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Tag: Ashish Sehgal

  • TV Adex likely to grow by 13% in 2022, says ZEEL ad sales chief Ashish Sehgal

    TV Adex likely to grow by 13% in 2022, says ZEEL ad sales chief Ashish Sehgal

    Mumbai: Despite the threat of inflation, which is already hurting the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) category, which accounts for around 40 per cent of the television advertising market, Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) chief growth officer – ad sales, Ashish Sehgal expects the TV Adex (TV advertising exchange) to grow by 13 per cent in 2022.

    He said that so far this year, due to the declining impact of Covid-19, the growth stood at 10 per cent. However, this was not the case last year due to the pandemic restrictions. He expects local brands, which were absent from the market for the last couple of years because of Covid-19, to make a strong comeback.

    “In January due to Covid-19 the TV Adex went down a bit, but from February the Adex started to grow. Due to the IPL, things have been good since February. Entertainment, cinema and even news have enjoyed a good run. Elections benefit the news industry in the first quarter,” he added. “The TV Adex should have grown by 10 per cent over the previous year so far. By 2022, it should grow by 13 per cent.”
    He proceeds further by adding that inflation is mainly hurting FMCGs. “Even in auto, the activity is growing now. New launches will happen. Telecom is advertising. BFSI has been quite active over the past six months. BFSI may slow down in July and August but in the upcoming festive season it should pick up. When the LIC IPO came, LIC advertised. I see other companies in insurance and banking following suit in terms of the same activity. The new D2C startups are bringing in a lot of money. E-commerce ad spends from the likes of Flipkart and Amazon will only grow in 2022.”

    When asked about startups experiencing funding slowdown and potential impact on ad spending he said that they will shift money from cricket to less expensive avenues like entertainment. “Companies will pump in money into the entertainment category. Earlier, they were putting money into cricket but now they are diverting money into cheaper genres like entertainment. Of course by the time the funding slowdown hit startups the IPL ad deals had already been done. Also, the IPL ratings were down but the deals are signed now. IPL made more revenue than last year.”

    Speaking about the same, he added, “but cricket might get impacted by startups shifting track going forward. These startups are also advertising in print. You have to remember that D2C startups cannot stop advertising otherwise their customer acquisition strategy will get affected. They are looking at cheaper options and are aiming to rationalise their ad spends better.”

    Sehgal feels that the English genre is likely to benefit from the New Tariff Order (NTO) because the ad pie is small. The subscription revenues now are important for them. “As far as music is concerned the genre is benefiting from free-to-air (FTA) viewership. Infotainment is in the same boat as English but it is slightly better off because there is not much content on OTT. So their ad revenue situation is better.”

    According to ZEEL, from his perspective, entertainment accounts for around 65 per cent of revenue, but cinema is also growing. “We have the largest cinema library as well as the largest number of cinema channels. Tentpole properties are very important for the topline. In cinemas, a lot of movie premieres are lined up, which was not the case last year. This will propel ad revenue.”

    Talking about the importance of regional channels, Sehgal said that the major ad revenue growth for ZEEL is happening here, whether it is in the South, Punjabi, Oriya, Bangla or Marathi. “They all are contributing to the growth. They can tap into the local retail brands. Their contribution was subdued for the last two years due to Covid-19. Now, they are back in business and so they are advertising now.”
    Simultaneously, he mentioned the OTT as an addition to TV not eating the TV’s pie. “Today advertisers use the TV for reach and OTT for re-targeting. The AVOD (advertising-based video on demand) consumers are similar viewers to TV. The kind of content being watched on OTT AVOD is the same that airs on TV first.

    Explaining ZEEL’s strategy for ad solutions, he said that the company’s branded solution team has created an Ad funded program. “In some shows, brands get integrated which allows them to be present within the content. In addition, ZEEL helps brands through influencer marketing where characters from shows become influencers for brands. Commercials are created.”

    Sehgal believes the number of pay television channels consolidation will stay the same, as the number of non-premium channels is not growing. The only new channels are in the FTA space. “Everybody has their space. In an unexplored market, a new pay channel might be launched which we did in Punjab two years back, but not otherwise, channels will sustain. FTA will also sustain as the viewership is different. Advertisers use FTA channels as there is no other medium to reach that consumer.”

