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Tag: Shah Rukh Khan

  • I still have a long way to go: SRK

    I still have a long way to go: SRK

    MUMBAI:  You can love him or hate him, but you definitely can’t ignore him. The man with a midas touch, Shah Rukh Khan needs no introduction. Just one year short of 50, the King of Bollywood celebrated his special day with his fans, charming everyone with his persona.

     

    Humility personified, SRK was dressed in a black T-shirt and jeans addressing the media and the sea of people gathered outside his residence to wish him on his birthday.

     

    “There is nothing else I can feel on my birthday except humility. I feel I do not deserve the love I get. I am just an actor and a small person and the kind of love I get, I feel blessed. What more can I ask for myself,” said the Baadshah of Bollywood.

     

    “I wish everyone gets a life like Shah Rukh Khan,” added the superstar.

     

    The actor also apologised for all the trouble to Mumbai police as well as his neighbours during days like these.

     

    Reminiscing about earlier days, when he began his career, he reckoned, “Initially I used to celebrate my birthday with not more than eight or nine people, things have changed, my fans have increased, so has the media but I still feel, I have received more than I could ever ask for.”

     

    About hitting half century next year, the actor said, “I don’t count age and I feel good and energised. I will be shooting for Fan from tomorrow (Monday). Next year it’s going to be more special as I will be turning 50.”

     

    He also disclosed that more than losing his name or fame, he is scared to not live up to his fans’ expectations. “The audiences have a lot of expectations from me and I don’t want to disappoint them and that’s my biggest fear. I hope I work hard and live up to everyone’s expectations.”

     

    Coming from the capital city, SRK is one of the very few actors who, despite of not having a godfather in the industry, made it big on his own. “I am proud of fact that I am outsider. This industry is harsh at times. It loves you at one time and also can show you the door at times. There are lots of people in the industry who are responsible for who I am today.”

     

    He also added that he doesn’t consider his personal life worthy enough to make a biopic and if it is ever made he will not be the one to act in it. “There are a number of great personalities in the industry with better stories than mine. I don’t think I have reached the level yet where a movie should be made on my life. I still have a long way to go.”

     

    The actor also revealed that he wants to start doing two films per year now; “I need to work with directors who want to push boundaries with me,” he added.

     

    Also finally, wishing the new Maharashtra government success, he said that “instead of jumping the gun, we should give them time to achieve the target set by them; it is not about the opening weekend in this case, they should be given a chance and time to perform.”

     

    Born on 2 November 1965, Shah Rukh Khan has acted in over 75 films ranging from romantic dramas to action thrillers. The actor has won the maximum number of Filmfare awards. He was also awarded the Padma Shri in 2005 and the prestigious Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the Government of France in 2007 for his contribution to the film industry. The actor is currently working on Fan and Raees

  • ‘Happy New Year’ continues its successful run

    ‘Happy New Year’ continues its successful run

    MUMBAI: Rekha on screen after a long gap does not quite manage to attract the audience in Super Nani. Her fans, old as well as those who grew up on her legend did not quite fancy her in the role of a suppressed grandmother. The film has had a very poor opening despite limited screenings. The film has collected Rs 1.4 crore for the opening weekend.

     

    Roar, with its curiosity value and effective promos, has opened fairly well despite a theme with appeal mainly limited to young audience and has managed to put together a face saving Rs 4.7 crore for its first weekend.

     

    Happy New Year collection figures vary from one media to another as in most cases they are guess estimates and according to loyalists since the figures are being released to media only by the producers with other sources having been blocked.

     

    However, according to numbers  put together with inputs from circuits, the first week total for the film is expected to be from Rs 128 – 130 crore. While the opening day collections were huge, the gap between the opening day and the days between days that followed started widening each day. The film faces poor opposition from two new releases, Super Nani and Roar which will help the film with decent figures in its second week.

     

    Haider has added Rs 45 lakh in its fourth week to take its four week tally to Rs 40.40 crore.

     

    Bang Bang has collected about Rs 1 crore in fourth week to take its four week total to Rs 145.65 crore.

  • ‘Happy New Year’ game is our biggest marketing tool: Shah Rukh Khan

    ‘Happy New Year’ game is our biggest marketing tool: Shah Rukh Khan

    MUMBAI: With Farah Khan’s Happy New Year already breaking records at the box office, the cast and crew has another reason to celebrate.

     

    Known for his marketing skills, the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan along with Vroovy (a joint venture between Hungama and game service company Gameshastra) launched the official Happy New Year game on iOS, Android and Facebook two days before the release of the film to enthrall the fans on the mobile devices.

     

    A week after its launch, the cast and crew on the movie along with Hungama Digital Media MD and CEO Neeraj Roy announced that the game witnessed more than 1.6 million game sessions in just a week and will soon cross the 50 million mark.

