ITV

Tag: Aparna Bhosle

  • ZEE TV organises vaccination camp for viewers from 3 August

    ZEE TV organises vaccination camp for viewers from 3 August

    Mumbai: ZEE TV has always placed viewers on the highest pedestal over the past three decades and now to take one step further to ensure the safety of its viewers in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the network channel has organised a vaccination camp for citizens across multiple states to get their Covid vaccine shots. Starting 3 August, the initiative will install camps at various locations across Maharashtra, Delhi NCR, and Uttar Pradesh.

    With the campaign’s primary motto being ‘corona ko harana hai, toh vaccine lagana hai’, ZEE TV urges all its viewers to get the first or second dose of Covishield at their nearest vaccination center. All vaccinations will be provided free of cost to the registered applicants and their families at the camp, the channel said in a statement on Monday.

    Talking about the initiative, ZEE TV business head, Aparna Bhosle said, “While we continue to entertain our kutumb of viewers through a variety of exciting new content offerings on the channel, it is our humble endeavour to secure their well-being and help them stay safe in these testing times. However, the only way to truly minimise the impact of this pandemic is to get ourselves vaccinated appropriately while continuing to abide by the government recommendations.”

    “While the nation still strives to get all its citizens vaccinated, we would like to extend a helping hand to our loyal viewers through the ZEE TV vaccination camp. We sincerely urge each citizen across the country to get themselves vaccinated and spread the word among their friends and families,” Bhosle added.

    To book their respective slots, viewers must fill in their details and register themselves on the website, www.ZEETVvaccinationcamp.in, as well as on the government-authorised Cowin app, making them eligible for a jab at the camp, the channel said.

  • Zee TV’s Aparna Bhosle on changing the content game in television

    Zee TV’s Aparna Bhosle on changing the content game in television

    MUMBAI: Traditional television broadcast has long been a staple of entertainment. But as the fast-growing internet and over-the-top (OTT) video platforms make inroads into the consumer market, more and more people are beginning to cut the cord and move to a digital viewing experience. The rules of the content game have changed. Digitisation has lifted barriers and offered a multitude of opportunities to tell stories that were once impossible to tell and it has become more important than ever for broadcasters to up their game in terms of content quality.

    Indiantelevision.com’s Shikha Singh spoke to Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle on how this transformation has impacted the audiences’ demands, the use of newer technologies, shooting techniques to meet the ever-growing need of viewers for quality entertainment and more.

    Edited Excerpts:

    On what has led to the growth of TV shows.

    Technology has evolved over the years and has certainly contributed significantly to our shows looking much better visually. We have more sophisticated cameras and lenses today, much better visual effects, and cutting-edge post-production software. But, at the end of the day, it is more about a maker's intent. Our audiences are far more exposed to global content than they ever were. Hence we, as makers, have started putting in a lot more effort into every small detail which makes the content look more aesthetic and visually appealing. It is not only about monetary investment but also investment in terms of time and thought. A lot more thought goes into production design which overall results in shows looking much better.

    On changes they have introduced to improve the look and feel of the shows.

    Shooting on Sony F5 is a standard in today's time. We even shoot on more sophisticated cameras such as Arri Alexa, Sony FX9. These are some cameras that have given great results even in low lighting conditions and the picture quality is top-notch. And with the advent of specialty equipment such as drones, Go-Pros, one can bring alive the scale of production values.

    Apart from that, more and more technicians are now experimenting not only with cameras but also lighting techniques. The days of flat lighting are long gone. Today's storytelling requires different shows to have different lighting. It is not just about having the latest technology at your disposal, it is more about how one leverages it to narrate a story more effectively. Technicians today love to experiment and create new looks for the show. They play with camera angles, lighting techniques which overall helps in achieving a new contemporary look. Sound, too, plays a very important role in storytelling. Today, our shows come with a Dolby digital 5.1 output which gives our viewers a high-quality sound experience while watching TV.

