Communities

Indian TV in the UK

India is the most common country of birth in England and Wales after the UK itself, and people of Indian heritage are the largest Asian ethnic group. Viewing splits by language as much as by country: a Gujarati household in Leicester and a Malayali household in Croydon want very different channels.

Updated 6 October 2026 · By the IPTV UK editorial desk

How do Indian families in the UK watch TV?

Many families keep one screen for UK channels and another for serials, devotional channels and cricket from home. Evening soaps from India go out in the afternoon UK time, so catch-up matters as much as live channels.

What does the census say?

Measure	People
Born in India Census 2021 TS012, India	920,361
Main language: Punjabi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Hindi, Telugu Census 2021 TS024, people aged 3 and over	627,218
Ethnic group: Indian Census 2021 TS021	1,864,318

Where does the community live?

The council areas in England and Wales with the most people counted by the ethnic-group figure, out of 318:

Leicester126,42134.3% of residents
Harrow74,74428.6% of residents
Birmingham66,5195.8% of residents
Brent66,15719.5% of residents
Hounslow60,82721.1% of residents
Hillingdon57,34118.7% of residents
Ealing54,80614.9% of residents
Redbridge51,18316.5% of residents

Our town pages with a large Indian community: Leicester, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Derby.

This is what people from the community ask us about, not a promise that every channel is in the line-up today. We confirm specific channels in writing before you buy.

Ask us to confirm these channels

What are the legal ways to watch from the UK?

Zee5Zee's own app, sold in the UK, with Zee serials and films in several languages.
Sony LIVSony's app, with Sony TV serials; it carries some cricket depending on rights in each country.
Sky and Virgin Media South Asian channelsZee TV, Sony TV and Colors have UK feeds sold as add-ons on pay TV.

Availability and prices change; check the provider's own site before you subscribe.

Sport and kick-off times

Cricket comes first: India's tours and the IPL in March to May. Times in India are 4½ hours ahead in summer and 5½ in winter, so IPL evening games start mid-afternoon UK time.

Time in India now—

UK time now—

India is 4.5 hours ahead of the UK in the British summer and 5.5 hours ahead of the UK in winter. Busiest viewing: Diwali and the cricket season.

Try it before you pay

The free 24-hour trial gives the full line-up, including the channel groups for Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu. If it suits your family, plans start at £6.25 a month.

More communities

Other community pages

Readers also ask

How many Indian families live in England and Wales?

Census 2021 counted 920,361 (born in India); 627,218 (main language: Punjabi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Hindi, Telugu); 1,864,318 (ethnic group: Indian). Scotland and Northern Ireland run separate censuses.

Can I watch Star Plus in the UK?

Ask us before you buy and we confirm in writing whether it is in the current line-up, or check it during the free 24-hour trial. Legal routes from the UK include Zee5, Sony LIV, Sky and Virgin Media South Asian channels.

What time are India programmes in the UK?

India is 4.5 hours ahead of the UK in the British summer and 5.5 hours ahead of the UK in winter. So a 9pm programme at home airs at 16:30 UK time in summer.

Sources

Census 2021, TS012 Country of birth (detailed) checked 6 October 2026
Census 2021, TS024 Main language (detailed) checked 6 October 2026
Census 2021, TS021 Ethnic group checked 6 October 2026

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Send a message and we reply with your log-in, usually within minutes. If you buy afterwards, plans start at £6.25 a month, and the first 14 days are covered by a full refund.

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