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Tag: Star Plus

  • Big Star Entertainment Awards set to ring in the New Year on Star Plus

    Big Star Entertainment Awards set to ring in the New Year on Star Plus

    MUMBAI: The Big Star Entertainment Awards celebrates the biggest entertainers of the year across the fields of bollywood, television, music, sports and their contribution to the entertainment industry.  A joint initiative between 92.7 Big FM and Star Plus, the fifth edition of Big Star Entertainment Awards is all set to air on Star Plus on the New Year’s eve.

    Last year, the popular award show attracted a TVT of 12.4 and it is touted to only get bigger this year. The award function will be marketed across radio, television, print and social media to ensure maximum tune-ins.

    Speaking of the fifth edition of the Big Star Entertainment Awards, Reliance Broadcast Network CEO Tarun Katial stated, “The award and our partnership with Star Plus has matured wonderfully and we are happy to once again bring together a congregation of the finest entertainers from across industries. This is part of our endeavour to empower audiences with a democratised award which allows them to choose their most favourite entertainers. We look forward to celebrating the evening with the industry and offering audiences an engaging watch on New Year’s eve.”

    As seen each year, the Big Star Entertainment Awards will be 100 per cent based on people’s choice right from the nominations to the final winners. Voting process will be carried out through radio, television and digital mediums.

    Entertaining the viewers year after year, the Big Star Entertainment Awards recognises and felicitates the talented members of the industry.

     

  • Epic leaves its mark at TAM TV ratings

    Epic leaves its mark at TAM TV ratings

    MUMBAI: After a long time, it is time to rejoice for MSM as week 48 of TAM TV ratings saw the network channels observing a growth in the viewership.

    Sab at number five witnessed 298,804 GVTs, up from 275,600 GVTs. Its chart leader Taarek Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah continued getting eyeballs and reported 8,255 TVTs, up from 7,175 TVTs. Chidiya Ghar too added some numbers and registered 3,151 TVTs, up from 2,785 TVTs and Family Antakshari observed 1,536 TVTs, up from 1,190 TVTs.

    Despite a rise, Sony Entertainment Television (SET) stood at number six with 230,238 GVTs, up from 206,513 GVTs. The channel’s crime property Crime Patrol saw a significant rise in the viewership and recorded 2,386 TVTs, up from 1,521 TVTs, Adaalat too saw a hike in the ratings with 2,124 TVTs, up from 1,567 TVTs and Maharan Veer Pratap remained almost stable with 2,630 TVTs, up from 2,628 TVTs.

    Talking about the rest, the ranking order remained unchanged. Despite a drop, Star Plus continued to be the leader with 625,440 GVTs, down from 630,817 GVTs. The channel’s chart topper Diya Aur Baati Hum lost some numbers and registered 12,858 TVTs, down from 13,400 TVTs, Saathiya Saath too saw a drop and scored 8,170 TVTs, down from 8,763 TVTs and Nisha Aur Uske Cousins reported 4,865 TVTs, down from 4,904 TVTs.

    Colors stayed happy at number two with 466,969 GVTs, down from 481,802 GVTs. Sasural Simar Ka leads the chart with 6,512 TVTs, down from 7,260 TVTs followed by Udaan at 6,123 TVTs, down from 6,797 TVTs and Balika Vadhu delivered 4,692 TVTs, down from 4,804 TVTs.

    At number three, Zee TV was the gainer and scored 434,988 GVTs, up from 433,251 GVTs. Kumkum Bhagya tops the chart with 8,326 TVTs, up from 8,021 TVTs, Jodha Akbar at number two garnered 7,422 TVTs, up from 7,336 TVTs and Qubool Hai notched up and stood at 6,722 TVTs, up from 6,457 TVTs.

    Life OK remained at number four with 324,376 GVTs, down from 325,953 GVTs. Its new offering Pukar saw a decent start with 1,382 TVTs. Comedy Classes stood at 2,418 TVTs, up from 2,234 TVTs and Savdhan India scored 2,557 TVTs, up from 2,577 TVTs.

