Booking an Obituary or Remembrance Ad in Mumbai & Bangalore: A 24-Hour Checklist
Losing a loved one is hard enough without having to deal with the red tape involved with newspaper announcements. But obituary and funeral notices are real-time products — most families need the notice to appear the day after they passed away, and decisions on the wording, pictures and newspaper have to be made in the matter of hours, not days.
Public-NoticeAds.in is just for such times. We take care of everything from selecting the appropriate newspaper combination, translating the notice into Kannada or Marathi, formatting the photograph for clean newsprint reproduction, submitting it before the deadline for the newspaper and delivering the digital tear sheet the following morning. You grieve; we take care of the arrangements. We have all the major newspapers in English, Marathi and Kannada in Mumbai and Bangalore and we service obituary ad bookings seven days a week including public holidays.
Our team is available around the clock for urgent obituary bookings. Jyostna and Dinesh will guide your family through the entire process with care and efficiency.
Call / WhatsApp: +91 98219 84000 | +91 96996 06000 | +91 86571 12011
(Available 7 days a week, including Sundays and public holidays)
Table of Contents
The 24-Hour Publication Deadline Reference (Next-Day Booking)
All newspapers have a production schedule. The notice text, the photo, the documents and payment must all be verified before the editorial cut-off of the paper for the notice to be included in the following day's paper. These windows are smaller than most assume – especially for Marathi and Kannada newspapers that are printed before the English press.
This table is designed as a quick reference guide for planning your booking for an obituary ad in Mumbai or an obituary ad in Bangalore:
| Newspaper | City | Language | Standard Cut-Off (Next-Day) | Late / Emergency Cut-Off* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Times of India | Mumbai / Bangalore | English | 5:30 PM | Up to 7:00 PM |
| Deccan Herald | Bangalore | English | 5:00 PM | Up to 6:30 PM |
| Loksatta / Maharashtra Times | Mumbai | Marathi | 4:30 PM | Up to 6:00 PM |
| Prajavani / Vijay Karnataka | Bangalore | Kannada | 4:00 PM | Up to 5:30 PM |
| Mid-Day / Mumbai Mirror | Mumbai | English | 3:30 PM | Up to 5:00 PM |
| Sakal / Saamana | Mumbai | Marathi | 4:00 PM | Up to 5:30 PM |
*Note: Late bookings in the windows are subject to an emergency charge, which may be applied by the publisher, if pages are available when you call. Call us for any last minute/for the day's need and we can confirm if we are able to in minutes, not hours, unlike the online form!
One important note on Sundays: There will be an early print run for the Monday editions. Please contact us before 4:00 PM on Sunday if you need a publication in the morning on Monday, there is no exception.
Photo Quality Guide: Getting a Clear Print on Newsprint
Unfortunately, it's often a blurred or darkened photograph that shows up in a published obituary and often it is completely avoidable. Broadly speaking, newsprint is very absorbent and has a physical property called "dot gain" that leads to very low-resolution or very low-contrast images. A picture that's clear on your mobile device may appear as a blurry dark shadow when printed.
Please use this guide to send us your image:
- Resolution matters more than file size: To be usable in newspaper print, the minimum resolution is 300 DPI. Photos sent on WhatsApp or obtained from social media are usually compressed to a maximum of 72 DPI (dots per inch), which is too low for clean newsprint reproduction. When scanning a physical photograph, make sure your scanner is at least 300 DPI and save the picture in JPG or PNG format.
- Avoid processed or filtered images: The use of filters, vignetted edges and heavy digital processing softens the fine detail required to capture a recognizable portrait within a newsprint. Please send us the original unedited photograph, if possible.
- Even lighting makes the critical difference: Portrait prints are very dark whether taken in direct sunlight, with heavy shadows or in low-light indoors. Search for a photo that has been lit evenly and gently, usually a photo taken indoors or in shade outside is far better than a photo taken in very bright light.
- Busy backgrounds can be cleaned up: If the only photo available is an image with a distracting or busy background, our design team will crop the subject out and add a plain light or white background for free. This also helps with the overall print contrast as well.
- Always ask for a grayscale preview: If your ad is going to be published in black and white (most obituary classified display ads are published this way), please request a grayscale version of a layout proof before we submit your ad. Sometimes, a set of images that seem well contrasted in colour may not be as contrasting when rendered in grayscale.
Ready-to-Use Sample Notice Drafts
Copy and edit these templates to suit your family's information and email the edited text to us through WhatsApp. Our team will present it in the proper layout for the newspaper(s) you have selected.
1. Funeral Announcement / Sudden Demise Notice
OBITUARY
It is with deep sorrow that we inform family, friends, and well-wishers of the passing of our beloved [Name of Deceased] on [Date of Passing].
