ITV

Category: Regional

  • Puthu Yugam goes Korean, network launches mobile apps

    Puthu Yugam goes Korean, network launches mobile apps

    MUMBAI: They were late entrants into a market that was dominated by the Marans’ Sun group. Nearing three years into its foray in broadcast television media space with a News channel  ‘Puthiya Thalaimurai TV’ (PT), besides running the successful Tamil magazine of the same name, the New Generation Media Corporation owned by the Sri Ramaswamy Memorial (SRM)  group had launched a general entertainment channel (GEC) Puthu Yugum (PY) on 23 October 2013.

     

    Targeting the Tamil youth during prime time, Puthu Yugum has brought in south Korean shows to its programming mix. On offer are dubbed versions of south Korean dramas acquired from broadcasters MBC and KBS such as Boys over Flowers (KBS2), The Greatest Love (MBC), Playful Kiss (MBC), Moon Embracing the Sun (MBC), Iris (KBS2), Pasta (MBC)and A Hundred Year Legacy (MBC).The shows originally broadcast in south Korea from 2009 onwards, are aired between 7 pm to 8 pm Monday to Thursday with repeats at 10:30 pm, along with a marathon run on Saturday at 9 pm on Puthu Yugam. Show rights are with the channel for approximately one to three years.

     

    “Since Puthu Yugam is from the SRM group that also runs the SRM University, our president Dr Sathyanaranan had an opportunity to observe the trend of the students. He noted that they are obsessed with Korean (K) series. He suggested us to bring them to Puthu Yugam.  K series has brought lot of young blood into the channel,” says New Gen Media Corporation CEO RBU Shyam Kumar.

     

    PY is also in talks with channels in Turkey, UK and US to acquire some of their shows. Shyam says that the culture, storytelling as well as sentiments which seem to match with those in Tamil culture, is appealing to the audience they cater to. This apart, he adds that several Tamil directors are inspired from Korean films and series.

     

    Nearly 25 fresh dubbing artists are being employed to lend their voices to the Korean characters. A specialist Sanjay Mohan, who has worked for Star Vijay and NGC, and is well versed with both Tamil and Korean languages, has been roped in to monitor the content translation.

     

    Advertisers such as Poomex, Head & Shoulders, White Tone, Harpic, Lizol 10X, Vodafone, Wheat naturals and Prestige have been brought onboard for the Korean shows. The channel refuses to declare the acquisition cost but says that although it differs from channel to channel, it is equivalent to acquiring a “mega show from a Hindi GEC for Tamil dubbing.”

     

    The two channel group also considers the digital space important. New Gen Media Corp convergence head K Manikandaboopathi says, “Digital is all about convenience.  Smartphones/apps are the way people seek information these days and the audience growth is unlimited. It’s an untapped market with unlimited potential. Positioning our brand via handsets and tabs is the way forward for us and has more option for audience engagement.”

      

    Manikandaboopathi says that rather than invest in advertising the app, cross promotion is done via Facebook, TV and the website. 74 per cent of app downloads are from India itself. The PT app has had 240,000 downloads on Android since its launch in November 2013 with about 1.25 lakh downloads happening during the recently concluded elections. The group has invested Rs 50 lakh on the PT live, PPY live, PT VOD, PY VOD and PT Tickr apps. Two of the group’s shows have special apps- Chinna Chinna Cinema (Puthu Yugam) and Nerpada Pesu (Puthiya Thalaimurai). Some of the apps are free while some are paid.

     

    However, the Korean dramas are not available on the apps, since the channel has not acquired the digital rights for them. The apps are the group’s way to reach out to younger audiences in India, between the age group of 18 to 40, specifically. 

     

    The company says that the PT application seems to have become quite popular, while, on the PY front, more work needs to be done as yet. It has had 30,000 downloads in six months. “We need to focus on increasing the visibility as this is mostly demanded by the non-resident Tamil diaspora. We have witnessed that the audience prefers catch-up TV via the app. So, a new and free video on demand app has just been launched last week on iOS and will soon launch on Android,” informs Manikandaboopathi.

