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Tag: Shah Rukh Khan

  • 2009: Bollywood’s Bad Year

    2009: Bollywood’s Bad Year

    For most observers, 2009 was year of mixed fortunes for Bollywood. While the industry took efforts to globalize and some of its talent got global recognition in the form of awards, it had a lean year on the domestic front.

    A multiplex strike and a drought of hits got the industry into a tizzy. The saving grace was the end of the year Xmas release, the Raj Kumar Hirani-directed Aamir Khan starrer 3 Idiots that went on to become the highest grossing Hindi film ever with a gross collection of Rs 3.15 billion and counting.

    The year‘s highlight was the aggressive moves by the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Big Pictures into Hollywood. Reliance Big and American filmmaking icon Steven Spielberg locked the first phase of financing, sealing an amount of $825 million that would allow the joint venture to make six films annually for global audiences.

    Reliance Big Pictures also signed script development agreements with Nicolas Cage‘s Saturn Films, Jim Carrey‘s JC 23 Entertainment, George Clooney‘s Smokehouse Productions, Chris Columbus‘ 1492 Pictures, Tom Hanks‘ Playtone Productions, Brad Pitt‘s Plan B Entertainment, Jay Roach‘s Everyman Pictures, Brett Ratner‘s Rat Entertainment, Julia Roberts‘ Red Om Films and Ron Howard‘s Imagine Entertainment.

    Karan Johar‘s Dharma Productions and Shah Rukh Khan‘s Red Chillies Entertainment finalised an arrangement with the Murdoch owned Fox studios in the middle of the year for the then under-production My Name Is Khan.

    Under this, Fox Star Studios would be marketing and distributing the film in India, while Fox Searchlight Pictures (which was responsible for the marketing of Slumdog Millionaire and Avatar) would handle the American release. US major studio Twentieth Century Fox would coordinate the release outside the US and India.

    The real biggie was the winning of globally renowned awards by Indian talent – namely AR Rahman, lyricist Gulzar and Resul Pookutty. Rahman pocketed so many awards for his music and songs for Slumdog Millionaire that he probably has lost count of them.

    Two Oscars (one jointly with Gulzar for the song Jai Ho), a BAFTA, a Critics Choice Award, a Golden Globe, and three Grammy nominations, among several others. Pookutty, on the other hand, walked away with a Golden Globe and a BAFTA award for his involvement in the film as a sound engineer.

    2009 was the year when the global financial turmoil took its toll on Bollywood, forcing production houses to scale back. Adding to its woes were the general elections, cricket bonanza IPL which forced audiences to stay glued to their TV sets, and the multiplex faceoff between exhibitors and distributors.

    The second quarter between April and June was rocky. First, were the general elections which were held in five phases between 16 April and 13 May when people were busy with electing a new government. Naturally, people avoided going to the movies.

    Then there was a two-month multiplex strike from 4 April to 5 June that witnessed a virtual drought of movies. Though single-screen theatres remained open, films released in that period were hardly worth a mention.

    IPL season 2 played between 10 April and 29 May was shifted to South Africa because of the elections but that did not deter cricket buffs who watched the matches late in the evenings and into the nights. Result: footfalls in theatres for the evening and night shows dipped drastically. The swine flu scare also added its bit to keep moviegoers away.

    “Last year has been a tough one because of a couple of reasons. First, for three months there were no releases which caused a dent and a lot of movies bunched up that further ate into one another‘s revenues. Then, because of the abundance of movies, audiences declined,” observed UTV Motion Pictures CEO Siddharth Roy Kapur.

    Estimates are that about 140 films were released during the year. Attempts at releasing differentiated cinema were made with titles such as Delhi 6, Luck By Chance, DevD, Quick Gun Murugun, Rocket Singh, Wake Up Sid among many others. But they failed to strike moviegoers‘ fancy and did average to poor business at the box-office.

    Even star power did not help: the Akshay Kumar starring Chandni Chowk to China, Blue, Kambakt Ishq, Tasveer left the cash coffers relatively empty. As did Dil Bole Haddipa (Rani Mukerji, Shahid Kapoor), Luck, All The Best (Sanjay Dutt), Kaminey (Shahid Kapur), What‘s Your Raashee (Ashutosh Goawariker director), Aladdin (Amitabh Bachchan) and Main Aur Mrs Khanna (Salman Khan) and London Dreams (Salman Khan). No amount of fancy cinematography, visual effects or involvement of international artistes such as Kylie Minogue could save the much hyped and big budget Blue.

    Says trade analyst Amod Mehra, “For some years now, the concept of a ‘media hit‘ has come in, and so Dev D, Wake Up Sid and Kaminey were termed as hits, though the numbers just did not add up.”

    According to Indiantelevision.com only four films – apart from the biggy 3 Idiots– could be termed successes: New York, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, Wanted and De Dana Dan.

    In trade parlance, a super-hit must gross at least thrice the money for which it has been sold. This year, only 3 Idiots, besides two Hollywood films 2012 and Avatar could be termed super hits.

    It may be noted that the year 2008 had seven blockbusters while 2007 and 2006 tied with six grossers each.

    On a cost-to-profit ratio, 3 Idiots and and Yash Raj Films‘ New York did well. On the footfalls front, Wanted, the Hindi remake of the Telugu blockbuster Pokkiri, took the lead, especially at single-screen theatres.

    Other films like Paa, All The Best, Raaz- The Mystery Continues and Wake Up Sid did average business. The Hindi version of Oscar winner Slumdog Millionaire managed to make a small profit while the English one fell flat.

    Yash Raj Films and Eros Entertainment came out with four films each in Hindi of which all bombed or did average business at the box-office.

    On the film production front, film making companies like Studio18 desisted from releasing any films, focusing instead on cleaning up their acts while others slowed down their production schedules.

    Eros reached a milestone when its Marathi film Mee Shivaji Raje Bhosle Boltoy set the cash registers ringing. It was the overseas distributor for De Dana Dan that dished out commendable business.

    In the period of financial woes, satellite movie channels and filmed entertainment owners found a business model in syndication. The big deals swung during this period were movies from UTV and Eros. A few outright purchases were also made by Sony, Star and Zee Group.

    Multiplexes, who will have to dish out more towards content cost in relation to their revenue share after their new pact with the producers, have been bruised for two straight quarters in the fiscal. But with Bollywood churning out a few hits towards the end of the year, the plexes are sitting happy and expect revenue buoyancy in the last two quarters of the fiscal.

    The industry will have to face challenging times in 2010. Single-screen theatres have not done enough to attract audiences. As far as multiplexes are concerned, rising ticket and food prices have meant that moviegoers are becoming choosy about the film they would like to spend to watch.

    Hence, it is quite likely that the era of many blockbusters in a year might well be a thing of the past. The industry is likely to see fewer big hits, some releases with minor profits, some breakeven and most that will possibly bomb.

    Additionally, film makers will also have to take a hard look at costs. The trend towards multi-star films, rising star (whether in front of the camera or behind) fees, high marketing investments have made recoveries from ticket sales extremely difficult. Of course, they will also have to take care not to bunch releases close to each other; something which could prove difficult, though not impossible.

    Observers believe 2010 could prove to be a landmark year for Bollywood internationally. A lot will depend on how My Name is Khan does at the box-office globally. If the international distribution experiment by Fox delivers for the US studio, it could well pave the way for Bollywood to break into Hollywood film audiences.