    On advantages of shooting in 4K.

    Shooting in 4K means more resolution, deeper colours, more creative options to work with during post-production. But the 4K files are heavy, which means more time to grab, hence for daily shows, it becomes time-consuming and not viable as a process. Shooting in 4K is possible in the case of certain events or promos that provide sufficient timelines between the dates of the shoot and on-air telecast.  

    On what kind of discussion goes on with production houses before creating any property.

    Detailed discussions between the channel and the production house right from the concept of a show, the narrative and the pace at which the storytelling should unfold, the key drama spikes, the characterisation, casting, core communication pitch, the production design, and the overall look and feel of the show are an integral part of the show’s making. As one moves closer to the show going on the floor, aspects such as set design, art direction, costume styling, camera treatment, and edit patterns get discussed.  

    Today, with the audience being far more exposed and discerning,  it is imperative for every broadcaster to display their A-game to hold and sustain audience interest.

    On how shows are made and changes introduced in the script.

    Just a few years ago, a tape used to be delivered from the editing studio to a channel’s office for transmission. Today, the same is achieved by a simple file transferring process. Content production is a dynamic process, and we are always eager to introduce new technology into our ecosystem. The journey from envisioning to execution is always a challenging one. As far as scripting is concerned, technology has given far more creative freedom to content creators as a lot of sequences that were earlier unthinkable in terms of execution have now become possible and even cost-effective.

    On how digitalisation has changed content production on TV.

    It has certainly lifted a lot of barriers. The camera quality is far better. Cameras can now shoot much better in low light conditions; they are lighter in weight, there is sophisticated equipment to shoot underwater, action sequences, etc. Our requirement for lights has considerably reduced. Shooting in uncontrolled environments, outdoors has become far easier. Footage transfer has become faster. The advancement in visual effects has empowered us to bring our viewers stories that were once impossible to tell.

    The post-production process has gone through a mammoth leap. The process of DI (digital intermediate, or digitising filmed content and manipulating the colour and other image characteristics), colour grading, sound effects, and background music were all very time-consuming and today can be achieved in a decent timeline. From a viewer's point of view, they are experiencing content with never-seen-before visual and audio quality and further advances in digitisation will only help us to up our ante.

  • Zee TV kickstarts digital auditions for Indian Pro Music League

    Zee TV kickstarts digital auditions for Indian Pro Music League

    MUMBAI: Zee TV in collaboration with Fathom Pictures is all set to present audiences in early 2021 with the world’s first ever music league, the ‘Indian Pro Music League’ (IPML), an innovative reality show.

    While the world of sports has seen several league competitions, this first-of-its-kind music league will have six team mascots – Shraddha Kapoor, Riteish Deshmukh, Govinda, Rajkummar Rao, Bobby Deol and Suresh Raina – representing different regions of India. Each of these teams will have celebrated playback singers, one male and one female vocalist as their captains. To add to this pool of talent, the Bollywood music celebrities are in search of six fresh voices from various regions of the country, one for each team, who will get a chance to be a part of this league.

    Taking forward its legacy of recognising amazing singers and giving them a platform to showcase their talent, Zee TV has launched the biggest digital audition for Indian Pro Music League to scout for six talented music aspirants. Digital auditions started from 12 December 2020 and will go on till 26 December, 2020.

    Participation will only be possible for contestants who register at www.ipml.in and upload a video of their performance on the site. The video should be no more than three minutes long and no less than 2 minutes. Sung completely in Hindi with no background score of the original track, the performance should be crisp and clear. Once the video has been uploaded and participants accept all the rules and regulations, they will receive a message confirming that their entry has been accepted. However, out of the countless aspiring singers who send in their audition videos, only six of the best voices will be selected.

    Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle said, "Zee TV has always believed in leveraging the strength of its reality formats to give the country's fresh talent an opportunity to chase their dreams. Having announced the world's first ever music league last month, we now set out in search of six fresh voices from across the length and breadth of the country to each be a part of the six teams that will compete in the league. With the show presenting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to train under some of the finest playback singers in the industry and be a part of teams whose mascots are entertainment industry’s biggest celebrities; singing aspirants are advised not to miss the bus and send in their entries via the digital auditions. With the Indian Pro Music League, the idea is to infuse the space of music reality television with the same energy and competitive spirit that is typical of a sports league, so the excitement only mounts from here on.”

    Singer Ankit Tiwari added, “While Zee TV has shaped the careers of many aspiring singers, with Indian Pro Music League, they are launching the biggest digital search for six fresh singing sensations and giving them a platform, not only to write a better tomorrow, but also to learn from musical geniuses who will be a part of their team. I’m extremely happy that I am getting the opportunity to be part of such a game changing show and I would like to urge India’s incredibly talented singers to send in their digital auditions to be a part of the show.”

  • Zee TV is back with season 2 of fantasy thriller ‘Brahmarakshas’

    Zee TV is back with season 2 of fantasy thriller ‘Brahmarakshas’

    MUMBAI: Zee TV is all set to whisk off its viewers into a world of fantasy with another intriguing season of its immensely successful weekend thriller, Brahmarakshas. Produced by Balaji Telefilms, the show will bring a unique and fascinating narrative inspired by the folklore about the Brahmarakshas, who has returned with twice as much power and is on a mission for immortality.

    The show premieres on 22 November 2020 and will air every Saturday and Sunday at 9 pm on Zee TV.

    Set against the backdrop of Ambala, the show follows the journey of an ordinary young girl, Kalindi whose destiny gets entwined with the most ferocious evil force that has ever awakened. It turns out Kalindi was born under a peculiar birth star that makes her special and as a result, the Brahmarakshas needs her in order to accomplish his mission of attaining immortality. Kalindi’s only source of strength is her love for her partner, Angad. As she navigates and manoeuvres her way through the world of evil and her own ordinary life, Kalindi finds herself up for a gruelling battle to protect the people she truly cares for.

    Essayed by the young and vivacious actress Nikki Sharma, Kalindi is a strong-willed 21-year old woman with a simple dream to complete her graduation and bag a dream job. Oblivious to her own beauty and charm, Kalindi does not pay heed to the attention she gets from several rich men until she falls in love with Angad, portrayed by popular television actor Pearl V. Puri. Much in contrast to Kalindi’s personality, Angad is a highly successful but also a flirtatious, rich, good-looking man whose magnetism often makes him the centre of attention amongst several women. While his perspective towards love and life changes once Kalindi enters his life, the latter’s journey takes an unexpected turn when the evil Brahmarakshas creates a roadblock in their love story. Will Kalindi be able to protect her love and her life from the evil shadows of the Brahmarakshas? Watch the show to find out!

    Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle said, “Season one of Brahmarakshas received an overwhelming response as it offered our viewers an escape into the world of fantasy and intrigue. Brahmaraskshas, as a concept, has been passed down generations in India as it is a part of our folklore. While not everyone knows enough about the Brahmarakshas, research indicates there is a natural curiosity amongst audiences to find out more as people associate the space with thrill, fear and excitement. It offers us a great canvas for fascinating storytelling and narrating an evocative good versus evil story. We’re happy to partner with Balaji Telefilms in presenting this weekend thriller that is bound to add a fresh and interesting dimension to our weekend primetime.”

  • Zee TV launches first-ever music league, Indian Pro Music League

    Zee TV launches first-ever music league, Indian Pro Music League

    MUMBAI: With the ongoing festive season, Zee TV has been packing one exciting surprise after another for its audiences by way of three new fiction shows in October and another exciting supernatural fantasy thriller Brahmarakshas on its way in November. Things are only going to get bigger and better in the coming year as the channel is all set to revolutionise the face and sound of music on television in early 2021. In what will be a clutter-breaking format innovation on reality TV, Zee TV in collaboration with Fathom Pictures will present audiences with the world’s first ever music league, the ‘Indian Pro Music League’ (IPML).

