GECs
Zee Zest acquires exclusive rights to ‘The Big Forkers’ season 3
Mumbai: Lifestyle channel Zee Zest has acquired exclusive rights for the third season of “The Big Forkers.” The new season will be launching exclusively on ZeeZest.com starting 15 February.
The 15-part series features cousins and hosts Shashank Jayakumar (Shanky) and Sid Mewara aka ‘The Forkers’ who love food, travel and discovering new cultures. The duo will be seen discovering the ‘Urru,’ Bangalore and its culinary offerings right from the local fair, regional specialties, and international tables along with the fan-favourite, ‘the pub crawl.’
From local food legends to upcoming stars, and beer gardens to college favourite pub crawls, they uncover pub life in Bangalore and the drinking culture across town. A true food journey loaded with new-age Smash Burgers, various kinds of interpreted meat preparations, biryanis, Korean meals, traditional Uttara (Northern) Kannada vegetarian meal and some very candid conversations.
Sid is an investment banker and ex-chef and Shanky is a serial technology entrepreneur and consultant to The World Bank. Their journey started with a tipsy conversation with friends while travelling through Spain in 2019, following the food trail by the late chef Anthony Bourdain.
The cousins set up a YouTube channel in 2020 called ‘The Big Forkers’ that showcased their exploration of cuisines. After completing two successful seasons in Mumbai and Goa, they are back with another season.
“The earlier two seasons piqued our interest with the duo’s edgy take on food and its many stories around it,” said Zee Zest business head Amit Nair. “In ‘Big Forkers’ season three, there is enough for the Bangalore local, the steady traveller or someone on the couch chilling with a cold one to take away from this latest installment from the big boys. This series is the first among the many digital-first properties that we plan to launch on zeezest.com.”
“Bangalore was all new to me which made it a voyage of discovery,” said co-host Sid Mewara. “Through the research, we did on the ‘Urru’, we knew we wanted to cover some of the staples such as the tiffin rooms, the military hotels and the craft beer scene. Personally, I love how progressive the city is, an oasis of sorts and can’t wait to show the viewers what we have in store.”
“Bangalore, for me, has always been work-related,” said co-host Shashank Jayakumar. “But just delving deeper made me realize that the city has held on to its European connections from colonial times. What I like, though, is that a majority of the population has managed to still be true to its roots. You will still see them in afternoon drinking sessions with idli, chutney on the side, or with Chicken 65 as a starter and I love Bangalore for that.”
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited has appointed Aparna Ramachandran as EVP and head of network digital, signalling a sharper focus on strengthening its digital and streaming ecosystem.
Ramachandran joins Zee from Balaji Telefilms, where she served as head of digital originals, leading content strategy and production for the company’s digital platforms. She announced the move on LinkedIn, marking a new chapter in her career spanning more than 15 years across media, entertainment and technology.
Her professional journey includes senior roles at Viacom18 Media, Viu, FremantleMedia, Miditech, BigSynergy, BBC Worldwide, CNBC-TV18 and Bloomberg UTV. She began her career in 2005 as a software engineer at Infosys before transitioning into media and digital content leadership.
With experience across streaming media, broadcast television, content development, digital strategy, project management and video production, Ramachandran is expected to play a key role in shaping Zee’s network-wide digital growth and content innovation.
London: Zee Entertainment has launched its flagship Zee TV as a live FAST channel on Samsung TV Plus across Germany, Austria and Switzerland, marking a first for South Asian television in Europe with round-the-clock live German subtitles.
The move takes Zee TV beyond its core diaspora audience and into the German-speaking mainstream, offering dramas, reality shows and family entertainment without subscriptions or language barriers. For FAST platforms, it sets a new benchmark in accessibility and scale.
Amit Goenka, president, international and digital businesses at Zee Entertainment, said the launch marked a turning point in the company’s global strategy.
“Zee TV Germany is a flagship launch and a defining moment in our journey to make entertainment truly borderless. By going live on Samsung TV Plus with 24/7 German subtitles, we are breaking language barriers and setting a new international benchmark for FAST streaming,” he said, adding that the partnership reflects Zee’s ambition to lead the FAST revolution through innovation and technology.
The rollout builds on the strong regional presence of Zee One and Zee5, both of which have cultivated loyal audiences across the DACH markets. The live FAST model now closes long-standing access gaps, particularly for younger diaspora viewers and first-time German-speaking audiences.
Samsung TV Plus said the partnership deepens its content portfolio in the region. Benedict Frey, country lead DACH and Benelux at Samsung TV Plus, said the addition strengthens its South Asian offering while widening appeal.
“Launching flagship Zee TV on Samsung TV Plus brings even more premium South Asian entertainment to our customers. Making this content available with live German subtitles is a meaningful step in serving diverse audiences and enriching the viewing experience,” he said.
Samsung TV Plus is Samsung’s free ad-supported streaming service, offering hundreds of live channels and on-demand titles across Samsung TVs, Galaxy devices and smart monitors.
Zee already commands a strong digital following across Germany, Austria and Switzerland, with social platforms engaging hundreds of thousands of viewers. The live FAST launch is expected to amplify reach and drive appointment viewing at scale.
Zee TV is now available exclusively on Samsung TV Plus in Germany on channel 4210. With this launch, Zee TV Germany becomes the group’s ninth channel in Europe.
The signal is clear: FAST has gone mainstream—and Zee has arrived early, translated and ready to scale.
MUMBAI: Sri Adhikari Brothers Television Network has formally adopted a new corporate identity, rechristening itself Aqylon Nexus Limited after receiving clearance from the ministry of corporate affairs.
The company has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that the MCA has approved the change of name, with effect from January 23, 2026. The update was disclosed in compliance with Regulation 30 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements Regulations, 2015.
Confirming the approval, the company said the ministry had cleared the transition from Sri Adhikari Brothers Television Network Limited to Aqylon Nexus Limited following the necessary regulatory process.
Aqylon Nexus said it has begun the formal exercise of replacing the old name across statutory filings and regulatory records. The broadcaster added that it is coordinating with relevant authorities and departments to complete the transition.
Under Section 12 of the Companies Act, 2013, the MCA has directed the company to continue displaying its former name alongside the new one for a period of two years.
Founded in 1994 and based in Mumbai, the company has been a long-standing presence in India’s television and content ecosystem. The rebrand reflects a repositioning effort as the media and entertainment sector undergoes rapid consolidation and structural change.
The legacy name remains on paper—for now. The business, however, is clearly turning the page.
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