  • ‘We are seeing the beginnings of a global iconic brand in the IPL’ : Unni Krishnan – Brand Finance India Managing Director

    ‘We are seeing the beginnings of a global iconic brand in the IPL’ : Unni Krishnan – Brand Finance India Managing Director

    The Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to revolutionise the cricketing economy, draw in a new bunch of younger audiences with the T20 format, reinforce India’s superpower status, create club cultures, and build market values that are in line with the English Premier League (EPL).

     

    Just two years into birth, the IPL is enjoying a brand value of $311.44 million (IPL brand value of $240.72 million and IPL brand value to BCCI of $71.22 million) and an eye-popping enterprise value of $2.01 billion, according to UK-based brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance.

     

    There is no stopping Shah Rukh Khan. Not even a dismal performance at the IPL. Kolkata Knight Riders, the team that the Bollywood star owns, leads the pack of eight with a valuation of $42.1 million. Mukesh Ambani’s Mumbai Indians walks into the crease at the second spot with a brand valuation of $41.6 million, followed by Rajasthan Royals with $39.5 million. The others in the pecking order are Chennai Super Kings ($39.4 million), Delhi Daredevils ($39.2 million), Bangalore Royal Challengers ($37.4 million), Kings XI Punjab ($36.3 million) and Deccan Chargers ($34.8 million).

     

    The IPL and the team franchises will have to prepare for a long slog if they are to reach anywhere near the value of the EPL and its member clubs. They will have to induct professional management teams, introduce rigorous corporate structures, and chalk out strong commercial streams including merchandising and licensing.

    In an interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Sibabrata Das, Brand Finance India managing director Unni Krishnan talks about the wonderful start the IPL has made, the potential it has in creating a global fan base and the things that need to be done to stretch the value of the brand and its market capitalisation.

     

    Excerpts:

    Sceptics have questioned the rationale for valuing Kolkata Knight Riders at $42.1 million. Does the performance of the team get a low weightage in comparison to the high-profile value of Shah Rukh Khan as the team owner?
    The valuation process was on 2-3 months before the second edition of the IPL and, in many ways, you can’t predict the future. Having said that, enough data is available to prove that KKR has customer loyalty, a high degree of fan following, and amount of viewing for the matches that they play. Shah Rukh is able to generate an identity for the team. KKR is also able to tie in high-profile sponsors and sources of licensing and merchandising (L&M). Brand value is nothing but an ability to create fan base and convert that into cash.

    Even in the inaugural edition of the IPL, KKR didn’t fare too well. And in the second season, its performance has actually skid. So is there scope for a re-rating of the team franchise’s brand value?
    Unlike the EPL clubs which have created a track record, the IPL is new. When we went into the exercise, the performances were just a year old. Which is why we can’t yet form a strong view of a clear winner. The valuation of the eight team franchises falls within a tight range of $42.1 million and $34.8 million.

    KKR is one of the clubs which has made money from the first year itself. But valuations are not chipped in stone. When we carry out our second exercise after a few months, we will weigh in certain factors like KKR’s performance, captaincy and blogger issues that could have had an impact on the commercial revenue streams and the value of the brand.
    Brand Finance has valued the IPL brand at $311.44 million while fixing the enterprise value at $2.01 billion. Is there a ratio between the value of the brand and its market capitalisation?
    Since the IPL is at its infant stage, the ratio between the brand and the market value is low and not clear yet. We can arrive at a benchmark after 3-4 years as the value of the brand grows. In a typical matured stage, the range varies between the 40-50 per cent ratio. The brand-to-the market value ratio in case of the EPL, for instance, should fall within this region. The brand contributes to the market value in a significant way.

    How come a recent study by UK-based Intangible Business and MTI Consulting has almost halved the team valuations that you have arrived at?
    Valuations are based on opinions and the quality and strength of assumptions. We have conducted a rigorous exercise.

    Has IPL’s shift in home to South Africa for the second season created a disruption in the fan build-up process and hence a dip in valuation?
    The IPL property is not under-rated because it has gone to South Africa. We are, in fact, seeing the beginnings of a global iconic brand. In the cricket-following countries like England, South Africa and Australia, it is creating a new interest among the youth, who had moved away to other sports. A whole new set of fans and audiences are being created,breaching ethnicity and race. Led by a blend of Indian and foreign players, it will take the next 4-5 years to build a global fan base for the teams, cutting across the identification of countries. We are going to see a global brand coming out of India much like the Tatas. That is the potential of the property that IPL is.

     

    But the IPL will not have a clear run in this T20 form of cricket. There are other countries like South Africa and England who are going to have their own form of IPL. Serious competition is going to come. But having said that, the foundations and start of the IPL have been a huge success. The value is just not in marketing but also with a lot of economic substance embedded into it.
    ‘EPL clubs have a heritage of 100 years and have moved towards corporatisation. Some of the values of these clubs are in the wide range of $100-600 million. The IPL does not have that kind of legacy or magnitude. But it has a lot of headspace for value creation‘

    Do the IPL teams have the potential of becoming as big as the EPL clubs?
    The EPL clubs have a heritage of 100 years and have moved towards corporatisation and rigorous structures. Some of the values of these clubs are in the wide range of $100-600 million. The IPL does not have that kind of legacy or magnitude built into it yet. But it has a lot of headspace for value creation, though much depends on how an organised management process and system is being set up. We may have the teams being listed and huge value being created going forward.

    When do you see listing of these teams happening?
    There is a lot of money and Bollywood thrown into the system called IPL. Listings can happen in the next 3-5 years after revenue streams, cost drivers and the need for professional management teams are clearly understood. Sustainable value needs to be built. Some teams may even opt for private equity.

    How IPL is going to impact the business of sports marketing in India?
    It will be a game changing moment for sports marketing and merchandising in India. The global L&M market is $108 billion and is a significant industry on its own. Manchester United and Real Madrid have a vey strong licensing and merchandising model. India is taking its first baby steps. IPL is the medium under which these processes will come into the country. Bangalore Royal Challengers has already started focusing on sports marketing. L&M has a strong commercial role that needs to be developed, going forward. The IPL teams have appointed top legal firms to protect their IPRs. The leakages inside the system have to be plugged or you will have a case of lost opportunities.

    What are the steps IPL needs to take to scale up?
    More teams and seasons need to be introduced. But IPL can’t consider the T20 format as its personal fiefdom because competition is already starting. We are yet to see the teams take to the professional management skills that the EPL clubs have imbibed. But the teams are on the right track.

    Will Test cricket be severely impacted because of the T20 format?
    The Test format will be in crisis unless there is a reinvention in its game architecture. It is especially dying out among the youth in the developed countries. The T20 game has given a new lease of life to cricket. Whichever format is innovative will succeed. But T20 certainly has an edge.
  • ‘The price war has come at an early stage of the DTH game’ : Vikram Kaushik- Tata Sky MD & CEO

    ‘The price war has come at an early stage of the DTH game’ : Vikram Kaushik- Tata Sky MD & CEO

     Tata Sky, a direct-to-home joint venture company between Tata Group and Star, is betting big on value-added services such as PVR (personal video recorder) and is ready to pump in another Rs 20 billion as it eyes a subscriber base of eight million by 2012.