    While the world of sports has seen several league competitions, be it in India or abroad, this first-of-its-kind music league will have six teams owned by the likes of Shraddha Kapoor along with her father and brother – Shakti Kapoor and Siddhant Kapoor, Govinda along with wife Sunita, Rajkummar Rao, and Riteish Deshmukh along with wife Genelia D’Souza Deshmukh, representing different regions of India, battling it out against each other in a musical championship. 

    Each of these teams will have celebrated playback singers, one male and one female vocalist as their captain. Additionally, every team will also have reality stars and to add to this pool of talent, six fresh voices from various regions of the country, one for each team, will get a chance to be a part of this league! To be hosted by two top anchors, the Indian Pro Music League will be launched in early 2021. Akin to the format of a sports league, the show will have five innings comprising the league matches and a super match where audience votes and umpire points will decide the outcome of the league and declare one of the teams as the league champions.

    About the format breakthrough, Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle said, “At Zee TV, we constantly endeavour to provide audiences with new, unique and cutting-edge content that gives them a sense of novelty alongside engaging entertainment for the entire family. Over the years, we've seen how league formats have become immensely popular amongst sports viewers and as a country where Cricket is nothing short of a religion, audiences at large, have embraced and internalised this exciting format. With the Indian Pro Music League, the idea is to infuse the space of music reality television with the same energy and competitive spirit that is typical of a sports league. The quotient of excitement and anticipation is enhanced by top Bollywood stars and sports celebrities owning the six teams that will compete in the championship. While we have the top playback singers of the country as our team captains and rising reality stars on board to ensure the highest bar of excellence in the music the show will produce, we're on a quest to find some new talented singers from across the country through an intensive scouting initiative as Zee TV has always believed in leveraging the strength of its reality formats to give the common man an opportunity of chasing his dreams.”

    Zee Studios will be the creative and production house on the show.

  • Diwali with a bang: Hindi GECs bet big on special programming

    Diwali with a bang: Hindi GECs bet big on special programming

    MUMBAI: Crackers may be banned, but television channels are making sure Diwali 2020 goes off with a bang for their viewers. With the outlook that viewers will stay at home rather than jostle with crowds in the age of Covid2019, Hindi GEC’s have taken up an aggressive stance programming-wise to maximize viewership in the run-up to the festival of lights.

    Festive fervour has taken hold of Zee TV. While ongoing shows like Guddan Tumse Na Ho Payega, Tujhse Hai Raabta, Qurbaan Hua, Ram Pyaare Sirf Humare will see drama spikes and highpoints, its latest fiction offerings – Apna Time Bhi Aayega and Hamariwali Good News will see significant milestones that are bound to keep audiences on the edge of their seats this Diwali week. There is a special festive event on the cards for fans of the channel’s top-rated shows Kundali Bhagya and Kumkum Bhagya. During the day, audiences can look forward to the telecast of special awards shows and events like Zee Cine Awards 2020, Zee Rishtey Awards 2019 and the film, Good Newwz. The network will also premiere its highly anticipated collaboration with Balaji Telefilms, Brahmarakshas 2, on the weekend after Diwali.

     

     

    Colors Bangla, too, has a treat in store for its viewers. “Focusing on the special days including Navratri and Dussera, Karva Chauth, and Diwali, we started airing special programming called Shandaar Ravivaar hosted by the comic duo Bharti Singh and Harsh Limbachiyaa from 25 October, 12 pm. It will culminate over the Diwali weekend. We will also launch a new show Molkki featuring Amar Upadhyay and Priyal Mahajan that highlights another custom prevalent in Haryana wherein brides are bought by people. It will air starting 16 November. Apart from this, we have planned festive special segments on Bigg Boss and a few other fiction shows,” said Viacom18 Hindi mass entertainment and kids TV network head Nina Elavia Jaipuria.

