined digital subscriber base exceeding 50 million.