     

    The focus is on building a strong brand with heavy spending on advertising. While rival network Dish TV has used Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, Tata Sky has Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador. Occupying a premium position in the mindshare has been part of the strategy as the company has the technology support of News Corp. and the trusted name of the Tatas.

     

    The DTH game has got tougher with competitive entries from Sun Direct, Reliance’s Big TV and Bharti’s Airtel Digital TV. This has meant a rise in project expense from Rs 30 billion to Rs 40 billion, lower ARPUs and high customer acquisition costs.

     

    Cable TV, which has a strong footprint across the country, is also offering stiff competition to DTH operators.

     

    In an interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Sibabrata Das, Tata Sky MD & CEO Vikram Kaushik talks about the company’s decision to stay away from being a discounted brand while fighting at different price points to tap different consumer segments.

     

    Excerpts:

    Has Tata Sky revised upwards the project cost from Rs 30 billion to Rs 40 billion?
    When we first formalised our business plan, we were looking at an investment of Rs 12 billion. Then we came up with a realistic estimate of Rs 30 billion. We revisited that plan and now believe our funding requirement for the venture would be Rs 40 billion. We have already invested half of this amount.

    Has the project cost gone up because of the higher element of subsidy in the Indian DTH market?
    When we first did our business plan, we didn’t expect so many DTH operators to come in. There is a lot of activity in the category and the price war has come at an early stage of the game. Competitive entries and an explosive growth in volumes mean higher costs. Customer acquisition accounts for a significant percentage of the costs.

    Will this mean that the gestation period for profitability will go up?
    I wouldn’t like to comment on when we would reach the break even situation. DTH is an infrastructure business and requires high investments and long gestation periods. We have no illusions about that. Generally, the break even for this kind of business is in excess of five years.

    Industry estimates put Tata Sky’s losses at Rs 8.15 billion in FY’07 and a little more than that in FY’08. Do these losses fall in line with your business plan?
    I can’t talk on financials.

    Are you in line with the projected subscriber growth?
    We have already touched 2.7 million subscribers and are targeting at least eight million connections by 2012. When we were at the drawing board, our broad plan was to add a million subscribers every year. We are growing faster than that.
    ‘When we first formalised our business plan, we were looking at an investment of Rs 12 billion. We revisited that plan and now believe our funding requirement for the venture would be Rs 40 billion‘

    But are ARPUs (average revenue per user) in place?
    I can’t reveal to you where our ARPUs currently stand. But there are definite efforts to push ARPUs up with the launch of value-added services such as PVR (personal video recorder). This technology allows subscribers to watch a particular television show while recording another. Viewers can also pause and rewind live television programmes. We have priced the set-top boxes (STBs) for PVR, which will use MPEG-4 compression technology, at Rs 8,999. For our existing subscribers, we will be offering at discounted rates.

    Isn’t the pricing on the higher side?
    Being below Rs 10,000, it is very competitively priced. We are aggressively marketing Tata Plus. In just a couple of days since launch, we have already sold 2500 PVRs. It took BSkyB 3-4 years to convert 50 per cent of its eight million subscribers to Sky Plus.

     

    Our priority is to make this really big as the product is very powerful and also addresses the ARPU issue. We realise that people in India are investing in high quality entertainment at home as out-of-home is becoming expensive. The PVR is a recognisation of this trend and we want to capitalise on it.

    Are you looking at niche content for lifting your ARPUs?
    Unless we have a critical mass, we can’t slice the market that thin in India. The Indian DTH market is endemically short of satellite capacity. We have 12 Ku-band transponders on Insat 4A, but want more and nothing is available at this stage. We can address niche audiences and offer more channels to consumers if we have more transponders available.

     

    It is, however, possible to offer premium content like lifestyle within large segments. On our interactive service, we have NDTV Good Times offering specialised cookery.

     

    Segmentation in the marketplace is also possible. And we have interactive services like Actve Wizkids (for children and pre-schoolers), Actve Darshan (24-hour darshan of Sai Baba, SiddhiVinayak, Iskon and Kashi Vishwanath) and Actve Matrimony. But the problem with interactivity is that it is very bandwidth hungry.

    What is the premium content you are lining up?
    We are in talks with movie producers like Sony Pictures, UTV, Eros and Fox for sourcing their movie content. We are looking at recent Bollywood, international and Hollywood content for our pay-per-view service. The challenge is how to get into revenue share deals as we can’t pay high MGs (minimum guarantees) and it is not attractive for the content suppliers if there are not high volumes.

    How about getting premium content channels?
    For premium content channels, we are at an early stage of development. There is also the transponder capacity issue. One area we are looking at is HD channels.

    Are you planning to strengthen your regional content line-up?
    Regional markets are integrated into the overall content plan. We have national, regional, international and eclectic consumers.

    Sun Direct has mopped up over one million subscribers in a short span of time because of its aggressive pricing. How has that impacted you in the southern market?
    Our growth has not stopped in the South because of Sun. We have the right kind of share in the right kind of segment. Sun’s pricing is unviable and we are at 30 per cent premium over them. Their strategy seems to reflect the pressure of their cable TV business while pricing their DTH proposition. The danger is that you can attract the wrong kind of customers – and you are vulnerable to a high degree of churn. In DTH business, this is a recipe for disaster because of the high subsidies involved in customer acquisition.

     

    The South has been a high pay-TV penetration market because of pricing. In this blood bath situation, one has to be cautious and keep away from just adding subscriber numbers.
    Isn’t market leader Dish TV also involved in the price war?
    More than Dish TV, it is Sun Direct which is acting as a discounted brand. The DTH market in India is open to segmentations. We are also offering subscriptions at Rs 99. But the question is how much at the bottom of the market you can afford to go.
    Why hasn’t the Tata Sky brand been able to stop Dish TV from mopping up a high number of incremental subscribers?
    Dish TV has followed a discounted brand strategy. We have operated at a Rs 1000 premium over them from the moment we launched. Dish TV has also picked up the low hanging fruit in smaller markets. Besides, they continue to work as an integrated media company and have leveraged that advantage as a vertical player.
    Has regulation worked against the DTH players?
    Regulations relating to the broadcast industry have been largely progressive. The problem has been the lack of a level playing field across the different addressable platforms. Why should cable operators get channels capped at Rs 5 in the Cas (conditional access system) areas? There is a structural inconsistency in this. Besides, the tax burden on DTH is scandalous. Around 40 per cent of our revenue goes towards taxes and licence fee. When our national objective is to push digitalisation, let’s lower the barriers and incentivise the sector.
    Hasn’t the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India provided some relief to the DTH operators by way of directing broadcasters to offer their channels at 50 per cent of analogue cable TV rates besides making them available at a la carte pricing?
    When we started, there was no RIO (reference interconnect offer). In fact, it is amazing that most of the content deals were done in the court. New players like Reliance, Bharti and Sun would have found it tough if the RIO regulation hadn’t come about.
     

    But even now there is an anamoly. Why should we get content from broadcasters at 50 per cent of what they offer to analogue cable when the Trai and the Information & Broadcasting ministry have formally admitted that the cable sector operates on 20 per cent declaration of their subscriber base?