    He also noted that news will do well as it has a wide reach from pay to FTA. “In metros, event development led people to switch to news channels even on direct-to-home (DTH). News is a unique genre, from metros to rural the audience is available, for advertisers news has separate FTA space. Also, for the upcoming 2024 general elections, the government (in the next four to six months) will start pumping in money. The news genre will certainly fetch the majority of this fund. The state elections are an addition to this genre.”

    “The four big networks including ZEEL adhere to the ad cap guidelines and they do not violate them. For ZEEL it tends to be 12+2,” he concluded.

  • Zee Cinema ropes in Pankaj Tripathi for brand integration with ACC Cement

    Zee Cinema ropes in Pankaj Tripathi for brand integration with ACC Cement

    MUMBAI: Zee Cinema has tied up with ACC Cement to highlight the benefits of the latter’s product line – ACC Gold Water Shield Cement. For this, the channel has roped in actor Pankaj Tripathi to educate its viewers about ACC’s unique water-resistant cement formula. His immense talent and down to earth nature epitomise the integration’s messaging of being strong in quality and yet relatable to everyone. This is a continuation to Zee Cinema’s tradition of using the power of entertainment to merge top brands with impactful messaging and help them reach the perfect set of audiences.

    Through engaging content, Tripathi effortlessly lays out the core messaging for the brand – being resilient and reliable. Backed by the onscreen charisma of the Ludo star, there will be a series of creatively crafted communication to highlight the initiative. To personify this message, ACC Cement and Zee Cinema would also co-present movies which resonate with the brand’s offering.

    ZeeL chief growth officer Ashish Sehgal said, “It’s a point of pride to join hands with another company like ACC Cement which has, also, created its own legacy of trust, dependency and superior results. It’s a well-crafted engagement which perfectly reflects the values of the channel, the brand and the key influencer.”

    ACC Cement and Ambuja Cement CMO Ashish Prasad said, “Our campaign aims at inspiring individual home builders to protect their homes by building them with India's first water repellent cement – ACC Gold Water Shield. With products like Gold Water Shield Cement, ACC has always aimed at creating innovative need-based products and communication that connects with its consumers, just like the stories weaved by Pankaj Tripathi and Zee Cinema that connects with the audiences to get relevant message across.”

    Zee Hindi Movies cluster head Ruchir Tiwari added, “We bolstered this integration by connecting the brand messaging directly with our powerful movie line-up and leveraging the perfect influencer to personify the communication.”

    Havas Media Group is the media buying partner for the campaign.

    As a part of this integration, ACC Cements and Zee Cinema will also co-present the movies – world television premiere of The Power on 27 March at 8 pm and Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl on 3 April.

  • Zee is becoming a part of advertisers’ culture: Ashish Sehgal

    Zee is becoming a part of advertisers’ culture: Ashish Sehgal

    NEW DELHI: Zee Entertainment Enterprise Ltd has gone through turbulent times for the past 18 months but under the able leadership of CEO Punit Goenka it seems to have managed to win the market confidence despite the impact of Covid2019 pandemic on revenues and the new NTO orders of channel pricing. With the confidence of investors back and advertising slowly clawing it's way back, the network is looking to a better tomorrow. Its chief growth officer of advertisement revenue Ashish Sehgal sat down for a virtual fireside chat with Indiantelevision.com founder CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari discussing the way ahead for the network and TV industry at large, on Tuesday evening. 

    Sehgal claimed that television, as a medium of entertainment as well as advertising, has a lot of scope in the country. “The first fact is that the penetration of TV itself is only 67 per cent in this country and so we see a huge growth opportunity there. Secondly, the consumer still has this habit of watching videos on television.”

    He added that TV was recording double-digit growth till 2018-19, a pretty handsome growth from the perspective of how TV ad volumes work. “It’s just in the last financial year, 2019-20 that the economy started to take a dive and then this pandemic happened. The loss was pretty hard on other mediums too but recovery is faster on TV.” 