    On the other hand, Big Magic saw a dip in the viewership and recorded 61,809 GVTs, down from 68,667 GVTs. Sony Pal witnessed a rise in the ratings and observed 32,914 GVTs, up from 30,457 GVTs and Zindagi tracked 31,344 GVTs, up from 30,125 GVTs. The newest entrant, Epic observed a significant rise and noted 2,926 GVTs, up from 1,240 GVTs.

     

  • Why ‘Satyamev Jayate’ chose the Sunday morning slot

    Why ‘Satyamev Jayate’ chose the Sunday morning slot

    MUMBAI: The much popular social awareness show on Star Plus ‘Satyamev Jayate’ (SMJ) not just had the backing of a star presence but also had broadcaster Star’s faith in it.  So much so that Star Plus was willing to give the show a primetime slot.

     

    Speaking at indiantelevision.com’s The Content Hub, SMJ director Satyajit Bhatkal revealed the detail about SMJ’s original positioning. “We had the option of choosing any slot. In fact Star wanted us to take primetime on Friday, Saturday or Sunday,” he said.

     

    The idea behind this was to fish when the fish is in the pond, the tactic that fiction shows depend on. But denying this offer, it went ahead with the Sunday morning slot. “We were assured that Sunday morning was a graveyard hour where viewers don’t come,” said Bhatkal.

     

    SMJ wanted a clear space and appointment viewing for itself when a person isn’t surfing between channels. “We wanted the viewers to take the trouble to wake up and sit in front of the TV, preferably with family, with the specific objective of watching SMJ which is also a limited offering,” he added.

     

    He was also aware that their unusual way of pushing the show was a nightmare for both the promotion and sales team but according to Bhatkal, it has succeeded in bringing viewers which is visible both by ratings as well as social media.

     

  • Hathway’s googly; comes up with new Star packaging

    Hathway’s googly; comes up with new Star packaging

    MUMBAI: A month after Star India’s reference interconnect offer (RIO) deals came into effect in the DAS areas, multi system operator (MSO) Hathway Cable & Datacom has come out with its new pricing and packaging system.

     

    Hathway has been conducting meetings with operators in various areas, the last ones being in Aurangabad, Pune and Pimpri. As per cable operators, who were a part of the meetings, Hathway has said that it will be empowering and training the operators to run the business of collection from subscribers.

     

    Four new packs have been introduced. The first is the ‘Basic Pack’ for Rs 230 that will, along with other channels, have seven Star channels. These are: Star Plus, Life OK, Star Gold, Movies OK, Channel V, NGC and Star Pravah, for Marathi regions and Star Jalsha in Bengal. This will depend on the stronghold of Hathway in the states.

     

    The second pack is for Rs 289 and called ‘Popular Pack’. This will have, in addition to the above, a choice of one out of the two sports channels from Star Sports 1 or Star Sports 3. Both these channels show the same content in English and Hindi respectively.

     

    The third pack will be for Rs 349 and will have Star Movies, Star World, Movies Action and FX while the last ‘Premium Pack’ for Rs 419 will consist of an addition of its other niche channels such as Fox Crime, Nat Geo Music, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo People, Fox Life etc.

     

    Regional channels such as Asianet, Asianet Suvarna and Star Vijay have been kept out of packs and will be available on a-la-carte while all of Star’s channels will be available on a-la-carte as well.

     

    Hathway will embark on a big marketing campaign to inform viewers about this and viewers can immediately switch over to new packs. For now, the MSO is not disconnecting signals to its subscribers. 

     

  • GECs’ new big-ticket offering

    GECs’ new big-ticket offering

    MUMBAI: For couch potatoes, it’s time to rejoice as broadcasters are ready with treats for their viewers as the new year arrives.

     

    The channel, which has over the years changed the way stories are told and made characters a household name, is once again set for a different take. The channel is back yet again with a detective series Private Investigator (PI). It had first experimented with the genre in 2011 with a show called Arjun which ran for good two years. 

