ITV

Tag: Sonu Nigam

  • Mankind Pharma releases anthem 2.0 to celebrate Covid heroes

    Mankind Pharma releases anthem 2.0 to celebrate Covid heroes

    MUMBAI: These unprecedented times have taken a toll on people all over the country. And yet the spark of optimism remains ignited and the ray of hope has still not faded. In a celebration of this spirit, Pharmaceutical company, Mankind Pharma has launched ‘anthem 2.0’ along with singer & music director Sonu Nigam, that captures and highlights the resilience of our healthcare staff, frontline workers and police officers, who worked ceaselessly day and night in India’s fight against COVID-19. The song – a salute to the Covid heroes and doctors playing with their life to save others’ lives – has been both composed and rendered by Nigam.

    The anthem is an initiative to bring the true essence of the nation, ingrains a sensation of nationalism and reinforces the need of standing together as one nation. The message it aims to send out is that, together we all can come out of the pandemic healthy, hearty, and strong, if we stay united and help each other out in these testing times, the pharma company said.

    Speaking on the occasion, Sonu Nigam, said, “Mankind Pharma was keen that I compose the song myself besides singing the anthem. So, it has my soul wrapped all around it. I feel this is one of my most precious creations of all time.”

    Mankind Pharma managing director and vice chairman Rajeev Juneja said, “It is a proud moment to launch our anthem 2.0 sung by Sonu Nigam, his voice has uplifted the mood and energy of the anthem. Through this anthem we want the belief of a beautiful India to grow within us. Thank you and salute to all our frontline workers, specially doctors, policemen, army, pharmacists and nurses who have put their life in danger to save others. The anthem helps spread a positive message of staying together at all times and at the same time being optimistic about the future. Together we all can come out of the pandemic healthy, hearty, and strong.”

    The pharma company has stepped forward to set aside a total sum of approximately Rs 270 crore to help those impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. This year when India was hit by the second wave, Mankind Pharma has allocated a total sum of Rs 140 crore, of which the major contribution has been for the families of deceased doctors, police officers, pharmacists, and other healthcare workers who have lost their lives fighting the pandemic.

  • Hungama Play premieres ‘Spotless’ a short film based on acid attack survivor

    Hungama Play premieres ‘Spotless’ a short film based on acid attack survivor

    MUMBAI: Hungama Play, a video on demand platform owned Hungama Digital Media, premieres a short film called Spotless that traces the struggles and indomitable spirit of an acid attack survivor.

    The short film will feature activist-turned-actor Shweta Rohira and playback singer Sonu Nigam in lead roles. It’s written and directed by Saurabh M Pandey and produced by Naven Kumar Sharma.

    Hungama Digital Media chief operating officer Siddhartha Roy said, “Spotless delivers a compelling message, making it extremely relevant for the world we live in. The film highlights a critical issue and makes the audience aware of the gravity of the situation.”

    He said, “We have continually worked towards building a diverse library that includes a variety of stories, narratives, languages and genres, and are honoured to premiere a film on a subject as pressing as acid attacks. Spotless will prove to be a thought-provoking experience for our viewers.”

    The story revolves around the emotional and psychological struggle of an acid attack survivor, Aditi (Shweta Rohira) and her husband Varun (Sonu Nigam). It attempts to sensitise the audience about a horrific crime that, for a long time, went unchecked in society.

    The lead protagonist Shweta Rohira while sharing her experience of an acid attack victim said, “Spotless was an extremely moving experience since the narrative is filled with elements of emotional stress, psychological hurdles and acceptance.”

    She added that violence against women has been increasing at an alarming rate. As citizens of this country, it is our duty to be vocal about such issues and work together to arrive at solutions.

    A role that is as challenging as Rohira’s, Sonu Nigam reciting his experience said, “Spotless is close to my heart because of its message and the characters. Both, Aditi and Varun, are strong individuals trying to come to terms with reality.”

