Tag: Aamir Khan

Anushka Sharma to appear in the next PK poster

MUMBAI: Aamir Khan is leaving no stone unturned in promoting his upcoming film PK. The first poster of PK garnered enough buzz in the market with the actor posing almost nude in the first look of the film.

In order to keep the buzz alive, it was being speculated that Khan will be looking at releasing about seven to eight posters of the film before the trailer. The posters until now have had Khan and the recent one had Sanjay Dutt as a part of it. It is only now that the leading lady of the film, Anushka Sharma revealed that she will be giving us a glimpse of her avatar in the film’s next poster.

Recently, the actress took to Twitter to talk about the release of the next poster of the film. She tweeted this video saying, “Mujhe tukur tukur dekhna hai? Toh pehle isse dekho” Sharma described that the next poster will be released on WhatsApp and it will only be available if you put up a phone number on a group of ten or more people.

Directed by Rajkumar Hirani and also produced by Hirani in association with Vidhu Vinod Chopra and UTV, PK also stars Sushant Singh Rajput and Boman Irani. The film is slated to release on December 19.

October 15, 2014
MIPCOM 2014: Aamir Khan’s three conditions before starting ‘Satyamev Jayate’…

CANNES: He is a man who can make his mark even on a distant land, far away from home. Yes! We are talking about Indian film actor Aamir Khan, who was in Cannes, giving the MIP Megasession keynote at the ongoing MIPCOM 2014 in a packed Grand Auditorium about his landmark show Satyamev Jayate (SMJ). Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari is the Indian representative for all MIP markets.

So how did it all start? Said Khan, “It all started, becuase I was very inspired from my friend Satya (Satyajit Bhatkal, director of SMJ), who was my friend and class topper from school, was working in the social space. And I being an actor, was doing well in my career, but wasn’t doing much on this.”

He further went on to say that as TV grew in India, this idea, of doing something on this front, grew bigger. “Star India CEO Uday (Shankar) offered me a game show, which I refused, he then asked me if I could do anything on TV. So I asked him if we could work on something that can bring some change. And he agreed,” he added.

Khan and his small team comprising Satyajit worked together to create the show, which has gone down in the history of Indian television as one of the most popular shows. “Through the show, we try to understand the society. We try and put the issues to the people, be it child abuse, honour killing, rights and responsibilities etc,” he informed the audience which comprised of content creators from across the globe.

All that we see on television wasn’t created in a day. “We took a year to work on research. The reason we researched was to find out if we had a show,” he said. In order to be sure, the team researched with four topics “and once we were confident, it didn’t matter to us if Star would take the show or not. We knew we could go ahead with it and put it on YouTube or anywhere,” he said adding that it took just five minutes for Shankar to approve the concept of the show.

But, it was not all that easy. Khan then put three conditions in front of Shankar before agreeing to go ahead with Satyamev Jayate.

One, he wanted the programme to be in multiple languages, since he wanted to reach out to people in their language. “I just didn’t want the main Star channel, but wanted the whole network, which would air the show at the same day and time.”

The second condition was that in the states, where Star didn’t have a presence, the show was to be given to its competitor and the third was to give it to the terrestrial network Doordarshan. “Many villages in India do not have satellite TV even now and we wanted to reach those homes through Doordarshan,” he announced.

But, Shankar, coming from a journalism background, understood where Khan was coming from. “I was talking of a show where I was not investing money but investing time. Star and my team is a part of the show which is made of love,” he said.

Of the 1.2 billion population in India, 600 million people watch SMJ every week. “We didn’t know if people would be interested in a show like this. It was heartwarming to see how people connected emotionally. There is a huge vacuum of content on social issues and people want a show like SMJ,” he added.

So how does Satyamev Jayate impact the society? “Well, we empower people by selecting an organisation each week so that one can help financially. What we also do is have partners, who help us on issues.” So far the show has been able to raise $ 45 million for the NGOs connected with it.

Khan also mentioned how the political and administrative class of the country had also shown interest in the show. “Our show hits out on political and administrative class most of the times and so we didn’t know how they would respond, but I can tell you that there have been 9-10 examples where these people have come ahead and supported us.”

Explaining the reasons for the show doing so well, Khan said, “There was a need and desire for things to change. India is on a cusp of change so a show like this helps them understand the issue and move towards change,” he said.

