ITV

Tag: Republic Bharat

  • Republic Media Network elevates Vikas Khanchandani as Group CEO

    Republic Media Network elevates Vikas Khanchandani as Group CEO

    MUMBAI: In a major announcement on the eve of the expansion of Republic Media Network, it has announced the induction of Bhaksar Das as group president and the elevation of Vikas Khanchandani as group CEO Republic Media Network.  

    Khanchandani will now assume overall responsibility of all the three network brands—Republic Television, Republic World Digital, and the upcoming Hindi News channel Republic Bharat. 

    Bhaskar Das was President of The Times of India Group and Group CEO at Zee Media Network.  He was also Executive President at Dainik Bhaskar Group. 

    Republic Media Network MD and editor in chief Arnab Goswami said, “Vikas has led the channel exceptionally from the start, up to the expansion mode. As we get set to launch Republic Bharat, I am excited he will along with Bhaskar Das see the next phase of growth and consolidation of our new age Media – Tech company. We are on the look-out for growth opportunities that are both scalable and sustainable. I look forward to partnering and growing with them.” 

    Vikas Khanchandani said, “We are very excited about Dr Das joining forces with us to help scale the business at the Network. He is one of the most respected media professionals and our network will immensely benefit from his knowledge and experience. His announcement comes just after the one for Hersh Bhandari who joined us as the EVP – Revenue on Republic Bharat. With our current expansion in the management team, as a network, we are poised for growth and scale in business. We will look for opportunities, both organic and acquisitive growth, within technology and media. Republic is a disruptor brand and we will look at a global digital foray in the near future.”

  • Republic Bharat, Arnab Goswami’s Hindi offering, to debut on 26 January

    Republic Bharat, Arnab Goswami’s Hindi offering, to debut on 26 January

    MUMBAI: The Hindi offering of the Arnab Goswami-led network Republic is set to hit the airwaves on 26 January, a source close to the development informed Indiantelevision.com. Republic TV CEO Vikas Khanchandani, in a recent interaction with Indiantelevision.com, however, had side-stepped queries about Republic Bharat’s (in short format it would be known as R Bharat) launch, though he added it would materialise in the first quarter of 2019.

    Hersh Bhandari, the former national revenue head for India Today Television, is all set to join the brand new Hindi news channel. With him onboard, R Bharat aims to start strong as far as revenue performance and grow exponentially from there. He spent six years at Times Network. Bhandari has also had effective stints at the Star Group, NDTV Media, Mastiii and TV Today Group, collectively translating in 20 years of experience in the media industry. He has played a key role in helping channels boost their presence and revenue over the years and aims to replicate the same with R Bharat.

    "We are pleased to have Hersh Bhandari on board and he is now a part of the Republic Network. With a proven track record of being a powerhouse and implementing strong customer focused strategy, he will lead the team to scale up the Republic Bharat advertising business. We wish Hersh all the very best in his new role," Khanchandani added.

    The Hindi sibling of Republic TV will have Shamsher Singh as its editor. Singh has over 20 years of experience and has worked with leading television news channels, including India News, Zee Hindustan and Aaj Tak.

    According to media reports, earlier in June this year Republic TV had circulated a note through a financial consultancy firm based out of Gurugram stating that the company was planning to raise capital of around Rs 120 crore (Rs 1,200 million) to set up a Hindi news channel. The investor note also stated Republic TV had “overachieved” its projected revenue and profitability estimates to close FY18 with Rs 155 crore (Rs 1550 million) in revenue and planned to close FY19 with close to Rs 2 billion in revenues.

    Pointing out that `India’ is equated with `Bharat’, Khanchandani previously said, “Republic Bharat or R Bharat resonated with all of us and we were instantly drawn to it. It has stood out as a differentiator and as a name that smashes the clutter. The name is powerful and will connect with the audiences across HSM markets. The audiences will embrace Bharat.”

  • Republic Bharat, Hindi news channel, to launch Q1 of 2019

    Republic Bharat, Hindi news channel, to launch Q1 of 2019

    MUMBAI: Well, it’s finally happening and at an opportune moment too. Ahead of announcement of dates for the general elections or India’s great dance of democracy, Arnab Goswami-helmed Republic TV is getting its Hindi sibling to debut in the first quarter of 2019 with a reliable industry insisting the launch could be sometime in January itself.

    Republic TV CEO Vikas Khanchandani, who confirmed to Indiantelevision.com about the Hindi news channel from the family, however, refused to give a firm date for going on air. He deftly side-stepped queries on the Republic Bharat (in short format it would be known as R Bharat) launch date by saying it would be in the first quarter of 2019.

    According to the Khanchandani, the Hindi sibling of Republic TV will have Shamsher Singh as its editor. Singh has over 20 years of experience and has worked with leading television news channels, including India News, Zee Hindustan and Aaj Tak.

    The Hindi news genre has more than 20 TV channels. Aaj Tak from the India Today Group leads the audience numbers game in all the three markets comprising urban plus rural (U+R), rural and urban.

    Why choose a name like Republic Bharat, especially when the company had run into problems on the christening of Republic TV?

     Pointing out that `India’ is equated with `Bharat’, Khanchandani said, “Republic Bharat or R. Bharat resonated with all of us and we were instantly drawn to it. It has stood out as a differentiator and as a name that smashes the clutter. The name is powerful and will connect with the audiences across HSM markets. The audiences will embrace Bharat.”

    On its debut last year, Republic TV had not only smashed the audience measurement numbers, but also unsettled some legacy players who had even questioned the way audience data was obtained by the then new entrant. That after several rounds of slug fest all the players kissed and made up was another story altogether.

    However, industry observers believe that if the success of the noisy English news channel Republic TV is any indication, the parent is bound to deliver a strong platform in the Hindi space too.

    According to media reports, earlier in June this year Republic TV had circulated a note through a financial consultancy firm based out of Gurugram stating that the company was planning to raise capital of around Rs 120 crore (Rs. 1,200 million) to set up a Hindi news channel. The investor note also stated Republic TV had “overachieved” its projected revenue and profitability estimates to close FY18 with Rs 155 cores (Rs. 1550 million) in revenue and planned to close FY19 with close to Rs 2 billion in revenues.

    KPMG India partner and head- media and entertainment Girish Menon told Indiantelevision.com, “Hindi news is the largest [segment] when it comes to news channels in terms of audience share. Given the brand value and equity Republic TV has, it makes sense to diversify into the Hindi space too.”

    Highlighting that Republic TV’s parent has a “comparable digital channel” and adding Hindi to that platform will give it a wider user base, Menon added, “Brands will obviously get access to a much wider audience base. From an audience perspective, Hindi has a bigger base than English. The success, however, will depend on the content strategy and how it plays out with the viewers.”