     

    Currently with eight levels in the game, it has six playable characters. The characters are meticulously modelled after the real life actors from the movie – SRK (Charlie), Deepika Padukone (Mohini), Sonu Sood (Jag), Boman Irani (Tammy), Abhishek Bachchan (Nandu) and Vivaan Shah (Rohan).

     

    The goal of the game is to complete a heist successfully by navigating through a barrage of obstacles in eight different environments such as the bank, the dockyard, the streets of Dubai etc. The obstacles come in the form of guards, mercenaries, flamethrowers, flaming barrels etc. The final level takes place in the Atlantis hotel where the heist will take place.

     

    The mobile game encapsulates the essence of the film, which allows gamers to play as Champion Charlie, Marvelous Mohini, Notorious Nandu, Juggernaut Jag, Terrific Tammy or Rowdy Rohan and gear up for an action-packed adventure where they have to unlock doors, break walls, hack alarm systems, and outmaneuver guards.

     

    According to Roy, the game employs a one of a kind tag team format in which the player can switch between characters within a level.

     

    “Besides the single player story mode, there is also a real time multiplayer mode in which you can invite your friend through Facebook and race against them or duel with a random opponent if you wish”, he added.

     

    Talking about the extent in which the game was helpful in marketing the movie, superstar Shah Rukh Khan said, “The game is making a huge effect. It is the biggest marketing tool for us currently in the country. People in India are a little more bent towards online video games. The attempt is to entice the younger generation which loves games.”

     

    “Social media’s reach is not as much as you would like it to be in India, but internationally social media helps a lot in the promotion and marketing of the films,” he added expressing his views on social media’s effect on movies’ reach.

     

    Adding to that, Roy opined, “In India, the gaming sector is growing significantly. There are over a 100 million smart phones in the country, even where people don’t have computers they use phones and hence, moves like giving a miss call for the trailer or launching the game will reach more audiences even in the most interior parts of the country increasing the reach of the film.”

     

    Commenting on expanding the game in future, Roy revealed that they will release a new version of the game in a couple of months. They are also planning to increase the number of levels.

     

    “The game is available for free download currently but add-ons and more levels will cost the user a bit extra,” he added.

     

    Happy and content with the game gaining popularity, the director of the movie said, “The game appeals to audiences of all age group like the movie. It is easy to play, user friendly and most of all, it is not bloody which makes it suitable for children to play.”

     

    From launching the trailer on Whatsapp to initiating the SLAM tour and a dance reality show, the team has also promoted the film on popular television shows like ‘Comedy Nights with Kapil’, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ and ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah’. King Khan certainly did not leave any stone unturned when it came to promotions and marketing of Happy New Year.

     

    Happy New Year, which released in the theatres on 24 October has already collected Rs 108.86 crore in the opening weekend. The movie stars Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood, Boman Irani, Vivaan Shah and Jackie Shroff. Directed by Farah Khan, the movie has been produced by Red Chillies. 

  • ‘Happy New Year’ collects Rs 95 crore at the opening weekend

    ‘Happy New Year’ collects Rs 95 crore at the opening weekend

    MUMBAI: Being a solo release with a festival weekend to back it up, Happy New Year took a bumper opening day as expected. The film was well promoted and a big hype was created around it before its release. Although the film did not enjoy positive public reports, such a big film would hardly be affected on its opening day, especially considering the release period.

     

    However, the film’s collections started dropping from day two. The collections given out to the media are controlled by the producers, Red Chillies, while distributors have been instructed not to reveal figures to media. The figures put together from sources come to around Rs 95 crore. The collections have shown a bigger drop as the new week begins and the long weekend of holidays is over. 

     

    Mumbai 125KM collects Rs 1.5 crore in its first week. Sonali Cable fails to cross even the crore mark in its first week collecting just Rs 85 lakh. Ekkees Topon Ki Salaami fared badly in the first week and totally sank in the second week managing to collect just Rs 10 lakh. Its two week total rounds up to Rs 1.65 crore. Tamanchey, another wasted effort, collects Rs 10 lakh in its second week and its two week collections total up to Rs 1.35 crore. Haider adds Rs 3.5 crore for its third week to take its three week tally to Rs 48.95 crore. Bang Bang has collected about Rs 8.05 crore for its third week taking its three week total to Rs 144.65 crore. 

  • Happy New Year: Fast forward please!

    Happy New Year: Fast forward please!

    MUMBAI: When Farah Khan makes a film, she does not carry with her the burden of logic or justification. This is a caper movie and since caper movies can’t be very different from each other, the film has to count on its ensemble cast and how the film is scripted and treated. On this count, the star cast cannot help much.