     

     

    Dangal TV has shored up its primetime viewing with the debut of mythological series Devi Adi Parashakti on 9 November. The show has been produced by Swastik Productions and will be telecast Monday to Saturday at 9 pm.

    Ganga Deewali Carnival is BIG Ganga’s hot ticket property for this time of the year. The four-day multi-entertainment, multi-celebrity festivity will begin 10 November and culminate on 14 November.

    Promotional sparklers

    Besides special programming on the small screen, Diwali is always associated with contests and exciting games. Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle mentioned that the channel has introduced Zee Wali Diwali contest for its loyal viewers, wherein they get a chance to win gold and special vouchers everyday through 2 November to 19 December. She added, “This contest will be promoted across digital, social media and PR where we will invite our viewers to share their experiences of making rangoli, mithai etc together as a family. We want to give our viewers another reason to make a fresh start, take a step forward, and make a shubh shuruwaat (auspicious beginning) with Zee TV through this contest and our on-going shows.”

     

     

    With Children's day and Diwali coinciding this year, Colors is going to run a campaign that will show the audience how to bring alive the Diwali spirit with children at the heart of it. The channel will host a #DIYwali party with the participation of notable characters and celebrities. The initiative will have a series of micro-videos that will teach DIY ways to do multiple festive rangoli, food, art & craft activities symbolic of the festival of lights.

    On the marketing side, Colors has designed a TV-focused campaign panning across network & non-network channels in all the Hindi speaking markets, along with print presence. The concept of bought bride or Molkki, the channel's newly launched show, will be brought to life with a promotional tie-in with Amazon, where customers will come across a unique buying proposition. In order to tap into the massive reach of 84.25 million people on its social media platforms, the ‘Colors golden petal club’ virtual event has flagged off ahead of Diwali.

    Ad spends rocketing too

    With market sentiments improving over the last few months, brands have started coming up with new and dynamic ways to connect with consumers. Experts observe that the festive season is the same every year – from consumer as well as advertisers’ perspective – enthusiastic and buoyant, even if celebrations may be a little toned down this time around. OMD Mudramax EVP & principal partner Navin Kathuria stated that if not all, most categories like e-commerce (Amazon, Flipkart, Pepperfry etc), cars, paints, white goods have started advertising.

    Jaipuria noted that gaming and edu-tech brands are also seizing the opportunity to invest big and have been receiving good traction for the last six months. She further added, “In the April-June quarter, most broadcasters gave attractive discounts to advertisers which helped the ad volumes to bounce back. However, ad rates were down due to the discounting. July to September quarter has witnessed a strong revival in pricing, with September discounting down to zero for movies and GEC genres.”

    According to both Kathuria and Madison Media Sigma CEO Vanita Keswani, the surge in advertising is more prominent on TV and digital. Meanwhile, print, radio, cinema, and OOH are nowhere close to their yesteryears’ inventory levels, though there also is a marginal increase in advertising. The only difference between last year and this year will be the scale of celebrations, advertising and spending / purchasing.

    Keswani also mentioned that ad spends started recovering since August and has almost reached the pre-Covid2019 levels in October, riding on the back of festive spending and the IPL. She said, “We expect ad-ex to recover in H2 2020 and grow at a dramatic rate of 60-70 per cent of the collapsed H1 half, or grow 6 per cent to 13 per cent versus H2 2019. This will lead to ad-ex in 2020 contracting by 14 per cent to 18 per cent.”
     
    Kathuria opined that advertisers will advertise only if they sense consumer demand. And many festive categories like cars, paints, e-commerce, electronic retail shops, home loans are advertising. In fact, a latest report indicated home purchase in October 2020 being higher than January this year – when the pandemic had not set in India. So all these signals point to consumer demand going up.