     

    Produced by Fremantle India, the promos of the show have already hit the television screens. The series is about Raffe Roy Choudhary who is playing the central character, and has special powers like thinking at a lightning speed, with his guesses never going wrong. Choudhary is a 21-year old young college going student who helps the police in several crime cases such as kidnapping, suicide. Moreover, born with natural instincts and sharp problem solving skills to solve crime cases, he has the ability to see things which others cannot see. Vrajesh Hirjee is playing the police inspector, while Choudhary is played by Mrinal Dutt. The channel has roped in Colgate Plax Active Salt as the presenting sponsor and Garnier Black Naturals is the co-powered by sponsor. 

     

    To give viewers a non-stop dose of entertainment, the series will replace India’s Raw Star from 7 December and will occupy the 8pm slot every Sunday.

     

    Keeping with the attempt to not single out the youngsters, the channel is breaking away from the saas-bahu dramas and is set to launch a comic love story christened Tu Mera Hero. The channel has teamed up with ace producers Shashi and Sumeet Mittal, who have produced popular shows like Diya Aur Baati Hum (Star Plus) and Punar Vivah (Zee TV).

     

    The promos, which have been doing the rounds for quite some time now, start with the male lead, Titu, talking about his laziness. He believes that though people think he doesn’t do any work, he has conducted a research on unemployment in India. He reasons that unemployment in the country is existent because everyone wants to work and goes on to say that if more people didn’t want to work then unemployment would be eradicated from the nation.

     

    It will hit the television screens from 22 December and replace the on-going Cinevistaa’s show Ek Hasina Thi at 8 pm.

     

    Similarly, it’s going to be a power-packed start of the year for Colors. From Jhalak Dikhla Jaa to 24 to Bigg Boss to Comedy Nights With Kapil, Colors has consistently showcased path breaking shows that have redefined television. Early this year, after a gap of two years, it brought back adventurous reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi season five in a re-packaged avatar.

     

    Now the channel is back with the sixth edition of the series that will make for an explosive entertainment viewing with 13 celebrity contestants.

     

    This season, Khatron Ke Khiladi will transform into a ‘Darr Ka Blockbuster Returns’ where the popular celebrity contestants will endeavor to overcome their deepest phobias. Bollywood’s ace action entertainer Rohit Shetty continues to be the host for the season.

     

    Produced by Endemol India, it will be shot in locales of Cape Town. Sources close to the development reveal that the shooting has already begun from 24 November and will go on till 20 December 2014. The reality show will start as soon as Bigg Boss eight ends. Pegged for a weekend property, as of now, it has been penned for close to six weeks.

     

    The 13 celebrities who will fight with their fears are Sana Khan, Sagrika Ghatge, Archana Vijaya, Rashmi Desai, Ridhi Dogra, Asha Negi, Nathalia Kaur, Ashish Chaudhury, Chang, Harshad Arora, Iqbal Khan, Hussain Kuwajerwala, Rakesh Kumar, Siddharth Bharadwaj and Nandish Sandhu entering the show as wildcard entry.

     

    On the digital front, the celebrities have already started tweeting about their excitement to be on the show with the hash tag #KKKonColors.

     

    While last season the production of the non-fiction show was pegged at Rs 50-55 crore, this season media planners estimate it to be around Rs 60-65 crore.

     

    Secondly, the channel is set to launch for the first time a historical period drama Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat. Produced by Contiloe Productions, it will captivatingly showcase the journey and life time of Emperor Ashoka, from his rise to power to his state of penance after the gory blood-bath in the historical battle of Kalinga that made him give up war to embrace Buddhism.

     

    The compelling story of this Great Emperor has been written by the acclaimed and contemporary author Ashok Banker, who will be making his comeback on television after nearly two decades. Sources from the industry reveal that the production cost of a mythological show per episode is double the amount of what a daily fiction show costs. Thus, the production cost per episode ranges from Rs 13-14 lakh.

     

    Though the launch date is not yet fixed, sources close to the development believe that it will be a weekday property and will air once Bigg Boss eight sees its curtains down at 9pm.