    “Varun is an intense yet kind, caring individual, who continues to support his wife through thick and thin. I’m extremely proud of Spotless and look forward to seeing the audiences’ reaction,” he added.

    Meanwhile, Spotless writer and director Saurabh M Pandey said,“The short film is an inspiring journey of a couple dealing with the aftermath of a tragic event in their lives. The short film aims to raise awareness of the trauma faced by acid attack survivors.”

    He added, “While Sonu Nigam has delivered a spine-tingling performance bagging the Best Actor award, Shweta has received admiration for distinguished and an outstanding portrayal of a survivor.”

    The short film will also be available to stream through Hungama Play on Vodafone Play, Idea Movies&TV, Airtel Xstream App, Amazon Fire TVStick, Tata Sky Binge, SHAREit, and Android TVs.

    Spotless will join Hungama Play’s vast content library that includes over 5000 films in English, Hindi and regional languages, more than 1500 short films, 7500+ hours of kids’ content, TV shows, originals and over 150,000 short-format videos in various genres like music, film gossip, humour etc.

  • Music Icon Sonu Nigam appoints ITW Playworx as his agency

    Music Icon Sonu Nigam appoints ITW Playworx as his agency

    Mumbai: Music Icon and Superstar Sonu Nigam has given the mandate of handling all his assignments to ITW Playworx. Specialists in the Entertainment, Media & Communication verticals, ITW Playworx, which is a part of ITW Consulting Pvt. Ltd. will adopt a complete 360-degree approach with respect to handling his assignments related to live shows, concerts, branded content, digital extensions, movies, IP’s, etc.

    ITW Playworx has further appointed Mr. Anant Nanoti as Business Manager for Sonu Nigam. Anant will be exclusively responsible for driving and managing business across all areas. Anant has been associated with ITW Playworx since inception and brings in close to 20+ years of experience in the field of Entertainment.

  • Sadhguru and isha foundation’s exuberant mahashivratri event live on Epic TV

    Sadhguru and isha foundation’s exuberant mahashivratri event live on Epic TV

    India’s only Hindi-language India-centric infotainment channel is set to offer its viewers a unique, spiritual experience on the night of Mahashivratri this year. EPIC channel has associated with Isha Foundation to telecast the highly followed, grand Mahashivratri celebrations LIVE from the Isha Yoga Center in Coimbatore, on February 13, beginning 8.30 pm and airing till 6 am, the following day.

    Mahashivrati is one of the largest and most sacred festivals of India. The darkest night of the year, it is a celebration in honor of Adiyogi or Shiva, from whom the tradition of yoga originates. In yogic culture, it is believed to be beneficial to stay awake in a vertical position throughout the night with the planetary positions causing an upsurge of energy in humans.

    Sadhguru, Founder, Isha Foundation, said, “Mahashivaratri is known as the great night of Shiva – The Adiyogi, because the planetary position is such that there is a natural upsurge of energies. Mahashivaratri is of great significance for all those who aspire for the Ultimate. May this night become an exuberant awakening for you.”

    Speaking about the LIVE telecast, EPIC TV – Managing Director, Aditya Pittie said, “This is truly going to be a special night of spirituality and wellbeing. We’re excited to associate with Isha Foundation and bring this extravaganza LIVE for the benefit of our viewers who can enjoy the celebrations from their homes. It is the first LIVE showcase on EPIC and we are glad to begin our journey in this direction with Isha Foundation’s Mahashivratri event.”

    Aimed at preserving the uniqueness and diversity of the nation’s artistic traditions, the night will see star performances by popular music sensations Sonu Nigam, Daler Mehndi, Mohit Chauhan, and Sean Roldan & Friend along with Isha Foundation’s home-grown band, Sounds of Isha. Not stopping at this, the event’s key attractions also include a guided powerful midnight meditation along with a nightlong Sathsang with Sadhguru which people can follow from the comfort of their homes.