     

    While the News channel has made a mark among Tamilians with its claims of having overtaken Sun News and Jaya News within 60 days of launch in August 2011, the GEC is yet to firm up against the big guns that rule the Tamil TV GEC roost – Sun TV, Star Vijay, Jaya TV and Kalaignar. The Sun Network and Jaya Networks are connected to the political heavyweights in the country – the DMK and AIADMK families respectively, while the Star Network has a major stake in Star Vijay. While PT claims to be the only News channel without any political affiliation, SRM Group founder TR Pachamuthu had contested the recent Lok Sabha elections under a BJP ticket, but lost to the AIADMK’s RP Marutharajaa.

  • Zee Marathi – World Television Premiere of ‘Fandry’ acts as a catalyst for social awakening & change

    Zee Marathi – World Television Premiere of ‘Fandry’ acts as a catalyst for social awakening & change

    MUMBAI: The National Award Winning and critically acclaimed movie ‘Fandry’ will premiere on Maharashtra’s number 1 Marathi channel ‘Zee Marathi’ on 29th June 2014. This time its not just content with just high ratings from blockbusters like Duniyadari, Mee Shivajiraje Bhosale Boltoy, Natarang and Balak Palak amongst others in the past, the channel has gone one step ahead this time with the film Fandry.

     

    Going beyond the gamut of vanilla promotions, Zee Marathi has endeavored to make a difference through Fandry. For starters, the channel has embarked on a mission to bring about change. The campaign woven around the concept ‘Jaaniv Zhali, Badal Havaa’ aims at bringing about change in society and making a difference in the lives of children. The channel has tied up with 10 NGOs that work in the area of children development and protection and will raise funds for these NGOs through the movie. This will be done through special break content that has been created for the movie. The channel has roped in some of the most popular Marathi actors to pledge their support for this cause and thereby create awareness and raise funds towards the cause of these NGOs. Some of the celebrities who will be part of this campaign include Nana Patekar, Sonali Kulkarni, Urmila Matondkar, Sachin Khedekar, Makarand Deshpande, Sachin Pilgaonkar, Atul Kulkarni, Amol Gupte alongwith vereteran Artists Vikram Gokhale and Dilip Prabhavalkar. These artists will support NGOs across Maharashtra; working towards the cause of children in varied areas. Some of these NGOs include Lokbiradari Prakalp (Gadchiroli), Snehankur (Ahmednagar) Eklavya Nyas (Pune), Narmadalay , Qest : Quality Education Support Trust (Solapur), Punrutthan Samarasata Gurukaul (Pimpari Chinchwad), Hamara Foundation (Mumbai) to name a few.

     

    The film’s campaign including the promos have been adeptly designed to communicate the strength of the content, the awards accolades and the cause in a smart and impactful manner.

     

    In addition to the above, the channel has also started a social media campaign through Facebook titled as ‘Jaaniv Zhali, Badal Havaa’.  As part of this initiative, all the Facebook users have to do is click on pledge tab called ‘Nirdhar Badlacha’ (Pledge for CHANGE) and register their support for the campaign. For each pledge Rupee 1 will be contributed towards the cause of these NGOs by Zee Marathi. Through this initiative Zee Marathi aims at building the reach of the campaign as there is no cost involved to the user.

     

    Speaking on the Fandry ‘Jaaniv Zhali, Badal Havaa’ initiative, Mr. Deepak Rajadhyaksha, Business Head, Zee Marathi said “Blockbusters have always rated well on Zee Marathi and this has been established beyond doubt. It is not often that one gets a chance to make a difference to someone’s life and hence we have gone beyond the regular model of a movie premiere and decided to make a difference. We have always taken up interesting initiatives; one’s that we believe in and feel we can strongly support. With the reach and viewership we enjoy in Maharashtra it was imperative for us to create a drive that would force people to think and pledge their support to change. We have always associated ourselves with movements to make a change and the Fandry campaign for change is just another step in that direction.” While the viewers will be voluntarily donating to the NGOs, the channel will definitely contribute to the cause. Mr. Rajadhyaksha adds “Charity begins at home and hence the Zee Marathi family felt it was right for us to donate a sum of Rs 5 lakhs towards the cause. We believe our viewers will support this noble cause and add a smile on the faces of the many Jabya’s (character name of the lead protagonist of the movie) across Maharashtra.”