    Sehgal shared that the medium has already reached 70- 80 per cent of pre-Covid numbers and will match that by the end of this year. “FMCG, which is the mainstay for television contributing around 65 per cent of the overall ad revenues is coming back. And there is a lot of competition in that category, so I am expecting the other similar categories will also come back soon. Advertisers have realised that as the economy opens up they should start promoting themselves.”

    He insisted that television has a bright future and the industry will pick up on a month-on-month basis from here on. 

    Sehgal said while he will not compare it to the last year numbers, in comparison to how the previous 3-4 months went, they had a good run during Ganpati and Onam. 

    He elaborated, “The sentiment is coming back. For example, I stay in Delhi and when you go out, you can see the traffic jams happening again and people are visiting markets. People have started venturing out. They are understanding that while they should be careful, they can’t be staying in the fear of the virus forever.” 

    According to him a number of channels have already started consolidating. During Onam, the Malayalam language channel Zee Keralam locked in numbers similar to last year and also maintained a steady viewership. The network’s Bhojpuri channels are market leaders and doing great in the Telugu market too. He is also expecting IPL to be a good time for his channels as well as the whole medium. 

    However, despite high viewership and ad volumes, one problem that still remains with TV as a medium of advertising is the cheap ad rates and the negotiations that are made on the advertisers’ part.

    Sehgal quipped, “Television is still the cheapest medium to advertise and which is why it is also the preferred medium for advertising. It is also because advertisers are still paying on CPR basis but if you look at BARC ratings, it is (not) representing a very large population. A lot of genres, like English, are not very well represented by these ratings. Digital is monitoring each and every impression and TV is not doing that.”

    To counter this, Zee has been working on newer approaches to help clients. Rather than just providing a medium to advertise, they are providing them solutions catering to their specific needs. 

    “We don’t have an approach of selling on our network any more. We are working with them to extend solutions helping them generate good ROI. We are working more like consultants to them. Be it curating special ads as we did for Cadbury where they wanted to thank all Covid2019 warriors or using our characters as influencers for their products, we are assisting them with a tactical understanding of their brands and TG.”

    He added that each advertiser has its own culture and if a media partner starts becoming a part of that culture and not work on a transactional basis, it will retain the client for a long time. 

  • Virtual Fireside Series: A week of exploring the new world order in the marketing space

    Virtual Fireside Series: A week of exploring the new world order in the marketing space

    NEW DELHI: The world of advertising and marketing is going through a massive transformation as the new normal of the pandemic-era syncs in. A business that was based on millions of face-to-face meetings and gazillions of group discussions has gone digital almost completely. Now client relationships are being built across screens and internal meetings are getting virtual. A sea change in consumer behaviour is also expected as they learn to live on bare essentials. 

    All this has been leading to a change in client behaviour too. There is a more than ever increased focus on digital mediums, traditional mediums are expected to transform, and the changing consumer sentiments are leading to great creative transformations too. The publishers are also reworking on their strategies. 

    To understand this new order of the marketing and advertising world, Indiantelevision.com will be hosting a series of fireside chats with the stalwarts of the industry, who will be answering some interesting questions by our founder CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari. The audience will also get a chance to directly interact with the speakers as the discussions will be live on our social media channels and website. 

    Starting today, the first live discussion will have Bennett Coleman & Co Ltd president-response Partha Sinha giving an overview of the print and digital publishing industry. It will go live at 6:30 pm and you can register for the same here.

    The next discussion scheduled for tomorrow 4:00 pm is with Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd chief growth officer advertisement revenue Ashish Sehgal. Register here. 

    On 2 September, we will be going live with Dentsu Aegis Network CEO APAC and chairman India Ashish Bhasin who will highlight the global perspective along with Indian market sentiments. You can register for the 11:00 am live here.

    The last episode, going live at 5;00 pm on 3 September will feature IPG Mediabrands CEO-India Shashi Sinha giving an extensive insight into the Indian market and changing scenarios. 

    Keep watching this space for more information. 

