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Tag: Hyderabad

  • Vishal Bhardwaj to make film for children

    Vishal Bhardwaj to make film for children

    MUMBAI: Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj has said that he would make another film for children before the next edition of the International Children‘s Film Festival (ICFF).

    Speaking on the sidelines of the just concluded 17th International Children‘s Film Festival, organised by the Children‘s Film Society of India (CFSI) at Hyderabad, Bhardwaj said, “I have an intention of making a children‘s film, but not thought of a subject yet but I will definitely be making one which would be ready by the next international children‘s film festival here.”

    The director-composer, who made his directorial debut with Makdee in 2002 and followed it up with Blue Umbrella in 2007, said that he did not have any qualms funding the project. Bhardwaj made it clear that if anyone approached him with a good script (for children‘s film), he would not hesitate producing it too.

    Citing the success of films like Harry Potter and Tintin, Bhardwaj said, “Harry Potter and Tintin, released on many screens, have seen successes as they have attracted children and adults alike.

    Giving his impression of why do filmmakers not go in for making of films for children the filmmaker said that lack of distribution network compared to Bollywood commercial films could be one of the reasons for our producers not showing interest in making children films.

    Bhardwaj has been associated with the CFSI since 1994.

  • CFSI to show over 100 films in kids filmfests: Nandita Das

    CFSI to show over 100 films in kids filmfests: Nandita Das

    NEW DELHI: Children’s Film Society, India (CFSI) chairperson Nandita Das urged more schools to collaborate with the Society to show good children’s films to the young.

    She said that the CFSI has a collection of around 250 films, and she has promised to show at least a 100 of these every year in schools and smaller festivals.

    Das was inaugurating a three-day Festival of Children’s Films in the capital, which is screening eight select films.

    Apart from the films, six different activities including workshops, film appreciation, competition and interaction will be held during the course of the three-day festival.

    Das also informed the children and others present about the next International Children’s Film Festival in Hyderabad commencing from Children’s Day – 14 November – and concluding on 20 November. The festival is held every second year in Hyderabad.

    The films being screened include Chutkan Ki Mahabharat, Karamati Coat, and Halo.

    Workshops are being held in cinematography and review writing, and film appreciation among other themes.

  • Bajaj Allianz launches campaign with F1 driver Nico Rosberg

    Bajaj Allianz launches campaign with F1 driver Nico Rosberg

    MUMBAI: Bajaj Allianz, the life and general insurance company, has launched an 8-city ‘Drive Safely‘ campaign across India with Mercedes GP Petronas F1 driver Nico Rosberg coinciding with the first ever Indian Grand Prix Formula One race scheduled at the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh (the 17th race of the 2011 Formula One season) on 30 October.

    The campaign includes Bajaj Allianz Safe Zone at select petrol pumps, mall and HNI Club activation programmes as well as a unique Pit Stop activation programme spread between 3-5 days in each city. Winners of various contests will get to meet and greet Rosberg.

    As part of the campaign, a branded mobile vehicle will visit high visibility and footfall spots in all the eight cities. At selected venues, LCD screens will be placed showcasing F1 Team Mercedes and tips for safe driving.

    An interactive branded Zone (Kiosk) will also be created at the event called as “Bajaj Allianz Safe Zone”, which will promote Bajaj Allianz‘s ‘Safety’ commitment towards drive safely particularly amongst the car owners across the country. Inside the Bajaj Allianz Safe Zone, an emcee will engage the crowd with interactive games such as an insurance and F1 Quiz; Jigsaw puzzle of the Bajaj Allianz logo for recall; Snakes & Ladder – created in the shape of a life cycle with numbers symbolising age and snakes as problems at diff stages of life with BA solutions. Insurance consultants will also interact with the consumers inside the zone and promote live safe theme.

    At various petrol pumps in the cities and on the expressways, a special Bajaj Allianz Pit Stop will be created for car checks creating an ambience of a normal pit stop in F1. All the cars visiting the petrol pump will be given free check at the Pit Stop within two minutes while highlighting the safety proposition of Bajaj Allianz towards customers. Services provided within two minutes at the Pit Stop would be: air check, oil check, wiper water check, wind screen and rear screen cleaning and coolant check. One promoter and two technicians will provide car owners with an experience similar to the F1 pit stop concept to create an excitement amongst 4-wheeler owners. An insurance policy scan of the vehicles will be done through scanners. After the scan, a safety contest will happen and Bajaj Allianz safety stickers will be given as spot prizes. The grand prize will be F1 tickets.