    Sadhguru’s quote “Mahashivaratri is known as the great night of Shiva – The Adiyogi, because the planetary position is such that there is a natural upsurge of energies. Mahashivaratri is of great significance for all those who aspire for the Ultimate. May this night become an exuberant awakening for you”.

    Isha Foundation’s Mahashivratri night has been celebrated with great pomp and grandeur for many years and continues to draw thousands of devotees from around the world.

  • Kumkum, Naagin, Amul Sa Re Ga among highly rated Hindi GEC primetime progs

    Kumkum, Naagin, Amul Sa Re Ga among highly rated Hindi GEC primetime progs

    BENGALURU: Hindi GEC rules ad rates in general, unless of course one talks of special cricketing events such as the two odd month long Indian Premier League (IPL) or international cricket. Two internationally backed private limited networks hold rights to most of the sports events – whether their own events or of those that they have paid the billions of rupees for.

    So which are the most watched programmes in Hindi GEC during primetime? What are the genres that Hindi GEC (U+R) audiences prefer?

    Hindi GEC (U+R)

    According to Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) weekly lists for top 5 Hindi GEC programmes during Prime Times (1800 to 2330 hours, HSM (U+R) : NCCS All : Prime Time (1800 – 2330 hrs) for weeks 1 to 39 of 2017, there are two Hindi GEC dramas that stand out far above the rest of the pack. Both are productions by the Ektaa Kapoor led Balaji Telefilms Limited (Balaji Telefilms). One is a family drama loosely based on Jane Austin’s novel Sense and Sensibility and the other is the second season of a Supernatural soap. Next is a homegrown season of a reality or musical talent show that commenced in 1995 and came up with various combinations of performers from different age groups. The current edition of the show is the twenty fifth one.

    It must be noted that the ratings (impressions) mentioned for the programmes in this paper may not represent the actual ratings during the first 39 weeks of programmes. The ratings in the paper are a sum of the ratings garnered by a programme only when it has appeared in BARC’s top 5 programmes list. Hence the actual ratings could be higher.

    The family drama Kumkum Bhagya premiered on 15 April 2014 as a daily soap on Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Zeel) flagship Hindi GEC Zee TV. The show is the most watched Hindi GEC soap in 2017 until week 39 (Saturday, 23 September 2017 to Friday, 29 September 2017) on the same channel during primetime in terms of viewership. Kumkum Bhagya has garnered 420.486 million impressions until week 39 during its first run time of 2100 to 2130 hours during the first 39 weeks of 2017.It has been present in BARC’s top 5 Hindi GEC programmes list during all the 39 weeks of 2017 that have elapsed so far.

    The Supernatural soap Naagin 2 airs at the 2000 hours primetime slot on Network 18’s flagship Hindi GEC Colors. The show has garnered a phenomenal 279.149 million impressions during the 25 weeks that it has featured in the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes in the first 39 weeks of 2017 on Colors. The show is also aired on Network 18’s free-to-air (FTA) Hindi GEC Rishtey and it has earned 137.559 million impressions during the 14 weeks that it was present the top 5 prgrammes list in the first 39 weeks of 2017.

    The musical reality show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa was first aired on International Labour Day (and Maharashtra Day) on 1 May 1995 with Indian singer Sonu Nigam as the host on Zee TV. Since then there have been multiple variants to the show that include Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Ek Main aur Ek Tu, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge USA and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Mega Challenge. The current version of the show is the twenty fifth edition overall as mentioned above, and the second season of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs that has singer Aditya Narayan as the show host. The show has Indian dairy major Amul as the title sponsor. Amul Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs has garnered 243.84 million impressions during the 25 weeks that it was among the top 5 channels list in the first 39 weeks 0f 2017.

    Please refer to the figure below for the top 5 Hindi GEC (U+R) Primetime Programmes during the first 39 weeks of 2017.