  • ZEEL partners with leading CPG brands for campaign #BanegiBaatSaathSaath

    ZEEL partners with leading CPG brands for campaign #BanegiBaatSaathSaath

    MUMBAI: Celebrating the spirit of solidarity and the joy of being back, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has announced its content comeback via an innovative partnership with leading CPG brands. ZEEL collaborated with leading brands – Nestle Maggi, Amul Lassi, PepsiCo, Red Label, Cadbury Dairy Milk, ITC Dark Fantasy to gear up the nation for the 13 July, the date of its daily content comeback on Zee TV. Four other HSM channels, & TV (HGEC), Zee Marathi, Zee Yuva (MGEC) and Zee Punjabi (PGEC) are also making their daily content comeback on the same day.

    With a massive outdoor teaser campaign, people took to social media channels wondering what the #13thkitTaiyyari was about. The banter between the brands on Twitter left people even more curious on why they should be stocking up for 13 July with many more brands and companies jumping into the fray building up the excitement for the D-Day. ZEEL has again brought together some of India’s most-loved brands in an extraordinary partnership celebrating the coming together of viewers, partners and fresh episodes with the promise, #BanegiBaatSaathSaath.

    The #BanegiBaatSaathSaath promise has been rolled out across media and to all of ZEEL’s partners along with a film, which is an ode to the entire TV industry coming together to entertain its viewers. ZEEL strongly believes that the challenges we all faced in the first half of 2020 are just like a twist in the tale before the interval and when we all rally together we can achieve the impossible and create an extraordinary second half. 

    ZEEL chief consumer officer Prathyusha Agarwal said, “With the resumption of production, we are excited to bring fresh content for our consumers. The last three months have caused a significant stir amongst the mood of the nation. People are increasingly investing time in entertainment to cope with the uncertainty prevailing around. TV has been the greatest common unifier and respite in this lockdown and as content creators, we acknowledge that it is a huge responsibility we carry. For us, understanding the pulse of our consumers and customers and delivering delight is an obsession, which is what we are attempting to do both with this campaign and in crafting all our stories for the second half 2020. The stories we bring will aim to uplift the mood of the nation and provide our viewers respite through all that they are going through. Zee has and will always stand by its viewers and all its partners and is looking forward to holding hands and turning on the light at the end of this tunnel and are confident that we will once again provide valuable experiences to our partners and viewers.”

    ZEEL chief growth officer advertisement revenue Ashish Sehgal said, “With the resurgence of fresh dose of content, we would like to celebrate the spirit of camaraderie with all our stakeholders – cherished viewers and advertisers – to brighten and cheer up with engaging content. Brands will once again have the opportunity to resonate and pave their way into the minds of their consumers in this new environment. At ZEEL, we have not only seamlessly weaved stories for brands with relevant influencers and have been at the forefront in creating an integrated platform-agnostic solution for our advertisers/brands but ensured that they are part of our communication as well. This has led us to partner with our brands in unique ways and create value for them and #13kitaiyyari is another testimony to the power of partnerships, more importantly, brand partners are an integral part of the communication when we are reconnecting with our consumer.” 

    The philosophy of Banegi Baat Saath Saath brought together viewers and partners in a one-of-a-kind initiative where we partnered with six leading brands and asked consumers to stock up and do #13thkiTaiyyari. In partnership with Publicis Worldwide India, the #13thkitaiyyari campaign panned out in two phases. The first phase created intrigue when six leading CPG brands asked people to stock up via billboards in Mumbai and Delhi that led to a high buzz on-ground as well as piqued curiosity on digital as everyone took to social media to figure what 13 July was about. It was later revealed that the brands had partnered with ZEEL asking consumers to stock up as they would serve as a perfect accompaniment to families watching all their favourite shows resuming on ZEEL channels.

    Lowe Lintas CCO Sagar Kapoor said, “We want to reinforce the power of unity and remind everyone that if we come together we can conquer any barrier. The film made for Banegi Baat Saath Saath is a tribute to the industry’s resilience and its commitment to entertain the vast audience it caters to. The message we want to reverberate is that of hope in sight and encourages everyone to rally together to craft a better second half as we come back from the very short interval!”