    The month-long campaign, which started on 27 September, has already covered Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi, and will go to Mumbai (16-18 October), Bangalore (9-11 October), Pune (13-15 October), Ahmedabad (20-22 October) and New Delhi (25-30 October).

    Bajaj Allianz also plans an aggressive social media campaign to promote the campaign. It will leverage an online social game around racing and safe driving. The online game will serve as a platform to generate leads for future sales endeavours and will also enable an increased reach for the campaign owing to its viral nature.

    The FaceBook activities will create a buzz around the offline activities that will take place through live and interactive videos, quizzes, etc. From an online sales perspective, the campaign will also aim to boost online sales during the campaign period by giving away free merchandise to customers. A Bajaj Allianz contest will run on radio relating to F1 and safe driving. Winners stand a chance to win F1 merchandise and meet F1 race driver Rosberg. Outdoor bus branding and cinema advertising will also be used to promote the activity.

     
     
     

  • Rajnikant to make appearance in RA.One

    Rajnikant to make appearance in RA.One

    MUMBAI: Scores of Rajnikant fans who were dejected by the stars health problems will jump with joy by the news that he is to do a guest appearance in the Shah Rukh Khan film RA.One.

    Rajinikant will shoot for a sequence that has been set in his honour in Hyderabad. Besides the first-ever pairing of the two greats, the cameo will also mark the star‘s return to form. Sources close to the production house revealed that the South superstar will shoot for the special sequence on 4 October at Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad.

    It is said that Khan, who is seen fighting a gang of villains, faces another threat from a gang armed with deadly weapons. At this critical point, Rajini makes an entry.

    The super powered vehicle immediately sucks up all the weapons from the villains prompting Khan to ask Kareena, who that man in the car was. That‘s when Rajinikanth steps out and delivers his super- hit dialogue.

    Rajinikanth is not the only one playing a cameo in the Shah Rukh Khan film. Sanjay Dutt and Priyanka Chopra have also made guest appearances.
     

  • Film City in Mumbai set for revamp

    Film City in Mumbai set for revamp

    MUMBAI: The Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari, popularly known as Film City, is soon to be spruced up. The Maharashtra government has decided to equip it with state-of-the-art facilities. It also intends to make the film shooting facility a tourist spot on the lines of the Ramoji Rao Film City in Hyderabad.

    Said Film City spokesperson Saini, “There are some development plans that we have just started working on. It’s an ongoing process and will take some time before it gets implemented. We will first set a committee that will wholly work on the master plan.”

    A final decision will be taken within 20 days.

    “We also want it to become a sought after tourist spot. However, we won‘t open the entire Film City for tourism purposes. There will be just few places that will be open to the general public,” the spokesperson added.

    The government has decided to equip it with lavish and state-of-the-art sets to make it a one-stop for filmmakers. Special arrangements will be made for tourists to have access to shoots.

    Besides, a Bollywood museum is being planned.

    The Film City, situated in the northern suburb of Goregaon, was built by Maharashtra government’s department of cultural affairs and was inaugurated on 26 September, 1977. Initially known as the Maharashtra Film Stage and Cultural Development Corporation, it was renamed in 2001 as the Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari.

    Among the recent films that were shot at Film City are Devdas, Ready and Bodyguard among others. The ongoing TV show Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) is also being shot there.

  • C K Krishniah Chetty & Sons to spend Rs 50 mn on campaign

    C K Krishniah Chetty & Sons to spend Rs 50 mn on campaign

    BANGALORE: South India jewellery player C K Krishniah Chetty & Sons (CKC) plans to spend Rs.50 million on its campaign to promote a new gold savings scheme, ‘The Gold Standard 1869 The Rate Protection Plan‘.


    Earlier the plan was for CKC‘s exclusive customers only. The tagline of the new savings scheme is Say ‘No to Rising Gold Prices with the CKC Gold Standard 1869 Rate Protection Plan.‘


    The company will be using a 360 degree approach to promote the campaign.


