Short answer: look up the channel, not the service. In the US, Star Plus, Star Maa, Star Vijay and Asianet come through Sling, which signed Disney Star in November 2023. Sun TV and its sister channels are on Sling's Dakshin packs. Colors and Sony's main Hindi channel have been in Sling's larger Hindi packs. Zee's shows are most reliably on ZEE5. And Aaj Tak, India Today and NDTV run official live streams you can watch free. What doesn't exist is one licensed US service with all of them.
At a glance
Find your channel
| Star Plus, Star Maa, Vijay, Asianet | Sling Desi packs |
| Sun TV, Gemini, Surya, Udaya | Sling Dakshin packs |
| Zee TV shows | ZEE5 Global app |
| Aaj Tak, India Today, NDTV | Free official live streams |
| Every channel in one app | Doesn't exist legally |
Why the network owner decides everything
Indian channels are sold abroad in bundles by the company that owns them. So the useful question isn't "which service has the most channels" but "who owns the channel my family watches, and who did they sell US rights to?"
Four groups cover most of what people ask about:
- JioStar (the Reliance and Disney joint venture): Star Plus, Star Bharat, Star Gold, Star Maa, Star Vijay, Asianet, Star Jalsha, Star Pravah, Star Suvarna, plus the Colors channels that came from Viacom18.
- Zee Entertainment: Zee TV, &TV, Zee Cinema, Zee Tamil, Zee Telugu, Zee Marathi and others.
- Sony (Culver Max): Sony Entertainment Television, Sony SAB, Sony MAX.
- Sun TV Network: Sun TV, Gemini TV, Surya TV, Udaya TV and their movie and music channels.
When a group signs with a US distributor, its channels arrive together. When the deal ends, they leave together. That's why line-ups jump around and why a review from 2023 can be confidently wrong today.
The channel finder table
The "how sure" column tells you what the listing is based on. "Announced" means the distributor publicly named the channel. "Reported" means published listings or reviews show it but we couldn't confirm the current line-up. Either way, check the live channel list before you subscribe.
| Channel | Language | Licensed US route | How sure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Star Plus | Hindi | Sling Desi packs; shows on Hulu | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Colors (Aapka Colors) | Hindi | Sling Hindi packs | Reported |
| Sony Entertainment Television | Hindi | Sling's larger Hindi packs; SonyLIV via Sling | Reported |
| Zee TV | Hindi | ZEE5 Global (shows); satellite at times | Reported |
| Star Maa | Telugu | Sling Desi / Dakshin | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Star Vijay | Tamil | Sling Desi / Dakshin | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Asianet | Malayalam | Sling Desi / Dakshin | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Star Suvarna | Kannada | Sling Desi / Dakshin | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Star Jalsha | Bengali | Sling Desi packs | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Star Pravah | Marathi | Sling Desi packs | Announced Nov 2023 |
| Sun TV, Gemini TV, Surya TV, Udaya TV | Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada | Sling Dakshin packs; Sun NXT app | Announced Jan 2023 |
| Colors Kannada | Kannada | Sling Dakshin | Listed on Sling, 2026 |
| Aaj Tak | Hindi news | Official free live stream; some paid packs | Reported |
| India Today | English news | Sling Desi; official free stream | Listed on Sling, 2026 |
| Willow (cricket) | English | Willow app; inside Sling Desi Binge Plus and Dakshin | Announced |
For regional channels Sling doesn't carry, YuppTV is the usual second stop, because it organises its packs by language and tends to go deeper in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam. Its line-up changes with its own deals, so open the channel list for your language on its site rather than trusting a summary.
Hindi entertainment: Star, Colors, Sony, Zee
Star Plus. This was the big gap for years. Star pulled its international linear channels from US pay TV in January 2019 to push Hotstar, and Hotstar's US service closed in late 2021, with its library moving to Hulu. Live Star Plus came back to US screens when Sling signed Disney Star in November 2023. If you want episodes rather than the live feed, Hulu holds a large share of the back catalogue.
Colors. Sling has carried it as Aapka Colors in its Hindi packs. Now that Colors and Star sit under the same JioStar roof, expect their US distribution to be negotiated together in future, so a change to one may move the other.
Sony. Sony's main Hindi channel has been in Sling's larger Hindi tiers, and SonyLIV's on-demand library has reached US viewers mainly through Sling as well. Sony SAB comedies are worth checking specifically; not every pack that carries Sony's flagship carries SAB.