    Publicis Worldwide India managing director Srija Chatterjee added, “While we were preparing for the big come back Zee TV campaign, we had this germ of an idea, it was all about bringing multiple brands together to co-create cheer and tremendous excitement, as we know that our dear Zee TV viewers are indeed eagerly waiting for their favourite shows to come back with fresh episodes. We developed #13thKiTayyari and this was a testament of true collaboration between the ZEEL team who got in touch with the brands and the Publicis team who delivered this campaign from start to finish in a matter of just three days. This is probably the first time that so many brands were coming together in one campaign.”

    Laqshya Media CEO Atul Shrivastava said, “We are thrilled to partner with ZEEL for their comeback announcement. The power of the outdoor medium with the might of the partner brands and the ZEEL network created a tremendous buzz on-ground around the campaign. The message of solidarity from ZEEL resonates with the partners and viewers alike and we look forward to more fruitful associations through the coming half of the year.”

    A lot of the storylines will come back to induce a sense of positivity and bring back strong heroes that people turn to for companionship. A collective force of 5000+ people have come together to bring 100+ fresh stories, every day in 11 languages, which take inspiration from the consumer sentiment and echo their anticipations.

    While channels like Zee Bangla, Zee Kannada, Zee Sarthak, Zee Keralam, Zee Telugu have already started and are entertaining viewers in regional markets delivering around 100+ hours of content per week, the four HSM channels – Zee TV, &TV, Zee Marathi and Zee Punjabi go live on 13 July. With a strong understanding of the entertainment preferences of the consumer and keeping their evolving needs at the fore, the channels are returning with a diverse mix of content which caters to the entire family.

  • Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films returns on Zee Café

    Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films returns on Zee Café

    MUMBAI: A carnival of powerful stories and storytellers united by the love for cinema – Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Film returns on Zee Café for the second time. An influential and celebrated platform for short films that recognizes the innate talent and skill of filmmakers truly deserves to be celebrated and Zee Café takes it a notch up by showcasing these masterpieces to a wider audience. Featuring a curation of finely-crafted short-films that promise to leave you in awe, the channel, available with the Zee Prime English Pack, enthrals its discerning audience starting every Fridays and Saturdays at 10 PM.

    The series of original, powerful and inspiring short-films including ‘Tindey & Unread’, ‘Siblings & Anukul’, ‘The Lovers  & Everything is Fine’, ‘Gadhedo & Chutney’  among others were showcased in a 6-city tour including Hyderabad, Kolkata, Gurgaon, Pune, Delhi and Jalandhar. With a host of gifted filmmakers donning the director’s hat, the riveting short-films stand for meaningful and engaging content, truly leaving viewers in captivated.

    In a specially curated panel discussion, the platform invited cinematic maestros like Anil Kapoor, Farah Khan, Jimmy Shergill, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Randeep Hooda, Vinay Pathak and Zoya Akhtar and many more from the industry who conversed around cinema, what makes films powerful and their own pursuit of excellence. The 6-part series explores the depths of Indian cinema in an engaging discussion with these maestros of cinema who are known for their craft. Giving viewers a deeper insight into what goes behind the making of a film, the series also features exclusive interviews of the makers as they unearth the many layers of the films.

    ZEEL  chief growth officer Ashish Sehgal said, “Consumers have gradually warmed up to short-films as a content consumption format. Viewers are looking for meaningful experiences that these compelling short-films have to offer. Moreover, brands, who seek to engage with their audience in innovative ways, see it as a fitment. True testimony to its success is the countless cinephiles who gather year-on-year for the screenings along with loyal enthusiasts who are committed to witnessing the works of art on Zee Café. This truly reflects in our continued partnership with Pernod Ricard for the second year in a row. It brings us immense happiness to collaborate with Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films in the endeavour to recognize the works of budding filmmakers and amplify it with a wider audience.”