     

    Shah Rukh Khan does odd jobs,including street fights, for a living. He has an axe to grind with Jackie Shroff who is a big shot in Dubai. His desire for revenge is overwhelming. Shah Rukh’s father, Anupam Kher, was an honest man who specialised in making the world’s most secure safe vaults. He had made one such rare safe for Jackie Shroff who rents it out for safekeeping of diamonds worth crores. The safe opens with a combination of a password and thumb print.

     

    Since Kher made the safe, only his thumb impression and password worked on the safe. He wants Jackie to change it but instead Jackie drugs him and steals diamonds worth crores. Kher is framed, jailed and later commits suicide. It has been eight years since and Shah Rukh is waiting for a chance to get even.

     

    Shah Rukh soon gets a chance to reach not only Dubai but the very hotel where Jackie operates from and where his safe is located. There is a world dance competition in Dubai in the same hotel and it is scheduled during the same period as diamonds worth Rs 300 crore will be kept in the safe while in transit.

     

    Now, Shah Rukh needs to build a team. He gets two people, Sonu Sood and Boman Irani, in his own backyard. They both worked for Kher. Boman is an expert on safes. He finds world’s best hacker in Vivaan Shah and Abhishek Bachchan is the lookalike of Jackie’s son on whose thumb impression now the safe opens. Having found experts in the fields he needs, Shah Rukh now has one problem. None of these five can dance to save their lives and they have to win two local rounds before they qualify to represent India.

     

    For this, they find Deepika Padukone, a bar dancer who agrees to teach them dancing. The required glamour quotient is in. Their dancing does not improve but while VIvaan hacks the online voting for the team, the judges, Vishal Dadlani and Anurag Kashyap, are blackmailed into voting for them and they qualify. However, being chosen does not change the public opinion looking at the welcome they get in Dubai with eggs and rotten tomatoes.

     

    There are minor hitches but finally the day arrives when they commit the heist; it is also the day when the dance final is due.

     

    As mentioned, how different can one caper film be different from another? Not much. Hence one looks forward to what follows. The disappointment starts as soon as you see the censor certificate stating the running time of the film as 179 minutes 50 seconds (this is after eight minute deletion a few days before release). Then, as Shah Rukh goes about building his team, he takes almost one hour. The characters of Boman, Sonu, Vivaan and Abhishek are introduced with demonstrations of how their talents will help towards carrying out the heist. Deepika enters after one hour into the film. Almost all sequences are stretched: Sonu’s fight in the beginning and Shah Rukh’s rooftop fight for instance, feel never-ending.

     

    The film counts on comedy and humour to entertain but save for few occasions, comedy and humour both are childish. The romance is one-sided for almost entire length of the film. The film has three songs with appeal, of which ‘Indiawale…..’ has been overplayed but still liked as it comes at the end as a victory song. Photography is good. Heavy editing was needed. There is not much scope for histrionics. Shah Rukh gets the best lines and most footage and his usual self. However, he is surrounded taller and stronger guys around except Vivaan and that does not please the eye. Deepika has to dance and moisten her eyes on regular basis, which is it. Boman Irani is wasted. Vivaan has a pleasant look with a smiling face and acts well too. It is Abhishek who justifies the funny lines he gets, some good and some PJs. Jackie is fine.

     

    Happy New Year is at an advantage being a solo Diwali release while, on the other hand, it is also at disadvantage because of its length which makes only four shows a day possible. Looking at the response, it will have to make the most of the holiday weekend.

     

    Producer: Gauri Khan.

     

    Director: Farah Khan.

     

    Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Boman Irani, Sonu Sood. Also in special appearances: Dino Morea, Prabhu Deva, Malaika Arora Khan, Anurag Kashyap, Vishal Dadlani, Sajid Khan, Anupam Kher.

  • A ‘Happy New Year’, this Diwali

    A ‘Happy New Year’, this Diwali

    The festival of lights, Diwali is here, signifying the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, good over evil, and hope over despair.

    And as people gather to celebrate, the television channels have a special treat for viewers this Diwali.  

    Talking about the big bunch, Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs), Colors will run Diwali tracks across all its shows. The most popular characters Gutthi and Palak from Comedy Nights with Kapil will enter the Bigg Boss house and engage the contestants via a task. The winners/good performers will receive the Diwali gifts that have been sent by their family members. After Gutthi and Palak leave, the contestants will participate in a special fashion show where they will showcase their best ethnic outfits.

    In Beintehaa, Zain and Aaliya light up diyas to celebrate their first Diwali together and light crackers. Suraiyya gifts jewellery to her bahus. In Balika Vadhu, Diwali puja will be conducted in Udaipur and Jaitsar homes.

