Short answer: pick the channel first, then the service. Every big Indian channel that legally reaches the US does so through a specific deal: Star Plus mostly through Sling, Zee TV through Xfinity, DISH and the ZEE5 app, Sony through several routes, and South Indian Star channels through Sling's Dakshin packs. No US service has them all. The table below maps each one, and the non-obvious catch is that "available" often means on demand rather than live.
At a glance
Indian channels in the US, by owner
| Star / Colors (JioStar) | Sling packs; some shows on Hulu |
| Zee | Xfinity, DISH, ZEE5 app |
| Sony | Xfinity, DISH, Sling, SonyLIV |
| News | DISH, Xfinity, plus free official streams |
| Cricket | Willow, direct or inside bundles |
The channel map
| Channel | Owner | Licensed US routes found |
|---|---|---|
| Star Plus | JioStar | Sling Hindi pack (live); Star shows on demand in Sling Desi Binge Plus; selected titles on Hulu |
| Star Bharat | JioStar | Sling Hindi pack |
| Colors (Aapka Colors) | JioStar | Sling Hindi pack; DISH Hindi Mega |
| Zee TV | Zee | Xfinity ($14.99 alone or in Hindi packs); DISH; ZEE5 app |
| Sony Entertainment (SET) | Sony | Xfinity SET HD; DISH; Sling Hindi pack; shows on SonyLIV |
| Sony SAB | Sony | Shows on SonyLIV; check DISH's current list for the live feed |
| SET Max | Sony | DISH Hindi Mega |
| TV Asia | TV Asia (US) | Xfinity Hindi Pack and Hindi Plus |
| B4U Movies, Big Magic | Various | DISH Hindi Mega |
| Aaj Tak | India Today Group | DISH; listed in Sling's Desi lineup; official free live stream on YouTube |
| NDTV 24x7 | NDTV | DISH Hindi Mega; official free stream |
| ABP News | ABP | Xfinity, $14.99 a month; official free stream |
| Star Maa, Star Vijay, Asianet | JioStar | Sling Dakshin Flex |
| Sun TV, Gemini TV | Sun Network | Sling Dakshin Mega (2023 listing) |
| Colors Kannada, Star Suvarna | JioStar | Sling Dakshin Mega (2023 listing) |
| Willow (cricket) | Times Group | Direct $9.99/mo; inside Sling Desi Binge Plus, Dakshin packs, DISH Hindi Mega, Xfinity Hindi Plus |
Compiled from Sling's Desi pages (2023 to 2025), Xfinity's international page, an authorised DISH dealer's Hindi pack listings and service app listings, checked October 2026. DIRECTV's international page lists no South Asian channels.
How to read it
Three things trip people up.
Live versus library. A channel name in a Sling Desi Binge Plus description often means that network's shows on demand, not the live feed. That's fine for serials, since episodes appear soon after airing in India. It's not fine if someone wants the channel playing all evening.
Cable add-ons need cable. Every DISH and Xfinity route above sits on top of an English-language base package. If you've already cut the cord, only the Sling, app and free routes apply.
Lineups move. Indian channel deals in the US are renewed every year or two. A channel can leave one service and turn up on another, so confirm on the provider's own page the week you subscribe. Our price comparison of Indian TV subscriptions has the costs side by side.
A quick way to shop. Write down the three channels the household actually asks for by name, not the ten they might watch. Find each in the table. If all three share one route, you're done. If they split between Star and Zee, which is the usual result for Hindi viewers, decide which one matters live and take the other on demand. That one decision usually saves $20 to $30 a month compared with buying a cable base package just to get both live.
Remember that free trials are short. Sling has advertised three-day trials on its Desi pages, so line up the shows you want to test before you start the clock.
Hindi entertainment channels
The big four Hindi general entertainment channels split cleanly by owner, and that split decides your shopping.
Star Plus and Colors are both JioStar channels now. Their most dependable US home is Sling: the live Hindi pack has carried Star Plus, Star Bharat and Aapka Colors, and the cheaper Desi Binge Plus carries Star's shows on demand through "Hotstar Specials" and "Star India On Demand". Colors also turns up in DISH's Hindi Mega pack. Some older Star serials sit on Hulu, a leftover from Hotstar's US shutdown in 2021.