     

    Besides, DTH should get content from broadcasters at Cas rates since we are an addressable platform.
    But aren’t cable operators offering set-top boxes even below the regulated price because of competition in the marketplace?
    Pay TV in India is subverted by cable prices which are artificially depressed because of under-declarations. DTH operators have had to drop prices because they have to compete with cable. Today the gap is higher between the two because cable TV pricing is artifically suppressed. If some DTH operators decide to go as low as cable, then it becomes unviable.
    Don’t you think exclusivity of content will allow platform providers to raise ARPUs?
    The ARPUs in the UK, US and Australia vary between $60-80. In India, the ARPUs are a fraction of this. Exclusivity of content is there in all markets except India. But we hope the regulation on exclusive content will also wither away. This will allow us room for being more creative and innovative.
    Since cable already has a wide presence, do you see them winning the war against DTH in India as in the US?
    DTH has already tapped over six million subscribers and will see explosive growth from now on. In the US, cable companies have made massive investments to digitalise their networks. And even there, 40 per cent of the market is still with DTH. Indian cable companies have not made such investments. Besides, the cable TV market here is hugely fragmented. And the last mile challenge (multi-system operators do not own much of the last mile which is with the local cable operators) will not go away.
    Tata Sky and Dish TV are on MPEG-2 compression technology while the new players have MPEG-4. What is the status on the inter-operable issue?
    There is a regulation on DTH boxes being inter-operable. But why have a law when this is not being followed?
    But why was Tata Sky opposing the inter-operable clause then?
    The regulator can say that the inter-operability clause was a mistake and just do away with it. We are asking for more clarity on the issue. If we are to switch over, then we want some amount of subsidy which the government can give from the revenue share that we part with them.
    There has been a drive to reduce the revenue share with government. What is the status on this?
    The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal has ruled that the licence fee for DTH services should be based on adjusted gross revenue – and not on the basis of gross revenue. But the government has not yet issued any notification on this.
    After Temasek Holdings took a 10 per cent stake in Tata Sky for $55.5 million, have we seen a rise in DTH valuations?
    I can’t talk about valuations or the price at which we got Temasek to invest in. But Temasek has 10 per cent while Star’s holding is untouched at 20 per cent and the Tata Group’s stake has come down from 80 per cent to 70 per cent.
  • “With IPL you have the power of 10”

    “With IPL you have the power of 10”

    It’s the festival of lights. And for many the festival of noise courtesy exploding fireworks. In the hope of reducing the number of those belonging to the latter tribe, we, at indiantelevision.com, decided to put a display of firecracker articles for visitors this Diwali. We have had many top journalists reporting, analysing, over the many years of indiantelevision.com’s existence. The articles we are presenting are representative of some of the best writing on the business of cable and satellite television and media for which we have gained renown. Read on to get a flavour and taste of indiantelevision.com over the years from some of its finest writers. And have a happy and safe Diwali!

    Written By Thomas Abraham

     

    Posted on 28 April 2008

     

    The Indian Premier League (IPL) has got off to a solid start. The ratings have been positive and crowds have thronged the stadiums. For Sony the IPL marks their return to cricket. Set India CEO Kunal Dasgupta offers Thomas Abraham and Ashwin Pinto his views on what he expects IPL to do for the game, telecast channel Max, as well as the importance of sustaining the brand. Excerpts:

     

    As a broadcaster what do you expect?
    T20 is a made for television format. When India played a T20 match against Australia at the Wankhede stadium, ratings touched 20. I am looking for a rating of 4 or 5, which is possible, given that ICL, which has retired players, got 2.5. This is a good base for us to take off from.

     

    The format will mean that besides country against country, one will also view it as being team versus team. This is what exists in other sports like soccer, hockey, and baseball.

     

    IPL is being pushed as being the ultimate in reality television. In that case how do you get that competitive environment?
    The prize money (Rs 48 million goes to the winner) will ensure this. This is much more than you get for playing for the country and so the players will go all out. The matches will be hard fought. Here all the teams are evenly balanced and so you do not know the result. It will be unpredictable and matches will go down the wire. All teams have a good mix of batsmen, bowlers and youth.

     

    What are you hoping for in the first year as the telecast partner?
    Ideally I would want the IPL to be a successful brand that has a long term play. After June, I will continue to do promotions to keep the team brands alive. This was one of the conditions on which we bid.

     

    We will do shows around the IPL. You could see teams (franchises) practicing and discussing strategies for the next season.

     

    ‘The trick for us is not getting ratings for the first season. The challenge is to sustain the excitement after that’

     
    But wouldn’t an ideal situation be for a franchise to build a brand without the big names who might be on national duty?
    This might happen. Apart from April-May, you cannot have another period where all the stars are available. What will happen is that once the league is built the new players who are playing will become the core. You can then have matches in different parts of the world to popularise the game there using these new players.

     

    The trick for us is not getting ratings for the first season. This will happen as a matter of course because of the way the IPL has been hyped. The challenge is to sustain the excitement after that and it is here where we will have to take a leaf out of the book of the EPL. Teams have marketed themselves and have thus become iconic brands.

     

    So Mallya for instance, will use the Royal Challenger brand name to go out there and create opportunities for exhibition matches. They can do charity work in Bangalore and build a fan base. Each franchise will have its own website where clips will be available. They can create merchandise.

     

    Sony will pitch in through magazine shows. Otherwise it will just be a flash in the pan. As we come closer to the next season you will see transfers and there will be speculation.

     

    New heroes will be born. It is possible that the likes of current heroes like Glenn McGrath, Kumble, and Saurav will not play beyond two seasons. Once that happens, then the brand will live outside the big names.

     

    One of the aims is to broaden the viewer base is to get in more children, women, But for that you have to create marketing that speaks to those demographics. What is Sony planning?
    One of the major attractions will be the presence of big Bollywood stars. Akshay Kumar will perform for Delhi. SRK will perform for Kolkata You will see proper Bollywood entertainment.

     

    We have even tweaked the timings of some of the matches to accommodate our entertainment specials. One match was supposed to start at 4 pm but we have pushed it back to 5:30 pm. We will even have stand up comedy for Extraaa Innings. On air we have gone in for fresh faces. We did not want Mandira (Bedi) for this. She is more suited for ODI cricket. I want 20-year-olds in T20. We also did not want Kapil Dev, Gavaskar. We wanted anchors who represent today’s kids. With the ICC World Cup we broke the mould and brought in females. Now we are breaking the mould back

     

    What is the distribution upside from IPL?
    This is a question mark. We are supposed to have a dip but we will retain the same level. There is no minimum guarantee now. Had Ten Sports still been present it would have been difficult to determine the value of IPL. Our team is happy as they are closing deals for the year and it is one of the distribution cornerstones.

     

    At $ 59 million in Year 1 and an average of $ 61 million over five years, IPL was literally sold at floor price. Wasn’t that a great deal?
    It was. Most of the payout ($ 612 million) is from the next five years. ESPN’s bid was $150 million for the first five years. They had put in conditions that the top players should be there. We did not put in any conditions.

     

    Anyway, the way it has turned out, all the top players are taking part.

  • ‘We will breakeven after the third year’ : Fraser Castellino- Emerging Media CEO

    ‘We will breakeven after the third year’ : Fraser Castellino- Emerging Media CEO

     The Indian Premier League (IPL), which kicks off next month, has brought in $2 billion into the Twenty20 format over a 10-year period, involving big corporates like Reliance Industries and Bollywood Badshah Shah Rukh Khan.