“Sometimes when we research, we feel angry about certain things. But we have to approach people with love. We can’t attack them, if we do that, we will close the door for ourselves,” he added.

Khan feels that the audiences in India today are looking for content that is engaging. “Even serious content can be made engaging.”

One of the things that they do to catch the attention of the audience is keep the topic of the show a secret. “No one knows the topic, till the episode is aired. This attracts them to the show.”

Khan also believes that serious issues can be presented in a way that people can relate to. Giving an example he said, “So when I talk about female foeticide, I do not start with the fact that women are being forced into abortion. That drives away audience, what I do is, I start by asking them, their most favourite person and then go on talking about their mother, my mother and then tell them the reality,” he narrated.

Khan and his team is taking journalism and combining it with drama and storytelling. “My job as a storyteller is to be engaging,” he concluded.

October 14, 2014
Zee initiates campaign for Kashmir floods- “HUM HAIN… Umeed-e-Kashmir”

MUMBAI: The entertainment industry led by the Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA), the Film and Television Producers Guild and the global mediaconglomerate Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.(ZEE) has initiated a fund-raiser campaign, “HUM HAIN… Umeed-e-Kashmir” to raise funds and awareness for flood-stricken Kashmir. The recent floods in Kashmir have devastated and unhinged the lives of many leaving many casualties and loss of homes, property and livelihoods in its wake.

Acknowledging our chance to be one, the relief campaign kicked off on Gandhi Jayanti and ZEE’s 22nd Anniversary – 2nd October, with a message from youth icon Ranbir Kapoor calling on the nation to join hands and raise hope for the people of Jammu and Kashmir. The message was released along with a thematic music piece composed by Gulzar & Vishal Bharadwaj and sung by Sukhwinder Singh.

HUM HAIN: Umeed-e-Kashmir will strive to work alongside several NGOs, Government bodies, celebrities and civilians to give the cause a unified voice. The concert will include a list of celebrity performers will appeal and urge viewers to donate to key NGOs and specified Disaster Relief Funds in support of the Kashmir relief project. Many other stars and performers will be shortly announced.

On 18 October, HUM HAIN…Ummeed e Kashmir is being hosted at the Indira Gandhi Indoor stadium in Delhi and features a veritable who’s who: Aamir Khan, Vishal Bhardwaj, Farhan Akhtar, Ranbir Kapoor, Sharmila Tagore, Gulzar, Ayushman Khurrana, Daler Mehndi, Sonu Nigam, Shaan, Sukhwinder Singh, Rekha Bhardwaj, Pritam, Shantanu Moitra, Kavita Krishnamurthy and Dr L Subramanium, Anupam Kher, Imtiaz Ali, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Mukesh Bhatt, Swanand Kirkire, Zaheer Khan, Boney and Sridevi Kapoor and multiple celebrities. More celebrities will continue to join as performers, as the build-up to the event begins. Tickets for the event and all proceeds, which will completely go to the charity United Way will soon be available on Bookmyshow.com and other outlets across the Delhi NCR region.

The campaign’s highpoint is the creation of simultaneous live events on ground across 7 cities on 18th October with the main event at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi and simultaneous events being held in Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkatta and Jaipur. The spread of events across the country will help demonstrate that India cares.

Zee TV’s 10 News channels will come together to connect the multiple events being held simultaneously across the country. India will be one as the event management industry in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Jaipur, and Kolkata will feature their respective film and entertainment industries. Zee’s anchors and network will connect the cities and performers live from 3 pm onwards on 18th October.

A total of 38 Zee channels will SIMULCAST this initiative on Sunday 26 October including Zee TV, Zee Cinema, & Pictures, Zee Classic, Zee Action, Zee Premiere, Zee Café, Zee Studio, ETC, Zing, Zindagi, Zee Tamil, Zee Talkies, Zee Bangla, Zee Bangla Cinema, Zee Anmol, Zee Smile, Zee Salaam, Zee Jagran, ZQ, Khana Khazana, Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, & Pictures HD and Zee Studio HD, Zee Kannada, Zee Telugu, Zee Marathi Zee News, Zee Business, Zee 24 Taas, Zee 24 Ghanta, Zee MP CG, Zee Punjab, Zee Sangam, Zee Marudhara, Zee Kalina and Zee Purvaiya.

