ITV

Tag: Tara Newz

  • Channel 10’s survival strategy

    Channel 10’s survival strategy

    KOLKATA: Channel 10, a 24 hours Bengali News channel and also one of the surviving TV channels from the otherwise redundant Saradha Group stable, plans to introduce a sponsored slot for soft programmes soon. This is to keep the show running for the channel. The move comes after the Non Resident Indian (NRI) businessman and sole financier Samir Chakraborty decided to discontinue with his investment plans to run the channel.

     

    The other channels under Saradha Group are Tara Newz and Tara Muzik. According to sources within the channel, Channel 10 is also looking for new financiers.

     

    “While we have always focused on hard news, we are eventually moving towards soft features, the promotions for which are on. We had to do this to run the channel. We will try to walk alone until we find a financier,” said a senior from the channel on condition of anonymity.

     

    It can be recalled that the Saradha-owned Channel 10 had closed down like the other media ventures including Sakalbela, The Bengal Post, Azad Hind, Prabhat Varta, Seven Sisters Post, Tara Newz and Tara Muzik among others after the Group’s chit fund business went bust in April last year.

     

    It was after this that the Channel 10 employees formed an Employees’ Welfare Association to resolve payment issues. “But this did not help much, since employees were still not paid regularly,” added the source.

     

    The News channel again saw the light of day after the Calcutta High Court permitted Chakraborty to run it. While this came as a huge relief to more than the 268 employees working there, the channel is in turmoil yet again due to shortage of investment.

     

    When asked why the earlier financier washed his hand from the channel, the source said, “Since both the ED (Enforcement Directorate) and CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) are scrutinising the Saradha scam closely, Chakraborty has decided to discontinue with this venture.”

     

    Sources also hint that Chakraborty had applied for satellite license, before deciding to part ways with the channel.

     

    That apart, Chakraborty was also looking at producing sports and entertainment content related news which could be engaging for the viewers. “But nothing materialised,” recalls an employee.

     

    Last year Tara (Television Aimed at Regional Audiences) Newz also introduced sponsored slot for sports news as a survival strategy.

  • 2014 Poll results through the eyes of Bengali channels

    2014 Poll results through the eyes of Bengali channels

    KOLKATA: News channels including ABP Ananda, 24 Ghanta, ETV News Bangla, Focus TV, Kolkata TV and Tara Newz and infotainment channels like Aakash 8 have resembled a battlefield since 8am on 16 May, what with counting of votes taking place in 42 Lok Sabha constituencies.

     

    Each channel has tried to outshine the other with live shows, panel discussions and what have you in terms of the fate of politicians in the state. Not only have they provided byte-by-byte news to viewers who are glued to their TV screens since morning but they have also kept their websites up-to-speed with the latest updates.

     

    While the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) has emerged the winner, it isn’t exactly the lion’s share of seats that the party was confident of bagging in the face of a challenge from the left front and the Congress. What’s more, BJP, that was hitherto a fringe player in the state, has sprung a surprise by forging a lead in three seats. These are among the reasons why television channels are now eagerly awaiting chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s reaction on the results.  

       

    Interestingly, while BJP wasn’t able to make the kind of inroads in the state as it desired, quite a few Bengali channels are highlighting the party’s rise in the state.

     

    A city-based media observer said, “Even when the BJP was in power in 1999, it had only one MP from Bengal but this time, apart from the expected historical win at the centre, channels are talking about BJP making inroads in the state.”

     

    Another media expert said, “TMC’s result isn’t entirely unexpected. The major surprise is BJP coming up in West Bengal. The opposition vote has got divided.” Talking about the way Bengali news channels covered election result day, he said, “Panellists in local Bengali channels are mostly junior and unimportant leaders of parties.”

      

    While economist and political analyst, Swaraj Mukherjee questioned, “Kolkata is an island of its own. Trends in the rest of the country never touched this island in the past nor do they today. So TMC wins. The big number is because of big rigging, though TMC will always deny but who can deny the audio-visual documents?”

     

    “People are quiet. They would have rejoiced if the BJP would have got a few more seats in line with the rest of the country. They cannot react so openly for fear of personal security. None the less, the victory of Sudip Bandopadhyay and Dinesh Trivedi augur well as they are liked by the people in their constituencies,” Mukherjee said, adding, “News channels are covering the news but slanted for fear of government action.”

     

    A third expert rued, “It seems most of the channels have forgotten that this is a national election and not a Panchayat poll where they can have an overdose of local politics.”

     

    Whereas Focus Bangla (earlier Ne Bangla) editor-in-chief Biswa Majumdar said that the channel had interviewed most of the big shots in these elections as elections were an important occasion for making a mark in the regional news space.

  • Mission TARA: Mamata Banerjee assures Rs 50 lakh

    Mission TARA: Mamata Banerjee assures Rs 50 lakh

    After witnessing hard times for quite some time, TARA (Television Aimed at Regional Audiences) can now breathe a sigh of relief.

     

    And guess who has come to its rescue? It’s none other than our every own didi. Yes, the West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has taken a resolution to revive TARA Newz and Muzik, the only two surviving channels of the redundant Saradha Group’s media business, that were shut down after the expose of the chit fund fraud.

     

    Under the rescue mission, the first proposition which was floored was to take over the channels; then came the proposal of payment of Rs 16,000 to each and every employee in the form of ex-gratia and now finally, there is an assurance of monthly commercial of around Rs 50 lakh.