Zee TV is the opposite. It's easy to add on Xfinity, either alone at $14.99 or in the $24.99 Hindi 2 Pack with Sony, and it's in DISH's Hindi packs. Without cable, the ZEE5 app is the route: its US version lists live TV channels as well as the full Zee library.
Sony Entertainment has the widest spread: Xfinity, DISH, Sling's Hindi pack, and SonyLIV for shows. SAB's comedies are reliably on SonyLIV on demand; the live feed is harder to pin down, so check DISH's current list if you need it live.
Movie and music channels
This is where cable add-ons still earn their price. DISH's Hindi Mega pack lists SET Max, B4U Movies, B4U Music and Big Magic among its 40-plus channels, and DISH also sells a $19.99 Hindi Movie Pack. Streaming-only services lean on on-demand film libraries instead, which are larger but aren't the same as a channel running films back to back.
If your household mostly wants Bollywood films rather than channels, a film library in an app is usually the better buy. If someone likes leaving a movie channel on, DISH is the realistic option.
News channels
Indian news is the one area where paying is optional. Most major news channels, including Aaj Tak, NDTV, ABP News and India TV, run official free live streams on their verified YouTube channels and websites. On a TV, the YouTube app does the job.
The paid routes give you the same channels in a TV guide: Aaj Tak, NDTV 24x7 and Times Now in DISH's Hindi Mega pack, ABP News as a $14.99 Xfinity add-on, and Sling's 2025 Desi page mentions Aaj Tak, India Today and Republic TV. Only pay for these if the guide format genuinely matters to the person watching.
Avoid "news" apps that bundle dozens of Indian news channels from one unofficial source. If it isn't the broadcaster's own channel or a provider you recognise, it's a restream.
South Indian channels
Sling is the strongest licensed route for the JioStar South channels. Dakshin Flex ($10 a month on Sling's 2025 page) lists Star Vijay, Star Maa, Asianet and Simply South, plus Willow. A 2023 Sling listing for the bigger Dakshin Mega pack added Sun TV, Gemini TV, Colors Kannada and Star Suvarna.
YuppTV is the other option, with 300-plus channels across 15 languages and particular depth in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada. Check the specific channel in its language pack rather than assuming.
For other South Asian languages such as Punjabi, Marathi, Bengali and Gujarati, Sling's Desi page lists language sections and DISH sells separate Punjabi and Gujarati add-ons, but coverage is thinner and changes often, so check channel by channel.
Channels you can't get in the US
Some things aren't available through any licensed US route, however the seller pages phrase it:
- JioHotstar itself. The app formed in February 2025 isn't offered in the US. Hotstar's US service closed on 30 November 2021.
- Star Sports and Sony Sports as live channels. In the US, cricket rights sit mainly with Willow. Indian sports channels aren't sold here. See our cricket in the USA and IPL guides.
- DD Free Dish-style free-to-air bundles. India's free satellite channels aren't receivable in the US. Prasar Bharati has partnered with YuppTV for overseas reach, so check there for Doordarshan content.
Anyone selling all of these in one "Indian IPTV" plan isn't licensed to. Our overview of Indian TV in the USA covers the legal landscape by language.
Quick answers
Where can I watch Star Plus in the US? Live, through Sling's Hindi pack. Star Plus shows are on demand in Sling's Desi Binge Plus, and some older serials are on Hulu.
Where can I watch Zee TV in the US? On Xfinity as a $14.99 add-on or in its Hindi packs, in DISH's Hindi packs, or through the ZEE5 app, which lists live channels.
Is Colors TV available in the US? Yes. Aapka Colors appears in DISH's Hindi Mega pack and has been part of Sling's Hindi pack.
Can I watch Aaj Tak live for free in the US? Aaj Tak runs an official free live stream on its verified YouTube channel, which works on any TV with the YouTube app.
Does DIRECTV carry Indian channels? DIRECTV's international page lists no South Asian packages as of October 2026.
Where can I watch Sun TV in the US? Sling's Dakshin Mega pack has carried Sun TV and Gemini TV; YuppTV is also worth checking for Sun Network channels.
Can I get Star Sports in the US? No. Cricket in the US is mainly on Willow, which is available directly or inside several Indian packs.
Channel carriage changes whenever a rights deal is renewed, and some listings here come from 2023 to 2025 provider pages. Confirm the exact channel on the provider's site before subscribing. Checked October 2026.