Studios will also be set up in both New Delhi and Mumbai where celebrities will also send across poignant messages, performances and showcase footage films that bring alive the devastation and relief work undertaken in an effort to strengthen the appeal. Concert tickets for the same will be sold, with all proceeds going to charity. A collection of celebrity memorabilia will also go on auction. ALL money generated through the fund-raiser through sale of tickets, donations, sponsorships, commercial time, auctions, etc. will be given to charities in Jammu & Kashmir and the most-recently hit Assam that the organisers will painstakingly select.

Amitabh Bachchan speaking about the initiative said, “As human beings and as Indians we need to do all that we can to help our countrymen in need. The plight of the people of Jammu & Kashmir has always been a matter of concern and the floods have only made it worse. All that we do simply won’t be enough to meet the various challenges facing the people; but every drop counts. Hence we call on everyone in our country and from the world community to come forward and provide their support.”

Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, ZEE said “As a nation, we have always treasured Kashmir the most, our precious crown that it has always been. In such a calamity, it is nothing less than a moral responsibility of every citizen and corporate in India to step forward and extend the best possible support towards the relief. As a global media company, with a wide bouquet of multiple channels across the nation, and a strong connect with over 730 million viewers, ZEE aims at offering a dual support to this initiative. Firstly, through the advertisement revenues generated from the broadcast, which would be entirely donated to the relief work, and secondly by offering a nationwide reach to the event. Committed to ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, which we espouse as our brand positioning, it is ZEE’s responsibility to step forward and work for its Family, of which the people of Kashmir are an integral part.”

Ranbir Kapoor speaking about the initiative said, “Kashmir has always been an intrinsic part of our film industry. The happiness and joy that the Kashmiri people brought me and my Rockstar crew was incredible. The people are peace-loving and love all of us from the entertainment industry. I am grateful to the EEMA and the Film Producers Guild for initiating this project with Zee TV. It’s important that the country comes together to demonstrate our solidarity with them at this time”

Sabbas Joseph, President of Event and Entertainment Management Association said today, “As we continue to plan the relief campaign, there is an optimistic energy building that we will be able to help rebuild Kashmir with a sense of solidarity that is representative by every film, music and sports icon coming together. The idea of creating multiple simultaneous live events showcases the strength, diversity and unity of our country; it also demonstrates the growing strength of the live and event management industry across the country. Bringing the country together, is at the core of the initiative that we are building.”

Mukesh Bhatt, President of the Film & TV Producers Guild, said, “The land of ethereal beauty & purity is in tatters, devastated by nature’s fury. Kashmir, the embodiment of Indian culture & tradition, is crying for help from millions of fellow Indians. The Indian entertainment industry has shared a wonderful symbiotic relationship with the land of Kashmir over the years & the time has come to repay the generosity & hospitality of Kashmiris in their time of strife. The industry has forever pioneered charitable causes whenever India has been ravaged by tragedies & this time too, we would like to support our Kashmiri brethren & contribute in our own humble way to this gargantuan task of relief & rehabilitation.”Hum Hain ….. Umeed-e-Kashmir” will not only assemble industry forces on a common platform of compassion & nobility but more significantly appeal to the consciousness of the vast multitude of Indians to generously donate funds in our endeavour to provide some succour to the survivors in Kashmir.”

This October, the Event and Entertainment Management Association, along with Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. and the Film and Television Producers Guild of India have come together in solidarity with the people of Kashmir and India, at large and is sending out a call-to-action.

October 9, 2014
Satyamev Jayate’s impact on digital

MUMBAI: Amidst sporting resurgence, budding talent and encouraging medal hauls, India’s talk show `Satyamev Jayate’ (SMJ) returned for a third season on Star Plus, highlighting the need for holistic improvement in India’s sporting field – a call that won backing from none other than the Sports Minister.

In an unprecedented show of support to SMJ, Minister of youth affairs and sports Sarbananda Sonowal live-tweeted three times during the screening of episode one of season 3, calling for more suggestions to improve the culture of sports in India. “I promise not to leave any stone unturned to make sports a way of life,” the minister had tweeted.

Sonowal’s tweets were among the more than 200 million impressions created in a single day on 5 October in an overwhelming show of positive sentiments to SMJ. More than 2 million people responded through missed calls to support the show’s initiative.

