About World Television Day
World Television Day is a UN observance on 21 November, marking the first World Television Forum held at the United Nations in 1996. It is about television's reach and its effect on public opinion, not about the invention of the TV set. In India the day is used to look back at Doordarshan, which began in 1959. In 2026 it falls on Saturday, 21 November 2026.
On 21 November 1996 the United Nations held its first World Television Forum, where broadcasters and diplomats argued about what television was doing to public opinion. The General Assembly liked the question enough to make the date an annual observance.
Why is World Television Day celebrated on 21 November?
World Television Day is celebrated on 21 November because the first World Television Forum was held at the United Nations on 21 and 22 November 1996. The General Assembly proclaimed the day the following month, on 17 December 1996, through resolution 51/205.
The resolution's reasoning was about influence rather than technology. Television, it said, shapes decisions by bringing conflicts, threats and economic problems to the world's attention, and is a major tool for informing and affecting opinion.
When did television start in India?
Television started in India on 15 September 1959, when an experimental service went on air from Delhi and was inaugurated by President Rajendra Prasad. It used a 5 kW transmitter and an improvised studio with equipment from Philips India, reached about 40 km around the capital, and broadcast for one hour, two days a week.
- 1959The first telecast
An experimental service starts in Delhi on 15 September under All India Radio.
- 1965A daily service
Regular transmission begins for Delhi and its surroundings; the name Doordarshan comes into use.
- 1967Krishi Darshan
A farm programme for villages around Delhi begins, and goes on to become India's longest-running TV show.
- 1975SITE
The Satellite Instructional Television Experiment beams school and farm programmes to village sets using NASA's ATS-6 satellite from 1 August.
- 1976Split from radio
Doordarshan becomes a separate department of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on 1 April.
- 1982Colour arrives
Colour transmission starts around the Independence Day address and the Asian Games in Delhi.
- 1984Hum Log
India's first television soap runs for over a year, carrying messages on dowry, drinking and girls' education.
- 1997Prasar Bharati
Doordarshan and All India Radio are placed under an autonomous corporation.
Two things about that history are easy to miss. Television in India was built as a development tool, not entertainment, which is why farm and school programming came first. And the audience was collective before it was private: villages watched one set together long before most homes owned one.
How do Indians watch television today?
Most Indian homes now get television through a paid cable or DTH connection, an internet streaming service, or Doordarshan's free satellite platform. Doordarshan itself runs roughly 35 satellite channels, six of them national and 22 regional, out of 66 studio centres.
| How you watch | What it is | Cost to the viewer |
|---|---|---|
| Terrestrial (antenna) | The old rooftop-antenna signal from Doordarshan transmitters | Free |
| DD Free Dish | Doordarshan's free-to-air satellite dish service, carrying DD and private channels | One-time dish and set-top box, no monthly fee |
| Cable TV | A local cable operator's wired feed | Monthly subscription |
| DTH | A private dish-and-box service from a telecom or media company | Monthly subscription |
| Streaming (OTT) | Apps watched on a phone, smart TV or laptop | Monthly or yearly plan, often bundled with mobile data |
DD Free Dish is the part outsiders underestimate. The Information and Broadcasting Ministry's 2025 statistical handbook counts it growing from 33 channels in 2004 to 381 in 2025, which makes it one of the largest free satellite platforms anywhere. For households that will not pay a monthly bill, it is the whole of television.
How is World Television Day marked in India?
There is no official ceremony. Broadcasters and news channels run features on their own archives, media schools screen old Doordarshan programmes, and industry bodies hold panels on ratings, regional language growth and streaming. Families do the more honest version of it, which is arguing about what to watch.
If you work in television, the day is a reasonable excuse to send a note to someone whose name sits in the closing credits and never gets read.
What should you write on World Television Day?
Name the programme and the person's part in it. Television credits go past too fast to register, so a message that says "your camera work in the second episode" lands harder than a general tribute. For family, name the show you watched together and roughly when.
Happy World Television Day. Your live piece from the flooded underpass was the only calm reporting that night. Well done.
Happy World Television Day to the person who actually shoots the thing. That opening drone shot last week was yours, and it showed.
Happy World Television Day. My mother has opinions about your characters at the dinner table every night. That is the highest rating there is.
Happy World Television Day. Six-thirty call times, twelve retakes and you still fixed the graphics. Thank you for the last shoot.
Happy World Television Day, Dadi. Chitrahaar on Wednesdays, Krishi Darshan you never let anyone switch off. I still remember the sound of the DD tune.
Happy World Television Day. May your next election night have working autocues and one full meal.
Happy World Television Day. India's first telecast in 1959 lasted an hour, twice a week. Your phone now carries more channels than that studio had cables.
Do
- Credit the crew, not only the face on screen.
- Mention a specific episode, bulletin or scene.
- In a family card, name the show and the years you watched it together.
Avoid
- Don't send this to someone whose channel has just cut jobs; ask how they are instead.
- Skip jokes about television rotting brains; it is a working day for the person you are writing to.
Other days for people who work with words and pictures: World Radio Day on 13 February, World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, World Photography Day on 19 August and World Telecommunication and Information Society Day on 17 May.
How to wish someone on World Television Day
Television is made by large teams whose names run past in six seconds. A good message on this day picks one of them: the camera operator, the field producer, the sound recordist, the serial writer, the news desk that stayed up. For family, it can simply name the show you watched together and the year.
Write a few lines in your own words, pick a design and share it as one link on WhatsApp, Instagram or anywhere else. They open an animated card made just for them, with no app and no sign-up.
Language tip: English, Hindi + recipient language.
When is World Television Day in 2026 and 2027?
World Television Day is on 21 Nov every year. Only the weekday changes.
- 2026
- 2027
Frequently asked questions
Why is World Television Day celebrated on 21 November?
World Television Day is on 21 November because the United Nations held its first World Television Forum on 21 and 22 November 1996. The General Assembly proclaimed the observance on 17 December 1996 through resolution 51/205.
When did television start in India?
Television started in India on 15 September 1959 with an experimental service from Delhi, inaugurated by President Rajendra Prasad. It ran for one hour, two days a week, on a 5 kW transmitter, and became a regular service in 1965.
What was SITE in Indian television history?
SITE, the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment, ran from 1 August 1975. It used NASA's ATS-6 satellite to beam school and farming programmes directly to community television sets in Indian villages.
When did colour television come to India?
Colour transmission began in India in 1982, around the Independence Day address and the Asian Games held in Delhi that year. Colour sets were imported in bulk ahead of the Games.
What is DD Free Dish?
DD Free Dish is Doordarshan's free-to-air satellite television service. Viewers buy a dish and set-top box once and pay no monthly subscription, and the platform grew from 33 channels in 2004 to 381 in 2025 according to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
What is a good message for World Television Day?
A good World Television Day message names one programme and the person's role in it, such as a bulletin they anchored or an episode they shot. For family, naming the show you watched together and the years works better than a general greeting.
Last verified by the Kehdoo team on .