    One of the channel’s longest running show, Uttaran will have its own twists and tales. There will be a highpoint wherein Rani while bursting crackers finds herself trapped inside a burning house. When the fire is doused, they realise that Rani is missing. Overall, during Diwali, Meethi finds herself worried about Rani while trying her best to safeguard her from being sent to the brothel again.

    In Udann, Chakor ensures that a tempo of sweets and crackers comes to the village so that while she is celebrating Diwali in Lucknow, her parents and other people from her village will celebrate Diwali for the first time.

    With the festive season around the corner, Zee TV presents audiences with ‘Saat Din Khushiyon Ke’ – a Diwali special that will air celebratory content across all its primetime shows, giving viewers a chance to celebrate the festival of lights with their favourite actors.

     
    While Shah Rukh Khan celebrates Diwali on a special episode of Dil Se Naachein Indiawaale, a double dhamaka awaits one on Neele Chhatri Waale as Bhagwan Das runs into trouble with a jewellery shop on buying gold for his wife.

    In the popular show Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, Raj and Avni re-unite and marry each other after a lot of trials and tribulations in a secret ceremony, away from home in Umargaon. On Jamai Raja, watch DD leave no stone unturned in making Sid and Roshni’s life miserable. She gives them the task of cleaning the entire house in preparation for Diwali, as they haven’t been able to pay the rent.

    Not to forget the digital side to it. While some will spend quality time with their families this Diwali, for those unable to visit their families back home, Zee gives them an opportunity to wish them on national television!

    Viewers can send in their wishes and messages from 23 – 25 October, through Facebook and Twitter and Zeetv.com/Diwali and win a chance to have their messages displayed on television.

    Not to be left behind, the sister channel of Sony Entertainment Television (SET), Sab, will telecast ‘Sab Ki Diwali Party’ on 22 October at 9pm. It will see a fantabulous congregation of television artists that celebrate the festival of lights and harmony with great festivity. Bundled with power-packed performances by leading television actors from different verticals, it will witness the Sab family coming together with more actors to create a magnanimous event replete with dance performances and melodious music.

    The show is woven into a story where the Badi Dooooor Se Aaye Hai star-cast invites various celebrities from Sab family and others such as Mouni Roy, Kritika Sengar, child celeb – Akshat and more to usher the Diwali festival together to enhance the joy of this momentous and auspicious occasion.

    Moreover, Gokuldham society members (from Taarak Mehta ka Ooltah Chashmah), are all set to celebrate the festival of lights amongst themselves. The residents get a unique idea to invite the king of Bollywood romance Shah Rukh Khan who comes to promote his upcoming movie – Happy New Year which hits the screens on 24 October.

     

    In celebrating this festival with audiences Big Magic presents the Big Diwali Special, a one hour festive spike on 20 October from 8-9 pm. The programming offering will see artists from across the shows of Ajab Gajab Ghar Jamai, Mahisagar and Raavi come together on the comic caper Uff! Yeh Nadaniyaan ensuring audiences have their dose of laughter during the celebrations.

    Adding spark this the festive, popular names like Upasana Singh, Himani Shivpuri, Sumit Vats and Vandana Pathak will be seen rejoicing the Diwali Mohatsav with the Nadaan Family. This extravagant celebration will provide an assortment of fun, entertainment, humour and laughter for all the loyal patrons.

    Reliance Broadcast Network COO Lavneesh Gupta believes that Diwali being the most celebrated festival in India and especially across the HSMs becomes an obvious and natural opportunity for us to connect with audiences and marketers.

    “Our hour-long Diwali special, is crafted to ensure entertainment sensibilities of our audiences are met, will deliver the perfect blend of entertainment riding on the pegs of humuor and the festive spirit. Adequately marketed, the special is another offering that strengthens connect. ”

    If you thought GECs were the only ones in the fray, think again. Movie channels too have added their own flavour of entertainment.

    &Pictures looks to give viewers something to dance about with the world television premiere of Mad About Dance on 23 October at 8 pm. This is part of the ‘Mad About Pictures’ Film Festival property that the channel is running.

    Zeel deputy business head, Hindi movie channels Ruchir Tiwari states: “We are pleased to premiere the World Television Premier of Mad About Dance, a film that is a complete entertainment package for all and an inspirational film for the youth. With a single-minded thought of bringing families together this Diwali, the film will make it more festive for our viewers.”

    Movies OK will reward its viewers with ‘Karo Diwali Share’ contest wherein audience has an opportunity to win Snapdeal e-vouchers worth Rs 10,000 and buy exciting Diwali gifts daily. Similarly, Star Gold too offers a Diwali Maha bonus, giving viewers a chance to daily win exciting prizes like home theatre, microwave, dishwasher, split A/C, refrigerator, bike and more. The grand prize to be won on the 24 October will be a car.