Star, as part of the `Mumkin Hai’ (change is possible) initiative, separately organised a live dial-in with SMJ’s host Aamir Khan in Chandigarh on the d-day that saw Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar dial-in to share about his initiative called ‘sports4all’ and how sports should be reinforced at the grassroot level.

“Aamir’s @satyamevjayate episode was a déj? vu for me, sports4all will change country’s future #MumkinHai,” Tendulkar said via Twitter afterwards.

Legendary cricketer Kapil Dev also joined the live show and expressing his views, he said, “It is extremely encouraging to see how people in our country today are taking much interest in sports and paying attention to it in so many ways – whether it is in the form of discussions or even making blockbuster movies!”

Sonowal and Tendulkar were joined by the likes of politician Naveen Jindal, former top cop Kiran Bedi, former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in praising the show.

“Felt very good watching prog of @aamir_khan on #MumkinHai on sports! He has spread out for sports what @PMOIndia did for #SwachhBharat,” tweeted Bedi.

“Are authorities at sports federations responsible for the deteriorating conditions of sports in India?”Arvind Kejriwal retweeted Satyamev Jayate’s tweet.

“Satyamev Jayate has done what it does best – initiate a debate and inspire people to aspire for the better,” said Star India co-creator and CEO Uday Shankar. “The overwhelming response shows the thirst for change and that change is possible.”

Over the last three seasons, SMJ’s journey has been remarkable. Unlike shows that fade with time, SMJ has grown to become a positive change agent that continues to grip people from across the length and breadth of the country with issues that concern each and every Indian in the daily life. This can be validated by the immense viewer engagement that the show has received in the past and continues to, even in its third season.

Cricketer Yuvraj Singh was part of the live dial-in held in Chandigarh. He wrote afterwards on Twitter: “Just finished a show with @aamir_khan 4 @satyamevjayate wth kapil Dev. Gr8 topic, Sports builds character n creates a healthy mind n body.”

The show trended for 24 hours in India at No. 1, 2 and 3, and also trended worldwide at No. 1 on Twitter, demonstrating the mass support for the show’s message on sports. SMJ also received huge support from top celebrities on social media including from eminent personalities such as Harsha Bhogle and Virat Kohli.

“Wonderful, moving episode of #satyamevjayate. Never know where champions are coming from, just need to empower more people,” wrote Bhogle on Twitter.

Inspired by the show, Kohli tweeted, “Saw @satyamevjayate yesterday. Hope every school now starts to focus more on sport. Well said @aamir_khansport is education!”

October 7, 2014
“Jazba Hai To Mumkin Hai” on radio to complement Aamir Khan’s Satyamev Jayate on TV

NEW DELHI: All India Radio is to broadcast “Jazba Hai To Mumkin Hai”, a feedback interactive programme with Aamir Khan from 11 October based on the episodes of Satyamev Jayate.

The programme will be broadcast on AIR’s FM Network, Vividh Bharati’s National Network and identified 94 primary channels/local radio stations from 11 October to 15 November on every Saturday. Thus there are six programmes that will be aired at different timings on various channels of All India Radio.

FM Gold Network – 1000 Hrs to 1100 Hrs;FM Rainbow Network – 1800 Hrs to 1900 Hrs; Identified PC/LRS – 1100 Hrs to 1200 Hrs and Vividh Bharati National Network – 1530 Hrs to 1630 Hrs. The calls from the listeners of AIR will be received on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Listeners can call up and share their experience from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm on these days.

To encourage participation, a feedback interactive programme with Aamir Khan is broadcast every season.

Earlier take on these radio programmes: “Dil Pe Lagi Aur Baat Bani” and “Awaaz Unki Jinhe Fiqr Hai Desh Ki” with Aamir Khan over All India Radio had proved immensely successful.

Following the trend, this year’s programme “Jazba Hai to Mumkin Hai” will also complement Satyamev Jayate – III in taking forward Khan’s idea of India to the masses and the fact that everything is possible if we have a collective will to bring about change.

An AIR official told indiantelevision.com, “In the last season, Aamir Khan was astonished when he realised that there were calls from the interiors of India to the far flung North East as well as Jammu and Kashmir and South India. The actor was full of appreciation for the responses received via All India Radio.”

Satyamev Jayate – Season III featuring Aamir Khan went on air from yesterday on Star Plus with a simulcast by DD National for wider coverage of the programme which holds talks and discussions on various burning issues concerning Indian society at large.

