ITV

Tag: Aakash Aath

  • BARC week 36: Regional space witnesses two new entrants Zee Keralam, Aakash Aath

    BARC week 36: Regional space witnesses two new entrants Zee Keralam, Aakash Aath

    MUMBAI: In the week 36 of BARC India ratings, regional segment witnessed two new entrants in Bangla and Malayalam spaces. Zee Keralam entered the top five Malayalam channels table in week 36 of BARC India ratings. The channel garnered 62298 weekly impressions (000s) and replaced Asianet Movies at fifth position. In Bangla space Aakash Aath was the new entrant replacing Zee Bangla Cinema at fifth position. Colors Gujarati also bagged the leading position. Last week, the channel was seen at second position.

    Bangla
     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Zee Bangla 338192
    2 STAR Jalsha 266482
    3 Jalsha Movies 79105
    4 Sony Aath 56325
    5 Aakash Aath 55456
    WB (U+R): NCCS All : 2+ Individuals, 

    In week 36 of BARC India ratings, Flowers TV and Mazhavil Manorama have exchanged their places to be at second and third positions.

    Malayalam

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Asianet 298018
    2 Flowers TV 90911
    3 Mazhavil Manorama 87634
    4 Surya TV 64415
    5 Zee Keralam 62298
    Kerala (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

    No changes were observed in the pecking order of Bhojpuri channels in week 36 of BARC India ratings.

    Bhojpuri

     

    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Bhojpuri Cinema 71479
    2 B4U Bhojpuri 56167
    3 Big Ganga 38073
    4 Bhojpuri Dhamaka DISHUM 13151
    5 Dabangg 11088
    Bihar/Jharkhand (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals

    Colors Gujarati moved up to the first position. Last week, Colors Gujarati Cinema was seen at first position. ABP Asmita, TV9 Gujarati and Sandesh News continued to hold their third, fourth and fifth positions respectively. 

    Gujarati 

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Colors Gujarati 26295
    2 Colors Gujarati Cinema 21791
    3 ABP Asmita 16832
    4 TV9 Gujarati 15221
    5 Sandesh News 9633
    Guj / D&D / DNH (U+R): NCCS All: 2+ Individuals, 

    No changes were observed in the pecking order of Kannada channels. 

    Kannada 

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Zee Kannada 430743
    2 Colors Kannada 317510
    3 Udaya TV 219120
    4 Star Suvarna 170847
    5 Udaya Movies 161369
    Karnataka (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

    Zee Marathi, Colors Marathi, Fakt Marathi, Zee Talkies and Star Pravah were the top five Marathi channels. 

     
    Marathi 

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Zee Marathi 331112
    2 Colors Marathi 163779
    3 Fakt Marathi 148022
    4 Zee Talkies 124081
    5 STAR Pravah 111431
    Mah/ Goa (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals, 

    Sun TV, Star Vijay, Zee Tamil, KTV and Star Vijay Super were the top five Tamil channels in week 36.

    Tamil 

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 Sun TV 861027
    2 STAR Vijay 508958
    3 Zee Tamil 403474
    4 KTV 264745
    5 STAR Vijay Super 103068
    Tamil Nadu/ Puducherry (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

    ETV and Zee Telugu exchanged their places at second and third positions. Star Maa continued to lead the Telugu channel table of BARC India ratings.

    Telugu  

     
    Rank Channel Name Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
        Week 36
    1 STAR Maa 773958
    2 ETV Telugu 500460
    3 Zee Telugu 398814
    4 Gemini TV 373530
    5 Star Maa Movies 185745
    AP/ Telangana (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals, 
  • No changes in Marathi, Telugu segments in BARC data week 2

    No changes in Marathi, Telugu segments in BARC data week 2

    MUMBAI: In the Bengali market, Jalsha Movies and Aakash Aath interchanged their fourth and fifth positions in BARC data week 2. Bhojpuri Cinema and Big Ganga swapped their first and second position in the Bhojpuri space. Zee Kannada and Colors Kannada swapped their first and second positions in the Kannada cluster. Flowers TV and Mazhavil Manorama interchanged their second and third positions in the Malayalam space.  Star Vijay and Zee Tamil exchanged their fourth and fifth positions in the Tamil space.  No changes were observed in Marathi and Telugu segments.