    Music channels are not shying away to celebrate the festival of lights in a big way. Vh1 brings to you the biggest contemporary chartbusters with a hand-picked compilation of a golden playlist. The playlist will feature the best international videos to cherish the festive season on 23 and 24 October from 8 am onwards.

    9X Jhakaas, the Marathi music channel, is celebrating Diwali in a unique way, with the kids from The Vatsalya Foundation orphanage. To give kids a Dream Diwali experience, it has partnered with actor and comedian, Siddharth Jadhav and Camlin India. As part of this initiative, Jadhav will spend an entire day with the kids spreading smiles with food, games and also some by gifting them super cool merchandise from Camlin India.

     

    Moreover, it will capture these moments and air them on the Channel as a special treat for the viewers, encouraging them to do their bit for the society. These episodes will air on 23 and 24 October at 11 am.

    Speaking of this CSR Initiative 9X Jhakaas vice president Rohan Rane says, “This Diwali we have decided to share this festival with the less fortunate kids through our initiative Jhakaas Dream Diwali. Through this initiative the channel is partnering with NGO’s to bring cheer and joy to the kids and fulfil their basic requirements or educational needs. We are grateful to our partner Camlin India and Siddharth Jadhav who have made this effort successful.”

    9XE will have a Diwali special with Shah Rukh Khan in a special interview with beat boxer Vineeth Vincent.

    9X Media chief programming officer Amar Tidke says, “Right from the Channel identity, which has a cool Rangoli treatment, to a Phataka Playlist specially curated to spread the festive spirit, the channel is enhancing the music viewing experience. Our popular animated characters – Bade, Chote, Bheegi Billi and Betel Nuts are celebrating Diwali in their own style by pulling a fast one on each other. Another of our popular features – ‘Do Pal Ka Interval’ a Bollywood parody, is based on the biggest box-office Diwali release.”

    The channels catering to the younger audiences doing their bit; Cartoon Network and Pogo bring the team of Happy New Year to the small screen.

    Celebrations full of masti had already taken off on 18 October with the entire cast who had featured with Oggy and the Cockroaches in a special titled Oggy aur Indiawaale. It was based on the theme of the movie – life gives every loser a chance to be a winner.

    Happy New Year’s Indiawaale also teamed up with India’s biggest superhero Chhota Bheem in a special titled Bade Dilwaale Bheem aur Indiawaale that saw its premiere on 19 October at 12 pm on Pogo. It featured what draws similarities between Indiawaale and Dholakpurwaale and bring out how different people can come together to achieve a common goal for a good cause.

    Pogo is also adding sparkles to Diwali with a line-up of movies and specials such as The Adventures of Sinbad, Chhota Bheem ki Baazi, Bheem Tussi Great Ho! and many more from 20 to 26 October at 12 pm.

    Moreover, it is gifting kids a chance to be a superhero with Chhota Bheem in his next movie! All kids have to do is participate in the ‘Be A Superstar’ contest from 20 to 26 October at 12 pm and answer the contest questions. There are many more exciting gifts to be won every 15 minutes.

    Last but not the least, Nick has something special for kids on Diwali with the release of the movie ‘Motu Patlu Kungfu Kings’ at 12:15 pm on 23 October.

     

  • E-commerce, the Santa Claus this Diwali

    E-commerce, the Santa Claus this Diwali

    With the festival of lights knocking at the door and gifting at its peak, the-commerce portals are raining flash sales, lucky draws, special portfolios and exclusive product launches. The season which kicked off the with the Big Billion Day by Flipkart to the week- long Diwali Dhamaka Sale from Amazon, the online buzz is getting louder each day.

    The portals, flushed with money from recent fund-raising efforts, are lining up steep discounts, exclusive merchandise, cash-back schemes, and other promotional offers for this year’s festive season, giving them an opportunity to sell more, gain market share and increase their valuations.

    According to Team Pumpkin co-founder Swati Nathani, the period of October till January is considered great for retail sales, starting with festive buying for Pujo and Diwali, to winter shopping in November, party shopping in December and then End of Season Sale in January. “The season sees an approximate 200-300 per cent increase from the average e-commerce sales. Obviously, post Diwali sales will not match to the level of Diwali, but on an average they are 20-30 per cent higher than average period sales,” said Nathani.

     

    Amazon India

    For the festive season, the e-commerce giant is offering discounts with minimum 16 per cent and maximum of up to 56 per cent discounts on products like laptops, mobiles, household items and home appliances. The e-retailer is giving up to 70 per cent discounts on home appliances, clothing & accessories, gifts, gadgets and jewellery along with an additional cash back offer on purchases made by Citibank cards.

    Talking about the Diwali, the offers and discounts, Amazon India country manager & VP Amit Agarwal said that the customers can look forward to Amazon.in as their one-stop Diwali shopping destination and that Amazon is offering its Indian customers great savings on thousands of products every hour through its discounts and offers.