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    Among the top 5 Hindi primetime programmes based on analysis of BARC data for weeks 1 to 39 of 2017 – HSM (U+R), three are from Zee TV. Besides the two programmes mentioned above, the third one is the spinoff of Kumkum Bhagya, also by Balaji Telefilms, which premiered on 12 July 2017. The programme has been among the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes right from the very first week of launch. It has scored 124.122 million impressions right from the 12 weeks that it has appeared in the top 5 programmes list.

    Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, a family drama created by Director’s Kut Productions, premiered on 9 January 2009 on Star India’s flagship Hindi GEC Star Plus. The soap was the fourth most programme which scored 150.722 million impressions during the 16 weeks that it was in the top 5 programmes list in the first 39 weeks of 2017.

    Here below is the viewership of genres during primetime of the first 39 weeks of 2017

    public://222222222222_1.jpg

    Soaps include all sub-genres such as family drama, comedy drama, sitcoms, mythology drama, supernatural drama. Reality includes music, dance, shows such as Fear Factor, Kaun Banega Crorepati, Bigg Boss, etc. Comedy includes shows such as The Kapil Sharma show, etc., Awards means award shows such as Star Screen Awards.

  • GUEST COLUMN: Is The Current News Dumbing Us Down?

    “Sonu Nigam Quits Twitter!!”flashed on my TV screen today morning. We obviously thought this was worthy of coverage at a national level, because the ‘breaking news’ kept playing in loop for a considerable period of time. 

    When CNN covered the Gulf war in the early 90s, it was to be the coming of age of News television. As explosion after explosion played out on the screen to the background score of intermittent gun-fire, News was suddenly more interesting than daily soaps and movies. This was information, played out in real time, offered without filter or opinion. The promise of a new age of journalism was immense, and Indian news channels mushrooming over the next decade carried this promise with them. 

    Cut to today, when the same channels are falling over each other purely with an objective to grab eyeballs. Celeb gossip has replaced substance, leaving crucial news stories and events to fade away, thus resulting in what is called the‘dumbing down’ of us, the audience. Issues that have no worth culturally or socially are being brought to the forefront and as breaking news.Today, when a celeb singer was quitting a social media platform as breaking news, a major bus accident in Uttarkashi was relegated to the background. In layman terms, breaking news refers to events that are unexpected and impromptu. 

    Clearly, news topics such as politics or calamities are a lot harder to report on in an interesting way. While allnews channels pursue stories of lesser significance, some may even choose to embrace it as their lead story. After all, in order to hold more viewership than that of the competitions’, it obviously must be something that entertains and excites.As a result, we are forced to air content that is appealing to masses because we gauge both news and non-news by the same yardstick.

    Television is primarily consumed for entertainment and anything that’s entertainment will get the numbers, anything that’s not will simply miss out on the ratings. As a result, globally in the current scenario, most of the news stories cater only to human interest. 
    Ideally, there should be six factors thatmake a story newsworthy- 

    public://p1.jpg

    How is the content of a news channel judged?

    Arbitrating the content of a news channel is a subjective call. It is not a mechanical process, there has to be human intervention to gauge the quality of what is being aired, which would be the 5 factors covered above along with On-Air presentation.

    The other even more critical factor – Distribution.

    public://p2.jpg

    News ratings are direct impact of distribution and affinity from a panel, relevant to news itself, while taking distribution factors into consideration.What news is witnessing today is more the consequence of the Medium’s Measurement Methodology, than that of Distribution’s Multi-LCN phenomena. 

    The import lies in being able to measure news qualitatively on-air, and cannot be limited to extrapolation of minute by minute viewing data.Furthermore, there are content affinity (On-Air presentation) factors that impact news delivery today- starting from News Pick, Graphic Display, Screen Packaging, Treatment to LIVE, Anchor Presentation, Expert Panel Members and so on.  