    “We will be using outdoor, newspapers, magazines, television channels, radio, mailers and the internet for the campaign. We are looking at garnering at least Rs 500 million over the next 6 to 12 months from the scheme this year and a lot more as we expand from our current four stores chain based in Bangalore and Hyderabad to a larger presence across India,” said CKC MD C Vinod Hayagriv.


    Over the last 11 years since the 142-year-old jeweller launched the scheme for its exclusive customers, CKC has serviced around 15000 clients with an average ticket size of Rs 100,000, revealed Hayagriv.


    “Creative work for ads and promotion of our jewellery products is highly specialised. We have an in- house team of people for that function. In the case of video, we hire out outside agencies to create the films for us. Also, we buy and plan media ourselves,” said Hayagriv.

  • Release date of Balaji’sThe Big Picture now on 24 November

    Release date of Balaji’sThe Big Picture now on 24 November

    MUMBAI:The release date of Balaji Motion Pictures‘ next film, The Dirty Picture, has been postponed. It will now release on 24 November instead of 28 October.


    Says Balaji Motion Pictures CEO Tanuj Garg, “Right now we are shooting in Hyderabad. The next schedule is in Mumbai in August after which the principal photography of the film would have been completed. Thereafter, we will need at least two months of post production. Hence, the minor re-scheduling of release date.”


    The film was mired by a series of bandhs in Hyderabad that caused a complete standstill at Ramoji Rao Studio where the film is currently being shot.


    The Dirty Picture, starring Vidya Balan in the lead, is a biopic on the life of the late Silk Smitha. Directed by Milan Luthria, the film stars Naseeruddin Shah, Emraan Hashmi and Tusshar Kapoor.
     

  • Asianet News Network acquires 51% stake in Kannada Prabha

    Asianet News Network acquires 51% stake in Kannada Prabha

    BANGALORE: Asianet News Network (ANN) has acquired a 51 per cent stake in Kannada Prabha, the New Indian Express Group’s leading Kannada daily newspaper, as it seeks to spread its footprint across television, Internet and print.

    The financial details of the deal could not be ascertained.

    Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s regional news empire now consists of Asianet News in Malayalam, Suvarna News in Kannada and a major part of Kannada Prabha.

    Kannada Prabha was founded by Ramnath Goenka on 4 November 1967. With a tagline ‘The Most Powerful Kannada Newspaper’, the Bangalore-headquartered Kannada Prabha is spread across the state with other editions in Mangalore, Shimoga, Hubli, Belgaum, Hyderabad and Goa.

    Says ANN chairman Rajeev Chandrasekhar, “This alliance will leverage the vast synergy between two of Kannada’s most respected and credible news brands, namely Kannada Prabha and Suvarna News 24×7. This partnership and strategic alliance will be transformational for the reader and the viewer, giving the best in editorial, news reporting and features acceptable to millions of readers and viewers. ANN’s journalism credo ‘Nera Ditta Nirantara’ (Straightforward, Bold and Relentless) will now be visible in Kannada Prabha as well.”

    Senior journalist Vishweshwar Bhat has been appointed as the Editor-in-Chief and will spearhead the integration and growth of all the platforms.

    Suvarna News is investing in a new Bangalore studio and news gathering infrastructure, which is scheduled to be commissioned in the next few months.

    Chandrasekhar had earlier acquired Asianet, which owned and operated a clutch of popular Malayalam channels. He went on to launch Asianet Suvarna, a Kannada general entertainment channel, and Suvarna News 24×7. In late 2008, he sold the entertainment channels to Star India while retaining the news outfits.

  • UTV News CEO Arun Anant resigns

    UTV News CEO Arun Anant resigns

    MUMBAI: After serving a short period of seven months, UTV News CEO Arun Anant has resigned.

    Anant joined UTV news in November 2007. He was spearheading the business operations of UTV News’ English business news channels UTVi.

    Prior to joining UTV News, Anant was working with Economic Times as vice president.

    Ronnie Screwvala promoted UTV News runs the newly launched English business news channel UTVi. UTVi has a strategic content tie-up with ABC News. With the head office in Mumbai, UTVi has bureaus in Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Chennai.