The funeral will depart from [Residence Address] on [Date] at [Time], proceeding to [Crematorium / Cemetery / Church Name].
We request your presence and prayers during this time of loss.
In grief: [Names of Immediate Family Members]
Contact: [Phone Number]
2. Prayer Meeting / Chautha / Condolence Gathering Notice
PRAYER MEETING NOTICE
We humbly invite family, friends, and colleagues to join us in paying tribute to the memory of [Name of Deceased], who departed from us on [Date].
A prayer gathering [Chautha / Uthamna / Shok Sabha] will be held as follows:
Date: [Date]
Time: [e.g., 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM]
Venue: [Name of Hall, Temple, or Residence — Full Address]
Your presence and blessings are deeply valued.
Grieving family of [Family Surname / Society Name / Organisation Name]
3. First Death Anniversary / Remembrance Notice
IN LOVING REMEMBRANCE
[Name of Deceased]
[Date of Birth] – [Date of Passing]
A year has passed since you left our side, yet your presence lives on in every memory, every lesson you gave us, and every moment we spent together. No distance of time will diminish what you meant to us.
Remembered always by: [Family Name / Children's Names / Colleagues at Company Name]
Mandatory Document Checklist Before Booking
To avoid unauthorized notification of death, Indian newspapers are obligated to verify the authenticity of each of them before they're published. These documents are available beforehand, so that we could process your booking without delay:
- Death Certificate or Medical Documentation: For most publications, death certificate by the municipal authority or by a doctor or a summary of the hospital discharge must be provided.
- Cremation Receipt or Burial Certificate: If the death certificate hasn't been issued, a cremation slip or burial receipt from the funeral home or other facility being used will usually be acceptable in the newspaper in case of an urgent funeral announcement.
- Identity Proof of the Person Booking the Ad: Aadhaar Card/PAN Card/Passport of the family member/representative coordinating the booking is required. It's a requirement, not an option, imposed by the publisher.
If any of these documents are not on hand when you call, give us a call anyway; we will be able to advise you about alternative newspapers that will accept such documentation and what can be submitted after the paper has been published in exceptional cases.
Step-by-Step Booking Process
We have reduced our intake process to four steps so that families can complete a booking quickly, even under strain.
- Step 1 – Share Your Details: Call or WhatsApp us with the notice text (or use one of the templates above), the photo and the city and preferred newspapers. We can suggest the newspaper combination to you if you're not sure what newspapers to select, tell us the community, language and city.
- Step 2 – Draft and Proof: Our team will design the layout, add the photograph, format the text and put in a style of border (plain black frame, floral or sacred symbol, as applicable), and send you a proof within an hour for your review and approval. Translation of notices into Marathi or Kannada is available for free.
- Step 3 – Document Submission and Payment: When you approve the proof, you share the documents needed through WhatsApp and payment is done. Payment is done through UPI, NEFT or bank transfer. We do confirm to the newspaper as soon as we receive payment.
- Step 4 – Publication and Tear Sheet: Your notice is published in the next morning's edition. We share a digital tear sheet — sourced from the official e-paper of the newspaper — on WhatsApp and email, which you can give to members of your family that would not have been able to attend.
Types of Obituary and Remembrance Notices You Can Book
- Funeral and Demise Announcement: Notifies the friends, extended family, housing society members and colleagues of the deceased and gives details about the funeral — time, venue and route of the funeral.
- Prayer Meeting / Chautha / Condolence Notice: invites the members of the community for a meeting at a designated date, time and place, after the funeral, usually to meet for Chautha, Uthamna and Shok Sabha etc.
- Death Anniversary Remembrance: published on the first death anniversary or later anniversaries, to pay tribute to the memory of the deceased and continue to show love from family members. View more on remembrance ads.
- Birth Anniversary Tribute: A notice published on the deceased's birthday, it is a quiet, dignified way for families to publicly observe the occasion on an annual basis.
- Missing and Found Community Notice: In the event of an elderly or vulnerable person affiliated to the community going missing, housing societies or community organisations use this process — a separate process, but also via the obituary desk.
- Corporate or Institutional Condolence Notice: This is a condolence notice from a company, school, hospital or professional organisation to formally recognise the death of a colleague, founder or community member.
Frequently Asked Questions
General FAQs – Obituary and Remembrance Ads
Covers all major English, Hindi, Marathi, Kannada dailies from Mumbai, Bangalore and regional newspapers from all over India. We get the most requests for Times of India, Hindustan Times, Maharashtra Times, Loksatta, Sakal, Mid-Day and Saamana in Mumbai. We regularly book Deccan Herald, Times of India (Bangalore), Prajavani, Vijay Kannada and Kannada Prabha in Bangalore.