    Coming to distribution, there are critical factors like Pack Placement by MSOs leading to Channel Non-availability in the Universe, Multi LCNs, Landing Channels, EPG Ranking, Channel Neighbourhood, etc. It is therefore important to factor the Universe delivery and presentation dynamics, in the viewership measurement methodology, as the Sample itself derives itself from the Universe. In the Universe lie 6000+ Towns, 6 Lac+ Villages, 1200+ licensed /otherwise channels, 60,000+ LMOs and some 5000 large and independent Distribution Providers.

    public://p33.jpg

    It is time the industry understands the grave impact the delivery chain has on Viewership Measurement. In my view, On-Air factors (qualitative) married with Off-Air factors (distribution) would create abalanced News Viewership Index, thus making way for news that is relevant, fair and informative.

    public://pankaj.jpgPankaj Krishna is the founder & CEO of Chrome Data Analytics & Media Pvt. Ltd. Views expressed are personal, and indiantelevision.com need not necessarily subscribe to them.

     

  • Sony’s Indian Idol season 7 to be aired live on dittoTV

    Sony’s Indian Idol season 7 to be aired live on dittoTV

    MUMBAI: dittoTV subscribers have one more reason to celebrate Christmas with some entertainment. Indian Idol, one of India’s singing reality shows, is back and fans of the show will be able to catch the latest season 7 live on Sony Entertainment Television available on dittoTV from 24 December every Saturday and Sunday at 8 pm.

    This latest season will be judged by Indian Idol’s original panel of judges – Anu Malik, Sonu Nigam and Farah Khan, who will be making a comeback on the show after 12 years.

    “Indian Idol is one of India’s oldest and most loved musical reality shows, with a huge fan following. As a weekend show, many people could be missing out on the live airing since they may be out or just don’t have easy access to a television set. dittoTV now makes it possible for them to conveniently watch Indian Idol as it airs, anywhere on any internet-enabled device. And at a very affordable price point,” said Z5 Business head of digital Archana Anand.

    With its large bouquet of channels, dittoTV enables its on-the-go audiences to stay connected to their favourite shows across channels such as The Voice India, which launched its second season earlier this month on &TV, and now Indian Idol on Sony.

  • Sony’s Indian Idol season 7 to be aired live on dittoTV

    Sony’s Indian Idol season 7 to be aired live on dittoTV

    MUMBAI: dittoTV subscribers have one more reason to celebrate Christmas with some entertainment. Indian Idol, one of India’s singing reality shows, is back and fans of the show will be able to catch the latest season 7 live on Sony Entertainment Television available on dittoTV from 24 December every Saturday and Sunday at 8 pm.

    This latest season will be judged by Indian Idol’s original panel of judges – Anu Malik, Sonu Nigam and Farah Khan, who will be making a comeback on the show after 12 years.

    “Indian Idol is one of India’s oldest and most loved musical reality shows, with a huge fan following. As a weekend show, many people could be missing out on the live airing since they may be out or just don’t have easy access to a television set. dittoTV now makes it possible for them to conveniently watch Indian Idol as it airs, anywhere on any internet-enabled device. And at a very affordable price point,” said Z5 Business head of digital Archana Anand.

    With its large bouquet of channels, dittoTV enables its on-the-go audiences to stay connected to their favourite shows across channels such as The Voice India, which launched its second season earlier this month on &TV, and now Indian Idol on Sony.

  • Sony strengthens weekday programming; launching four shows by July ’17

    Sony strengthens weekday programming; launching four shows by July ’17

    MUMBAI: After strengthening the weekend programming with Super Dancer, Sony Entertainment Television is all set to bring one of its iconic shows — Indian Idol — back.

    “Sony has traditionally done very well as far as the weekend is concerned. So, when we started rebuilding this channel a year ago, the aim was to make Sony the number one weekend destination. I am happy to say that we have achieved that. Weekday programming is where we are going to focus now. We have launched Beyhadh which received a good opening. Weekday is a habit which will take time to be cultivated, and can’t happen in one go,” said Sony Entertainment Television EVP and business head Danish Khan.

