Sunrise Radio actually started out as a licensed cable radio station and was named Sina Radio in London , in 1984. Sunrise Radio aired its first official broadcast on 5 November 1989. It was launched by Dr. Avtar Lit and filled a gaping hole for an Asian-specific broadcast media outlet in the UK. It was one of the first media outlets that gave the Asian community living in Britain a platform to voice their opinions and it helped to signal the beginning of a positive change in Asian attitudes to being in the UK. It also helped give rise to modern British Asian culture. When it comes to UK Asian radio, its the brand Sunrise Radio, which comes up first. As the first commercial Asian radio station in the UK, Sunrise Radio after 30 years continues to rule the market as the leading commercial station in the country. Sunrise Radio paved the way for other Asian-specific media outlets across the UK, and has had a massive impact on the face of modern British Asian media Within five years of Sunrise Radio launching, newspapers, magazines, TV channels and a host of other radio stations, catering specifically to the South Asian demographic, burst onto the scene, providing news, music, talk shows and programming in local language, and relating back to the subcontinent, the station maintained an important connection for Asians living in Britain back to their roots. The launch of the station also opened up a whole new gateway for Asian trade and business. Asian traders relied largely on word of mouth, as there was little opportunity for advertising in Asian specific media and no Asian specific broadcast media for them to advertise their services or goods