    On 21 September,  Amazon.in kicked-off the 30 day online Shopping Dhamaka ahead of the peak festival season offering customers thousands of exciting new deals & offers on the hottest products; new store launches; first access to unique selections & premium brands,  exciting contests, etc.

    As part of the Online Shopping Dhamaka, Amazon.in hosted two major events including ‘Mission to Mars’ weekend between 4-6 October dedicated to the success of India’s Mangalyaan mission and the Diwali Dhamaka Week between 10-16 October.

    “We are humbled by the tremendous response from customers to the Online Shopping Dhamaka and all events hosted as part of this.  The response from customers on the first day of the Diwali Dhamaka Week went beyond our wildest expectations as we surpassed our biggest day. Traffic on that day was 200 per cent more than that on our previous biggest day. We are seeing a massive interest from all over the country including tier 2 markets like Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Surat, Vizag, Coimbatore, Patna, Bhopal, Nagpur, Chandigarh, Lucknow,” said an Amazon spokesperson.

    “Our seller clubs that have Rs 1 million+ & Rs 1 crore+ weekly sales increased by 44 per cent & 26 per cent respectively during the Diwali Dhamaka Week and sellers received orders from 868 non-metro cities,” he added.

    Electronics and Kitchen product categories grew by nearly six times during the Diwali Dhamaka week. In addition, we have received an overwhelming response from customers to all the exclusive launches that have taken place on Amazon.in during this period.

    “We have sold over 130,000 Micromax Canvas Android One smartphones, over 100,000 Coke Zero cans within two weeks of its launch, the Blackberry Passport has gone out-of-stock and we have sold hundreds of audio products of House of Marley,” the spokesperson informed.

    They also launched special festive design packaging and introduced gift boxes and gift wrapping paper in colours that match with the artwork on the gift boxes for Diwali.

     

    Flipkart-Myntra

    After offering crazy massive discounts on the Big Billion Day, raising Rs 600 crore as well as sending an apology letter to all its customers, Flipkart seems to have toned it down a bit.

    However, the industry that is currently surviving on discounts, the home-grown e-tailer is giving offers on select products. The site is hosting an electronic mela, giving massive discounts on televisions, camera, Smartphones, home appliances and others. The portal is offering 45-50 percent on home appliances like mixer grinders and induction cook-tops.

    The e-retailer is also holding an App lucky draw, where the lucky ones can win 3 days/2 nights holiday packages along with an additional cash back offer on purchases made by an SBI card.

    The e-commerce portal recently acquired the fashion portal Myntra as well as raised funds worth $1 billion.

    “Our aim is to help our sellers provide the best possible shopping options to our customers such that both sellers and customers benefit,” said a Flipkart spokesperson, talking about the Diwali sales.

    While the Bengaluru based portal is being cautious, its acquisition Myntra is giving discounts like 30 per cent off on no minimum value, up to 60 per cent off on festive collection and launching new private brands, Indian as well as international etc. Myntra has launched an exciting Diwali campaign ‘Myntra Cracker of a Sale’ from 7 -25 October.

    Myntra chief operating officer Ganesh Subramanian said, “Diwali is a period of festivity and cheer, where all of us buy new clothes, and want to ‘Look Good.’ The ‘Myntra Cracker of a Sale’ boasts of exciting brand offers from over 500 marquee brands and will also include exclusive collections from leading brands and designers which will be available only on Myntra.com.”

    “At Myntra, we are not restricting celebration only to clothes, but have also extended a personalized style service, the Style Helpline, where Myntra’s expert stylists will be available to answer everything from simple style queries to advice on getting the perfect festive look,” he added.

    Talking about the sales target, Subramanian revealed, “We expect it to be a record breaking Diwali, with over 3X growth in sales as compared to last year.”

    The fashion e-tailer also designed a ‘Made for Myntra Collection,’ which includes over 5,000 exclusive styles and collections by some of the most respected designers and brands like FCUK, UCB, Elle, SuperDry, Biba, FabIndia and Antony Moratto.

    The company is offering every shopper with assured money back with every order – minimum Rs 100 up to Rs 1 lakh and five gold vouchers from Tanishq, to be won every day.

     

    Snapdeal

    All set to lure customers to its portal, Snapdeal is offering 50 per cent off and 1+1 offer on many of its products. The Delhi-based e-tailer is also offering 60-70 per cent discount on mobile phones and gadgets.

    “The intention is to try and cater to every single consumer. Because we are trying to cater to everyone, we have products for everyone. There has been a big ensemble of celebrities, who have come on board for the same,” said Snapdeal VP-offline marketing Maneesh Goel.