     

    Emerging Media, which has two other shareholders in Sporting Investment Group and Lachlan Murdoch, has bought the Jaipur team franchise for $67 million and is hoping to rake in profits after the third year.

     

    Indiantelevision.com’s Ashwin Pinto caught up with Emerging Media CEO Fraser Castellino to find out about his plans for the team and the impact IPL will have on the game.

     

    Excerpts:

    What prompted Emerging Media to be involved with the IPL?
    We have been in the sports business since 2005. Our first venture into cricket was when we bought the management rights for the Leicestershire County Cricket Club. Then we did an international T20 tournament that people today call the Champions Tournament.

     

    We came into India in 2006 and launched the reality show Cricket Star based on the T20 format. We are looking for the next Indian superstar. We saw IPL as a big opportunity as we also have experience in running clubs.

    What is the IPL trying to achieve?
    The IPL is BCCI’s attempt to bring in funds and get corporates involved with the development of cricket. The Board is trying to improve the infrastructure and facilities available to players who participate at a domestic level.

     

    By whipping up support for city-based league teams, the BCCI is also trying to bring new fans into the stadiums.

    The tradition of supporting a regional team is not present in India. Do you feel that this will be a hindrance in terms of the IPL taking off?
    I don’t think that there is a hindrance. Everything about the IPL represents an opportunity to grow the game. The challenge particularly for us is to create a fan base that supports the Rajasthan Royals.

    Another issue is that the BCCI wants the IPL to be for India what EPL is for English soccer. At the same time, the players are with EPL for several months each year and there is no conflict with an international schedule. How will IPL manage to do this?
    One of the challenges franchisees face is taking the IPL team that participates in the tournament for 45 days and stretching it across the year. The international calendar is packed. We are working with the IPL Governing Council to see how the tenure can be extended. We have a squad of 22 players. While all may not always be available, we need 11 players at any given point in time. We are looking to take the Rajasthan Royals to play in other countries including Australia and England.

    Having bought the Jaipur franchise for $67 million, what breakeven period is Emerging Media looking at from IPL?
    We will be investing $12 million in the first year which includes the payout for the team franchise, player costs, marketing, etc. Our assumption is that the business will breakeven after the third year. If IPL picks up, the breakeven can happen before that.

    How much will Emerging Media spend towards marketing?
    We will spend close to $2-3 million on this. A 360-degree campaign will break shortly. O&M has put this together. There will be a TVC, radio spots and outdoor activities. There will also be a school, college and mall activation campaign. This will happen in Jaipur, Delhi NCR, and in Gujarat.

    What brief was given to the agency?
    The brief is that the campaign must appeal to people at a local level. It must make people want to be supporters of Rajasthan Royals. It must inspire people to either switch on the television or come to the stadium.

    Have you tied up revenue deals?
    We are in advanced talks with companies for sponsorship deals. We also have merchandising and licensing activities. Besides, there are central revenue streams including ad and broadcast rights.

    Is there any chance that Emerging Media might sell a stake in the IPL team?
    Not in the first year. We might sell a stake later if we want to inject fresh capital into the company.
    ‘One of the challenges franchisees face is taking the IPL team that participates in the tournament for 45 days and stretching it across the year‘

    What is the strategy you followed in selecting your team?
    Our strategy was clear. We knew that there would be at least two auctions. The first auction had the stars. We knew that there was also a lot of talent that was not a part of that auction.

     

    During the first auction, we picked players and also set price points at which we felt that they had good value for us. If they exceeded these price points, we let them pass.

     

    We did our research, and went after certain players. Now when you look at my team, they are at least as good as the others if not better. And we have spent $3.5 million while the others have burnt $5 million.

    Are performance and marketability of players of equal importance?
    Performance is more important. You can have glamour and entertainment, but at the end of the day we are here to win matches. Marketability has its place but it is not the primary determining factor for us.

    Could you talk about the branding of the team and how your star player Shane Warne will be used?
    When we selected Jaipur, we were clear that we wanted to be in the state of kings. The name “Rajasthan Royals” reflects the characteristics of that state.

     

    Shane Warne was a strategic choice that many people do not understand. He has an incredible record in county cricket. When we signed him as both captain and coach, other teams who have specialist coaches were surprised. Specialist coaches are fine but Warne transformed the fortunes of Hampshire in county cricket. He took them from being a non-performer to a team to be reckoned with.

     

    The IPL is about youth and developing domestic cricket. Now that he has retired, Warne is keen to come in and give back to the game by helping youngsters. The IPL is the perfect platform for him to do just that.
    Has Emerging Media also appointed a consultant to help its IPL team form a cohesive unit?
    We have a support team in place that includes physiotherapist John Glocter and assistant coaches. We believe that our team will be inspired by our captain and the support structure, and become a cohesive unit.

    Has T20 brought sports and entertainment closer?
    The emergence of T20 has been interesting because as working life has become more hectic, people are increasingly looking for instant gratification.

     

    In India, while it has not been played often, we feel that this format will be well accepted. Since the IPL games will be played in floodlit stadiums in the evening, it will attract more women and families to enjoy an evening out.
    How will IPL broaden the corporate involvement with cricket overall?
    One of the things that will happen is that IPL will support academies, coaching centres, etc. These are feeder systems into T20 cricket.
    How did the idea of doing Cricket Star come about?
    We wanted to be a body that works with the BCCI but at the same time goes off into areas where it has not managed to find talent. We believe that there are people who, while possessing talent, do not have the money to turn up at the BCCI’s coaching camps. We give them the chance to spend just two days with our experts and decide if they are good enough or not. If they are good enough, the sky is the limit.

    How have you grown the event over the years and how successful has it been in uncovering hidden talent?
    I think what Cricket Star lacked in the first season was the gratification platform. It wasn’t clear what would happen with the chosen talent. Today anybody who is selected gets a contract with the Rajasthan Royals. The format has not changed much in terms of the testing process.

     

    We are clear in terms of what we look for in a T20 cricketer. Last year, we found two boys who were very good. But we had restricted entries to those who were absolutely fresh and had not played first-class cricket. They had never been part of an under 15 or under 17 squad. This year, we have opened it up for everybody.

    Finally, are you looking at other sports?
    Yes! We are interested in soccer, tennis and golf. There is potential for these three sports to grow in the country. We are looking at different options in terms of how to go about it. In terms of whether we do a reality show around these sports, it depends on the level of interest. There are many things that can work in sport provided you are willing to invest and watch it grow gradually.
  • ‘Paanchvi Paas will be telecast in the UK and US’ : Akash Sharma – Bulldog Media & Entertainment MD

    ‘Paanchvi Paas will be telecast in the UK and US’ : Akash Sharma – Bulldog Media & Entertainment MD

    Akash Sharma has been at the forefront of acquiring, developing and launching high-quality prime-time hit shows in India since 2005.

     

    An economics graduate from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA, Sharma spearheaded Bulldog Media & Entertainment’s efforts to be awarded the Indian licence to the international format of 2007 “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?” from Mark Burnett Productions. He is currently serving as an executive producer to the Indian version of “5th Grader” on Star Plus hosted by Shah Rukh Khan. Interestingly, Sharma shares his birthday (2 November) with SRK and likes to refer to this as a coincidence indicative of their similar destiny.

