Nifty Media index tanks 4.5%; Zee Entertainment, Network18 plunge up to 14%

Sun TV Network hit a new 52-week low of ₹458.60, down 3.3%; Saregama India and Prime Focus were down 4% and 3%, respectively, in Monday’s intra-day trade.

Media stocks led by Zee under selling pressure in Monday’s trade. (Image: Reuters)

Deepak KorgaonkarMumbai4 min read Last Updated : Aug 31 2026 | 12:04 PM IST

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Media shares price movement

 
Shares of media and <a href="https://comicvibe.com/zee-entertainment-shares-decline-for-fourth-straight-day-fall-10/” title=”Zee Entertainment shares decline for fourth straight day, fall 10%”>entertainment companies were under pressure, with the Nifty Media index plunging 4.5 per cent on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in Monday’s intra-day deals after a sharp fall in the market price of Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) and Network18 Media & Investments.
 
At 10:57 AM, the Nifty Media index was down 3.6 per cent at 1,545.05, compared to a 0.69 per cent decline in the Nifty 50. The media index slipped to a low of 1,530.20 in intra-day trade.
 
Among individual stocks, the share price of ZEEL tanked 14 per cent to ₹86.90 on the NSE in intra-day trade amid heavy volume. A combined 68.01 million equity shares of ZEEL changed hands on the NSE and BSE. 
  
Network18 Media & Investments’ market price slipped 5 per cent to ₹27.40 on the NSE. The stock quoted close to its 52-week low of ₹27.38 touched on March 30, 2026. Thus far in the calendar year 2026, the stock tanked 36 per cent, against a 6.8 per cent rise in the Nifty Media index. The company is engaged in activities spanning broadcasting, digital content, print and allied businesses.
 
Sun TV Network hit a new 52-week low of ₹458.60, down 3.3 per cent in intra-day deals. Year-to-date, the stock plunged 21 per cent. Saregama India and Prime Focus were down 4 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively.
 

Why ZEE shares plunged 14% on huge volume?

 
According to media reports, Canara Bank and Union Bank of India are challenging the National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) approval of ZEE group founder Subhash Chandra’s repayment plan.
 
Last week, the NCLT approved a repayment plan for Zee Group Founder and Chairman Subhash Chandra under which creditors will receive only ₹6.5 crore against admitted claims of around ₹22,006.57 crore. This amounts to a haircut of nearly 99.97 per cent for lenders, news agency PTIreported. CLICK HERE FOR FULL REPORT
 
Further, Subhash Chandra on Friday said that the group repaid approximately ₹43,000 crore of its ₹45,000 crore total debt. He urged the banking system and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to appoint an independent auditor to review the group’s borrowings, defaults, and repayments, the Business Standardreported.
 
In a statement on Thursday, Chandra said that “certain vested media houses are spreading wrong information about my personal insolvency matter in NCLT”. However, the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Group on Friday refuted allegations by media baron Subhash Chandra against media entities, terming them “baseless”. CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS
 

JM Financial Institutional Securities view on media sector

 
Analysts at JM Financial Institutional Securities believe TV advertising is undergoing a structural decline, driven by advertisers reallocating budgets toward digital platforms. The combination of healthy advertiser advertising & promotion (A&P) growth across fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and other sectors further supports this view. That said, most of the broadcasters have also been building out their digital platforms to capture this changing industry dynamic. 
 
Netnet, the brokerage firm believes ad growth is likely to remain muted in the near term for broadcasters as their television business faces structural softness, while the digital business, despite its strong growth trajectory, remains relatively small in scale.
 
Management commentary across FMCG companies points to continued/accelerating brand investments, although allocation is increasingly shifting toward digital, performance marketing, influencers and localised activation. Similar growth in advertising spends across banks, non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), automobiles, consumer durables and building materials reinforces our view that TV is losing wallet share, analysts said. In response to these changing consumption patterns, broadcasters have also been building out their digital platforms, they added. 
Disclaimer: Views and outlook shared on the stock belong to the respective brokerages and are not endorsed by Business Standard. Readers’ discretion is advised. 
 
Topics :The Smart Investorstock market tradingMarket trendsmediaEssel Group Zee EntertainmentNetwork18

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First Published: Aug 31 2026 | 12:04 PMIST