  • Zee TV brings Alt Balaji’s OTT premium content on TV

    Zee TV brings Alt Balaji’s OTT premium content on TV

    MUMBAI: The Covid-19 pandemic is changing the paradigm of the businesses across the world. Now, it’s converging content of linear television and streaming services sooner than expected. It's been touted long that television as a device serves as an extension of digital medium and a collaborative and complementing ecosystem is in making.

    While last year Alt Balaji and ZEE5  stuck a content sharing deal, Zee Tv has come up with an innovative strategy of offering fresh OTT premium content to the television viewers on the back of that partnership. The channel is all set to air the three Alt Balaji's shows – Karle Tu Bhi Mohabbat, Baarish and Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain – to TV viewers. Considerably, these three shows have the potential to attract traditional GEC audience. Moreover, the audience is already familiar with faces like Ram Kapoor, Sakshi Tanwar, Mona Singh, Ronit Roy.

    In the wake of Covid-19 crisis, the Indian film and television industry decided to halt shooting for films, TV and web shows from 19 March to 31. After the recent announcement of 21-day lockdown across the country, it is now uncertain when the shooting will restart. Major TV broadcasters have been impacted mostly by the decision as they are not able to churn new episodes of daily soaps.

    Now, starting March 25, viewers can get hooked on to finite series like Karle Tu Bhi Mohabbat, Baarish and Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain for the first time on television between 9 PM and 11 pm every week. 

    Karle Tu Mohabbat, starring Ram Kapoor and Sakshi Tanwar, is about a struggling superstar recovering from his addiction to alcohol, and his new counsellor. It will follow the story of how the superstar and the counsellor fall in love while at his estranged daughters’ wedding and all the drama that ensues. Karle Tu Mohabbat will air from 9 pm to 10 pm, Baarish will air at 10 pm and at 10.30 pm slot Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain is scheduled on Zee TV.

    Ekta Kapoor tweeted: "We can’t do anything to help our viewers but entertain them during these tough times so this gem from our library for you all! Your favorite pair #SakshiTanwar & @RamKapoor 
    are back from tonight 9-10pm in #karletubhimohabat on TV! Enjoy the show while you're home & be safe!"

    She further says: "Very tough times but we will get through this together. Since we cannot make any more episodes of #kumkumbhagya #kundalibhagya, we have extended our family shows to @ZeeTV so from 9pm to 10pm instead of Karan-Preeta or Abhi-Pragya, you will see tipsy and karan! For all those of you asking for #Baarish on TV. From tonight 10 pm watch this sweet love story on @ZeeTV everyday! We are bringing the rains with this simple drama! Hoping the weather of doom changes! Stay home stay safe."

    Zee TV Business Head Aparna Bhosle said: “In times where social distancing is the need of the hour to curb the outbreak of Covid-19 and people are spending more time indoors, the idea is to provide audiences with the most engaging entertainment for the entire family. We have a new 9 to 11 PM band with three new finite series – Karle Tu Mohabbat, Baarish and Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain, that will reassure viewers that we can conquer the biggest challenges with the power of love. Each of the shows has strong TV faces that the masses are closely attached to. We are also reintroducing classics like Kasamh Se and Brahmrakshas as well as faciltating binge-watches of crowd favourites – Kundali Bhagya and Kumkum
    Bhagya, so that the audience has a wide variety of content to view and can enjoy this extended family time together.”  

    Baarish, airing at 10 pm slot, stars Sharman Joshi and Asha Negi. The show will explore the lives of two strangers from starkly different backgrounds. While Anuj (Sharman) is a Gujarati businessman, who had left studies at a tender age to take over the family business, Gauravi (Asha) is a Maharashtrian girl who feels education is of prime importance and works in Anuj’s company. When the two get married because of their families, will they realise they are like chalk and cheese or fall in love eventually? Only time will tell!