     

    The channel creative and marketing teams have been working round the clock to ensure that there is no stone unturned in bringing about change. Pledging support to this cause is Zee 24 Taas who will run a few special features on the NGOs and interview the artists associated with the cause. Also lined up is the interview with Nagraj Manjule, the director of the movie who based this story on true happenings in his native village. The movie produced by Esselvision stars Somnath Avaghade as Jabya apart from Kishor Kadam and Nagraj Manjule who plays a cameo in the movie. Based in the heartland of rural Ahmednagar, the movie is about the rampant caste discrimination in society and its ill effect on school going Jabya who wishes to live like just another child. ‘Fandry’ has won critical acclaim and won awards at many international film festivals apart from the coveted National Award.

  • Channel 10’s survival strategy

    Channel 10’s survival strategy

    KOLKATA: Channel 10, a 24 hours Bengali News channel and also one of the surviving TV channels from the otherwise redundant Saradha Group stable, plans to introduce a sponsored slot for soft programmes soon. This is to keep the show running for the channel. The move comes after the Non Resident Indian (NRI) businessman and sole financier Samir Chakraborty decided to discontinue with his investment plans to run the channel.

     

    The other channels under Saradha Group are Tara Newz and Tara Muzik. According to sources within the channel, Channel 10 is also looking for new financiers.

     

    “While we have always focused on hard news, we are eventually moving towards soft features, the promotions for which are on. We had to do this to run the channel. We will try to walk alone until we find a financier,” said a senior from the channel on condition of anonymity.

     

    It can be recalled that the Saradha-owned Channel 10 had closed down like the other media ventures including Sakalbela, The Bengal Post, Azad Hind, Prabhat Varta, Seven Sisters Post, Tara Newz and Tara Muzik among others after the Group’s chit fund business went bust in April last year.

     

    It was after this that the Channel 10 employees formed an Employees’ Welfare Association to resolve payment issues. “But this did not help much, since employees were still not paid regularly,” added the source.

     

    The News channel again saw the light of day after the Calcutta High Court permitted Chakraborty to run it. While this came as a huge relief to more than the 268 employees working there, the channel is in turmoil yet again due to shortage of investment.

     

    When asked why the earlier financier washed his hand from the channel, the source said, “Since both the ED (Enforcement Directorate) and CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) are scrutinising the Saradha scam closely, Chakraborty has decided to discontinue with this venture.”

     

    Sources also hint that Chakraborty had applied for satellite license, before deciding to part ways with the channel.

     

    That apart, Chakraborty was also looking at producing sports and entertainment content related news which could be engaging for the viewers. “But nothing materialised,” recalls an employee.

     

    Last year Tara (Television Aimed at Regional Audiences) Newz also introduced sponsored slot for sports news as a survival strategy.

  • Christmas Exclusives on Amrita TV

    Christmas Exclusives on Amrita TV

    MUMBAI: To celebrate Christmas with its viewers worldwide, Amrita TV has scheduled an exclusive fare of programmes which include a Christmas Concert, telecast of Christmas proceedings from a well-known church, a series of Hollywood-produced films on Biblical characters ,programmes related to the Christian fraternity and a new look-screen with Santa Claus and kids being featured as graphics in the channel throughout the Christmas festivities.

    Some of the notable programmes, are the telecast of “Gloria Deo International Concert” ,billed as the biggest Christmas Concert in South India with musicians from across the world like Beny Prasad,an internationally acclaimed musician who has developed a unique 51-string guitar and has performed at Olympics and FIFA, and toured over 100 countries; Cindy Wilcox,Professor Music ,Liberty University and musician from UK, and Emaurie Woods blue black singer from USA–alongwith Boney, musician ,Live Jam ,Trivandrum and the Super Star troupe of Stephen at the key board,Sangeeth and Job.