  • ‘Course correction will happen from a commercial, team management, and player angle’ : Hiren Pandit – GroupM ESP managing partner

    ‘Course correction will happen from a commercial, team management, and player angle’ : Hiren Pandit – GroupM ESP managing partner

    For franchisees the inaugural edition of the IPL has been a learning experience. The Hyderabad franchise is no different. While Deccan Chargers finished at the bottom of the table, the franchisee is confident that the investment will pay of in the long term. At the same time, the event was more difficult logistically and also physically than anybody imagined.

     

    GroupM ESP acts as a consultant for the Deccan Chronicle, which owns the Deccan chargers. Ashwin Pinto caught up with GroupM ESP managing partner Hiren Pandit to find out his views on the event

     

    Excerpts:

    How has the IPL experience been for Deccan Chargers?
    It has been a big learning curve. At the same time companies that did not get in will be furious at having missed out. The franchisees have all seen the potential of this event. We now know that this can be built up over the years. The IPL will be of the biggest benefit for those who want long-term gains.

    Overall what have the learnings been?
    There have been many. Sponsorship needs to be approached in a more effective manner. We were not able to do this earlier due to time constraints. Most of these deals have been for one year and so plans can be revised depending on what the team’s standing is. It is still early days. The way television has taken to it has been big. Next year, sponsorship rates will go through the roof.

     

    I believe that the IPL is looking for $ 7 to 8 million for ground co-sponsorship rights. Pepsi will go in for associate sponsorship as they want to block out Coca Cola. Each franchise and sponsor has had more than his fair share of learnings that will have to be put in place.

     

    A lot of course correction will happen. This will be from a commercial angle, team management angle, player angle.

     

    For the next three weeks people will lie low and detox from the IPL frenzy. Then they will start addressing issues. There will be a session with the IPL governing body to do a Swot analysis. Teams will look at their overall structure and check to see if all is right or if it needs to be re-looked at. Some problems may be common.

    What were the logistical challenges?
    The travel schedule was awful. I had no idea about the days. There was no concept of weekdays and weekends. It was just one haze of cricket matches and cities.

     

    Hats off to the players for performing. We played a match against Chandigarh. The next day we reached Hyderabad at 9:30 at night. The next day there was a match. Where is the time for player recovery? Players luggage also became an issue. It has to be at the airport. These logistics were more complex than had been first imagined.

     

    Then there is media pressure. Several people want to interview a certain set of players at any given point of time. This needs to be scheduled better.
    ‘The trading window will be key but the guidelines are not clear‘

    For Hyderabad what have the learnings been?
    There have been many. Right from stadium management, which we managed well. The ticketing part was an experience. We were not sure initially as to whether we would have 46,000 seats or 38,000. The stadium was under construction. We had to keep in mind media sessions.

    Not just us, but everybody will handle this differently next time. We sold out tickets for many matches but we have to still understand the pattern in which ticket sales happen. With sponsors there was confusion due to outfits not being ready on time. For the first week we struggled to get a comprehensive photo of the team. Clothes designs and delivery were a challenge. It took us 15 days to do this. If we had time this would have been planned better.

    Is it fair to say that the ones who did well did not have big stars?
    I don’t think so. The ones who did well played as team. They looked up to one individual. Rajasthan looked up to Shane Warne. The passion with which they played as a unit was terrific. Dhoni inspired Chennai. If a team came together it struck.

    Did attitude play a role?
    Yes! There were some players who acted as though the IPL was a holiday. So the franchise had a problem. Some players who were in a high profile position prior to the event were stripped clean. The trading window will be key but the guidelines are not clear. Franchisees can get rid of some players and acquire others. The support staff structure will also be looked at in terms of coaches, physios etc.

    Why did Hyderabad not fare better?
    We had a weak bowling attack. We went on past performance. Some players let us down here. This put additional pressure on the batsmen to add 20 more runs. A team like Rajasthan had the perfect batting and bowling balance. With Delhi we always felt that if the top three batsmen failed we were in with a chance. However they constantly fired until the semi final. Sehwag and Gambhir got out cheaply and they collapsed against Rajasthan.