    Khan added, “There are three-four launches between January and July in 2017, and, in July, people will see a very healthy weekend. It will be gradual, step by step, but, like you have seen in the weekend, you will see weekday of Sony fulfilling expectation of the audience very soon.” Sony’s much talked about historical drama Peshwa Bajirao is slated to launch in January.

    Indian Idol is the first step in bringing back the old iconic shows of Sony. The show will be aired from 24 December on Saturday and Sunday at 8pm.

    The channel has roped in Vivo as the title sponsors, and KUV 100 and Quick Heal as the ‘Co-powered By’ sponsors. According to sources, a 10-sec ad rate for the show has been sold for Rs 1 lakh each.

    This season also marks the comeback of its original trio of judges, Farah Khan, Sonu Nigam and Anu Malik, which has come together on the platform once again, after 12 years. Their chemistry and unique style of interaction with the participants holds promise — to make this season an ultimate entertainer on the Indian television.

    While the contestants impress viewers with their talent, the judges will also mark them on three most important factors that define the Indian Idol platform – Riyaaz, Awaaz and Andaaz. The legendary singing sensation of India, Sonu Nigam, will focus on the contestants’ ‘Riyaaz’, the maestro Anu Malik will be keenly observing their ‘Awaaz’, and known for her distinguished style, Bollywood’s ace choreographer-turned-director Farah Khan will judge their ‘Andaaz’.

    The show will begin with audition episodes from across the country; episodes that witnessed lakhs of talented singers competing to make it into the top 110. Hosting the ninth season will be the charming Karan Wahi and Paritosh Tripathy.

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Sony Pictures Networks CEO NP Singh said, “It’s an authentic talent hunt show with authentic talent. Indian Idol is a show which broke new ground a few years ago, and in many ways changed the landscape of reality shows in India. It worked really well for us.”

    Post the fantastic success of its most popular show Super Dancer, the channel now brings to the fore one of its biggest properties — Indian Idol. Khan informed, “We have created a dedicated time of 8pm on weekends that will continue to bring unseen talent to our viewers. Super Dancer saw some amazing dancers and now, with Indian Idol, we intend to take this legacy ahead. The original trio of judges is a wonderful combination in the world of music and their chemistry coupled with outstanding singers will surely create magic on screen.”

    Said FremantleMedia India business head Vidyuth Bhandary, “The global phenomenon of the Idol format — launched in 52 territories worldwide and rated as the No 1 show 48 times — has been watched by half a billion viewers globally, making it one of the world’s most loved shows. We are proud of our strong partnership and collaboration with Sony Pictures Networks India, and happy to announce the launch of the 9th season of Indian Idol. It’s been 12 years since the first season of Indian Idol was launched on SET making it the longest-running reality show in India with unprecedented participation.”

    The channel will soon bring back all its iconic shows such as — KBC and Dus Ka Dum.

    “Indian Idol has been a torch-bearer of sorts in terms of the non-fiction programming slate for Sony, and has proved to be a war-horse when it comes to TVR numbers. Thus, it’s great news for Sony that the show is making a return after a rather long hiatus and what’s better is that they have gone back to the earlier panel of judges, which allows the audience to find an instant connect from the word go. What’s worked for the show earlier is the platform that it has provided for stars of the future, but the fact that the show wasn’t around for four years has allowed other shows like ‘The Voice’ to create ample room for competition. It will be a great battle to be witnessed between Indian Idol’s return along with a new format in Colors’ Rising Star on the small screen in the coming days,” said a senior media planner.

  • Sony strengthens weekday programming; launching four shows by July ’17

    Sony strengthens weekday programming; launching four shows by July ’17

    MUMBAI: After strengthening the weekend programming with Super Dancer, Sony Entertainment Television is all set to bring one of its iconic shows — Indian Idol — back.

