Marya Shakil is a highly regarded Indian political journalist with a career spanning nearly two decades. Known for her insightful reporting and in-depth analysis of Indian politics and society, she has received numerous accolades for her work. Born in Patna, Bihar, in 1983, Shakil comes from a family with a strong background in politics and law. Her father, Shakil Ahmad Khan, was a prominent politician and a two-time Member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly, who also served as a senior cabinet minister for a decade. This early exposure to governance and public service significantly influenced her professional path.
Shakil’s educational foundation is rooted in communication. She earned her Master of Arts in Mass Communication from the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre at Jamia Millia Islamia University in 2005. She was among the top students in her class and gained practical experience through an internship at Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd.
Her career began in 2005 at CNN-IBN (now CNN-News18), where she spent 18 years, rising to the position of Senior Political Editor and Special Bureau Chief. During her tenure, she anchored the daily debate show “News Epicentre,” which became a flagship program for the network and won several awards. Her work included a comprehensive documentary on the 2008 Bihar floods and “The Muslim Manifesto,” which explored the social and political changes within the Muslim community ahead of the 2012 Uttar Pradesh elections. She was also the first TV journalist to report on the 2011 Ramlila Maidan protest and covered major national and state elections.
In August 2023, Shakil joined NDTV 24×7 as Executive Editor (National Affairs). At NDTV, she anchored prime-time shows like “News Epicentre” and “Reporters Project,” continuing her focus on incisive political reporting and high-profile interviews. However, her time at NDTV was brief, as she resigned in August 2025.
Marya Shakil’s journalistic excellence has been widely recognised. She is a two-time recipient of the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award, winning in 2012 and 2014 for her political reporting. In 2016, she was also awarded the prestigious Chevening South Asia Journalism Fellowship. Her shows and reporting have also earned her multiple News Television Awards and ENBA (Exchange4Media News Broadcasting Awards).
In 2024, Shakil co-authored her debut book, India on the Move: When Jai Shree Ram Met Bharat Mata ki Jai, with Narendra Nath Mishra. Published by Penguin Random House India, the book analyses the transformation of political discourse in contemporary India, focusing on how religious and political slogans have evolved. While the book has received endorsements from notable figures like Javed Akhtar, some critics have noted that it offers a recap of recent events without providing significant new insights.
Shakil is married to Irfan Khan, the founder of BlogMint, and they have one child. She maintains strong ties to her roots in Bihar and emphasises the importance of ground-level reporting. She also shares her knowledge with the next generation of journalists by conducting workshops and serving as visiting faculty at various media institutes, including her alma mater, Jamia Millia University.