The biggest factors are the type of newspaper, the edition (city specific or combined), the classification (Classified Text or Classified Display with photo and border) and the size, measured in square centimetres. Classified Text ads without pictures are the cheapest option and the most popular option for obituaries is Classified Display ads with photo, border and larger text. We give you an upfront quote without committing your resources, time, or money.
Yes. If you have any doubts about the wording of the announcement, write the basic information (name of deceased, dates, family members' names, prayer meeting or funeral information) and one of us will draft it for you to look at. We accept English and regional language versions.
Absolutely. We regularly support families with people living in the UK, USA, UAE and Australia. All the process from draft review, document sharing, payment and tear sheet delivery is done through WhatsApp and email. There is no requirement to be physically present.
The notice can be published in the following day's newspaper if you send the text, the photo and the documents in time before the newspaper's cut-off time. Remembrance/anniversary notices can be published on any date desired for less urgent notices.
A digital tear sheet is a virtual version of a paper tear sheet. A clear PDF or image of the newspaper page containing your notice, from the newspaper's official e-paper website. It contains the notice, the date of publication, the page number and the newspaper masthead. Most families use it to share with relatives, who live in other cities or countries, and were unable to get a physical copy.
Yes. Physical copies can be provided on the day of publication. If you have additional copies needed for distribution to family members or for your records, please inform us at the time of booking so we can arrange for extra copies to be made.
Yes for the majority of Mumbai families. Marathi papers, such as Maharashtra Times and Loksatta, circulate a wide range of Marathi readers, including people from within the city, in residential areas, and people from outside the city but who speak Marathi at home. English newspapers, such as the Times of India, are read by professionals, Marathi speakers living in housing societies, and family members from out of town who speak English. The cost of a bilingual combo is generally less than the cost of each paper individually via their respective channels.
We try to reduce this by asking for your permission for a layout proof before submission. If a mistake is made at the press end, we contact the newspaper directly and will do either of two things: a corrigendum will be published in the next issue, or a complimentary reprint will be sent. (This is due to the paper's policy.)
Call or WhatsApp +91 98219 84000 immediately. Tell us the name of the deceased, the city, your preferred newspapers, and the publication date you need. We will take it from there.
Mumbai & Bangalore – City-Specific FAQs
Yes, and we recommend it a lot. The most popular combination in Mumbai is Times of India and Maharashtra Times or Loksatta - English reading business circles and the larger Marathi speaking housewives. We accept bookings and give separate tear sheets for each paper.
Yes, it is free of charge. Share your notice in English or Hindi, and we will get a Kannada version of your notice, appropriately worded and formatted for Prajavani, Vijay Karnataka or Kannada Prabha. You will be provided with the Kannada proof for approval beforehand.
A Classified Text notice is a simple text notice (no picture, no border) that is charged by word or line. Can be used for an easy death letter or brief remembrance note. A Classified Display notice is a boxed advertisement which may include a photograph of the deceased, a decorative or respectful border, larger typeface for the name and a more structured format. A classified display format is the most popular method for obituaries as it allows the obituary to be prominently displayed on the page and will allow for a picture to be included in the notice.
Please send it to us as soon as you can on WhatsApp. Our design team will evaluate the resolution and illumination and provide realistic feedback. If the images are poor we will inform you and recommend solutions to enhance the image, or we will work with what you have and provide you with a grayscale proof so you can determine the quality before submission.
Yes. There is no difference in the booking process, depending on geographic location. Fill us in remotely, you approve the proof on WhatsApp, you pay it using UPI/bank transfer and we get the Bangalore version done by us. A digital tear sheet arrives the day after publication.
Yes, there are special border styles for obituary Display ads. Most newspapers have a variety of obituary border styles available for obituary classified display ads: a simple black frame, double line, floral, cross, religious and other graphic symbols, and Om or other sacred designs. At the time of the layout proof, we will inform you of the options that are available for your selected newspaper.
We arrange multi-city bookings regularly, whether it's families whose members are in both cities, or anyone else who is an estate of a public figure, business or community leader with extensive networks. One call, one briefing and we'll arrange the city booking and send individual tear sheets.
Classified Text ads are word-for-word, so there is no minimum structure – however, very short ads might not provide enough information to be useful. The size of Classified Display ads is measured in square centimetres, and we suggest a minimum size of at least a square centimetre that will allow the display to include a photo of high legibility combined with readable text. At the time we prepare your quote we will recommend proper size.
Reach Out to Our Support Desk — Any Hour, Any Day
Publishing a notice for a loved one should be one less thing you have to worry about. Our team handles every detail from the moment you call.
