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India Today is a major weekly news magazine based in India. It is published in the English language by Living Media India Limited. This company is jointly controlled by the Purie family and IGH Holdings. IGH Holdings is an investment company linked to the Aditya Birla Group. The magazine is the most widely circulated magazine in the country. It serves as a flagship print title for the larger India Today Group. The publication provides deep reporting and analysis on many important subjects. These include politics, business, and various public affairs.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi releasing a special booklet of India Today on Safaigiri for Swachh Bharat, at Safaigiri Summit & Awards 2015, in New Delhi on October 02, 2015
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi releasing a special booklet of India Today on Safaigiri for Swachh Bharat, at Safaigiri Summit & Awards 2015, in New Delhi on October 02, 2015

The magazine operates through several different editions and formats. While it is famous for its English edition, it also publishes in several Indian languages. These languages include Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam. In 2014, the group expanded into digital media. They launched a new online site called DailyO, which focuses on opinion-based content. The magazine also maintains an international presence. In 1982, they launched an international edition that reached 104 different countries. This allows the publication to share Indian news with a global audience.

The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee speaking at the inaugural session of the 'India Today Conclave - 2004' in New Delhi on March 12, 2004
The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee speaking at the inaugural session of the 'India Today Conclave - 2004' in New Delhi on March 12, 2004

India Today has a long history of evolving its coverage and frequency. It was established in 1975 by Vidya Vilas Purie. His daughter, Madhu Trehan, served as the editor. His son, Aroon Purie, acted as the publisher. Initially, the magazine was a news-focused publication that came out every two weeks. It grew quickly from 5,000 copies to 100,000 copies by December 1978. In June 1997, the magazine changed to a weekly format. This change helped the publication keep pace with a faster news cycle following economic liberalization. By January 2026, the magazine had published a total of 2,006 issues.

The magazine is well known for introducing scientific election polling to Indian media. This field is called psephology, which is the statistical study of elections. India Today achieved this through a collaboration with David Butler and Prannoy Roy during the 1980s. The publication also sends staff reporters to cover major global events firsthand. In the late 1980s, they reported on the Afghan War and the Tiananmen Square protests. They also covered the collapse of the Soviet Union. This level of direct reporting helped establish the group as a major news organization.

Readership numbers for the magazine are very high across India. According to the Indian Readership Survey in 2019, the English edition had 9.24 million readers. The Hindi edition had 7.02 million readers. These figures made them two of the most read magazines in the country. In 2017, the English edition had over 7.9 million readers, while the Hindi edition had 7.1 million. To celebrate its 50th anniversary in January 2026, the magazine released a massive 600-page special issue. This issue was titled "The Remaking of India: 1975–2025." It documented five decades of political, economic, and cultural history.

Beyond news, the magazine organizes the annual India Today Conclave. This event has been held since the early 2000s. It brings together leaders from academia, business, defense, media, and politics. Speakers have included figures like Bill Gates, Hillary Clinton, and Narendra Modi. In 2025, the conclave focused on innovation and artificial intelligence. The magazine also conducts the Gross Domestic Behavior survey. Launched in 2025, this survey measures civic indicators across Indian states. It evaluates parameters like public safety, gender equality, and diversity to rank different states.

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🖼️ Images & Media (3)
File:The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi releasing a special booklet of India Today on Safaigiri for Swachh Bharat, at Safaigiri Summit & Awards 2015, in New Delhi on October 02, 2015.jpg
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi...
File:The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu releasing a special edition of India Today at an event to present ‘India Today Safaigiri Awards 2017’, organised by India Today, in New Delhi.jpg
The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah...
File:The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee speaking at the inaugural session of the 'India Today Conclave - 2004' in New Delhi on March 12, 2004.jpg
The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari...
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