    “We are aiming to double our normal sales this festive period like last year,” revealed Goel who added that the company is already seeing a 30 per cent increase in its daily order and sales average. Snapdeal recently crossed $1 billion (over Rs 6,100 crore) in sales this fiscal.

    The portal is offering up to 50 per cent discounts on home appliance, up to 40 per cent on watches, around 50 per cent on gadgets along with 1+1 offers on ethnic wears, footwear, clutches etc.

     

    Google India

    Celebrating the occasion, the search-engine giant Google has launched ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ to cash in on the festival of lights.

    Google has also set up a ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ website, which provides two activities that Indians love to indulge in: shopping and entertainment.

    The powered by sponsor for the site is Amazon India while the presented by sponsor is Lakme. Other sponsors for the site include OLX, Fiat, Line messenger, Horlicks among others. It has also partnered with Shah Rukh Khan’s Happy New Year, which is set to release on the day after Diwali.  

    It allows users from across India to try out everyday products through samples at Re 1, play games that are in sync with the cultural moment, stream movies for free and watch great content from the upcoming film Happy New Year.

    At the ‘Grand Diwali Mela,’ consumers can also experience gaming via a platform called Centerstage Hungama.com. On this online ‘zone’, consumers can stream two Bollywood films of their choice. A game called Diwali Chakri has been launched exclusively for this occasion. In association with Rummy Circle, it allows users to play with other card game enthusiasts across the country. Gaming hour will be from 9-10 pm and prizes include online offers and merchandise.

    Last month, Google stated plans of launching a virtual shopping and entertainment platform by tying up with the media buying agency GroupM. While GroupM is responsible for bringing brands onto the platform, Google provides the technical support.

    The website, which will run live till 22 October, invites patrons to try samples for products across various categories at just one rupee each, and to play and win awesome prizes and a chance to hang out with celebrities.

     

    Other sites

    Riding high on the festive season, CouponDunia, has brought together the country’s most popular e-commerce stores to give its users 30 exclusive offers over the next 15 days as part of ‘Deal-Wali Diwali’. These offers include: Rs 250 gift card on Rs 999 shopping for Amazon, Buy-1-Get-1-Free in Dominos, Flat 33 per cent off above Rs 2999 in FabFurnish, Flat 45 per cent off on Hotel Bookings at Goibibo, Flat Rs 500 off on Flights at Yatra.

    Jabong is also offering huge discounts on lifestyle products. On purchase of two products of American Swan, one can get one product of the company free. Apart from this, one can book a home with just Rs 999 under ‘Living Room Bonanza’ and will also be entitled to 20 per cent discount on total cost.

    With the massive discounts offered and customers being treated as kings, this Diwali marks the growth of the e-commerce sector in India. So, shop till the discounts last and we at Indiantelevision.com wish you a happy Diwali and a fun festive season.

     

  • Shah Rukh Khan inaugurates the new identity of ABP News SBS at Telebrations

    Shah Rukh Khan inaugurates the new identity of ABP News SBS at Telebrations

    MUMBAI: In a star studded evening, ABP News Saas Bahu aur Saazish, the No.1 show of Indian Television News celebrated its 10 year of leadership and revealed the new identity of the program. Right from King Khan- Shah Rukh Khan to leading actress Deepika Padukone, to Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood and Vivaan Shah together with famous faces of Indian Television like Karan Patel, Nia Sharma, Rashmi Desai, Neelu Vaghela etc. inaugurated the much awaited identity of Saas Bahu aur Saazish.

    On this big day, the SBS 10th year evening witnessed hundreds of Television Stars coming together to a glorious evening, wherein the industry, together, felicitated 10 Impact makers of Indian Television. These awards are bestowed to those whose contribution to Indian Television industry is par excellence and they with their zeal and hard work have done path breaking, trend defining work for years. These 10 big stalwarts who received the coveted “Achievers awards trophy 2014” were Annu Kapoor, Prem Krishen/Sunil Mehta, Cineyug (Mazhar Nadiadwala/ Aly Morani), Ali Asgar, Dilip Joshi, Neelu Waghela, Shivaji Satam, Sandip Sikand, and R.D Tailang.

    On the occasion, Ashok Venkatramani, CEO, MCCS India said “Saas Bahu Aur Saazish is the program which has become the household name among Indian woman. 10 years back when we started SBS, the idea was to report all the crucial happening of soap operas which at that time were beginning to engulf the Indian audience. Today with the new identity launch, we are looking forward to become more sharper in our reporting and reach to our SBS Family. On the 10th year of Telebrations, we would like to thank entire entertainment industry, our viewers, and partners who have been supportive throughout. We look forward to provide entertaining content along with keeping the values of reporting alive”

    The team of Happy New Year, who were also the film partner of the Saas Bahu aur Saazish Telebrations, were completely enamoured by the show. Shah Rukh Khan said, “Saal ki Sabse Entertaining Film, Mil rahi hai Saal ke Sabse Entertaining Program se” (This year’s most entertaining film is meeting the most entertaining program of Indian television”) and hence the celebrations is on the card. Shah Rukh along with his complete co-stars (Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood, and Vivaan Shah) called many TV stars on stage and gave them multiple dares including tongue twisters, Dance like Vivaan, speak like Abhishek Bachchan. The highlight of this segment was Deepika Padukone making the leading ladies of Indian soap operas dance on her peppy number “main Lovely ho gayee yaar” thus taking the audience to a huge uproar.