    The program is telecast on Sunday 24 December on Amrita TV .On Sunday itself there is an exclusive programme with well-known playback and classical singer Yesudas who talks to Amrita TV in the company of his family and friends in the program “Samagamam”.

    On Christmas Day,Amrita TV is serializing “Bible Stories ” in Malayalam on Jesus,Jacob and David which will be telecast on prime time for a fortnight (Mon-Fri .7.30 pm).A Hollywood production,it features an international cast .On 25th a Special Xmas episode of its latest reality show ,”Super Star Junior” will be telecast at 8 pm .

    This special episode will be for 90 minutes and, will for the first time, introduce the shortlisted junior contestants from the thousands who were auditioned for the show in the 10-15 age group.These children under the direction of music directors, Deepak Dev,George Peter,Alphonse will host a Christmas show.

    On the same day, “Music Cafe”will feature Christmas Carols with top musicians from South India; while “Sruthilayam”,a classical music programme will feature a Christian priest singing classical songs.

  • Suvarna sets high hopes with Bigg Boss Kannada 2

    Suvarna sets high hopes with Bigg Boss Kannada 2

    BENGALURU: A few weeks ago, Indiantelevision.com had reported that Star Network’s Kannada general entertainment channel (GEC) Suvarna has bagged the rights of the second season of Bigg Boss Kannada (BBK) from ETV Kannada.

     

    And the channel is all set to start airing the 100 episode daily show starting 29 June hosted by Kannada actor Sudeep again.

     

    To keep the mystery alive, Suvarna claims that the names of the 14 contestants have been kept under wraps with the winner taking home a cash prize of Rs 50 lakh. Suvarna business head Anup Chandrasekharan says, “We have always brought in different and exciting content for our audience and we are delighted to bring to your screens yet another thrilling series. Bigg Boss Kannada promises to be an electrifying season in its second innings.”

     

    A key differentiator between the Kannada and Hindi editions is the set at Lonavala which is simpler and has fewer cameras (35 maximum).  

     

    Produced by Endemol India, BBK 2 is an hour long episode to be aired between 8 to 9 pm will see a three hour long premiere, inform sources at the channel.

     

    Endemol India COO Abhishek Rege adds, “Bigg Boss has captured the attention of Indian audiences all over! With a legacy of record breaking TRPs it has truly gained momentum on both national and regional television with the continuing success Bigg Boss Hindi and fantastic response received by Bigg Boss Kannada season 1.”

     

    The channel has roped in OLX.in as the title sponsor, CERA as the powered by sponsor, Dollar Bigg Boss as associate sponsor and many more are lined up. The channel says that it is selling ad spots at a 200 per cent premium. Chandrasekharan says that he is looking at a 70-30 (spot-buying) split, with 70 per cent advertisers and sponsors already booked.

     

    A 360 degree marketing plan has been designed for BBK 2, for which it has earmarked around Rs 8 crore. This includes 150 hoardings across Karnataka and on 50 bus shelters in Bengaluru, 100 branded buses and ad spots on three radio stations. It has also planned for print ads in all publications on the launch day as well as magazine. Other outdoor and BTL activities include multiplex activity at PVR and Inox, mall branding in Bengaluru, door to door activity and mobile van activity.

     

    The channel is promoting the programme heavily on the digital platform through its website and social networking sites. It also intends to have a sub domain for BBK. The channel will dedicate 70 per cent of its promo time on this show during the launch phase, as well as run spots on its sister channel, Suvarna Plus.

     

    Industry sources peg the production cost of the show at about Rs 16 crore to Rs 17 crore across the 100 episodes, with the total cost pegged at around Rs 30 crore to Rs 35 crore. “There is no such thing as inflation. This season will cost about the same as last season to produce the show,” reveals the source. About 800 technicians would be working in shifts behind the scenes.