     

    In an interview with Jaahnavi P Paal, Bulldog Media & Entertainment MD Sharma reveals all about “Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?,” the company’s future plans and lots more.

     

    Excerpts:

    Who are the stakeholders in Bulldog Entertainment? What are the core areas that the company is concentrating into?
    We are a new-age company which is just a year old. We have Ramit Bharti Mittal (from the promoter family of Bharti Enterprises Ltd) as a shareholder. We understand the business and the management side of it as well. Right now, we are into providing television content. We look across the globe for mature television content that would work for Indian audiences. For us as content providers, it is boom time as with the onslaught of new channels it has opened up a new client base. We just delivered our first big show – Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?

    ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader’ is a format owned by Mark Burnett. How did you acquire the format of the show?
    The Mittals are very active in the media space. Both Mittal and I went to USA and told them our story. We told them how content is saturated in India and how we were looking at innovative content. We wanted to shake up the apple cart, too, as the saas bahu shows were going on and on. We told them we would be able to drop the hammer on the Indian market and that too with a bang. We did not leave Los Angeles and kept talking to all top broadcasters. It was in 2007 when we were invited to the Natpe conference. We were the only Indian company who got to see the presentation of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader by Mark Burnett. We saw the show and played it without knowing what it really was. But what’s interesting is that at the presentation they played the game with us and Ramit who volunteered to be part of it got his question wrong (“Which is the longest river in Asia?”)

    Do you think the format is suitable for the Indian market?
    India has become so global. Whether it is domestic or international content, right now the focus is to get quality content. If there is a show and it’s successful, then it’s a proven formula and a less calculated risk. Getting licenced content is a safer bet. Viewers need quality programmes and this is our focus. In Paanchvi Pass, we will broadcast it in a handful of territories outside India.

     

    The show is being produced by Synergy and Bulldog. Out of the 50+ territories in the world, we knew that it was most relevant in India because we focus on education more than anywhere else. Right from the start, we knew that it was an SRK, Star plus show, and hence we did not go anywhere else.

     

    In India, it will go on air when kids go on vacation. And will go on at least for a year. But what’s interesting to share is the fact that Paanchvi Paas will be telecast in the UK and USA for the NRI audience. We are in talks with representatives from New Zealand, Canada, Indonesia and Australia so that Indians across the globe can watch it.

     

    We are also launching a licencing and merchandising division with Star Plus where we will promote toys, games and apparel during Paanchvi Paas.

    How would ‘Paanchvi Pass’ be different from KBC?
    KBC has been around since 2000. It’s been completely put out to the public. First Big B was the host; then came SRK. It’s not the host but the format that has run its course. There were gaps which happened over eight years. KBC is a general knowledge, trivia game show. Paanchvi Pass is a different quizzing concept than KBC. You have kids as life lines, grade school-level questions and all demographics coming to watch the show. The show has in-built drama, comedy and education. I think Star was looking at something fresh to redefine their programming. With our vision and their platform, we have a great partnership.

    How does the deal that you have recently inked with CBS Paramount for the show ‘America’s Next Top Model’ look like?
    It’s a little early for us to talk about this. In January, we launched the show in China. It was one of the few shows to be licenced there. Its all about glamour but outside the usual singing-dancing reality shows we have been seeing. It allows an average, normal person who is interested in modelling to be part of the show. We have recently acquired India rights for America’s Next Top Model. We had been after CBS since the past one and half years. Hosted by Tyra Banks, the show is in its tenth season in the US. It’s the No 1 show on Foxtel in Australia. It is in its fourth season in the UK. We are in initial talks with broadcasters in India. We are only looking at top general entertainment channels (GEC) as this is a big-ticket show. America’s Next Top Model is a brand and there should be a fit between the channel and the brand. This one is a franchise and each territory globally will be renewed season after season, and so we’re looking at a channel which will be a good fit.

     

    We are also looking at casting A-list model-cum-actors to host the show.

    How is the format of the ‘America’s Next Top Model’ different from so many other shows currently running in almost all Hindi GECs?
    In order for a format to be successful, it has to have the local masala. We do look to bring the framework and then localise it a little. We will Indianise the show after talking to broadcasters. Bulldog will give the framework and the production house will then add the masala. But we will protect the brand. We have shortlisted production houses who can effectively produce it. This decision will be jointly taken by us and the broadcaster. The show will have your next-door neighbour girl who aspires to be a model. The hunt for her will be on a national level. The show will begin with about 35 wannabe models out of which 15-17 girls will be shortlisted and put in a house. They will then be trained on all aspects of modelling. After which one of them will be eliminated every week. The viewer gets to see the transition of the girls to super models. The viewers will be able to relate to the struggles and challenges that the models brave. There will be a panel celeb judges representing all walks of life.
    ‘In the long run, we do want to get our hands dirty in production. We’re seeing fragmentation in TV channels’

    How big would be the prize money for the show?
    In the US, it has a complete package of a cash component, one year’s contract with a top modelling agency, a car, a film contract and a few additional perks. In India, too, we may offer something similar. The girls also get to travel for international shoots for a fortnight during the show.

    What are the other shows that are in the pipeline?
    We have just acquired a fiction show, Nuevo Rico Nuevo Pobre (“New Rich, New Poor”) from Canal Caracol TV who is the top broadcaster in Colombia. This is a very exciting deal for us as it marks our foray into the fiction space. It will set a precedent in the licencing of fiction content.

    This concept has been sold to Fox in USA and now we have the rights in India. It will be a heavily promoted show for them, and is scheduled to be launched this fall on prime time.

    What are the future plans for your company?
    In the long run, we do want to get our hands dirty in production. We’re seeing fragmentation in TV channels. This is a boon for us as this helps channels cut through the clutter. It opens up new opportunities for us so that we can change their programming. Viewers want quality now because of the clutter. And this will be our main focus.
  • ‘Once digitalisation happens, let a thousand channels come’ – Sameer Nair

    ‘Once digitalisation happens, let a thousand channels come’ – Sameer Nair

    Concluding our three-part series of interviews looking at the year that was and on into 2008, we turn the spotlight on NDTV Imagine CEO Sameer Nair.  In a candid chat with Indiantelevision.com, the former Star Entertainment India CEO offers his take on the entertainment industry, why he feels the TV industry needs a kick up, the importance of not just ambling along, and the potential that 2008 offers.

    What were the key points of reference which defined 2007? One would be for you personally and also if you could offer a sense of where the industry is in general?
    Well, I left Star TV, in which I was working for about 13 years. But I think 2007 opened on a good note because we did KBC with Shah Rukh Khan and so I thought that was a good swansong of sorts for me. We also got Gajendra Singh from Zee to Star. He was with Zee for I think 16 years and so this was something equally dramatic.

    So those were the last good things to do at Star. On a personal level it was of course moving on and setting up a whole new company, a whole new business and preparing for the launch of a new channel.

    2007 basically marked preparation for 2008?
    Yes! As you can see, it’s been all the pre-production and production. And now we get ready for release. So it’s been a lot of that kind of hard work. It’s been about team building… It’s been about company building. It was about resource building and also financial resource building and putting it all together.
    I think by the time indiantelevision.com puts up this interview we will have over 132 people, which is I think a good collection of people across all disciplines.