  • “I will take this Mannat to Delhi!” says Shah Rukh

    “I will take this Mannat to Delhi!” says Shah Rukh

    MUMBAI: Everyone knows that Shah Rukh Khan’s sprawling, sea-facing mansion ‘Mannat’ – where he stays with his family – is his prized possession and a point of envy for countless others! But a young contestant named Mannat took the King Khan by surprise when she came to perform at the Ahmedabad auditions of Zee TV’s tour in search of India’s happiest dancer – Dil Se Naachein Indiawaale. All of six years old, Mannat is the youngest contestant on the show! She mesmerized the panel of celebrity judges aka the ‘Agents of Happiness’ the moment she set foot on stage. Cute Mannat captivated the audience and the judges alike with her act on song “Manwa Lage Re”, which left SRK & Deepika spell-bound!

    So taken was Deepika by this young one’s cuteness that Mannat was practically seen sitting in Deepika’s lap throughout the remaining half of the show. In sharp contrast to the previous contestants – a group of old ladies who made Deepika their bahu and even had her touching their feet, Mannat clearly called out to Deepika’s maternal instincts. She looked visibly heartbroken when she had to let go of Mannat.  

    Even as the celebrity panelists raved about the li’l wonder Mannat’s flawless ‘Dil Se’ act which touched everyone’s hearts, SRK mentioned sweetly “I will take this Mannat to Delhi” where the show will reach its exciting grand finale.

    Having scaled the pinnacle of brilliance in aesthetic and skillful dancing with DID, Zee TV has recently introduced India to yet another home-grown format … a genre of dancing that calls out to every Indian to brush aside considerations such as technique and training, just forget about their inhibitions and dance straight from the heart! Partnering with India’s biggest superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment & ZEEL’s creative and production studio Essel Vision Productions Ltd, Zee TV brings viewers the biggest Diwali entertainment extravaganza with the hottest celebrity panel ever – Dil Se Naachein Indiawaale. The show will be India’s first ever multi-city dance tour in search of the happiest dancer! Conducted through a joyride on a special ‘Happy Dancing’ bus, the tour has started off in Mumbai, has made pit-stops at Ahmedabad, Indore and will head to Delhi in the coming days with a star-studded panel called the ‘Agents of Happiness’ comprising none other than Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Farah Khan, Sonu Sood, Boman Irani and Vivaan Shah.

     

    To jump on to this joyride, stay tuned to ‘Maruti Suzuki Alto K 10 DilSe Naachein Indiawaale Co-powered by Askmebazaar.com & L’Oreal Paris Fall Repair 3X’ every Saturday and Sunday at 9 PM, only on Zee TV.

     

  • Three more awards added to Deepika Padukone’s kitty this year

    Three more awards added to Deepika Padukone’s kitty this year

    MUMBAI: Adding more awards to her kitty, Deepika Padukone has bagged three awards at the Star Box Office India Awards 2014, for her performances throughout the year.

    She was awarded the ‘Actor of the Year – Female’ and ‘Romantic Jodi of the Year’ with Ranveer Singh for Goliyon Ki Rasleela… Ramleela.  In addition to this she was also given a special award ‘Ms Hat Trick’ for her back to back successes marking that she has had the highest cumulative box office collections over the past 3 years.

    Overwhelmed with all the love she received on the awards night, the Om Shanti Om actress tweeted, “Too much love tonight! Thank you Star and Box Office India!”

    Received grandly by global audiences throughout her SLAM world tour, the actress has received rave reviews for her performance in Finding Fanny as Angie.

    Deepika Padukone was seen wearing a backless black gown complemented her slender and tall frame, paired with gold coin earrings and berry red lipstick at the event.

    She will soon be seen in Happy New Year which is her third movie with Shah Rukh Khan. She is also shooting for Shoojit Sircar’s Piku alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Irfan Khan and Imtiaz Ali’s Tamasha with Ranbir Kapoor. The ace actress will then start shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali Bajirao Mastani with Ranveer Singh.

    ‘Star Box Office Awards’ recognizes the achievements of Hindi films at the box office and will be broadcasted on the 19 October 2014.