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18 Oct 2026, 3:29 pm
Gone are the days when television audiences didn’t have the luxury of choice. In the 90s, only a handful of players existed, and audiences didn’t really have the chance to browse channels. There was no concept of doomscrolling in television. Now, that isn’t the case. In fact, television channels’ biggest rivals today aren’t other channels but platforms like OTT, vertical programming shows, and, of course, social media content. One might think the magic of television channels might be waning, and it is at such a time that Sony Pictures Networks India are launching their Tamil television channel, Sony Vizha. The team behind this new channel clearly understands what the market lacks and what they can bring to the table. “There’s always a generational shift every few years. Our research revealed a profound insight. The brief was that the audience has changed, but the incumbents haven’t been in tune with the change,” begins Rajaraman S, Chief Content Officer, South Regional, Sony Pictures Networks India, adding, “There’s a contemporary Tamil family that exists now which has, say, a Gen X, an early millennial with a Gen Z kid, and variations of the same with a Gen Z involved in the mix, as well. In this family setup, the world has changed, and COVID became a very defining moment.”
It is this moment that got Sony to Tamil three decades after they started out as a Hindi channel in 1995. Having been at the forefront of various gamechangers in television, especially in reality TV and megaserials, Sony Vizha aims to disrupt by bringing in content that treats its audience as global citizens. “Currently, we are seeing content that is largely limited to four walls of the house, intense family dramas skewed towards negativity, and even in the so-called reality space we hear words like manufactured reality. The current generation is seeking authenticity. In one survey, a response said, ‘Subtitles are the tax I pay to watch global content.’ So here is an audience which wants to watch content in its language. Technology has changed people’s aspirations, and our television hasn’t captured that, and given what they want to see,” shares Rajaraman, who understands that the dynamics of television watching have evolved a lot faster in the last five years when compared to the previous couple of decades.
Discussing the content overload and the overcrowding of platforms where it can be consumed, Rajaraman points out that Sony Vizha isn’t just trying to diversify content, but also distribution. “Sony Vizha isn’t just a TV channel, but an ecosystem. They’ll see content on television, and they’ll discover more on social media, includin
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