    “Sony has traditionally done very well as far as the weekend is concerned. So, when we started rebuilding this channel a year ago, the aim was to make Sony the number one weekend destination. I am happy to say that we have achieved that. Weekday programming is where we are going to focus now. We have launched Beyhadh which received a good opening. Weekday is a habit which will take time to be cultivated, and can’t happen in one go,” said Sony Entertainment Television EVP and business head Danish Khan.

    Khan added, “There are three-four launches between January and July in 2017, and, in July, people will see a very healthy weekend. It will be gradual, step by step, but, like you have seen in the weekend, you will see weekday of Sony fulfilling expectation of the audience very soon.” Sony’s much talked about historical drama Peshwa Bajirao is slated to launch in January.

    Indian Idol is the first step in bringing back the old iconic shows of Sony. The show will be aired from 24 December on Saturday and Sunday at 8pm.

    The channel has roped in Vivo as the title sponsors, and KUV 100 and Quick Heal as the ‘Co-powered By’ sponsors. According to sources, a 10-sec ad rate for the show has been sold for Rs 1 lakh each.

    This season also marks the comeback of its original trio of judges, Farah Khan, Sonu Nigam and Anu Malik, which has come together on the platform once again, after 12 years. Their chemistry and unique style of interaction with the participants holds promise — to make this season an ultimate entertainer on the Indian television.

    While the contestants impress viewers with their talent, the judges will also mark them on three most important factors that define the Indian Idol platform – Riyaaz, Awaaz and Andaaz. The legendary singing sensation of India, Sonu Nigam, will focus on the contestants’ ‘Riyaaz’, the maestro Anu Malik will be keenly observing their ‘Awaaz’, and known for her distinguished style, Bollywood’s ace choreographer-turned-director Farah Khan will judge their ‘Andaaz’.

    The show will begin with audition episodes from across the country; episodes that witnessed lakhs of talented singers competing to make it into the top 110. Hosting the ninth season will be the charming Karan Wahi and Paritosh Tripathy.

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Sony Pictures Networks CEO NP Singh said, “It’s an authentic talent hunt show with authentic talent. Indian Idol is a show which broke new ground a few years ago, and in many ways changed the landscape of reality shows in India. It worked really well for us.”

    Post the fantastic success of its most popular show Super Dancer, the channel now brings to the fore one of its biggest properties — Indian Idol. Khan informed, “We have created a dedicated time of 8pm on weekends that will continue to bring unseen talent to our viewers. Super Dancer saw some amazing dancers and now, with Indian Idol, we intend to take this legacy ahead. The original trio of judges is a wonderful combination in the world of music and their chemistry coupled with outstanding singers will surely create magic on screen.”

    Said FremantleMedia India business head Vidyuth Bhandary, “The global phenomenon of the Idol format — launched in 52 territories worldwide and rated as the No 1 show 48 times — has been watched by half a billion viewers globally, making it one of the world’s most loved shows. We are proud of our strong partnership and collaboration with Sony Pictures Networks India, and happy to announce the launch of the 9th season of Indian Idol. It’s been 12 years since the first season of Indian Idol was launched on SET making it the longest-running reality show in India with unprecedented participation.”

    The channel will soon bring back all its iconic shows such as — KBC and Dus Ka Dum.

    “Indian Idol has been a torch-bearer of sorts in terms of the non-fiction programming slate for Sony, and has proved to be a war-horse when it comes to TVR numbers. Thus, it’s great news for Sony that the show is making a return after a rather long hiatus and what’s better is that they have gone back to the earlier panel of judges, which allows the audience to find an instant connect from the word go. What’s worked for the show earlier is the platform that it has provided for stars of the future, but the fact that the show wasn’t around for four years has allowed other shows like ‘The Voice’ to create ample room for competition. It will be a great battle to be witnessed between Indian Idol’s return along with a new format in Colors’ Rising Star on the small screen in the coming days,” said a senior media planner.