How Manish Dubey Is Shaping Dubai’s Startup Media Space

In India’s media industry, careers are often built within silos. Journalists remain journalists. Television executives stay within broadcasting. But Manish Dubey has spent nearly two decades moving across those boundaries — from television journalism and entertainment programming to startup-focused content formats.

Now, Dubey is physically based in Dubai as Showrunner of Falcons of Majlis, a startup reality funding show being developed by NKN Media. While continuing to work between India and the UAE markets, he is leading one of the most ambitious startup-entertainment formats emerging from the region.

A Career Built Across Formats

Dubey’s professional journey began in journalism at Aaj Tak, where he worked as a reporter during a period when Indian television news was rapidly expanding its influence and reach.

The newsroom environment offered speed, visibility, and storytelling discipline — skills that would later shape his transition into multiple media formats.

Unlike many professionals who remain within news broadcasting, Dubey moved toward entertainment television, joining UTV Stars as Head of Content. The role shifted his focus from reporting to audience engagement, celebrity programming, and entertainment-led content strategy.

The transition reflected a broader understanding of television as both storytelling and consumer behaviour.

He later became Channel Head at Best Deal TV, entering India’s television commerce segment at a time when teleshopping and direct-response television formats were experimenting with scale.

That phase added another dimension to his profile — combining content with conversion-driven programming and distribution strategy.

Over the years, Dubey also worked on directing and creatively producing television shows while collaborating on multiple VAS (Value Added Services) launches through FTC Talent Media, associated with Suniel Shetty.

The Suniel Shetty Influence

One of the defining chapters in Dubey’s career has been his long professional association with Shetty.

In a recent LinkedIn post, Dubey acknowledged that working closely with the actor-entrepreneur for nearly seven years significantly shaped his understanding of creativity, media strategy, and execution.

Beyond celebrity-led branding, the collaboration exposed him to how entertainment, business, partnerships, and consumer engagement increasingly intersect in modern media ventures.

That experience appears to have prepared him for larger ecosystem-driven projects rather than standalone television productions.

Even today, Dubey publicly credits Shetty as a continuing mentor and strategic guide.

Enter Dubai’s Startup Ecosystem

Dubey’s latest assignment places him at the intersection of startups, media, and ecosystem building.

As Showrunner of Falcons of Majlis, he is involved not just in content production, but also in investor relations, startup onboarding, partnerships, marketing, PR, registrations, creative strategy, and distribution planning.

The role is closer to building a startup platform than running a conventional television show.

According to Dubey, one of the biggest challenges has been operating in a completely unfamiliar market.

Unlike India, where he spent years understanding audience behaviour and building industry relationships, Dubai required rebuilding networks from the ground up while navigating a different entrepreneurial culture.

That transition reflects a larger shift taking place globally — where media professionals are increasingly moving into startup ecosystem storytelling and business-led content formats.

Startup Entertainment as Ecosystem Infrastructure

The emergence of startup reality formats is closely linked to the changing nature of entrepreneurial ecosystems themselves.

As regions compete to attract founders, investors, and innovation capital, storytelling has become a strategic tool. Startup-focused media properties are no longer just entertainment formats; they increasingly function as visibility platforms for founders, investors, and ecosystems.

Dubai, in particular, has been aggressively positioning itself as a global hub for startups, fintech, AI, creator economy businesses, and cross-border entrepreneurship.

In that context, Falcons of Majlis appears designed to blend investment culture with mass-market storytelling.

The project has brought together investors and business leaders including:

• Ankur Mittal
• Ankur Aggarwal
• Dhiraj Jain
• Tauseef Khan
• Vishal Tinani
• Anuraag Guglaani
• Sunill Kumaar

For Dubey, the challenge extends beyond creating a successful show. It involves building momentum around a startup-driven entertainment property in a highly competitive international market.

Reinvention Beyond Geography

Manish Dubey’s journey reflects how careers in media are evolving beyond traditional boundaries.

The rise of creator-led businesses, branded ecosystems, startup storytelling, and platform-driven content has created opportunities for professionals who can combine editorial instincts with strategic execution.

In many ways, Dubey’s professional arc mirrors the evolution of the media industry itself — from newsroom reporting to ecosystem-driven storytelling.

And while the project carries business ambition and ecosystem significance, Dubey’s own reflections on the transition remain deeply personal.

Among all the strategic conversations around investors, partnerships, and startup visibility, one line from his post stood out.

His mother, he wrote, still does not fully understand why he is spending so much time in Dubai these days.

But she keeps telling him:

“Tumhara project super hit hoga.”

For a media professional taking perhaps the biggest professional leap of his career, that optimism may matter more than any industry validation.