    Bangla

    Zee Bangla, Star Jalsha and Colors Bangla continued to be in first, second and third positions respectively with 355433 impressions '000s, 297000 impressions '000s and 58134 impressions '000s. Jalsha Movies and Aakash Aath interchanged their fourth and fifth positions with 52016 impressions '000s and 51197 impressions '000s.

    Bhojpuri

    Bhojpuri Cinema and Big Ganga swapped their first and second position respectively with 40421 impressions '000s and 40241 impressions '000s. Bhojpuri Dhamaka Dishum, Housefull Action and Oscar Movies Bhojpuri continued to be in third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 13976 impressions '000s, 5922 impressions '000s and 2909 impressions '000s.  

    Kannada

    Colors Kannada and Zee Kannada swapped their first and second positions respectively with 429314 impressions '000s and 420073 impressions '000s. Udaya TV and Udaya Movies retained their third and fourth positions respectively with 205229 impressions '000s and 183934 impressions '000s. Colors Super emerged as the new player with 147808 impressions '000s.

    Malayalam

    No changes were observed in the Malayalam segment. Asianet, the Malayalam general entertainment channel from Star TV, managed to be on first position with 286177 impressions '000s. Flowers TV and Mazhavil Manorama interchanged their second and third positions with 109369 impressions '000s and 104530 impressions '000s. Surya TV and Asianet Movies stood at fourth and fifth positions respectively with 77263 impressions '000s and 62530 impressions '000s.

    Marathi

    Zee Marathi, Colors Marathi, Star Pravah and Zee Talkies and Zee Yuva continued to be in first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 422147 impressions '000s, 144346 impressions '000s, 120428 impressions '000s, 113656 impressions '000s and 45060 impressions '000s.

    Tamil

    Sun TV retained it leadership position with 861645 impressions '000s. Star Vijay and Zee Tamil exchanged their second and third positions respectively with 487018 impressions '000s and 474213 impressions '000s. KTV and Adithya TV continued to be on fourth and fifth positions respectively with 319072 impressions '000s and 97634 impressions '000s.  

    Telugu

    Star Maa, Zee Telugu, ETV Telugu, Gemini TV and Gemini Movies held on to their first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 635149 impressions '000s, 543646 impressions '000s, 475044 impressions '000s, 419803 impressions '000s and 201579 impressions '000s.

  • No changes were observed in the Tamil segment in BARC data week 47

    No changes were observed in the Tamil segment in BARC data week 47

    MUMBAI: In the Bengali space, Aakash Aath and Colors Bangla swapped their third and fourth positions in BARC data week 47. Oscar Movies Bhojpuri emerged as the new player in the market by securing fifth position in the Bhojpuri space. Star TV retained its first position in the Malayalam market. Star Pravah and Colors Marathi interchanged their second and third position in the Marathi segment. No changes were observed in the Tamil segment. Inthe Telugu space, Star Maa retained its first position.

    Bangla

    Zee Bangla and Star Jalsha continued to be on first and second position with 341281impressions '000s and 306895 impressions '000s respectively. Aakash Aath and Colors Bangla swapped their third and fourth positions with 70369 impressions '000s and 62076 impressions '000s respectively. Jalsha Movies retained its fifth position with 54391 impressions '000s.

    Bhojpuri

    Big Ganga, Bhojpuri Cinema, Bhojpuri Dhamaka Dishum, and Housefull Action retained their first, second, third and fourth positions with 41018 impressions '000s, 36234 impressions '000s, 12978 impressions '000s and 7430 impressions '000s respectively. Oscar Movies Bhojpuri emerged as the new player in the market by securing fifth position with 3066 impressions '000s.

    Kannada

    No changes were observed in this segment. Colors Kannada, Zee Kannada, Udaya TV and Udaya Movies continued to be on first, second, third and fourth positions respectively with 432688 impressions '000s, 397867 impressions '000s, 221721 impressions '000s and 194712 impressions '000s. Colors Super emerged as the new player in the market by securing fifth position with 139019 impressions '000s.