    At 10:30 PM, Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain delves into the love triangle between a chartered accountant Rohit (Ronit Roy), his wife Poonam (Gurdeep Kohli) and an interior designer Ananya (Mona Singh). Initially, everything seems hunky-dory in the family, but when the actual truth comes out, everyone is shocked. Will Rohit stay with Poonam or will he sacrifice his whole family for Ananya? Tune into Zee TV to find out!
    Apart from these three shows, viewers can binge-watch some of the most intriguing episodes of cult favourite shows such as Kumkum Bhagya and Kundali Bhagya, which have been planned from 7 pm to 8 pm and 8 pm to 9 pm respectively, Monday to Friday. Popular Zee TV classics like Ram Kapoor – Prachi Desai’s Kasam Se and Krystle D’Souza, Parag Tyagi and Kishwer Merchant’s Brahmarakshas will also be reintroduced on the channel and will air from 2 pm to 3 pm and 5 pm to 6 pm respectively.

  • The secret sauce behind long-running Hindi GEC shows

    The secret sauce behind long-running Hindi GEC shows

    MUMBAI: India has a history of long-running soap operas right from Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi to latest ones like Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai and Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashma. In the urban market, both the shows continue to remain in the top five programming list of BARC India in primetime slots.

    How is it that these shows are continuing to thrive in the era of seasonal content and high impact limited episode show on OTT platforms?

    The prime reason for their high attraction is the ability to reinvent and stay relevant. A decade ago, when these shows launched, there were no signs of OTT platforms. As the shows progressed, the creators kept changing the plotlines to suit the evolving tastes of the audiences.

    One key reinvention strategy that has kept Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai on top of the ratings charts is its youth appeal. 
    “We wanted to show Kartik and Niara as real couples and be connected to the reality of life. This was the most calculated risk that I took as a maker. We did not want to sugarcoat reality and keep them perfect. They make mistakes and learn from them and that’s what the audiences like. Imperfection is the new mantra that resonates well with them,” explains Director's Kut Production founder Rajan Shahi.

    Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle explains that long-running shows are the hallmark of a creative team that truly understands their channel’s audience and tells them stories that hold their attention over a sustained period of time. 

    “Having properties on air that people want to keep coming back to is crucial to any broadcaster as it is this viewer behaviour that defines brand loyalty," she says.

    Sony SAB business head Neeraj Vyas points out that character affinity is one of the key reasons for the popularity of Taarak Mehta. "People watch television not because of the shows, but because of the characters. The characters’ action, relatability and empathy are what drive viewership.”

    Long-running shows also increase the  confidence of advertisers in the show. "Advertisers are interested in reaching out to the largest demographics through our platforms and long-running shows with a dedicated viewership serve this purpose most effectively and hence command a premium," says Bhosle.

    Apart from Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai and Taarak Mehta Kaa Ooltah Chashma, Zee TV's longest-running show Kumkum Bhagya has crossed 1500 episodes. "Kumkum Bhagya is one of our longest-running shows in the current context. Ever since the show launched in 2014, it has consistently found its place amongst the top five fiction shows across GECs week-on-week," says Bhosle.

    Vyas adds that the new TV channel pricing regime on account of the New Tariff Order (NTO)  has made it essential for channels to have marquee shows with a loyal audience base. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to do that today. The earlier shows are still surviving because they were launched when appointment viewing was the norm and OTT did not exist.

    Shahi concurs  with Vyas on OTT posing challenges. But Star India’s OTT platform Hotstar is aiding the growth of Yeh Rishta. “On Hotstar as well as TV, the show is highly rated. Keen audiences can watch the show early in the morning at 7 am on Hotstar while primetime viewers catch up at night with the family on TV,” he explains.

    Another key aspect has been to keep the production team consistent. Shahi says, "Yeh RishtaKya Kehlata Hai is a success for the entire television industry. In this chaotic and unstable market, keeping the team together and getting the show to stay on course for years is an achievement. Our teamhas 90 per cent of the same unit today since the show was launched. My biggest achievement is to have people who would team up for such a long-running show. Over the 11 years, they have been through phases of setbacks and achievements so to keep up the spirit and morale of the team is a challenge."

