ITV

Tag: Talent

  • GroupM promotes Gaurav Hirey as chief talent officer, South Asia

    GroupM promotes Gaurav Hirey as chief talent officer, South Asia

    MUMBAI: GroupM has announced the appointment of Gaurav Hirey as chief talent officer, south Asia.

    Hirey has been a part of GroupM since 2008 and is currently the regional HR director, APAC. In his new expanded role as CTO, South Asia, he will be responsible for driving the agenda on people, culture and values at GroupM which will include employee acquisition, training, development, retention and growth for India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

    On his new role, Hirey said “India and South Asian markets are exciting markets. We have been able to innovate and raise the bar year after year. Mumbai is home ground and so always a pleasure to be back! I am very excited about the new leadership and the new vision at GroupM South Asia and look forward to leveraging the last 2 years of my international exposure and the network to help and impact business results.”

    He will continue to work with GroupM APAC regional talent team and will be based out of Mumbai from 1 January, 2014. And will also be a part of the GroupM aouth Asia executive committee and will report to GroupM South Asia CEO CVL Srinivas and GroupM global CTO Angela Ryan.

    Speaking on the appointment, CVL Srinivas said, “GroupM has always placed a lot of emphasis on Talent and over the years we have built a strong talent team. As we move to the next stage of the People Transformation journey, I am pleased to welcome Gaurav Hirey back as our Chief Talent Officer (CTO) – South Asia. Gaurav has a successful track record of making things happen and is the best person to lead our people agenda. We look forward to having him back with us.”

    Hirey had joined GroupM in 2008 in Mumbai and built the human resources function at GroupM India, making it one the best employer brands in the country, before moving into a regional role in Singapore. Under his direction, GroupM is the only media agency to have won the Employer Branding Award for ‘Best Employer’ three years in a row from 2009 to 2011. For the last two years Hirey was based in Singapore where he worked on GroupM APAC projects and also had the mandate of being a business partner for Maxus APAC.

  • Ghanchakkar: A complete waste of talent

    Ghanchakkar: A complete waste of talent

    MUMBAI: One may steal a theme from a foreign film but when one fails to give the film even a sensible, logical title, you know you are party to a lost cause. To copy a foreign film, understanding it is mandatory. Ghanchakkar is inspired from a 2007 Hollywood film titled The Lookout, which was about a bank robbery and a character with anterograde amnesia, which means short-term memory loss. But the film‘s Hindi title suggests a comedy and means an idiot/stupid person. The last film based on memory loss was the Aamir Khan blockbuster Ghajini but that is where the comparison ends.

    Ghanchakkar is a ‘twist in the tale‘ story which, at best, can be a limited-duration TV episode. However, the maker stretches it to almost 138 minutes. According to the original film, not only does the protagonist keep losing his memory, he also keeps getting these bouts of anger whichGhanchakkar follows religiously.

    Emraan Hashmi is a safebreaker on a sabbatical. He thinks he has made enough to take life easy and enjoy with his wife, Vidya Balan, who plays a Punjabi character for some unexplained reason. That is when an unidentified voice on the phone invites Hashmi to a huge bank heist; the bank, it seems, has a vault which only Hashmi can break open. The sum is expected to be huge, about Rs 35 crore and Hashmi‘s share would be Rs 10 crore.

    Balan subscribes to Vogue and such fashion magazines but gives her wardrobe her own version of fashion, usually loud and garish outfits being her thing. Her attempts at Punjabi slang or sounding like a loud Punjaban are as real as her dressing sense. Hashmi on his part has only one dream, to own the biggest television set available in the market. For the sake of this TV set, he agrees to meet the voice on the telephone. The rendezvous is set for 12.30 at night at Andheri station.

    The voice on the phone turns out to be Rajesh Sharma aka Pandit and a gun-toting Namit Das. They try to look mean and threatening but manage to look like two comics out of a C-grade farce. For Hashmi to be threatened by Das, half his size, and fat Sharma, does not convince the viewer and this is only the forewarning of what is to follow. The bank is robbed as easily as a deserted house with the three wearing masks of Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan and Utpal Dutt; the only scare to the robbers coming from a beat cop coming into bank at 2 am to take a leak. That is an idea; bank loos can double as Sulabh Sauchalayas during off hours and continue to make money!