    What were the positives that came out of this year?
    One positive of course is there seems to be a lot of interest in all things media, in all things entertainment. So there have obviously been so many more players entering the market, so much more money being put into the market.
    So that’s obviously a good thing, industry per se. I think a lot of people have announced or started new ventures, which shows that there is obviously place for growth and a place for new players to get into.
    There is some level of consolidation, there is some increased activity of international participation in local business. The movie business has gone through the roof.

    But was it a good year for the business?
    2007 was an interesting year because it, in my mind, remains a sort of a question mark. It will get resolved in years to come as to whether it was a good year or not. But right now everything is too close, so I mean this was the year where millions of dollars were pumped into the system. You know prices went through the roof, newer and newer players getting into it, each man with bigger and bigger claims and promises. Nobody talks the normal figures anymore.
    Everything is in a super inflated scenario. It’s like the wire where the string is really stretched. So whether it will be good or bad, it is hard to say now. Currently, everyone is into this valuation zone and everyone seems to be so rich.

    The rollout of digital cable, which was supposed to proceed in a particular manner, did not go the way it ideally should have. Your views on this?
    That is hardly a surprise. There was always this issue about how it would roll out and if it would be mandatory or voluntary. How does it all work? It didn’t really come as a surprise that it didn’t happen in A or B or C manner.

    So effectively nothing of any real note happened?
    No! There was no landmark legislation that occurred, there was no landmark regulation that occurred, there was no landmark activity. I don’t really think that there has been any major change. The world has not undergone a digital revolution, nor a mobile one. On television, some shows are doing better than others. The gap between Star and Zee narrowed, Zee came within a whisker of Star, than it again fell back. Now it is again coming back pretty much as per calculations. But there was nothing outstanding. It was straightforward.

    But for the industry in terms of sports, a lot happened.
    Sports was an interesting thing that happened. That was pretty good if you look at the high priced acquisition of the ICC rights (by ESPN Star for $ 1.1 billion).

    It is not looking so high-priced now because T-20 was not a factor in that purchase and now it’s there as a very high value part of the ICC rights.
    T-20 is the best thing that happened to Indian cricket. It completely re-energised sport and completely reignited interest in it. Now between ICL and IPL, it has really brought the sport back. But the price points, because there is no distribution revenue in this model of note, is not robust at all.

    The lament is that distribution channels are clogged and yet we have all these channels launching? Isn’t that a big contradiction?
    Well distribution and then everything that will happen as a result. Some people look at this business and they say that, ‘Oh so many new players are launching, there is no space.’ On the one hand we talk about how the market is growing, the media sector is growing. The other version is that it is growing but there is no space for new players, which is actually the exact opposite of growth. You know its like saying that the movie industry is growing but let’s any not make any more movies.
    They are completely contradictory terms. So once digitalisation happens, whichever version they choose to refer it by, I’d say let a thousand channels come. Because water finds it own level, and people decide what they want to see, when they want to see, how they want to see and what they want to pay for and it all sorts out in the end.
    But saying let not a thousand channels come, is not progress at all. It does not mark progress for consumers, or for operators. or for anyone as a matter of fact.
    What the TV business needs is one nice kick in the butt, like the telecom business got. This is what will help it really surge forward. So far it has been sort of ambling along.

    Everybody is expecting that Reliance will give that kick. Reliance is launching DTH this year, Bharti is launching.
    This is why 2008 will be a year to write home about. We hope that 2008 will be the year for the industry to really surge forward and make that big leap forward.

    Each year we talk of the big leap forward, but it’s not happened. 2004, 2005, 2006. You know few things occurred here and there, like suddenly in 2006 the cricket purchase was big. But the rest of the industry didn’t keep up. The whole $ 612 million price point (by Nimbus) was based on some assumptions, and those assumptions didn’t really come through.

    The fact is that all of business is predicated over some basic parameters, which is that people will go to movies, people will buy movie tickets. People will pay their cable bills. Advertisers do need to reach to consumers and they will buy advertising. That’s basic, and our problem is that we don’t have this in the TV part of the business. We don’t have this one little basic matter about people will pay their cable bills which will then be passed on. So it leaves a lot of things in the air when you talk about the television business.

    You are talking about pricing, subscription?
    It is already priced. Subscription is priced. But when you try and compare talk time, in the telecom context to TV, that doesn’t really work. Because the input cost on TV for example is not talk, it is real cash. If people play cricket, make movies, shows, that is like a real cost. It is not talk time. So when you say that every home will pay Rs 5 per month for a channel to see movies and serials, at some point the mathematics are not going to add up. So it is just that these things will get sorted out as it goes along. As more players get into it I think that the industry itself will sort it out.

    But there is also the theory that the government will not allow the market to determine costs of TV (and cricket) because other forms of entertainment are becoming too expensive for too many. Multiplexes for example are out of reach for many. So there is only TV. This would mean that tomorrow the IPL will be termed as being of national importance and will become free to view.
    You must note that there is no such thing as a free lunch ever, so somebody has to pay the bill. What’s been happening in the last so many years is that the advertisers have been paying the bill. The advertiser is the ultimate God who is paying for everybody’s lunch.

    Currently there is a combination of private equity money and advertisers who are footing the bill. But eventually, the bill will have to be paid by the consumers, who consume content in whatever manner or the price points will have to come down. So either all the price points return to normalcy by which the market settles and everything will sort, or you will have to pay the bill.
    Anywhere in the world in a mature TV / entertainment business, you have the twin model (advertising / subscription). That’s the way the business works. For us, it’s always been immature, fully lopsided towards the one side. Do you know any other market which boasts of 300-400 channels which are all essentially ad supported because distribution as a model is all over the place.
    You go to any other country where it is supported this way, you will find 5-10-15 channels. So that’s something which has to be sorted. It is not like players have to think that India is unique. And I think this has to happen.

    It is just a functional evaluation. This is what it needs, that leap forward. The input cost is going through the roof, return is coming down, and for the majors it is flattening their margins.
    For others what would the plan be then? So that, I think that has to happen and as they see that as the defining moment. Whether you define a moment or the moment defines you, in any case the industry will have to define the way forward. Whether it is collective or individual, something has to happen.

    That is exactly the contradiction in this. But it needs resolution. Otherwise a lot of these contradictions can co-exist for a long time. Things can go round and round and circle and circle without imploding or exploding.

    Something has to give?
    Over the last 6-8 months, and with the spate of these new announcements, there has been more addition into the TV space. This is obviously going to create an enormous amount of pressure on the current infrastructure. Obviously we are all new, we wish to make a mark for ourselves, so everyone will do things to try and make a good impression. There will be the existing players, who will obviously look to protect their turf.

    But it is at an interesting point because there is pressure on the system. Now this has never happened before, that there have suddenly been so much, forget new channels, so many new platforms that are all coming at the same time. There is this huge interest in the movie business all of a sudden. In the last year and a half all that has happened.

    Screens are opening up…
    Screens are opening up, It’s happening. So, as the pressure increases, obviously people will find newer and newer ways to do things. New minds enter into it, lots of different people, younger people, coming out with even cleverer ideas. It has to go through a change.