     

    While Chandrasekharan claims non disclosure agreement (NDA) reasons for not disclosing the amount that the channel is paying for retaining host Sudeep, industry sources put the amount at between Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 2.5 crore.

     

     “Sudeep was the obvious choice for season 2 as well. If we had brought in someone else, it would be like re-inventing the wheel. So what if the show has switched channels?” says a source at Endemol India.

     

    Though the show did bring in ratings numbers for ETV Kannada during in season one, it did not rake in the money that was expected reveals an industry source. “This was probably the reason that the Star Network could take the show away from Viacom18,” explains the source.

  • Star Vijay builds momentum for eighth Vijay Awards

    Star Vijay builds momentum for eighth Vijay Awards

    MUMBAI: It is time to once again build up the energy for the coveted Vijay Awards. The eighth edition of the awards for the Tamil film industry on Star Vijay has already begun its digital and TV activations, a month in advance of the telecast.

     

    This year, Vijay Awards will see film and TV actors host and perform at the ceremony which will see 29 best and five favourite awards given out on 5 July and will be telecast on a later date. Similar to last year, the channel will be running contests and giving away passes to 20 people from South Africa, Malaysia, Singapore and other countries to come and watch the award function.

     

    Talking about the event Star Vijay general manager K Sriram said, “This is truly a credible and an incredible award show.  We are very excited about it and ever prepared to make it an astounding success year on year.”

     

    Viewers have been voting since 14 June for their favourite actors either by SMS, calls or online which will end on 25 June. A long list of sponsors has already been lined up. Gionee is the title sponsor while Casa Grand is powered by sponsor. Dr MGR and RRP Housing are co presenting sponsors. Sunland Refined Sunflower Oil, Step Stone Promoters, V Care, Poomalai Housing, Kibbs Lungigal, Vijaya optical House, RPG Developers, Shakthi Masala, Ran India Steel and Amrita Institute are associate sponsors. 

     

     “This is a big event that happens every year and I, like everybody else, look forward to it.  The ‘Golden Lady’ has become a much sought-after trophy for everyone in the Tamil film industry,”said renowned director K Balachander referring to the Vijay Awards statuette.

     

    The jury members include Yugi Sethu, Prathap Pothen, Ravi K Chandran and actor Simran. Last year saw Bollywood’s king Shah Rukh Khan visit the ceremony and being given an award.

     

    Currently, a one hour prelude is being aired every Saturday at 8 pm. As part of the pre-event activation, celebrities are being roped in for conducting on ground events in various parts of the state.

  • ETV News Gujarati targets Rs 40 crore revenue in first year

    ETV News Gujarati targets Rs 40 crore revenue in first year

    MUMBAI: The last few months saw several regional news channels sprout from the Network18 group. The channels from the bouquet charged into the states of Karnataka, West Bengal and Haryana/Himachal Pradesh and soon another channel is set to make headway into the land known for its lions.

     

    In the presence of the new Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel, ETV News Gujarati is set to launch in 21 June. The current news bulletins on its sister general entertainment channel ETV Gujarati will cease to exist with the arrival of the news channel. “For the last so many years our Gujarati viewers have been demanding a 24 hours news channel for the region. Since, ETV news is known for its credibility, viewers were not satisfied with only a few news bulletins which ETV was running on the existing Gujarati channel,” says ETV news group editor Rajesh Raina.

     

    The existing team that was creating the bulletins has now been enhanced with additions in the constituency level. Currently, being broadcast out of the network’s previous owner Ramoji Rao’s massive studios in Hyderabad, it will later shift to its headquarters in Ahmedabad and a sub-office in Gandhinagar. Naresh Dave is the editor while Neeraj Attri will be looking after the marketing and sales head of the channel.

     

    “Hindi channels are strong in Gujarati because of lack of quality content on regional channels. There is still a potential here and also a vacuum. FMCG, pharmaceuticals and agricultural companies are potential target advertisers,” says Attri.

