Star Ananda
Star Ananda was a Bengali-language free-to-air news channel in India that operated as a joint venture between Star India and ABP Group before becoming fully controlled by ABP Group and being renamed ABP Ananda.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Star Ananda was an Indian Bengali-language television news brand based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It was launched on 1 June 2005 as a free-to-air news channel created through a joint venture between Star India and the ABP Group, the media group associated with the Bengali newspaper Anandabazar Patrika and related publications. The channel was designed to serve Bengali-speaking audiences with news and current-affairs programming, placing it within the rapidly expanding regional television-news market in India. The brand represented a collaboration between Star India’s television distribution and broadcasting capabilities and ABP’s established Bengali media presence. Its geographic and linguistic focus distinguished it from national Hindi- and English-language news services, while its connection to ABP gave it access to a longstanding editorial and publishing identity in West Bengal and among Bengali-speaking viewers elsewhere in India. On 1 June 2012, the ABP Group acquired full control of the organization. Following the change in ownership, the channel was renamed ABP Ananda. The renaming aligned the television service more closely with ABP’s broader family of branded news channels and ended the Star Ananda name as the active identity of the service. The channel therefore survives institutionally as ABP Ananda, but Star Ananda is best treated as a former brand rather than a currently operating standalone channel. The available reference material does not establish a separate consumer-products portfolio, financial performance, stock-market listing, or a distinct corporate headquarters apart from the channel’s Kolkata base. It also does not identify a single individual founder. Star Ananda’s principal historical significance lies in its role as a regional Bengali news channel and in the transition from a Star India–ABP Group joint venture to an ABP-controlled news operation.
History
Star Ananda emerged during a period when Indian television broadcasting was expanding beyond national networks into language-specific and regionally focused channels. The service was established in Kolkata and targeted Bengali-speaking viewers with free-to-air news and current-affairs programming. Its launch on 1 June 2005 was structured as a joint venture between Star India and the ABP Group. The partnership combined two complementary assets. Star India brought experience in operating television channels and distributing programming across India, while ABP Group contributed a deep connection to Bengali-language journalism and the readership and editorial heritage associated with its media properties. This arrangement allowed Star Ananda to enter the regional news market with both a major broadcasting partner and a locally recognizable media identity. The channel’s core role was to provide Bengali-language television news. Its subject matter would have been oriented toward regional and national developments relevant to Bengali-speaking audiences, although the available reference material does not provide a detailed programme list, ratings history, anchor roster, or editorial chronology. No reliable source material supplied for this entry establishes specific flagship shows, audience figures, revenue, or financial results, so those details are omitted. A major corporate turning point occurred on 1 June 2012, when ABP Group acquired full control of the organization. The transaction ended the original joint-venture structure as described in the reference material and was followed by a rebranding from Star Ananda to ABP Ananda. The new name placed the channel within ABP’s own branded news portfolio and made its association with the ABP Group more explicit. The Star Ananda identity consequently became historical. The television service continued under the ABP Ananda name, but the original Star-branded entity is treated as defunct as a current brand. The available sources do not identify a separate founder, individual chief executive, listed-company status, or standalone corporate financial disclosures for Star Ananda. They also do not support retaining the supplied Your Water website, which concerns a different subject and is not attributable to this Wikipedia entity.
Products and positioning
A Bengali-language free-to-air television news channel serving audiences in West Bengal and the wider Bengali-speaking market, combining ABP’s regional media identity with Star India’s broadcast platform.
Television news channel · 2005
Star Ananda Bengali news channel
The brand’s principal offering was a free-to-air Bengali-language television news service based in Kolkata. It was created to deliver regional and general news programming to Bengali-speaking audiences. The service operated under the Star Ananda name from its launch in 2005 until the 2012 rebrand to ABP Ananda.
Brand decisions
2012
ABP Group takes full controlM&ABackground
Star Ananda had originally been established as a joint venture between Star India and ABP Group. ABP later moved to full control of the organization.
Action taken
ABP Group acquired full control on 1 June 2012 and renamed the channel ABP Ananda.
Aftermath
The Star Ananda brand was retired and the channel continued under the ABP Ananda identity.
Recent events
- 2012
ABP Group assumes full control and renames Star Ananda[1]
M&A · Leadership change · Other
On 1 June 2012, ABP Group acquired full control of the channel’s organization and changed its name from Star Ananda to ABP Ananda.
- 2005
Star Ananda launches as a Bengali free-to-air news channel[1]
Product launch
Star Ananda began broadcasting on 1 June 2005 as a joint venture between Star India and the ABP Group.
Sources3 sources
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