  • Rituraj Mohanty wins ‘India’s Raw Star’ title

    Rituraj Mohanty wins ‘India’s Raw Star’ title

    MUMBAI: After 14 weeks, thirteen concerts and tens and hundreds of songs, the time has finally come for India to choose India’s first Raw Star! Rituraj Mohanty has now been chosen by millions of voters across India to bag the title of ‘India’s Raw Star’. The winner takes home a Maruti Susuzki Swift, a contract with Star Plus and a huge sum on fifty lakhs. The other artists who were in the fight for this title were Darshan Raval from Ahmedabad and Mohit Gaur from Jaipur.

     

     

    “It is very difficult for me to sink in the feeling that I have won this show. Firstly I would like to thank Yo Yo Honey Singh and STAR Plus for getting me on the show and for giving me such a huge platform to perform on. Himesh Reshammiya has been such a great mentor and a huge support. I would like to extend my love filled thank you to all my fans as they are responsible for my win! I dedicate this win to all my fans.” said Rituraj Mohanty.

     

    Himesh who has already promised a song to the artist said, “He has a brilliant voice and a great talent. The show was not just about singing but about outstanding performances and this is the reason why the audience have gone all out to vote for him. We all are very happy with the decision and hope all success comes his way.”

     

    The grand finale was a grand affair as expected, with some foot tapping performances from the artists. To make the finale look more larger than life Kailash Kher, Mohit Chauhan and Shaan joined the top three. Kailash Kher and mast Malang singer Rituraj Mohanty gave a heartwarming Sufi performance where as Shaan and Mohit Gaur took the crowed for a surprise with their performance. Darshan who was performing with Mohit Chauhan set everyone into a romantic zone with their performance.

     

    Besides this the voted out artists also came back on the show to for the one last time give their fans a treat and to give them company was the popular and the party started Baadshah and Manoj Tiwari. The gorgeous host of the show Gauahar Khan was also seen shaking-a-leg in the finale along with Jeffrey and Darshan. The talented actor and dancer Rithvik was also seen in the finale doing gags that left the house rolling for more laughter.

     

    Making their presence felt on India’s Raw Star Finale were Sajid and Wajid along with the lead of Tevar Arjun Kapoor. This is not all, all the artists and the celebrity singers came together to sing a special song on Swach Bharat which was written and composed by talented duo Sachin and Jigar. To join them in this initiative Kailash Kher, Shaan, Mohit Chauhan, Himesh and all the raw stars came together.

  • Zee TV, Life OK and SET gain big: TAM TV ratings

    Zee TV, Life OK and SET gain big: TAM TV ratings

    MUMBAI: The ranking order of the six topmost Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) remained the same in the week 47 of TAM TV ratings. The channel’s to gain this week are Zee TV, Life OK and Sony Entertainment Television (SET).

     

    Zee TV at number three reported 433,251 GVTs, up from 418,880 GVTs. The biggest highlight for the channel was KumKum Bhagya which witnessed a huge viewership and observed 8,021 TVTs, up from 6,837 TVTs. Jamai Raja too saw a rise in the ratings and stood at 7,133 TVTs, up from 6,583 TVTs and Aur pyar Ho Gaya noted 5,676 TVTs, up from 4,894 TVTs.

     

    Life OK continued to have a strong run at number four with 325,955 GVTs, up from 312,543 GVTs. The shows that grew were Savdhan India which reported 2,577 TVTs, up from 2,328 TVTs, Comedy Classes garnered 2,234 TVTs, up from 2,132 TVTs and Mere Rang Mein Rangne Wali scored 1,510 TVTs.

     

    SET at number six registered 206,514 GVTs, up from 189,679 GVTs. The channel’s new series Itna Karo Na Mujhe Pyaar saw a decent start and scored 1,440 TVTs. Its crime property CID observed 3,562 TVTs, up from 3,098 TVTs and Maharan Veer Pratap tracked 2,628 TVTs, up from 2,546 TVTs.

     

    Talking about the losers this week, the numero uno Star Plus scored 630,854 GVTs, down from 657,629 GVTs. The channel’s chart topper Diya Aur Baati Hum saw a drop in the viewership and garnered 13,400 TVTs, down from 13,962 TVTs, Saathiya Saath recorded 8,763 TVTs, down from 9,647 TVTs and Ye Hai Mohababtein scored 9,316 TVTs, down from 9,599 TVTs.