     

    The competitors to ETV News Gujarati are TV9 Gujarati and Sandesh News. The size of the entire state’s market including the national Hindi channels is about Rs 500 crore to Rs 550 crore out of which regional channels command close to Rs 100 crore to Rs 110 crore.

     

    Sources in the channel say that that ad rates is quoted at Rs 4000 for a ten second slot. While the channel is looking at a break even in about two years, the aim for the first year is to reach revenues close to Rs 40 crore. 

     

    Hoardings have already been placed across Ahmedabad, Surat, Baroda and Rajkot as well as promotions on other ETV channels. Media planners and buyers are being reached out through e-mailers. Print and radio advertisements are not yet in the pipeline.

     

    Distrubtion across cable networks in the state including the leading GTPL as well as Den and InCable have been secured. It is also looking at covering the border areas of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. In Mumbai it is available on all national connections. DTH platforms are yet to be added.

     

    “ETV is known as the voice of people in the entire country as we operate channels in different regional languages. Expansion will definitely help to reach out to a sizeable population of Gujarati speaking people in the state and outside,” says Raina.

     

    Bulletins will cover both national and regional news. This apart, film based news, sports based news, business news and city bulletins will form a part of the FCP. Live bulletins will air from 6 am to midnight.  Devotional and astrology shows in the morning and cookery and women’s magazine shows in the afternoon will be aired as well.

     

    A popular ETV Hindi programme Central Hall will also be telecast.

  • Dubbed ‘Fear Factor’ will sell: SJ Clement

    Dubbed ‘Fear Factor’ will sell: SJ Clement

    MUMBAI: The land which sleeps, eats and breathes action has another reason to jump with joy.

     

    Sun Network has decided to treat its viewers to high octane visuals in the form of the popular Hindi show Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi.

     

    The show will be dubbed in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam; the one hour episodes will be aired on its general entertainment channels (GECs). Dhil Dhil Dhil- Fear Factor will air on Sundays at 12 pm on Sun TV starting 29 June, Fear factor: Sahasa Veerulu- Veelu Denikaina Ready will be telecast on Gemini TV, Monday to Thursday at 9:30 pm from 23 June and Sahasigam- Fear Factor can be caught on Surya TV, Thursday and Friday at 8 pm.

     

    Sun TV Network programming head for GEC channels SJ Clement says that the network is confident on garnering audiences from the show. “Immaterial of being dubbed content, it is the gut-wrenching action/adventure that the viewer wants and through the show we are giving them that entertainment,” he says dismissing any concerns related to the content being dubbed.

     

    The only channel excluded from the dubbed version is the Kannada channel, Udaya TV. As a rule in the state, no dubbed content can be aired on any channel.

     

    Agreeing on it, says DDB MudraMax AVP and head of south Anil Sathiraju, “Just as how dubbed south Indian movies work well on Hindi channels, the same can be said about the reverse. People have accepted dubbed content because of the novelty factor in it. Advertisers will also be keen on the show.”

     

    Seasons 1, 2, 4 and 5 will be shown continuously till the entire stock is exhausted. Season 3 has been excluded since it had Priyanka Chopra as host and to keep the continuity of Akshay Kumar as anchor the decision was taken. However, it will slowly move on to the season 5 which had Rohit Shetty as the host.

     

    “However, the effect Akshay and Rohit will have on the audiences will surely vary as Rohit is more popular down south,” adds Sathiraju.

     

    The network however is not looking at recreating the show for the southern market anytime soon. The reason behind so is the high budget that needs to be pumped into creating one. Says Clement, “It is an expensive show. If this works, we shall certainly go in for producing the show in the respective languages.”

     

    A cross channel promotional activity is planned along with radio spots and selected outdoor campaign. Digital activity through Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and Google+ is also in the pipeline.

     

    Talks are currently on with sponsors and advertisers for the adventure show.