Star Plus also launched the programme ‘Mumkin hai‘, immediately after the telecast of Satyamev Jayate, where presenter Debang spoke live about the subject of the day – sportspersons and the need to inculcate sports from a young age – with Kapil Dev, Yuvraj Singh, and an invited audience from Chandigarh. It is learnt that this programme will travel to different cities every week and will be telecast live immediately after Satyamev Jayate.

The show launched its earlier seasons with the basic idea to bring about change by creating awareness about socially relevant issues.

After being widely appreciated as a TV show, AIR and Satyamev Jayate team decided to connect with millions of radio listeners through interactive feedback programmes. After each telecast, feedback is received from the listeners/viewers across the country through phone calls which are recorded and played back to Khan who in turn gives response to the listeners’ reactions.

Thus these programmes conceived as talk shows for All India Radio are an extension of Satyamev Jayate. Aimed at stringing together real-life incidents touching a common chord across people of the country, these programmes could reach poorest of poor and remotest of remote parts of the country.

October 6, 2014
Star India and Satyamev Jayante say #MumkinHai

MUMBAI: A show that bought home uncomfortable realities, Satyamev Jayate (SMJ) is returning for a third season on Star Plus and key channels of Star Network to inspire hope in a nation of more than a billion people that change is possible.

After influencing change at an individual, societal and policy level in the first two seasons, the show is returning with the core theme ‘Mumkin Hai’ or ‘Change is Possible’. The focus will be on creating hope and positivity, and showcasing how SMJ has truly become a brand of the people.

Aamir Khan will be interacting with viewers live through phone calls and social media interactions. This was based on feedback from viewers that they wished to interact and have their voice hear and their opinion registered. The live show will air right after the main episode and will be telecast each week from a different city in India.

Star India CEO Uday Shankar believes that it began to build awareness around urgent social issues, but now it’s gone way beyond that and has emerged as the best showcase of the role media can and should play in driving change in the country.

“I am particularly proud that SMJ has also become the most powerful platform to inspire individuals and groups and acknowledge the extraordinary contribution that seemingly ordinary people are making to our country. For us at Star India, it has given purpose to why we exist,” adds Shankar.

Producer and host of the show Khan says that ninety per cent of his time this year he has invested on SMJ. “We have an unusual mix of topics, and some really moving and inspirational first person accounts. Importantly, the major new aspect of our show is what I am really looking forward to, and that is the live response of the audience. Up till now the show was a one way communication, but now I get to hear live the response of the audience, through direct phone calls, Twitter and Facebook. Hope is the key word for me and it is with great hope that I look forward to 5 October.”

SMJ has created awareness on several issues, portraying success stories in a bid to encourage more people among us to take actionable steps toward positive change. The entire campaign for the new season has been divided in two phases focusing on the change already inspired by the show and how change is possible when all of us take active interest and act responsibly.

The first phase kick started four weeks back with the Satyamev Jayate Impact Films, which have been playing across the entire Star Network. The films showcase the impact that the show has had through individual and emotional stories of change. The films end with a message from Khan, sharing with audiences the message that change is indeed possible.

These films are being followed up by the next phase which celebrates regular people, who act responsibly and take a stance in a tricky situation, inspired by the values of SMJ. The campaign has been created by Ogilvy and Mather and produced by Corcoise Films.

The marketing plan of the show includes innovations across mediums, right from digital, print, TV and radio. One of the innovations which was used for digital was tying up with Twitter to become the first ever show in the world to release a promo through ‘Tweet to Unlock’.

As a part of the activity, users had send in a tweet with #MumkinHai, and as the counter reached 100%, the first promo was unlocked exclusively for the fans who had taken part in this activity. The promo subsequently got over a million views on digital within a couple of days itself and registered over 600 million impressions on social media. Over the course of the campaign the promos will play in more than 30 channels, and will have promotions across the leading print publications and radio stations, apart from many exciting digital innovations.

Satyamev Jayate launches on 5 October, Sunday mornings at 11 am. This season will have six episodes in total. The show will be aired in five languages (Hindi, English, Marathi, Tamil and Malayalam) across eight channels (Star Plus, Star Utsav, Star Pravah, Star World, Star Vijay, Asianet, ETV Telegu and Doordarshan).