     

    Colors at number two recorded 481,803 GVTs, down from 483,364 GVTs. Despite a drop, Sasural Simar Ka continued to be the chart topper with 7,260 TVTs, down from 7,717 TVTs, Udaan too lost some eyeballs as it garnered 6,797 TVTs, down from 7,253 TVTs and Balika Vadhu reported 4,804 TVTs, down from 5,182 TVTs.

     

    At number five stood Sab with 275,597 GVTs, down from 295,904 GVTs. Its chart leader Taarek Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah reported 7,175 TVTs, up from 7,120 TVTs, Family Antakshari observed 1,190 TVTs, down from 1,466 TVTs and Badi Door se Aaye Hai tracked 2,322 TVTs, down from 2,474 TVTs.

     

    Big Magic viewership has grown by 12 per cent this week on the back of artist specials and faces in key show. It recorded 68,667 GVTs, up from 61,220 GVTs. On the other hand, Zindagi gained and recorded 30,125 GVTs, up from 29,324 GVTs and Sony Pal registered 30,457 GVTs, down from 32,126 GVTs. 

  • Aap Ki Adalat @ 21, India TV announces a celebration like never before

    Aap Ki Adalat @ 21, India TV announces a celebration like never before

    MUMBAI: From the power corridors of Delhi to the glamorous Mumbai, there is a most definite flutter over the news of a mega event being hosted by India TV to celebrate the 21 glorious years India’s longest running Television show Aap Ki Adalat with Rajat Sharma.
     
    To commemorate the legendary milestone for the show, a cult in its own, India TV is organizing a never before and dazzling event on 2nd December. Country’s topmost leaders including the President & the Prime Minister, most celebrated Bollywood Stars including the three Khans, most celebrated Sports Icons including top Cricketers, Country’s top Business leaders, top Spiritual Gurus and Country’s Apex Bureaucrats & Administrators for the first time come together under one roof.
     
    In the Indian electronic media industry, the names Rajat Sharma and Aap Ki Adalat have been synonymous since 1993, when the first show was telecast. The show in its lifetime has broken all possible records in the history of Indian news television, and still continues to dominate the rating charts.
     
    Ritu Dhawan, MD & CEO, India TV said, “Words would be redundant if we try to sum-up the glorious journey of Aap Ki Adalat, equally redundant would be an attempt to word the glory of the celebration plan.” “I am sure that every bit will be loved by both who will be present for the ceremony & those who will get to watch this on their TV sets.” She added.
     
    In the last two decades, this top show that has enviably featured almost all top names of their times till date. During the celebration most of the personalities who featured in Aap Ki Adalat in its journey are expected to grace this mega event, making it the biggest & brightest such gathering of contemporary times.
     
    India’s Premier GEC Star Plus has also decided to be part of the celebrations and the event will be simulcast on both the channels – India TV and Star Plus on a 7th December at 10 PM.  Cineyug, one of India’s premier event management companies will be managing the evening.

     

  • Star Vijay to strengthen primetime band

    Star Vijay to strengthen primetime band

    MUMBAI: Star India’s Tamil general entertainment channel (GEC) has decided to spruce up its fiction offering by making changes to its primetime daily shows.

     

    The newest addition to its primetime band is the Tamil version of the hit Star Plus’ ongoing show Ye Hai Mohabbatein, called Kalyanam Mudal Kadal Varai (KMKV). Similar to what the Hindi GEC has done, KMKV was introduced on 3 November at two slots 7 pm and 9 pm. The Hindi version is being aired at 7:30 pm and 11 pm. The remake is directed by Thai Selvam.

     

    The reason for introducing it at 7 pm was to fill in the slot left empty by the dubbed version of Star Plus’ Mahabharat. The 9 pm slot, on the other hand, was chosen to push the other shows, in order to extend primetime from 6 pm to 11 pm.