    Malayalam

    Asianet, the Malayalam general entertainment channel from Star TV retained its first position with 268962 impressions '000s. Flowers TV, Mazhavil Manorama, Surya TV and Asianet Movies stood at second, third, fourth and fifth positions with 106161 impressions '000s, 93434 impressions '000s, 81846 impressions '000s and 68645 impressions '000s.

    Marathi

    Zee Marathi continued to be on the first position with 393374 impressions '000s. Star Pravah and Colors Marathi interchanged their second and third positions respectively with 150376 impressions '000s and 141146 impressions '000s. Zee Talkies and Zee Yuva retained their fourth and fifth positions with 118868 impressions '000s and 44237 impressions '000s respectively.

    Tamil

    No changes were observed in the Tamil space. Sun TV, Zee Tamil, Star Vijay and KTV and Adithya TV retained their first, second, third and fourth positions respectively with 924931impressions '000s, 503690 impressions '000s, 477806 impressions '000s, 396159 impressions '000s and 110022 impressions '000s.

    Telugu

    Star Maa retained its first position with 636790 impressions '000s. ETV Telugu, Zee Telugu, Gemini TV and Gemini Movies stood at second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 502893 impressions '000s, 502117 impressions '000s, 461255 impressions '000s and 211530 impressions '000s.

  • No changes in Tamil, Marathi, Telugu segments in BARC data week 46

    No changes in Tamil, Marathi, Telugu segments in BARC data week 46

    MUMBAI: In the Bengali space, Aakash Aath climbed to the third position from fifth position as compared to the previous week in BARC data week 46. News18 Bihar Jharkhand emerged as the new player in the market by securing fifth position. Mazhavil Manorama and Surya TV interchanged their third and fourth positions in the Malayalam market. No changes were observed in Tamil, Marathi and Telugu segment.

    Bangla

    Zee Bangla and Star Jalsha continued to be on first and second positions with 359602 impressions '000s and 289451 impressions '000s respectively. Aakash Aath climbed to the third position from fifth position as compared to the previous week with 61725 impressions '000s. Colors Bangla and Jalsha Movies stood at fourth and fifth positions respectively with 61205 impressions '000s and 60091 impressions '000s.

    Bhojpuri

    Big Ganga, Bhojpuri Cinema, Bhojpuri Dhamaka Dishum, and Housefull Action retained their first, second, third and fourth positions with 57272 impressions '000s, 48736 impressions '000s, 16193 impressions '000s and 5110 impressions '000s respectively. News18 Bihar Jharkhand emerged as the new player in the market by securing fifth position with 3958 impressions '000s.

    Kannada

    No changes were observed in this segment. Colors Kannada, Zee Kannada, Udaya TV, Udaya Movies and Star Suvarna continued to be at first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions with 462359 impressions '000s and 401719 impressions '000s, 227776 impressions '000s, 184480 impressions '000s and 143776 impressions '000s respectively.

    Malayalam

    Asianet, the Malayalam general entertainment channel from Star TV and Flowers TV retained their first and second positions this week as well with 297815 impressions '000s and 105029 impressions '000s respectively. Mazhavil Manorama and Surya TV interchanged their third and fourth positions with 85263 impressions ‘000s and 76099 impressions '000s respectively. Asianet Movies continued to be at fifth position with 63712 impressions '000s.

    Marathi

    No changes were observed in this sector. Zee Marathi, Colors Marathi, Star Pravah, Zee Talkies and Zee Yuva continued to be in first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 411590 impressions '000s, 135799 impressions '000s, 131606 impressions '000s, 112065 impressions '000s and 37392 impressions '000s.

    Tamil

    Sun TV, Zee Tamil, Star Vijay, KTV and Adithya TV retained their first, second, third and fourth positions respectively with 871265 impressions '000s, 484799 impressions '000s, 459320 impressions '000s, 352072 impressions '000s and 100077 impressions '000s.

    Telugu

    Star Maa, Zee Telugu, Gemini TV, ETV Telugu and Gemini Movies continued to be on first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively with 637863 impressions '000s, 504682 impressions '000s, 452339 impressions '000s, 442173 impressions '000s and 213367 impressions '000s.