     

    “Mamata Banerjee has asked the state finance minister Amit Mitra to propose ways to revive the channels. And after various brainstorming sessions, it was decided that the state’s public sector units (PSUs) like West Bengal Electronics Industry Development Corporation Limited, West Bengal Financial Corporation among other state government undertakings will give monthly commercials worth  Rs 50 lakh so that TARA as a brand can stay alive,” says a highly confidential government source.

     

    He adds, “West Bengal Financial Corporation may release a payment of Rs 1.5 lakh to two lakh for the month of September. The channel must have got the amount by now.”

     

    After the Saradha Groups’ chit fund went bust, the employees of Broadcast Worldwide which runs Tara Newz and Tara Muzik formed an association called Tara TV Employees Welfare Association in April this year with an aim to keep the channels on the air on their own. Nag was made the secretary of the association, and was entrusted with the responsibility of running the two channels by the Calcutta High Court.

     

    When Tara Newz chief reporter Dipankar Nag was contacted to confirm the same, he denied any news of receiving any commercial order. However, he was quick to add, “We have 100 per cent faith in the CM and she will do something, so that the first 24×7 Bengali news channel can exist.”

     

    The senior general manager-administration and finance and the president of the employees’ association Indrajit Roy informs that the state government has given an ex-gratia payment of Rs16, 000 each to the 168 employees of the two channels till August 2013. However, about the assurance of advertisement, he like Nag informed that they have not received any such commitment through email or in writing. “Although, we have met Amit Mitra and other state officials and discussed on the commercial, no formal receipt about the release order has been received.”

     

    If one remembers, the initial plan of the CM was to take over the TV channels which reaches out to Bengali-speaking people across the world and is owned by the Saradha group which did not materalise because as per the present laws it is illegal for a government entity to own or run a television channel, informs the media expert.

     

    He recounts, “Ms Banerjee had decided to run the channels following an appeal by 168 employees of the two channels who were without a job as the channels had shut shop after the Saradha meltdown.”

     

    Hence, this does make one wonder if the CM has more than a general interest in saving the two channels?

  • Tara Newz looks for survival strategies

    Tara Newz looks for survival strategies

    KOLKATA: TARA (Television Aimed at Regional Audiences) Newz, one of the surviving TV channels of the redundant Saradha Group’s media business apart from Tara Muzik, plans to introduce a sponsored slot for sports news sooner to keep the show running, after witnessing hard times few months ago.

     

    “It is a new concept and still is in the planning stage. We are looking at a daily slot of 15 minutes-30 minutes,” says Tara Newz chief reporter Dipankar Nag, speaking exclusively to indiantelevision.com on Monday.

     

    Nag did not mention by when the viewers can watch and enlighten themselves with developments in the sports world.

     

    A Kolkata-based media professional praised the new initiative taken by Tara TV saying that the sports capsule could do well, but long term sustainability is what should be borne in mind. “Tara Newz must look at marketing it nationally,” he says, on the conditions of anonymity.

     

    It is learnt that the company has roped in investments from Kolkata based institutions, which are eager to help the Tara brand in its revival strategy initiative.

     

    The rebirth of the first 24×7 Bengali news channel and music channel-Tara Newz and Tara Muzik respectively deserve special mention.

     

    Many media ventures of the Kolkata headquartered Saradha Group like Sakalbela, The Bengal Post, Azad Hind, Prabhat Varta and the Seven Sisters Post among others closed down after its chit fund went bust.

     

    But the employees of Broadcast Worldwide Limited (BWW) which runs Tara Newz and Tara Muzik, after getting the closure notice from Saradha group, formed an association called ‘Tara TV Employees Welfare Association’ on 16 April 2013, with an aim to keep the channels on air on their own.

     

    “Only two channels of Saradha group could survive. The whole of the city woke up and the fight was not to keep the channels on air, but it was a movement to preserve Bengali culture,” remembers a retired state government official.

     

    TARA reaches out not only to Bengalis in West Bengal and Bangladesh, but to all Bengali speaking people of the world, further elaborates Nag.

     

    Nag, who is the secretary of the Tara TV Employees’ Welfare Association, and who has been entrusted with the responsibility of running the two channels by the Calcutta High Court said that the state government has been giving an ex-gratia payment of Rs16,000 each to the 168 employee of the two channels since the past three months from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. “We get the salary payment by the 28th or 29th of the respective month,” he says.

     

    The two Bengali channels were bought by the Saradha Group in the year 2011 but the licence continued to be in the name of the old owner, says Nag.

     

    Nag clarifies that the state government was planning to take over the management of the channels only; there was no eagerness to buy them.

     

    “The state government provided Rs 26 lakh from the CM’s relief fund to run the channels. The government shall not take the liability of the channels which accounts for nearly Rs 6 crore,” confirms Nag.

     

    The employees, knowing that the channels cannot hope to survive on government dole alone, have been trying to bring in advertising revenues, it is learnt.

     

    “We are in almost the same position from where we started our struggle. Only I can say, we, the employees are still fighting to survive with the hope and support of our chief minister Mamata Banerjee,” says Employees’ Association senior general manager-admin and finance and president Indrajit Roy.

     

    Nag adds that “Many financers have shown interest to pump in money.”

     

    If they manage to convert that interest into action, Tara could well once again rise like the evening star.