    With multiple choices available, producers have a hard task to keep shows running. To compete with shows on OTT, TV shows need to understand changing trends and adapt quickly.
    About the future, Bhosle says it’s not about a show being finite or infinite shows that will determine success. “It is a story that touches a chord, a character that grows on you or that palpable chemistry between two endearing characters that make people return to watch more,” she says.
     

  • Zee strengthens early primetime with ‘Rajaa Betaa’

    Zee strengthens early primetime with ‘Rajaa Betaa’

    MUMBAI: After launching four new shows last year in the primetime slot, Zee is adding another feather to its cap by launching yet another show named Rajaa Betaa in the early primetime. It will premiere on 15 January, Monday to Saturday at 6.30 pm and is produced by Sobo films.

    Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle said, “Zee was pretty set in its prime time and the next strategy that we wanted to tackle was to strengthen our pre-prime slots." Therefore, Raabta, Guddan and Man Mohini were launched last year.

    She added further that a good show is time agnostic. A good show will attract viewers even at the last hours of 4pm.

    As far as content strategy is concerned during big events like IPL and the country's main election, "Zee actually grew in IPL last year. When your content offering is strong, viewership invariably follows," she said.

    The recent TRAI tariff order will have given a jolt to broadcasters where they are likely to lose chunks of viewers. But Zee is unfazed. Zee's strong primetime viewership, says Bhosle, is testimony to its good content that people will demand for.

    However, she expects significant changes in viewing patterns to take place. According to her, people consume at max 130 channels when surfing. So, some channels may not make it to a viewer's list.

    Zee, on the other hand, seems ready to tackle challenges head on.

  • Zee TV gets ratings boost from Zee Rishtey Awards

    Zee TV gets ratings boost from Zee Rishtey Awards

    MUMBAI: Zee TV's recently concluded annual awards property, Zee Rishtey Awards, clocked the highest viewership ratings across award shows that took place in the last two years. As per the recently released BARC HSM weekly data (Urban + Rural) for the week 44 '18, it secured a viewership of 5495 TVTs, which is the highest across awards shows in the category.

    The company attributeed the award show and its fiction shows for the increase in ratings. The Zee Rishtey award was presented by Dabur Almond Hair Oil, co-powered by Nerolac Paints, Brooke Bond Red Label and Himalaya Anti- Hairfall Shampoo; special partner Dixcy Scott, Jewellery partner Malabar Gold and Diamonds; partnered by Parle Milano.

    Zee TV business head Aparna Bhosle said, “The success of our prime-time fiction shows stands testimony to the strengthening of our relationship with our audiences. We are humbled with the response we have received for Zee Rishtey Awards that had a strong differentiator this year – not only was it the first time ever that a broadcaster got a real life couple who were ardent fans of our shows, married at an annual awards show but the  unique manner in which we could bring the entire Zee family of stars together as baraatis  for #ZeeTVKiBetiKiShaadi on such a grand scale had viewers hooked. It has been our constant endeavour to bring novel concepts that resonate with our audience and create memorable experiences. As always, we will continue to strive to deliver the highest standards of storytelling and content offering to our viewers. We look forward to all our partners’ continuous support to chart a stronger success story year on year.”

    Along with the success of Zee Rishtey Awards, three out of five weekday top fiction shows (Urban numbers) are from Zee TV – Kundali Bhagya with 7674 TVTs, Kumkum Bhagya with 6374 TVTs and Ishq Subhan Allah with 5700 TVTs. Zee TV has also been a consistent slot leader at 7 pm (Yeh Teri Galiyaan), 8 pm (Guddan… Tumse Na Ho Paega), 9:30 pm (Kundali Bhagya) and 10:30 pm (Aapke Aa Jaane Se) at HSM – (Urban + Rural) in the last four weeks- wk 41 to wk 44’18.