The show will also be available on www.satyamevjayate.in.

September 29, 2014
Aamir Khan to take centerstage at MipCom

MUMBAI: MipCom has announced that Indian actor-director-producer Aamir Khan will take to the stage for the inaugural MIP MegaSession, entitled ‘The Future of Factual.’

Organised by Reed MIDEM, the MipCom entertainment content tradeshow takes place in Cannes from 13 to 16 October.

Scheduled for 14 October, the first ever MIP MegaSession will gather leading players driving the next generation of online and linear factual programming on the main stage of the Grand Auditorium to discuss where the genre is heading.

Khan has starred in dozens of Hindi movies, including some of the highest-grossing Bollywood hits of all time. He is also a writer, director and producer, his credits including the colonial story ‘Lagaan’, which was nominated for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

Since May 2012, Khan has fronted the Hindi talk show ‘Satyamev Jayate’ (Truth Alone Prevails), broadcast on the Star channels and the Doordarshan network. The show has had a deep impact on Indian society and its ruling classes, highlighting sensitive social issues such as female foeticide, rape, child sexual abuse, dowry customs, honour killings, domestic violence and wider environmental issues. ‘Satyamev Jayate’ has been watched by some 700 million people, and is also a major hit with online viewers and has a huge following on social media.

The third season of the show will soon go on air taking forward the philosophy that anything is possible (‘Mumkin hai’).

Khan will be in conversation with Oscar-nominated writer, director and producer Morgan Spurlock, when he will expand upon what drove him to produce the show under his banner, how it has struck such a resounding chord in India, and whether its format can be replicated in other countries.

Khan’s session in France was coordinated by Indiantelevision.com group founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari, who represents Reed Midem’s content markets Mipcom and MipTV in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh and music market Midem in India, and Reed Exhibitions Singapore based market Asia Television Forum in India.

Other global media business and entertainment leaders who are slated to speak at this year’s MipCom include Simon Cowell, 21st Century Fox’s James Murdoch, CBS’s Armando Nunez and David Stapf, and Chief Content Officer of Netflix, Ted Sarandos.

September 19, 2014
Star Plus to debut the promo for “Satyamev Jayate” exclusively on Twitter

MUMBAI: The third season of the popular television show Satyamev Jayate with Aamir Khan on Star Plus will be exclusively promoted on Twitter.

With the success of rise in online conversation around the show in the last two seasons, this season audience will be engaged in many unique ways on Twitter.

Star Plus will give fans the power to unlock and enable the release of the promo of the new season of Satyamev Jayate exclusively on Twitter, before any online or offline platform.

Star Plus will become the first broadcaster to use the “Flock to Unlock” card that will incentivise followers to drive engagement and awareness about the show and unlock exclusive content on Twitter.

Fans are encouraged to Tweet with hashtag #MumkinHai to generate the required number of Tweets needed to unlock the video and be the first to view it.

Below is the tweet from @SatyamevJayate:

https://twitter.com/satyamevjayate/status/509746786873798657

Below is the tweet from @StarPlus:

https://twitter.com/StarPlus/status/509745885396209667

In the spirit of empowering audience, there have been various Twitter exclusive chats with experts in various social issues, such as Harish Iyer and Nikhil Dey, held by @SatyamevJayate.

https://twitter.com/satyamevjayate/status/505002740225814528

https://twitter.com/satyamevjayate/status/504900584336404480

Follow @SatyamevJayate and @StarPlus for more and Tweet using #MumkinHai to join the conversation.

September 11, 2014
&Pictures gifts fans ‘Dil Se’

MUMBAI: For a country which loves its movies, there are many options to choose from. So when Zeel launched &pictures – Sapnon ki Udaan – in the Hindi movie space it promised to be different from the rest.

Keeping the promise, the channel acquired movies, which would cater to the new mindsets, and took it to next-level through its various interactive programming. Who would have thought Chale Chalo, a documentary film, based on the making of Aamir Khan’s Oscar nominated movie Lagaan, would become a talking-point even before it was aired on the channel. The buzz created on the social media and the chance to speak to the actor through live dial-ins achieved unbelievable ratings.