  • Relief for broadcasters as WB govt ends impasse between artist forum, production houses

    Relief for broadcasters as WB govt ends impasse between artist forum, production houses

    MUMBAI: The Bengali TV Industry, one of the major hubs of India’s entertainment ecosystem, was in the middle of a major crisis since Saturday. The tussle between the production house guild and artist forum had stalled the shooting of almost 30 mega serials aired on major GECs in the state. With no new episodes in the bank, broadcasters were compelled to air repeat telecasts of shows. With the two warring parties refusing to budge, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee intervened, calling on a meeting involving both factions in the presence of three major broadcasters – Zee Bangla, Star Jalsha and Colors Bangla.

    The decision to set up a joint conciliation committee was taken at the meeting, which was also attended by renowned actors like Prosenjit Chatterjee, Soumitra Chatterjee, representatives of Welfare Association of Television Producers. After the meeting, Banerjee told the media that problems concerning all the parties were discussed and the shooting would now resume.

    “The shoot of the mega serials will be resumed tomorrow morning. Our telly industry holds a very respectable place in our state. There will be a Joint Conciliation Committee that will look over all the issues,” she said after breaking the deadlock between the two groups.

    Representatives from production houses, channels, artists, technicians will be a part of the committee, which will be headed by minister Arup Biswas. The committee is expected to meet every month to resolve any conflict and ensure the smooth functioning of the industry. 

    With shooting set to resume today, the entire ecosystem can now breathe a sigh of relief.

    This, however, wasn’t the first time the artist forum and production houses were involved in a stand-off. But the scale of the conflict this time around certainly had the Bengali TV industry worried and the audience frustrated.

    The demands of the artist forum were two-fold – one was about timely payments, the second was with regards to shoot timings. The artists wanted to receive their payment by the 15th of every month. A source close to the development told Indiantelevision.com that there were several artists whose payments have been due for long. The source added that the delay in payments hasn’t necessarily hampered lead actors, but the supporting casts. 

    As per the directive of the forum, actors, some of whom had put their make up on, refused to continue shooting till their dues were cleared. The artist forum also called for overtime payment after ten hours of work.

    The television division head of a leading production house we spoke to blamed some artists for not being present on the floor at the scheduled call time, countering the demand for overtime payment. According to him, some actors did not shoot for more than six hours as they juggled between two projects at the same time. This inflicted monetary losses on the production houses, which pay a monthly rent for floors, he added.

    Many people involved in the issue feared that it could hurt viewers’ interest and that they would gravitate towards Hindi GECs. For the younger audience, there’s already an option of digital content.

    On Star Jalsha, Colors Bangla, Zee Bangla popular shows like Fagun Bou, Ke Apon Ke Por, Debi Choudhurani, Kusum Dola, Om Namah Shibay, Krishnokoli, Joyee, Andarmahal, Rani Rasmoni, Reshom Jhanpi, Subho Drishti, Aloy Bhubon Bhora did not have fresh episodes. Only two new serials Bajlo Tomar Alor Benu and Bhumikonya on Star Jalsha, along with a few reality shows on Zee Bangla and Colors Bangla were aired properly. However, Bengali GEC Akaash Aath survived the crisis without any disruption in telecasting new episodes.

    Had the deadlock not been broken, the entire local entertainment industry in the state could have suffered a great deal of financial damage. With so many people across the state employed in the industry, a prolonged problem between the two parties could have severely crippled the family economy of several households.

    It now remains to be seen how the newly formed committee functions in a bid to ensure there is no repeat of such a situation.

  • Aakash Aath airs longest crime fiction in regional media space

    Aakash Aath airs longest crime fiction in regional media space

    KOLKATA: Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC) Aakash Aath has already aired 3,000 hours of crime fiction called Police Filez. The channel further said that it is the longest for any regional media to run a show like this one.

     

    The channel has plans to continue the show. What’s more the show is also a part of the channel’s CSR activity as it makes people socially aware and helps them to comprehend and safeguard themselves from such brutal crime.

     

    Police Filez is a real life crime based fiction. Aakash Aath has been covering almost all the crimes that take place and enacts it in the most real format. Stories are shown up till judgment/judgments pending. Police Filez is telecast from Monday to Saturday from 8.30 – 9.30 pm.

