Publishing in India Today: 19,000 Publishers, 90,000 Titles, Many Opportunities

Publishing Perspectives

Part 1 of look at India’s publishing industry reveals rising challenges for editorial departments, new business models for distribution, and the rise of agenting in India.


The publishing industry in South Asia as a whole, and India in particular, has never seen better times. There has been an astounding increase in the number of titles originating from and being produced in the region, in addition to large-scale investment in retail, fresh marketing tools and increasing standards of book production. The Indian scenario is particularly unique. With a whopping 550 million people below the age of 30, and with a significant and consumerist middle class, book sales in the country could well surpass all expectations.


Amidst this excitement, one still finds a fractured infrastructure that presents a huge challenge and a consequent opportunity for the industry. First, there is the challenge of finding interested and trained professionals. Publishing was, and in many ways still is, a family-owned and family-run business, which means that many people in the profession were literally born into publishing.
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