    Pernod Ricard India  GM marketing Ishwindar Singh said, “Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films has pioneered a revolution in the field of filmmaking and has redefined movie-watching for cinephiles. To tell a compelling story in 15 to 20 minutes needs one to be a master in story-telling and filmmaking. The platform celebrates this pursuit of excellence as we bring together the finest storytellers from the world of cinema to create short yet impactful films. With the Zee network we endeavour to reach a larger audience with these insightful and powerful discussions on cinema.”

    Wavemaker chief content officer Karthik Nagarajan said, “The journey of Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films is an inspirational one. To have captured the imagination of the audience and to have become such an iconic part of popular culture is a dream for every brand. It is easily the gold standard in India for content marketing and it has been a privilege for Wavemaker and GroupM to have been a part of this. Every year, the challenge is in making it bigger than the previous one and this partnership is an important part of this journey.”

  • Video and Broadband Summit to focus on technology, media and telco convergence

    Video and Broadband Summit to focus on technology, media and telco convergence

    MUMBAI: The last two years have witnessed major transformation in entertainment and media industry in India and abroad. Entry of digital platforms, rapid rise in internet users, and disruption in the telecom industry have worked as catalysts. With the emergence of a new media, consumers are getting more attention than ever before.

    During this flux, Indiantelevision.com is bringing together stalwarts from the industry on a platform that dissects the various issues at the heart of the technology, media and telco confluence. The initiative is called Video and Broadband Summit (IDOS in its earlier avatar) at Grand Hyatt, Goa between 28-29th November. Leaders from DTH, cable and broadband, broadcast, regulatory bodies, technology segments will discuss the state of the industry, address issues and find solutions.

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd chief growth officer Ashish Sehgal, Times Network MD and CEO MK Anand, Viacom 18 COO Raj Nayak, Doordarshan director general Supriya Sahu among others will share their valuable insights on the state of the ecosystem, chalking out an agenda for the future.

    The focus of the summit will be on the topics such future of digital delivery platforms and Pay-TV, monetization of TV, unlocking the potential of 5G, and most important of all the new tariff regime.

  • ZEEL launches media buying & selling online platform for small retail advertisers

    ZEEL launches media buying & selling online platform for small retail advertisers

    MUMBAI: Media & Entertainment powerhouse Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL), has launched zeemitra.com, a first of its kind online platform to democratise advertising on television by going direct to small retail advertisers.

    ZEEL’s new initiative will directly connect and enable small retail advertisers to advertise on Zee bouquet of channels through an online platform.

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises chief growth officer of advertising revenue Ashish Sehgal says, “Our first organisational value is ‘Customer First’ which stands for the need to anticipate, understand and meet the needs of our customers, ensuring customer delight. We want to partner our advertisers in growing their business and provide customised solutions to help grow their business.”

    With a focus on small and medium scale enterprises, Zee Mitra website will enable them to advertise their brand on TV in their relevant markets, independently, at an affordable cost. The intent is to empower them to move beyond print and radio which has been the entry medium for MSMEs. TV advertising has been viewed as a costly and complicated medium. We wish to break that barrier with this initiative.

    With its presence across multiple states, this platform will offer the entire bouquet of 52 channels under the Zee umbrella, genres ranging from national and regional GECs, movies, local regional news, lifestyle, English entertainment, English movies, etc. (count of 52 is without Zee Bollywood which will be added post Nov).

    It will additionally offer the split beam of it marquee national channels — Zee TV, Zee Cinema & Zee News, for advertising across 15 key markets of India, viz., Mumbai, Rest of Maharashtra, Maharashtra, Delhi NCR, UP, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Odisha, West Bengal, North-East, Rajasthan. This will not only create an opportunity for hyper-local advertising at a cost which is much lower than national ad spot but also help expand reach by opening-up the possibility to test market product in newer territories.

    The platform has an intelligent algorithm which is based on advertiser’s business objective will suggest the ideal channel mix to reach out to the relevant target audience through an easy to use interface, which not only creates a media plan but also allows to edit and customise their plans as per their needs.

    The Zee Mitra platform will also allow advertisers to avail the services of an in-house creative team to devise a television creative in motion graphics at a nominal cost.

