ITV

Tag: Neha Marda

  • Cricket with the tadka of a daily soap

    Cricket with the tadka of a daily soap

    MUMBAI: Whether it was being the first satellite channel to launch in India in 1992 or introducing non-fiction formats of singing & dancing talent hunt shows or producing fiction shows that addressed social issues in a poignant manner, Zee TV has been a pioneer in the Hindi GEC space, setting trends for competition to follow. The channel has also led the way in the marketing domain with path-breaking innovations such as the first-of-its-kind on-ground shaadi of the leads of its primetime show ‘Pavitra Rishta’, inviting the masses to bless Manav-Archana as they tied the nuptial knot. The channel further went on introduce the phenomenon of Mahasangams that captured an exciting interplay between the ongoing tracks and the actors of two of its shows. After setting several such precedents, Zee TV is all set to achieve yet another first on Indian television with its exciting new property – Zee 20 Cricket League.

     
    For India, Cricket is a passion. A celebration. A religion. And…your favorite families on television are all set to bring you the most entertaining cricket tournament of this season! In an exciting coup, Zee TV will have the most sought-after actors from all its primetime shows come together on a cricket field, be split into two teams led by Raj (Mishkat Varma) and Samarth (Navi Bhangu), the protagonists of  its show ‘Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya’ and battle it out in a nail-biting 20-over match packed with high-voltage drama. The man who wins the match will walk away with the heroine Avani! With half of your favorite stars backing Raj and the other half rooting for Samarth, wonder who will win the Zee 20 Cricket League and walk away with the girl? To find out, watch this cricket tournament with the tadka of family entertainment on 24th and 25th May at 6:30 PM on Zee TV.

     
    So,  who’s on whose team, you ask? Raj’s team is called Raj Ke Challengers and includes Mrunal Thakur (Bulbul of Kumkum Bhagya), Ankit Gera (Mayank of Sapne Suhaane Ladakpan Ke), Neha Marda (Urmi of Doli Armaanon Ki), Arhaan Behl (Raghu of do Dil Bandhe Is Dori se), Baburam of Do Dil Bandhe Is Dori se and Ashish Chowdhry (who plays Raghav in Ek Muthi Aasman).  Samarth’s team called Samarth ke Daredevils includes Shabbir Ahluwalia (Abhi of Kumkum Bhagya), Rachana Parulekar (Kalpi of Ek Muthi Aasman), Roopal tyagi (Gunjan of Sapne Suhaane Ladakpan Ke), Mohit Malik (Samrat of Doli Armaanon Ki), Supriya Shukla (Sarla of Kumkum Bhagya) and Aahil of Qubool Hai. Watching your favorite stars in stylish cricket jerseys instead of their usual looks will be a delightful treat for every viewer!
     

    Zee TV Programming Head Namit Sharma said, “The Cricket fever is at its peak at the moment. Television audiences in India love their stars, the drama surrounding their lives and they love Cricket. What we have in store for them is a double whammy of drama and Cricket with some of their most favorite faces on television playing their favorite sport. This is the first time ever that a Hindi GEC has managed to assemble the most popular stars from all its shows and get them to play a 20-over match. The game will be peppered with interesting twists and turns that blend seamlessly into the ongoing tracks of each of our shows. There will be so many interesting aspects such as the commentary, performances by cheerleaders, locker-room dynamics between the characters that form a team, issues like cheating, sabotage & match fixing. Each of our actors will be completely in character. The entire drama of Zee TV’s most popular shows will unfold against the canvas of India’s favorite sport and we’re certain that the audience will relish this most entertaining spectacle!”

     
    The pretty young girls of every show – Pooki of Ek Muthi Aasman, Pari of Pavitra Rishta, Shivani of Do Dil Bandhe Ek Dori Se, Payal  of Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, Aalia of Kumkum Bhagya and Shazia of Qubool Hai will doll up as the cheerleaders and do a lively routine to motivate and charge up their respective teams. With comedian Suresh Menon donning multiple avatars ranging from Amitabh Bachchan to Sachin Tendulkar to … hold your breath, Usha Nadkarni’s character of Savita Tai from Pavitra Rishta, audience is bound to be in splits!
     