     

    “Our Police Filez series is doing very well. It is delivering around 25 per cent of the numbers alone in terms of audience viewership. We are the only one in the regional space to have a show like this. We have made approximately 3,000 hours of crime fiction. We plan to continue the show,” said Aakash Aath director Eshita Surana.

     

    Surana further explains that while there are instances of national TV channels running crime related shows for years, in the Bengal TV space, this is a new development.

     

    The show sometimes depicts gruesome acts. When queried on the purpose behind showing such acts on TV, Surana says, “Judgments are important to be shown as they would make the upcoming crime performers scared of it and this in turn might help in reduction of crime. Newspapers just write about the case on one day and then people don’t get to know what happened to the victim and what its judgment was,” she said.

     

    The show also has a special segment called ‘Dharma Number,’ through which viewers are educated on the punishments that fall under various sections and how they can move towards filing a case and fighting for judgment.

     

    Explaining further on how the channel’s telecast is helping the society, Surana says, “It was just after our telecast that the main culprit was caught in the Kamduni rape case, which has shaken the state.”

     

    Referring to the Pandua Acid Case she adds, “In this case, after the telecast, the victim got monetary help from a viewer for her medical treatment. A show like this helps the masses at times to identify probable crimes before they take place and they can also take precautionary measures, and protect themselves.”

     

  • Aakash Aath rides on the success of ‘The Legend’

    Aakash Aath rides on the success of ‘The Legend’

    KOLKATA: Aakash Aath, a Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC), which had launched The Legends towards the end of last year is riding high on the success of show. Last week there was a growth in viewership by around 45 per cent.
     

    The tribute to The Legends was launched by Aakash Aath from 3 November to be aired from Monday till Friday at 9.30 pm, where songs of the ‘golden era’ are sung by the singers of this era.

     

    Every day, the show is devoted to a legendary singer like RD Burman, SD Burman, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Uttam Kumar, Suchitra Sen and Rafi among others. Popular singers of today’s times like Srikanto Acharya, Rupankar, Shubhomita, Ustad Rashid Khan, Monomoy and Amit Kumar would be singing these songs.

    “The program is doing well. Few weeks ago, there was a growth in viewership by 45 per cent. The show is giving a lot of positive response. Legends never die and this show is a true example of that,” said Aakash Aath director Eshita Surana.

     

    The show has an up market and classy look on the lines of Coke Studio. Mostly hit film songs of yesteryears or the would be sung in the show. The songs would be both Bengali and Hindi. Special relevance would be outlined to songs which have gone from Bangla films to Hindi films and vice versa, views Surana.

     

    On what made Aakash Aath to launch this music show in the 9.30 time band, she said that old songs are an all time hit. “We feel at this time of the day people want something soothing and light hence came this idea. Gameshows are a tried and tested thing in this time slot. We did not want to become a ME TOO so thought something different,” Surana said.
     

    When being asked to comment on the number of shows, she said till now at least 80 episodes in the first lot is planned and the rest depends on the viewers’ response. Till now, the GCE has aired more than 70 shows.
     

    “We are doing the third lot of shooting for more 30 episodes,” she said.
     

    “Many new and repeat artists are calling us that they really want to perform on this show. Renowned artists like Srikanto Acharya, Madhura Bhattacharya and Raghab have also mentioned on the show that till now they have not got a better platform to perform like The Legends. They have all the freedom to sing whatever they like. We attempt to take music to the next level,” concluded Surana.

  • Bengali GEC Aakash Aath to launch new show format ‘Ek Maasher Galpo’

    Bengali GEC Aakash Aath to launch new show format ‘Ek Maasher Galpo’

    KOLKATA: Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC) Aakash Aath is launching a new format called Ek Maasher Galpo, which will showcase stories that will end within a month. 

     

    The half hour show format goes on air today (2 February) and will be aired from Monday to Saturday at 7 pm.

     

    “We have been doing dailies and weeklies and now we thought of doing monthlies. People are bored of the mega serials. The stories we will showcase are from novels by famous writers. Stories all some eminent writers would be aired from 7pm till 7.30 pm, six days a week,” said Aakash Aath director.

     

    When queried on the new format, Surana said that with this, the channel aims to educate people. “I want to entertain them with short monthly stories,” she said.