    In addition to the online platform, this initiative will also be supported by the Zee Mitra feet-on-street sales team, who will approach potential advertisers spread in the relatively smaller corners of India and explain the benefits of advertising on TV. These advertisers will be guided and closely assisted by the Zee Mitra sales team through the entire buying process.

    The platform intends to change the landscape of TV media buying in India, bringing more advertisers within its fold, by making it accessible and affordable to all.

  • ‘Maggi Kitchen Journey’ to premiere on Zee TV, Living Foodz

    ‘Maggi Kitchen Journey’ to premiere on Zee TV, Living Foodz

    MUMBAI: Nestle and Zee pay an ode to women who have emerged from bread makers to bread earners, leveraging their passion for food on the show Maggi Kitchen Journeys. The show will be soon premiere this July on Zee TV at 6:30 pm on Saturday, 14 July and on Living Foodz at 1:30 PM on Monday, 16 July.

    Maggi Kitchen journey brings up 12 motivating and history of women who have established their own unique identity, empowered themselves using cooking as a medium. Guests of the shows  will be sharing their success stories with show host actress Renuka Shahane. Maggi Kitchen Journeys aims to to fuel the ambition of women across the country and motivate them to carve an identity for themselves in society. 

    Zee Unimedia Ltd chief operating officer Ashish Sehgal said, “ZEE shares great thought synergies with Nestle, who has been a cherished client over the years. Our brand philosophies intersect beautifully when it comes to igniting a spark among the Indian masses to achieve the extraordinary. Through this collaboration, we as broadcasters, are happy to help amplify this message across and ensure that it reaches the largest denominator in the form of engaging television content.”

    ZEEL chief marketing officer Prathyusha Agarwal says, “We are very excited to bring alive Nestle’s brand vision through a show that salutes women who have combined their culinary expertise with gumption and industriousness to re-write their destinies and emerge as successful entrepreneurs. The content fits beautifully with the two channels we plan to showcase it on Zee TV, where our brand philosophy Aaj Likhenge Kal is all about inspiring the masses to draw from their inner strength, seize the right opportunities and reach out to an extraordinary future and Living Foodz, our lifestyle channel, which elevates food from just something cooked within the confines of a kitchen to an emotion that bonds people together and paves a way of life”.

    Commenting on the same, Nestlé India General Manager Foods, Maarten Geraets says “At Maggi, we believe that home-cooking deserves its rightful due. Home-cooking provides us everyday meals and has a huge impact on oneself, the family and consequently on the society. We are extremely excited about our partnership with ZEE TV and Living Foodz in taking our message of ‘Kuch Acha Pak Raha Hai’ forward.”

  • Zeel hires Unilever’s Punit Misra to head domestic broadcast business

    Zeel hires Unilever’s Punit Misra to head domestic broadcast business

    MUMBAI: The Essel group owned Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) has filled the missing peg on its leadership roster: the CEO of its domestic broadcast business.

    Come 1 October 2016, former Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) senior executive and careerist Punit Misra will be stepping into those shoes at India’s leading media and entertainment major and will be directly reporting to ZEEL MD and CEO Punit Goenka.

    In recent times, ZEEL has been strengthening its senior management team to help it achieve its ambitious targets.

    Last year, it brought in family member and Punit’s younger brother and technopreneur Amit Goenka to head its international broadcast business.

    Earlier this year, it spun off its broadcast network sales into another company called Zee Unimedia which is headed by COO Ashish Sehgal.

    Misra, the new senior joinee, has had a long association with HUL and was last serving as as executive director & vice president – customer development. His responsibilities included heading sales. He joined HUL as a management trainee in 1996.

    Since then, he has worked in leadership roles across customer development, brand building, brand development and general management within HUL, as well as in the global customer development team of Unilever.

    He was also the member of the management Committee at HUL. As head of sales of the largest FMCG company in India, he was responsible for the performance of HUL sales team – driving delivery of profitable and competitive top line growth for the organization.

    Misra is an Electrical Engineering graduate from Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee (formerly University of Roorkee) and has a PGDBM in Finance and Marketing from XLRI, Jamshedpur.