  • Amrita TV plans airing movies in half hour episodes aka soaps

    Amrita TV plans airing movies in half hour episodes aka soaps

    BENGALURU: In probably what could be the first for a south Indian TV channel, Kerala’s Amrita TV plans to start airing movies during the primetime slot of 9-9.30pm, Monday to Thursday starting 23 June. The programme is titled ‘Katha Thudarunnu’ (KT) which means ‘The Story Continues.’

     

    To start with, Amrita TV plans to air a couple of movies, with each movie running into 6-8 episodes, depending on the length of the film. The first season may continue till August. Since the channel airs a two-minute, half-hourly news bulletin round the clock (“Spot News”), the show/ad/news split will be 22/6/2 minutes.

     

    “As viewing habits and content-mix undergo periodic flux in the small screen landscape, Amrita TV has decided on probing consumer preferences through an innovative move in a serialized movie format by way of the show, ‘Katha Thudarunnu.’ The moot question is whether a viewer who is willing to remain glued to long-winding soaps for months on end, will show the same involvement for a serialized movie with film stars for a week or two, especially, with a built-in continuity element by way of an anchor-prelude to each episode,” says Amrita TV global head (M&C) A. Sushil Kumar.

     

    “Basically, Amrita TV is trying an experiment by pushing the envelope, and not banking on the low-hanging fruit alone. In fact, in Malayalam television, Amrita has taken calculated risks and pioneered many ‘firsts’, thereby winning 61 State Awards-the highest for any Indian private broadcaster in just eight years,” explains a source at the channel.

     

    Every episode will be prefaced with an update of what has transpired in the earlier episodes, for the benefit of those who may have missed an episode or two says the channel. Unlike the normal viewing of a movie where a viewer has to make available 2-3 hours at a stretch to see the movie, in this format the audience will have the flexibility to watch it across a few days without losing continuity.

     

     The first movie to be aired will be a new generation Malayalam hit ‘Bicycle Thieves,’ directed by Jis Joy, featuring hotshot stars such as Asif Ali and Aparna Gopinath.

     

     The new show will replace the serial ‘Suryakaladi’, which will culminate the 136 episodes run on 19 June. While the chief sponsor for ‘Suryakaladi’ was Kerala State Financial Enterprises, sources at Amrita TV say that confirmation for sponsorships for KT is expected by 20 June.

  • Channel Eight exits Aakash Aath

    Channel Eight exits Aakash Aath

    KOLKATA: A production company Channel Eight, which relaunched the Kolkata headquartered Electro steel Group’s GEC Akash Bangla as Aakash Aath in October 2013, has been compelled to disassociate itself from the channel after it didn’t get the promised 51 per cent stake.

     

    Channel Eight had invested around Rs 15 crore in the process as per sources.

     

    “Aakash management had made certain commitments to Channel Eight which they have miserably failed to keep, due to which we have moved out from the channel, 12 June onwards,” says Channel Eight director Ashok Surana.

     

    Indiantelevision.com had earlier reported that there was a tussle between the director Avik Dutta and the investor Ashok Surana over the share transfer issues.

     

    Channel Eight’s programs like Janani, Police Filez, Ghhente Gha, Sahityer Shera Shamoy and Gaan Dariya have already gone off air from Aakash Aath. The production company has stalled the shooting process.

     

    “As a result, nearly 300 persons will be out of work. The artistes and technicians associated with these productions are extremely unhappy with this development but have promised to work with us as and when we resume work. All the programs currently running on Aakash Aath are not Channel Eight Productions,” informs Surana.

     

    “It is a sad commentary of market situations in West Bengal. The revenue potentials are low. Whatever is available is primarily taken away by the bigwigs. There are only two viable plans in media segment. Either a big plan so one can take away most of the ad spends in the region or low budget propagation where survival is not entirely dependent on corporate support for adverts/promotion,” says a media analyst Swaraj Mukherjee.

     

     “Ashok is intelligent to get back the money. He was quite upset and feels that if it continues like this, no HNIs will ever invest in media sector,” says a close business associate of Surana on condition of anonymity.

     

    Avik Dutta was unavailable for comment, when contacted.