The city where I was raised is now home to the largest circulating newspaper in the world. The “Daily Awakening” or Dainik Jagran is a Hindi language newspaper whose circulation is buoyed by India rising literacy level, rising incomes and rising population. Equally newspaper circulation is buoyed by the prestige factor (reading a newspaper for a poor person is an inexpensive of declaring that they have begun the unshackle themselves from India’s past).
The Economist has a great story this week where is says, ” ..the number of paid-for Indian daily newspaper titles has surged by 44% to 2,700. That gives India more paid-for newspapers than any other country.” Additionally Indian papers are generally profitable, which is more than most Western newspapers can say today.
This phenomenon has significant implications for advertiser and marketers of any kind as they seek to expand their presence or sales in India. It creates an interesting dynamic as the lower socio-economic strata in India experience change in every aspect of their lives on an accelerated basis (cell phones. FM radio, television, you name it).
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
