Darshan Shah, co-founder of NewsReach, has been named Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 in the Media and Entertainment category. The fast-growing PR-tech leader was honored alongside other prominent industry figures at the Economic Times Entrepreneur Awards 2026, held at the Sahara Star Hotel in Mumbai.
Mumbai, May 18, 2026: NewsReach Co-Founder and CEO Darshan Shah received the Entrepreneur of the Year award for the Media & Entertainment sector during the third annual ET Entrepreneur Awards, which took place on March 25, 2026, at the Sahara Star Hotel in Mumbai.
The NewsReach chief executive secured the win in the Media & Entertainment category at the third edition of the Economic Times Entrepreneur Awards 2026. The event at the Sahara Star Hotel brought together a gathering of India’s top business figures to celebrate significant entrepreneurial milestones and progress in industry innovation.
“Visibility is the new currency for businesses in the digital age. We built NewsReach to be the infrastructure layer through which brands, startups, and enterprises access every PR opportunity in India, and eventually across the Global South. ” — Darshan Shah, Co-Founder & CEO, NewsReach Media Pvt. Ltd.
The Journey Behind the Recognition
Shah, a first-generation entrepreneur hailing from Gujarat, launched NewsReach in partnership with co-founder Soniya Kundnani. Their collaborative vision and the company’s rapid early growth led to their inclusion on the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list for Media, Marketing & Advertising. Furthermore, the company has secured backing from major industry players HT Media and Zee Media, demonstrating strong institutional belief in their PR-tech approach.
Founder Snapshot
- Company: NewsReach Digital Pvt. Ltd.
- Award: ET Entrepreneur of the Year — Media & Entertainment
- Edition: ET Entrepreneur Awards 2026, Edition III
- Venue & Date: Sahara Star Hotel, Mumbai — March 25, 2026
- Previous Recognition: Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2022 (Media & Marketing)
- Strategic Investors: HT Media & Zee Media
What the ET Entrepreneur Awards Represent
Managed by the B2B division of Times Internet Limited, the Economic Times Entrepreneur Awards serve as a benchmark for entrepreneurial excellence across India. For the 2026 ceremony, the judging panel assessed nominees based on several factors, including business model innovation, revenue growth, market penetration, team development, and their overall impact on the entrepreneurial landscape.
Securing the Media & Entertainment category award does more than highlight the company’s recent progress; it validates their unique structural approach. By transforming public relations from a fragmented service sector into a technology-driven infrastructure, the firm has built network effects, consistent revenue streams, and a competitive advantage rooted in 18 months of visibility graph data.
NewsReach is now entering what Shah characterizes as a scaling phase. The company is moving past its roots in PR distribution to function as the primary visibility infrastructure for India’s 1 crore addressable SMBs. Looking ahead, the firm is planning for international growth, with strategies aimed at entering the Global South, MENA, and APAC markets.
This recognition from the ET Entrepreneur Awards offers further external validation for a platform that is actively reshaping India’s media infrastructure, one visibility graph node at a time.
About the ET Entrepreneur Awards
Organized by the B2B division of the Economic Times (Times Internet Limited), the ET Entrepreneur Awards celebrate exceptional entrepreneurial achievements across various sectors in India and the Asia-Pacific region. The 2026 event (Edition III) was held on March 25, 2026, at the Sahara Star Hotel in Mumbai.
Full winners list: b2b.economictimes.indiatimes.com/entrepreneur-awards/winners-list
This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received.