Zee TV. The odd one out. Zee has put its overseas effort into the ZEE5 Global app, so for most Zee serials that's where you'll find them, often shortly after Indian broadcast. Live Zee channels have appeared on US satellite and in some packs at various times, but if Zee is the reason you're buying, start with ZEE5.
Our network-by-network guide covers what each route costs.
South Indian channels
South Indian households are better served than Hindi ones, mostly thanks to Sling's two big deals.
Sun Group channels sit in Sling's Dakshin packs. When Sling relaunched them in January 2023, it added 11 Sun channels on top of the eight it already carried, including Gemini Life, Sun Life, Sun News and Udaya Movies. Sun's own Sun NXT app is the on-demand route.
Star's southern channels, Star Maa (Telugu), Star Vijay (Tamil), Asianet (Malayalam) and Star Suvarna (Kannada), joined Sling with the Disney Star deal.
ETV, Zee Telugu, Zee Tamil, Kairali, Mazhavil Manorama and other regional channels are where Sling's coverage thins and YuppTV's language packs matter. The YuppTV review explains how to check its line-up before paying.
Telugu viewers should also look at Aha, which is on-demand only but strong on new Telugu films and originals.
News channels, mostly free
News is the one category where paying often isn't necessary. Several major Indian news broadcasters run official 24-hour live streams on their own YouTube channels and websites, free and legal to watch in the US. Aaj Tak, India Today and NDTV have all done this for years.
On a TV, open the YouTube app, search the channel name and look for the red "LIVE" badge on the broadcaster's verified channel. Bookmark it or add it to your library, and it's one click from the home screen.
India Today also appears in Sling's Desi line-up, which is handy if you want news in the same guide as your serials. Regional news, Sun News and others, comes with the language packs.
One caution: plenty of unofficial YouTube channels rebroadcast news feeds. Stick to the verified channel run by the broadcaster itself.
Channels with no clear US home
Some channels people ask for don't have a dependable licensed US route right now, and it's better to know that than to keep searching.
- Star Sports and Sony Sports. These are Indian sports channels whose US rights are sold separately, event by event. In the US, cricket mostly means Willow. Our Willow vs ESPN+ comparison covers who has what.
- JioHotstar's own channels. JioHotstar launched in the UK, Canada and Singapore on 2 September 2026. The US wasn't included.
- Smaller devotional and regional channels. Many simply have no US distributor. A seller offering them alongside everything else is a warning sign, not a bonus.
When a channel has no licensed home, the honest options are its official YouTube presence, the broadcaster's own app if it sells one abroad, or waiting for a deal.
How to confirm a channel before paying
Line-ups move, so do this every time, even if a friend subscribed last year.
- Open the distributor's channel list for the exact pack, not a review. On Sling that's the pack's own page; on YuppTV it's the language pack listing.
- Search the channel by name inside the app during a free trial, if one's offered. If it shows a guide with programmes, it's live in your region.
- Check the time zone. Indian primetime lands in the US morning. Make sure the pack includes recording or catch-up if you'll watch in the evening.
- Look for the network's own announcement if a channel is missing. When deals end, broadcasters usually say where their channels went.
For the history of how these channels came and went, see our Indian channels in the USA guide.
Quick answers
Where can I watch Star Plus in the USA? Live on Sling's Desi packs since November 2023. Many Star shows are also on demand on Hulu.
Which service has Zee TV in the US? ZEE5 Global is the most reliable route for Zee serials. Live Zee channels have appeared on satellite and in some packs at times.
Can I watch Colors TV in the US? Sling has carried it as Aapka Colors in its Hindi packs.
Where is Sun TV available in the US? In Sling's Dakshin packs, and on demand through the Sun NXT app.
Is Aaj Tak free to watch in the US? Yes. Aaj Tak runs an official live stream on its verified YouTube channel.
Is there one service with every Indian channel? Not legally. Rights are split by network owner, so most households combine Sling or YuppTV with one network app.
Are Star Sports channels available in the US? Not as channels. US cricket rights are sold separately, mostly to Willow.
Channel deals between Indian networks and US distributors change at renewal, and the JioStar merger may reshuffle Star and Colors together. Listings marked "reported" weren't confirmed against a current line-up. Checked October 2026.