    The bank is robbed, the three part ways with Hashmi given the responsibility to keep the money for three months till the heat settles after which they can take their own share. Three months are over and Sharma and Das demand their share. But Hashmi has had an accident in this duration and now suffers from anteograde amnesia due to which he has selective memory losses. He can‘t remember who these two are or which money they are referring to. The two kidnap Balan giving Hashmi a week to recollect where the money is hidden. Later they shift into Hashmi‘s house to finish that mandatory seven-day period. These seven days seem never-ending; they are supposed to be funny but are torturous for the viewer.

    The hero also follows the anterograde amnesia to the T as now his memory loss is becoming severe and he now suspects everybody including Balan and vents his anger on people around him. That is when an angel drops in from the blue, literally. He is the real villain who drops in without a warning and ends the painful saga by killing his two stooges, Sharma and Das, as well as Balan and Hashmi and finally his own self.

    With a cast of four out of which two are poorly etched, to carry through 138 minutes of pathetically scripted and directed fare, Ghanchakkar fails on all counts. Music is of the chalu kind. Dialogue is in poor taste.

    Ghanchakkar is boring and doomed to failure.

  • Zee leads pack of musical sagas; Sony overtakes Star

    Weekend primetime viewing is bracing up for some nail biting competition across the top general entertainment channels, each sprucing up its reality offerings to capture audiences. This wave of reality formats emerged across the horizon in the month of May, each following the reality curve and heading towards climax as they collectively approach their final weeks.

    The broadcasters – Star Plus, Zee TV and Sony – are gearing up to back each of their weekend ‘eye pullers’ with full gusto! An analysis of Tam’s revelations bring to light how each of these shows have shaped up since launch, followed by how they stack up against each other in their fight to reach the top.

    The Evolution:

    In this race for TRP’s, Zee TV has consistently been ahead of the game with its music talent hunt Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007. In its opening weeks the broadcaster was wrestling with Sony’sIndian Idol that launched at the same time. But not for long, as Zee suddenly snatched a huge chunk of eyeballs with a whooping TVR of 5.5 on 18 May (Tam C&S 4+, HSM) and has practically hogged the limelight since then. Coincidently, this was the same day that Star Plus kicked off its version of the musical talent hunt Star Voice of India, which received a cold shoulder from viewers with a TVR 2.9 inspite of having grabbed the former producer, host and judges from Zee’s earlier edition of the musical format.

    Grappling with this situation, Zee seems to have aggressively upped its efforts stating that this edition of the landmark property would prove to be a “Sangeet Ka Pratham Vishwayudh,” as though the broadcaster were making a point! So far, Star has only beatenSa Re Ga Ma Pa on one occasion with a rating of 4.3 (Tam 8 – 9 June, C&S 4+, HSM) while Zee lagged at 4.1.

    Date
    Day
    Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge
    Indian Idol 3
    Star Voice Of India
    4 May Fri
    3.5
    3.66
    NA
    5 May Sat
    3.47
    3.67
    NA
    11 May Fri
    3.84
    3.16
    NA
    12 May Sat
    3.46
    4.01
    NA
    18 May Fri
    5.5
    3.58
    2.88
    19 May Sat
    5.05
    3.7
    2.45
    25 May Fri
    4.74
    2.75
    3.56
    26 May Sat
    4.07
    2.61
    2.57
    1 June Fri
    4.09
    3.14
    3.16
    2 June Sat
    3.79
    3.42
    2.89
    4 June Mon
    NA
    2.68
    NA
    5 June Tue
    NA
    2.81
    NA
    6 June Wed
    NA
    2.91
    NA
    7 June Thu
    NA
    3.27
    NA
    8 June Fri
    4.38
    3.46
    4.46
    9 June Sat
    3.86
    4.03
    4.13
    15 June Fri
    4.89
    3.26
    4.62
    16 June Sat
    4.33
    2.96
    3.01
    22 June Fri
    4.34
    3.6
    3.68
    23 June Sat
    3.65
    2.95
    3.61
    29 June Fri
    3.46
    2.67
    2.06
    30 June Sat
    4.63
    3.42
    2.92
    (Tam Peoplemeter System: TVR, C&S 4+, HSM)

    More recently, the tables seem to have turned on Star as Indian Idol, which was earlier trailing behind Voice of India, has suddenly propelled into the second spot after Zee, for two weeks running. Sony’s Idol clocked a rating of 2.67 and 3.42, shoving Star to 2.06 and 2.92 on 29 and 30 June respectively (C&S 4+ HSM).

