Deepak Chhabria to Lead Star Plus and Star Utsav

Deepak Chhabria has been appointed to oversee Star Plus and Star Utsav under the newly formed joint venture (JV) between Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Viacom18 Media, and The Walt Disney Company. Chhabria, who most recently served as GM and Head of Programming for Star Plus under Disney’s leadership, has over 20 years of experience in TV programming. His career includes roles such as Executive Producer for BBC World Service Trust's Jasoos Vijay and Head of Fiction at Viacom18. He also held the position of Senior Vice President at Star TV Network, where he played a key role in creating popular shows across Star Plus, Hotstar, Star Bharat, and Colors.

The JV, which was approved by the NCLT Mumbai, the Competition Commission of India, and other global regulatory authorities, combines the media assets of Viacom18 and JioCinema with Star India, forming a media powerhouse valued at Rs 70,352 crore (US$8.5 billion). RIL has invested Rs 11,500 crore (US$1.4 billion) to support its growth, with RIL holding a 56% majority stake. Disney and Viacom18 contribute 36.84% and 46.82%, respectively. The JV brings together leading entertainment brands, including Star, Colors, JioCinema, and Hotstar, and will operate over 100 TV channels, produce more than 30,000 hours of content annually, and cater to a digital subscriber base of over 50 million.