     

    For instance, in the month of February, famous Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin’s Jhumur would be aired. “We have 24 episodes, which will be directed by Sushanta Basu. The cast includes Kaneenika Banerjee, Pijush Ganguly, Bhaswar Chatterjee, Rajashree Bhowmick, Anamika Saha and Tulika Basu amongst others,” she said.

     

    Similarly, in March, the channel will air Abul Basar’s Musafir, which will have 26 episodes. This series will be directed by Debidas Bhattacharya. The cast includes Neel Mukherjee, Debdoot Ghosh and Monami Ghosh amongst others.

     

    For the months of April and May, the channel has planned Pratibha Basu’s Sahasa Kuyasha Chhire (26 episodes) and Syad Mustafa Siraj’s Point Zero (26 episodes) respectively.

     

    “All shootings have been planned for the next four months and if the show format clicks with viewers, then we will shoot further and look for other good short stories and writers close to any Bengali’s heart. It all depends on the response. If the viewers like the content and concept, we would love to make many more,” Surana added.

     

    The channel is looking at Bengali writers only as they are close to Bengali hearts and have the Bengali feel, she reiterated.

     

    Speaking about the marketing initiatives that are being planned by the channel around the new format, Surana said, “We would be promoting this through our own channel, paper ads, SMS and Whatsapp. We are doing extensive promotion on the channel and the teasers are already on air,” she concluded.

  • Aakash Aath to celebrate ‘Poush Utsav’ starting 11 January

    Aakash Aath to celebrate ‘Poush Utsav’ starting 11 January

    KOLKATA: As West Bengal gears up for ‘Poush Mela’ , an annual fair and festival that takes place in Santiniketan, to mark the arrival of harvest season, Aakash Aath, a Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC), plans to celebrate ‘Poush Utsav’.

    The week long festivities will commence from 11 January with 2-hours live show ‘Good Morning Aakash’, which is aired from 7 am to 9 am.

     

    “We always look at introducing new elements to make the shows more interesting and enthralling for viewers,” said Aakash Aath director Eshita Surana.

    On 11 January, the channel will air ‘Mul Gaan Bhanga Gaan’ (Twisted Original Songs) by Ridhi Banerjee and on the occasion of Swami Vivekananda’s birthday i.e. 12 January, it is looking at airing a special show.

     

    The channel has planned to get famous artists for special programming slot. “It’s a show which has a live artist or artists singing songs with a lot of interaction with an anchor,” she added.

     

    Other artists like Probhati Mukhopadhyay, Saikat Mitra and folk singer Swapan Basu have also been approached to sing through the week, it is learnt.

     

    The channel had earlier organised ‘Band Festival’ for four days from 25 December which saw bands like ‘Udaan’, ‘Cactus’, ‘Sahajiya’ and ‘Taseer’ performing for the viewers.

     

  • News will always be our focus, says Aakash Aath’s Eshita Surana

    News will always be our focus, says Aakash Aath’s Eshita Surana

    KOLKATA: Aakash Aath, a Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC) has said that though the focus of the channel has shifted, it still intends to keep news as part of its programme offering.

     

     

    It should be noted that Aakash Aath which was once a 24 hour news channel, has reduced the news slot to one hour at present. It airs news everyday from 4.30pm to 5pm and then again at night from 10.30pm to11pm.

     

    “Aakash Aath has undergone a change of format from news to GEC. We want our viewers to get news from us so that they do not have to shift elsewhere. Our news is positioned at a place where if you see one hour of this news you don’t need to see any other news channel,” said Aakash Aath director Eshita Surana.

     

    The channel will continue to air one hour of news bulletin. “At present we are not sourcing any content from anywhere but creating our own and we intend to continue this. No plans of any change in near future,” she added.

     

    Aakash Aath started off as Akash Bangla, a 24 hour Bengali entertainment channel with soaps like Kurukhetro, Shanai, Prabahini, Dotta, and Choritroheen. The channel later changed its format to become a 24 hour current affair and news channel in early 2012.

     

    But after Channel 8, a Kolkata-headquartered production company bought majority stake in the channel more than a year ago, the format has changed again. “The channel will always have a news bulletin,” concluded Surana.