    So 2008 has a lot of potential?
    We hope, though these predictions have been made many times in the past and have sorely let you down. But 2008 seems to have a better chance than most years to make a real impact.

  • Adieu, eventful ’07!

    Adieu, eventful ’07!

    Man, it’s been an eventful year if you have been faithfully stuck to the couch lapping up everything offered on the tube.

    So much happened on the telly, and yet, so little was achieved. There was an average of a new soap every fortnight, an average of a talent hunt every month, and enough of cricket and cinema buzz to get those sticky eyeballs. But if cinema left a Chak De India or a Taare Zameen Par for audiences to ruminate on, TV this year left no equivalent imprint.

    Not many shows experimented, preferring the formula to being the first in
    the fray. So, Star One’s Laughter Challenge spawned a sequel and rival
    channels floated their me-too shows. Gajendra Singh carried his music
    talent format to Star Plus, and had to compete with his own Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenges on Zee for the ratings. Indian Idol had a tired season three,
    and Zee’s extended family of Betiyaan and Bahuraniyan, despite a
    ‘different’ beginning, dissolved into modified versions of Ekta Kapoor’s
    popular soaps elswhere. If anyone, it was Shah Rukh Khan who emerged as the surprise winner of the lot. No one expected Khan to be a patch on the Big B when it came to hosting Kaun Banega Crorepati, but Khan emerged with a style and spontaneity of his own that became endearing as the show progressed through the weeks. When the season ended, one was almost sorry to see him off.

    Well, not everyone stuck to the formula. Smriti Iraani, the actor, turned
    producer with Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Sa Aasman and later Virrudh. Interestingly, although neither show was meant to be a TRP hogger, both had a hard hitting plot, strong performances and made a subtle statement on society. Anurag Basu’s Love Story and Four, both on Sab, too were intended similarly, but somehow missed the mark. Unfortunately, all the experimentation seemed to miss the comedy genre entirely, with Star One finally relying on last year’s Sarabhai vs Sarabhai to bring on the smiles at primetime.

    All the laughter was restricted to stand-up gags offered by Raju Shrivastav (who must have been TV’s top grosser this year) and others of his ilk who appeared with alarming regularity on mainstream channels as well as news channels. Sab’s desperate effort to bring on the laughter each night failed for the umpteenth time, but it keeps trying. News channels, meanwhile, found this year that the best bet to fill up programming is to run repeats of talent hunts and behind-the-scenes goings-on at these shows. Under the garb of ‘entertainment news,’ hours of Hindi news channels continued to be chock full of idols, voices of India and the chhote ustaads all through the day.

    Even as long running soaps continued to run – Saarthi, Kumkum, Kyunki…,
    Kahaani…are examples – a milestone of sorts was reached when the ‘bahu’ of Indian TV (Smriti Iraani for the uninitiated) crossed over into enemy territory as Vrinda on Zee’s Teen Bahuraniyan. Not just that, she came armed with a tulsi plant and a similar agenda – of saving the daughters of
    the family and salvaging the family’s reputation. Ekta’s long shadow on television programming refuses to fade.

    But the year clearly belonged to the genre of the music talent hunt. If you
    had half a voice and wanted to be discovered, TV was waiting for you.
    Whether you knew the lyrics (Bol Baby Bol), were a kid that could sing (Lil
    Champs    , Chhote Ustaad) or were an amateur singer (Indian Idol, Voice of India, Bathroom Singer…) TV was waiting with auditions in remote towns to find you. Of course, even if you were a wellknown composer or playback singer, or even a TV actor with pretensions to singing, but had never had your share of the limelight, you stood an excellent chance of turning into a mini celeb yourself. Ask Vishal – Shekhar, Abhijeet, Ismail Durbar, Alisha, Shiamak Davar and the rest who never had it so good as this year.

    But if anything marred the happiness of the couch potato, it was the unending film promotions that invaded everything on TV – the talent hunts, the soaps and the news and music channels. The marketing of Om Shanti Om and Saawariya on TV reached a screeching crescendo in November, till
    viewers’ ears ached from listening to ‘Dard e Disco’ and watching Ranbir Kapoor drop his towel for the umpteenth time.

    Also irritating was the omnipresence of judge/mentors like Javed Akhtar and Mahesh Bhatt, who judged shows, voiced their opinions on every subject and were probably present at every award show that was aired on TV.

    But couch potato’s vote of the year goes to Rakhi Sawant, who has
    established herself as the queen bee of Indian TV, by hook or by crook. With her antics, her tears and tantrums and her comments, the ‘item girl’ showed us that it was easy to get into primetime, if you knew how to tease the camera and tempt the channels. Lage raho, Rakhi!

  • Zee Muzic celebrates international Women’s Day

    MUMBAI: Zee Muzic celebrates International Women’s day with the Badshah of Bollywood. An exclusive show where Shah Rukh Khan sheds light on his favorite Women from Sania Mirza and Sonia Gandhi to Aishwariya Rai & Rani Mukherjee.

    Also catch up with the first Miss Universe, The Diva, An Actress to reckon with and a powerful woman in her own right, who could be better than Sushmita Sen herself on her most favorite woman — her daughter Renee, besides of course talking about herself and the Woman of Today . She also converse with multiple celebrities on their three favorite women:

    Boman Irani, Reema Sen, Sooraj Barjatya, Alka Yagnik, John Abraham woman & Kangana Ranaut .

     

    Zee Muzic in addition to the above also brings you Upen Patel, one of the hottest beefcakes on Indian screen, in a candid conversation where he talks about 10 sexy women who according to him, can sizzle in whatever they wear, whatever time of the day it is! His personal takes on women from Bollywood who have truly redefined style, fashion and the sex symbol tag!

     

    In another women’s day special, Karan Johar talks about the 10 women who have impacted his life. From Kajol to Rekha, he reveals the women who’ve made him what he is today!

     

    Tune-in to Zee Muzic on International Women’s Day to know more about your favorite stars.

  • NDTV exclusive with Amitabh Bachchan

    MUMBAI: From Shah Rukh Khan…to Aishwarya Rai….Amitabh Bachchan tackles some tough topics in a first-of-its-kind interview: 50 young Big B fans grill him, relentlessly, in a special show, India Questions, anchored by NDTV’s Prannoy Roy, and scheduled to air on NDTV 24 X7 on Saturday, Feb 17 at 10 pm.

    Addressing a fan who asks him if Aishwarya Rai will be a working member of his family, Mr. Bachchan says:

    “I don’t see any problem in her wanting to continue her career and wanting to continue acting and if she is going to be acting better than Abhishek, then it’s their problem, it’s not my problem (laughs)….”

    On what he makes of Shah Rukh Khan’s new role on KBC, Amitabh Bachchan says, “Shah Rukh is fine. I hadn’t seen Shahrukh’s KBC, but recently I did and I thought that it was fine”, he comments, adding that the format of the show is more impressive than any host who it features.

    Mr. Bachchan would consider doing one of Shah Rukh’s roles as well: “…if ever I was of his age and if I wanted to do it, I would like to do Swadesh”

    About his controversial association with Amar Singh and the Samajwadi Party, Mr. Bachchan says the association is a personal rather than a political one: “Friendship… I don’t do politics and whatever my association is with Amar Singhji or Mulayam Singhji, it is on a personal…private level….”