Shamshad FM

About Shamshad FM

Shamshad FM is a Pashto-language commercial radio station broadcasting on 103.4 FM in Kabul, with a second frequency at 95.2 FM in Kandahar. It is the radio arm of the Shamshad media network — the radio sister of Shamshad TV, one of Afghanistan’s leading independent Pashto broadcasters — and extends the network’s reach to FM listeners in the capital and the south, as well as to satellite audiences via Al Yah 1.

About Shamshad FM

Shamshad FM occupies a distinctive place on the Afghan dial: a commercial FM station broadcasting entirely in Pashto, operating as part of one of the country’s most established private media networks. Where many Kabul stations are Dari-first or multilingual, Shamshad FM serves the large Pashto-speaking audience in the capital and beyond with round-the-clock FM programming.

In October 2025 the Shamshad network's broadcasts were suspended by the Taliban authorities: the network's television arm was shut down from 17 to 19 October, according to the Afghanistan Journalists Center's 2025 annual report on media freedom, which notes it resumed operations after two days; contemporary reporting indicated the radio services were halted at the same time. The station has since resumed broadcasting.

The station’s identity is inseparable from the Shamshad network. Its parent operation, Shamshad TV, is a leading independent Pashto broadcaster — roughly 85 percent of its output is in Pashto — founded in 2005 with transmission beginning in 2006, and headquartered in the Chaman-e-Hozori area of Kabul. The network is owned by Fazel Karim Fazel. Shamshad FM functions as the network’s audio arm, carrying the Shamshad brand onto FM radio in the same way the television channel carries it onto satellite and cable.

Commercial FM is a crowded field in Kabul, but a Pashto-first commercial station with a major network behind it is comparatively rare. Shamshad FM’s position — network-backed, Pashto-focused, on air in both Kabul and Kandahar — makes it one of the more significant commercial FM services in the country, and a natural companion to its television sister for audiences who move between screens and radios through the day.

History

The Shamshad story begins with the television channel: founded in 2005, with transmissions starting in 2006, it grew into Afghanistan’s leading independent Pashto broadcaster. Shamshad FM was developed as the network’s radio extension, bringing the Shamshad brand to FM listeners — a logical expansion for a network whose audience was already among the most loyal in Afghan broadcasting.

The station broadcasts on 103.4 FM in Kabul and on 95.2 FM in Kandahar, giving the network an FM footprint in the capital and in the south, the Pashto-speaking heartland. This two-city FM presence mirrors the network’s strategy of serving Pashto audiences where they are concentrated, rather than attempting a single national frequency.

Verification research confirms the station’s continued activity into 2026. A satellite listing for Al Yah 1 dated 25 July 2026 showed “Shamshad FM | RADIO” as “On,” confirming carriage on the region’s main satellite platform for Afghan channels through mid-2026. Radio stream directories carried current listings for the station through September and October 2026 — further evidence of an active, transmitting service rather than a legacy entry in a database.

The station’s own domain, shamshadfm.com, is currently parked — the web presence having consolidated around the network’s main properties — so the proof of the station’s liveness rests on the satellite and streaming evidence rather than a station website. In a media environment where domains lapse and sites go dark when stations close, the current satellite and directory listings are meaningful: Shamshad FM is on the air.

Programming

Detailed program schedules for Shamshad FM are not published on a live station website — shamshadfm.com is parked, and the network’s public-facing web presence centres on its television operation. What the station’s position within the network tells us is the broad shape of its output.

As the radio sister of Shamshad TV, the FM station operates in the shadow — in the best sense — of one of Afghanistan’s most active Pashto news operations. Shamshad TV’s daily output through 2026 has centred on news and current affairs, with its YouTube presence carrying news bulletins and current-affairs programming through the spring of 2026. A radio arm in the same network, broadcasting in the same language to the same audience, functions naturally as an audio companion: news headlines, current-affairs discussion and the commercial music-and-talk mix typical of Afghan FM, all in Pashto.

The network’s editorial character is independent and Pashto-first. Shamshad TV’s profile — a private broadcaster under independent ownership, operating continuously from Kabul since 2006, with a brief suspension in October 2025 from which it resumed — is that of a mainstream commercial news broadcaster working within Afghanistan’s media environment. The FM station shares that character and that audience.

For listeners, the practical offer is straightforward: Shamshad’s Pashto service, available on FM in Kabul and Kandahar without a satellite dish or an internet connection — the medium that still reaches commuters, shopkeepers and households across the two cities.

Languages and platforms

Shamshad FM broadcasts in Pashto, consistent with the network’s identity — around 85 percent of Shamshad TV’s output is in Pashto, and the FM station is the network’s dedicated Pashto audio service.

The station’s platforms are FM radio and satellite. In Kabul it transmits on 103.4 FM; in Kandahar on 95.2 FM. Beyond the terrestrial footprint, the station is carried on Al Yah 1 satellite, where it was listed as active on 25 July 2026 — a listing that extends its reach to satellite households across Afghanistan and the region. Radio stream directories also carried current listings for the station through September and October 2026, indicating availability to online listeners.

The Shamshad network maintains an active social presence around its television operation — YouTube, Facebook, X and Instagram accounts under the Shamshad TV brand — which serves as the network’s public face online while the FM station itself has no separately verified social accounts.

Location, network and operating status

Shamshad FM is a Kabul-based station, operating from the network’s Kabul headquarters alongside Shamshad TV, with its second FM frequency serving Kandahar. Its country of service is Afghanistan, and its audience is the country’s Pashto-speaking population — in the capital, in the south, and via satellite across the wider region.

As of October 2026 the station is active: on satellite as of July 2026 and current in streaming directories through September–October 2026. It remains the radio sister of Shamshad TV — a distinct service within the same network, profiled separately here, with the television channel covered in its own WorldNM entry.

Official website and contact

The station’s domain, shamshadfm.com, is currently parked; the network’s main web presence is built around its television operation. A contact number associated with the station is +93 78 667 6767, and a network contact address on record is zameer.siddiqi@shamshadtv.tv. (WorldNM’s directory leaves the public business email field empty site-wide for technical reasons; the address above is given here for reference.)

WorldNM is an independent directory and does not own, operate or represent Shamshad FM. For advertising, programming or other inquiries, please use the network’s own channels.

Sources and last verified

This profile was verified on 13 October 2026 against the Afghanistan media inventory compiled the same day: satellite carriage (“On” on Al Yah 1, 25 July 2026), current stream-directory listings (September–October 2026), the Kabul 103.4 and Kandahar 95.2 frequencies, Pashto language, Shamshad network ownership and the listed contact details. Network background (founded 2005, owner Fazel Karim Fazel, ~85% Pashto output, Kabul headquarters) is corroborated by the inventory’s Shamshad TV entry. The station’s own domain is parked; no separate station website or social accounts could be verified. As with all directory entries, facts reflect what was publicly verifiable on the verification date.