     

    The other big change will be the re-introduction of the dubbed version of Mahabharat which was aired from late last year, in a primetime slot which is yet undecided. “There has been a cult following of the show and we are very confident that the repeat will also give us minimum 4 TVRs,” says Star Vijay GM K Sriram. After the last airing, the channel took a feedback of people and found out that the earlier several episodes had been missed by viewers, who wanted to see it again.

     

    The channel plans to air Mahabharatham from second week of December. “The success of the first airing has made us take it up again. Purvika Mobile has already shown keen interest to be on board as an advertiser,” adds Sriram. This will follow a mega marketing campaign to the tune of Rs 1 crore.

     

    Additionally, its nonfiction show Super Singer has been shifted from 9 pm to 9:30 pm to make space for KMKV while Office has been shifted from 10 pm to 10:30 pm.

     

    Sriram points out that the shows at 8 pm and 8:30 pm are its blockbuster ones- Deivam Thandha Veedu and Saravanan Meenatchi and they wish to build the 9 pm band along with it. Unlike Hindi where 9pm is the supreme primetime slot, in southern GECs it is 8pm.

  • “The biggest idea can come from somebody you are not looking at”: Ajit Thakur

    “The biggest idea can come from somebody you are not looking at”: Ajit Thakur

    MUMBAI: It is the only channel, which has never shied away from experimenting; from mythology to drama, from thriller to comedy, it has done it all. The soon-to-be three-year-old channel from the Star Network’s stable, Life OK, has always been riding high on success.

    For ‘The Content Hub’, indiantelevision.com spoke to the channel’s EVP and GM Ajit Thakur to understand his views on how Indian content has shifted its paradigm and challenges that he faces while spotting new talents.

    According to Thakur, more than the concepts the channel is always looking out for fresher talent. “We are looking at people from Bollywood and advertising to come to us with different concepts. Also, we want to explore more genres. Currently, with Pukaar we are not only exploring action genre but also have got on board film director Vipul A Shah. In the future, we would love to do a lot more of comedy, thrillers, spy stories and a mythology.”

    He believes that with both television and Bollywood growing at a tremendous speed, the demand for the same writers has increased over the years, making the task different. “We can all either wait for those people to come on board or can develop our own talent. Therefore, we have hired a lot of new writers.”

    For shows like Mahadev and Savdhaan India, the channel has in-house writers. According to him talent spotting and retaining that talent is a big challenge as well. “One might be available today but he/she will get busy after six months. Plus, one cannot depend on established talent. So, we have to develop our own talent,” says Thakur.

    He goes on to say that though Indian content has the ability to travel abroad; it will take some time because currently, the industry is not investing enough on production to scale it up. “Production quality will take another five to seven years to enter international market. But the interesting concepts will take lesser amount of time,” he says while adding that our shows are currently travelling to the Middle East and South Asia because of Indian diaspora, but for a show to have the scale for it to be sub-titled and aired in America, it will take time.

    Is Indian content shifting its paradigm? According to Thakur, it is but slower than one would like it to. “Our viewers are evolving fast but at the end of it our cultural context is important too. As a country we are very different, so it’s not that our viewers are not evolving but they are evolving within the paradigm of Indian society where families are important and cultural values are important.”

    He adds, “I think we have to take pride in the kind of stories we tell, but we need to produce them at the scale, which the international markets can look up to.”

    Thakur has two best practices when it comes to sparking off changes in the thought and creation process of content. One, it is very important to have the right insights on which one wants to work on. “One should know who your target is whether you are a TV channel, filmmaker or a digital platform. I think very often we are making a mistake of not looking at who we want to target at, carefully. Who is your core TG? Is it urban India or rural India? Is it men or women? Is it young families or joint families? It is an important factor which many a times we overlook.”

    Second, once you are clear about the TG then instead of trying to do many things, one must focus on one thing they are good at. “If you are developing one genre, develop a number of dramas, be the best at it rather than trying to do everything. And once you know that this is the target group and this is the kind of audience you want to target, then go ahead and find multiple story tellers. Never think that the current best lot is the one that will take it to the next level. Probably the biggest idea will come from somebody you are not looking at,” concludes Thakur.