Now to up its ante after completing one successful year, the channel has come up with delightful surprise for its fans – ‘Dil Se.’ The new digital innovation will help bridge the gap between the Bollywood stars and their fans. Created by YouToo Technologies, first for the Zee TV viewers in North America in 2012 to help connect with each other, the creator has tweaked the video service a little for the movie buffs here.

Expanding on the idea, Zee TV Americas marketing head Vibha Chopra says that in a large country like the USA, families which couldn’t meet too often loved the idea of ‘Dil Se’ when Zee gave them an opportunity to send in small video chats. “It helped us to increase our viewership base as people loved the idea of seeing their loved ones on television. We have got more than 50,000 videos so far and a two to three minute spike in time spent.”

“We are a movie channel and what would be better than to enhance the engagement level between audiences and the stars or movies they admire so much,” says Zeel chief content and creative officer Bharat Kumar Ranga while adding that through these 15 second videos the channel wants the viewers to share their message from the heart.

The 15 second video will have to go through censors before being aired on the channel. Since, its TG lies in the Hindi speaking markets (HSM), the channel isn’t worried about language barriers. “It will be mostly Hindi but when a fan says something from within his/her heart, it doesn’t need a language to express his/her feeling,” says Zeel Hindi movie channels deputy business head Ruchir Tiwari.

And to market the new section, the channel will take the digital route. Since it wants people who are always online and comfortable with the digital world, ample amount of the marketing spend will be on social media apart from the regular in-channel promotions.

In the past one year, the movie channel has been able to distinguish between itself and its sister channel, let alone competition. Stating the example of Ghanchakkar, Ranga says that he had never allowed a Imran Hashmi film on Zee but the channel acquired the Hashmi and Vidya Balan starrer. “For a traditional masala movie, we have Zee Cinema and for the viewers with progressive attitude but still rooted there is &Pictures.”

Another feather to its cap was the launch of the HD version of &Pictures which will have a completely different FTP than the SD version! The channel aims to target the very core of its target audience of &Pictures. “Even within a TG, one can see fragmentations. Through the HD channel we want to cater to the core TG and not the scattered movie buffs who surf through various channels,” says Ranga.

August 28, 2014
Star Plus’ Satyamev Jayate to see a few changes, this season

MUMBAI: It was in 2012 when TV audiences woke up to Sunday morning slot once again. Star Plus with Satyamev Jayate at 11 am, tried to bring about a change in our society by bringing the ills gripping our society to the forefront.

The promos of the upcoming season have already gone live and each tells a story of a person who after watching a heart-wrenching episode has gone out to make a change in whatever manner he/she could. One of the promo tells a story of Nazia, who found a sexually-abused girl and went on to help her through Childline – a NGO working for kids. “Nazia is like one of us but through her one action she proved that it is we who can bring about a change,” says the host of the show Aamir Khan while highlighting that this time the focus on promos was not him but on heroes who made a difference. “It is all about possibilities.”

He highlights that the research team never went out to hunt for people like Nazia but while doing their study they met or were told about people who after watching SMJ went out of their way to help others.

In its third installment now, the show, which will go live on 21 September and consists of six episodes, will see a few new elements. The biggest change will be letting the common man talk to Khan. After the one and a half hour show, people can talk ‘live’ to Khan through social media – Facebook and Twitter -, phone or the show’s official website to share their issues on the topic discussed earlier.

“SMJ is about people and we want people to tell their views and issues so that together as a society we can bring about a change,” says Khan who will be travelling across various cities to connect with the people.

He believes that the show has changed him a lot. “I have become more patient and less judgmental,” he says while recalling that years ago when Star India CEO Uday Shankar had approached him for a game show he had made a correct decision by denying that and suggesting a show on social issues.

This time around, for the first time, other actors too will be seen on the show. “It is not for publicity. But only the actors who have done something for a particular issue or feel for it will be on the talk show,” clarifies Khan.

Believing that the change needs to be brought about from the grassroot level to revolutionise people’s mindset, Khan wants people, administrations and governments to make a note of the things. Stating the example of how after the female foeticide episode was aired, the sex ratio between girls and boys has risen, Khan says, “Earlier there were 890 girls per 1000 boys, but today it is 940 which is remarkable. A small step can make a huge difference.”

On a personal level, Khan wants four basic fundamental benefits given to each and every citizen of the country, namely, public health services, education, a quick and fair justice system and security through a strict law and order.

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August 27, 2014