    This is particularly significant as Zee’sSa Re Ga Ma Pa andIndian Idol have already entered the final stages rounding off the shortlisted contestants, a phase that garners large audiences. Star Voice of India will arrive at this juncture next week. Therefore, one can expect heavy duty action between the three players.

    The Experts:

    Skirmishing for the spotlight, programming tweaks and surprises will be the order of the day. The experts that tug the reigns of success for these shows have their own gyan to share……

    Zee TV senior vice president programming Ashvini Yardi confesses, “My biggest fear was that this being the second edition of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, it would not fare as well as the first. But it turns out that this year the response in terms of ratings has been far better. It is an established brand with the best singers and mentors on board and this year were have consciously made it bigger and more glamorous.”

    Talking of talent – other players also vouch for the superiority of their talent, so who decides? A confident Yardi replies, “Let the ratings speak for themselves.”

    With Zee holding centre stage andIndian Idol putting up a challenge to Star Voice of India, the space is getting more intense. Star India VP marketing Prem Kamath attributes the slip in ratings to its delay in the peaking cycle because it was launched after its two competitors. “This is a natural swing of ratings that are witnessed on a weekly basis. Besides, Voice of India will only step into its final stages of voting in the coming week. It is then that we will see the show peak to reach its crescendo.”

    He adds that with crucial Indian cricket matches coinciding “the share will go from the leaders.” But will this rating dip indicate a trend? “Well, we will just have to wait and watch,” opines Kamath.

    Betting big on Idol is Sony EVP and business head Albert Almeda who says a “snowball effect” has emerged out of the evolution of the show across the four stages including the auditions, the theatre round, the piano round and now culminating with a gala final phase. “Over time, the viewers have grown in their emotional involvement with the show and its characters. We are bound to see a huge spike in the ratings as the contestants are backed by audiences in their transformation from uncut individuals to professional artists.

    “As the pressure mounts in the fourth and final stage of the show spanning over 12 weeks, we expect to see our ratings to be in excess of four,” adds Almeida.

    With no less fervor, both Zee and Star will up the volume of their activities around the show. Zee has seen benefits of roping in celebrities for cross promotional activities and will continue to invest heavily on that strategy. They recently brought Sunny Deol onto the show to promote his latest film Apne.

    Kamath counters, “A marketing outburst of both on and off air activities will be unleashed during the voting rounds, while twists and turns embedded in the programming will be seen. This will result in a natural fillip in the ratings.”

    But Zee has bigger aspirations, Yardi has raised the bar for the challenge expecting it to touch the No 1 slot across all GECs. “Just as the finale of Lil’ Champs pushed the property into the No 1 position across all general entertainment channels, so also do we expect the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge to achieve the same,” she affirms.

    The Bigger Picture:

    With a bird’s eye view of the Indian television landscape, the scenario of the top three players from January to June 2007 depicts the gradual decline of a leader and the emergence of a strong challenger. Star Plus has been showing a consistent downward trend with the relative channel share touching 36 per cent in June from its position at the beginning of the year at 44 per cent.

    Meanwhile, Zee TV has creeped up the ladder to occupy a share of 26 per cent from its position at 22 per cent in January. Although taking baby steps, Sony has also upped its standards from 12 to 14 per cent during the six month duration.

    Relative channel share across Hindi GEC for Jan – June 2007
    Channel
    Jan
    Feb
    Mar
    Apr
    May
    Jun
    Star Plus
    44
    45
    42
    39
    39
    36
    Zee TV
    22
    22
    21
    24
    26
    26
    Sony TV
    12
    11
    11
    11
    13
    14
    ( Tam: Relative shares, C&S 4+, HSM)

    What’s more, Zee TV is claiming to be far closer to Star than ever before. The recent weekly GRP figures from Tam show Star at 323.5 and Zee at 263 narrowing the gap between the two to 60 (Week 26, 24 – 30 June).

    Yardi points out the significance, “This is the first time in seven years that the gap between us and Star has been narrowed to 60. On two occasions earlier the difference has been 90 but this is the closest it has ever been.”

    The last week of June has actually seen the leader (Star Plus) forfeit 35.7 GRP’s and Zee TV gain 19.6 GRP’s.