    Do not miss the Zee 20 Cricket League on 24th and 25th May at 6:30 PM on Zee TV!

  • Star Plus and Zee TV’s election mantra

    Star Plus and Zee TV’s election mantra

    MUMBAI: In today’s time, elections are not limited to open ground speeches. Political parties are finding innovative ways to persuade the voter; from TV to social media, nothing has been spared.

     

    If one takes the general entertainment channels (GECs) into account, one can see hundreds of ad spots being bought by the political parties to showcase their agenda to the common man.  However, the leaders in the GEC space i.e. Star Plus and Zee TV have taken a step further and have incorporated the message of voting in their programmes.

     

    The two channels want their viewers to go out and vote for the 16th Lok Sabha elections and in order to spread the word, they have dedicated special tracks on the matter.

     

    Talking about Zee TV, three of its shows have integrated the ‘Power of 49’ in their storyline. The channel has leveraged some of its protagonists like Shilpa Shirodkar from Ek Mutthi Aasman, Roopal Tyagi from Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke and Neha Marda from Doli Armaanon Ki to drive in the message of how precious every woman’s vote is.

     

    For instance, in Doli Armaanon Ki the lead Urmi drags eve teasers, who were harassing her sister-in-law in a mall, to the jail. Just as Urmi files a FIR against them, a politician walks in commanding the release of the eve teasers since they are related to him. Urmi then drags the politician to the court and gives out the message of ‘Power of 49’.

     

    “As one of India’s most responsible broadcasters, Zee has constantly mirrored the emerging realities of the society we live in, highlighting a variety of burning issues that merit public mind space,” points out Zee TV programming head Namit Sharma.

     

    Sharma adds: “Just like our festivals, in today’s time, elections are more of a celebration with all the fanfare around the campaigns. We will also be integrating this aspect of the election campaigns in our shows in the coming episodes.”

     

    Similarly, in Ek Mutthi Aasman, the track was designed in a way that spreads the message that women play an important role in deciding who will be the next ruling party of India and that they should utilise this power in a right way.

     

    The plot was altered to convey the message. In the show, Kamla Bai, comes to know that a girl in the neighbourhood has been stopped by her mother to attend school because she thinks that it is not an appropriate place for girls, she immediately makes the mother understand the strength of women in today’s society. She states many examples of how women run the society.

     

    Similarly, in Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke, the protagonist Gunjan was seen giving out the information on ‘Power of 49’ conveying the helpline number and urging women to call and address their grievances to the government through the helpline.

     

    Chart topper, Star Plus, is also leaving no stone unturned to spread the word. The channel believes in the philosophy – ‘Youth karega apne vote ki value… Tabhi badhegi Desh ki value!’

     

    With the thought of mobilising the youth and taking its Nayi Soch agenda forward, the channel has introduced an initiative to encourage first time voters to register for the upcoming general elections. Led by its popular face and youth icon, Veera, the campaign started in February and has created series of public service messages, prompting young viewers to register, vote and make a difference.

     

    This year, with the number of potential first time voters being estimated to be 12 crore, the channel wants to spread the awareness about the voting rights through the campaign. 

     

    “We want to encourage them to exercise their vote and contribute to the country’s progress. However, a lot of them are still not aware that the registration is an important prerequisite to voting. This first phase of our campaign aims to address that,” Star Plus senior vice-president marketing and content strategy Nikhil Madhok.   

     

    Moreover, Star network, this month also brought back the righteous popular talk show, Satyamev Jayate. It’s no coincidence that the show came back at a time when the country is gearing up for the general election to be held in April-May.

     

    With passions riding high and everyone out to prove their political credentials and concern for the country, the new season was aptly themed ‘Jinhe desh ki fikr hai’ (those who are concerned about India).

     

    The channels are doing their bit, now will have to wait and watch how many will go out and vote.