• Subhash Chandra's ASC Enterprises gets new chief in Punit Goenka

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jan 30, 2002
    News Headline

    One more piece of the big picture that media mogul Subhash Chandra has envisioned for his group of companies has been fit into its slot. Elder son Punit Goenka, who has been groomed for the job, formally takes over as group president & CEO of ASC Enterprises Limited (ASCEL) Group of Companies effective 1 February.

    Current CEO Jai Singh, who oversaw the building of the new ASC as a holding company for multiple businesses, steps down at close of business tomorrow. Singh will continue to be on the board of Agrani Satellite Services Limited (ASSL) in an advisory role but it will be Goenka, currently senior V-P business development, who will be running things.

    Punit Goenka takes over at a time when Chandra‘s long in gestation Agrani satellite project is all set to finally kick off with, according to Singh, financial closure just weeks away. Singh sees 18 months as the lead time required for the satellite to be up and operational once closure comes through.

    Announcing the change, Chandra "expressed his regret at Jai Singh‘s decision to step down in order to return to UK to spend more time with his family, but said that he understood the need. Chandra thanked Jai Singh for his leadership role in and contributions to the building of the new and expressed satisfaction that his advice and guidance will continue to be available," an official release states.

    Jai Singh said that it had been his privilege to have worked over the last 41 months with Chandra and the ASC Team in making the new ASCEL. The new, recast ASCEL as a holding Company has given birth to three companies - Agrani Convergence Ltd, rolling out Agrani Switch technology retail stores with 12 stores already in operation; Agrani Wireless Services Ltd which, with the acquisition of four operating public mobile radio trunking services (PMRTS) companies within the group in 2001, now has India‘s largest PMRTS operations; and Agrani Satellite at the threshold of transitioning into its implementation phase.

    In addition, during this period Chandra, through Agrani Holdings (Mauritius) Limited, also partnered Craig McCaw, the US Wireless Pioneer, in New ICO.

    With top class basic teams and leadership already in place in ASC and its enterprises, which are only going to get stronger with time, Jai Singh said it was a "convenient time for him as well as ASC for him to step down in order to return to his family in the UK."

    Punit Goenka began his career in 1993 with the Essel Group, he has held various senior full-time positions in other Group Companies. Since December 1997, he has been involved in ASCEL, initially as V-P, co-ordination and operations.

    Punit Goenka takes the reins at ASCEL exactly five months after Chandra‘s younger son Amit Goenka took over as MD of Zee Interactive Learning Systems Limited on 1 September 2001. Amit Goenka took over from Uma Ganesh who resigned from ZILS, after steering the company for a few years.

     

  • SAB Chalta Hai on SABe TV

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jan 29, 2002
    News Headline

    Continuing on its strategy to stand out as a "relief channel" SABe TV is introducing new programming concepts. SAB Chalta Hai is a one-minute comedy skit enacted by Saajid Khan. It will air every half hour on a daily.

    He will tickle the funny bone by impersonating famous personalities like Osama Bin Laden, film maker Subhash Ghai, cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar and the common man. He will also mock popular issues that concern India and the world.

    A channel spokesperson said that this represents Saajid‘s comeback on the small screen. The show ties into SABe TV‘s new baseline "Come Smile With Us" introduced this month.

     

  • AXN will weave fear, fright and magic next month

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jan 29, 2002
    News Headline

    Action channel AXN is keeping the thrill seekers firmly in its sights. Ready to roll are three new series - Fear Factor, Scariest Places on Earth and David Blaine.

    A thorough screening of all episodes on the three shows has been conducted to ensure and edit any objectionable scenes which may hurt viewer sensibilities.

    Fear Factor premieres on 6 February at 9:00 PM People‘s most primal fears are pushed to the limit in a game format. In each episode three women and three men must perform challenging and life threatening stunts demanding co-ordination of mind and body. If they complete their tasks, they advance. Succumbing to fear means elimination. The contestant who wins the final challenge takes home $50,000. Stunts could include jumping from one moving train to another, climbing from a moving boat to a helicopter.

    Next in line is The Scariest Places on Earth premiering on Thursday Feb 7 at 9:00 PM The aim is to make viewers jump out of their seats with fright. Hosted by actress Linda Blair (of The Exorcist fame), the show dares brave families to spend an evening alone in legendary sites known for their hauntingly disturbing histories. One family will be challenged to stay the night at a creepy ancient monastery in Italy, where monks reportedly committed horrible deeds in the adjoining town. Another family will stay in New Orlean‘s historic Magnolia Lane plantation believed to be haunted by ghosts from the American Civil War. Strategically placed cameras capture each family‘s terrifying and very real experiences. The challenge is whether or not families have what it takes to last the night.

    On 3, 10, 17 February at 9:00 pm magician David Blaine astounds people on the street with his own brand of magic. Blaine claims to be a master of the art of illusions. He uses the art of sorcery in street corners like injecting card tricks, coin feints or levitation stunts. A highlight is David Blaine - Frozen in Time on 17 Feb at 9 pm, when Blaine performs his death-defying encapsulation in a block of ice. Defying hypothermia and proving that mind is power over matter, he braves the paralyzing cold for three days.

    Speaking on this senior marketing manager, Sony Entertainment Rohit Bhandari said: "This year is going to be an action-packed one where AXN viewers in India can expect something different and exciting every month. Fear Factor, David Blaine and Scariest Places on Earth have the right mix of action and adventure to continue our successful and popular programming formula, giving viewers in India, and region-wide, more opportunities to get the buzz from AXN."

  • SAB Chalta Hai on SABe TV

    Jan 29, 2002

    MUMBAI: Continuing on its strategy to stand out as a "relief channel" SABe TV is introducing new programming concepts

  • AXN will weave fear, fright and magic next month

    Jan 29, 2002

    MUMBAI: Action channel AXN is keeping the thrill seekers firmly in its sights.

  • Sony hopes to lock up 8:30 band with double whammy - hospital drama and tale of twins

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jan 29, 2002
    News Headline

    Sony Entertainment‘s programming strategy is clear. Keep launching new shows at regular intervals and make sure the shows are consistently different.
    The 9 to 10 pm slot is in the bag (at least that‘s what the channel claims) with the Balaji soaps Kkusum and Kutumb. And now the channel is targeting the 8:30 pm to 9 pm time band.

    The Sony team led by CEO Kunal Dasgupta was out in strength yesterday to announce the launch of two new shows. Dhadkan marks the channel‘s foray into the hospital drama genre with a real feel while Hubahu is your regular soap with the plotline revolving around twins switching identities. The former starts on 4 February and will air Monday - Wednesday at 8:30 pm while the latter premieres 7 February and will air once a week on Thursdays at the same time.

    Elaborating on the channel‘s plans, V-P programming and production Nachiket Pantvaidya said: "These shows are part of our strategy to consolidate our position in the 8:30 - 9 pm slot four nights a week Mondays to Thursdays. With Dhadkan and Hubahu we hope to add half an hour to our hold on the 9-10 pm slot which is one of our strengths."

    The channel also claimed that since October when the launch of Kutumb was announced, channel share has gone up 30 per cent. The channel also said that from now on, whenever a new show is launched it will be positioned differently from what rivals have to give. They will mix emotion with gripping edge of the seat entertainment.

    Pantvaidya said as part of new programming initiatives the channel was looking at, February would see a new show launched in the afternoon slot. In March three launches have been scheduled, all in prime time slots and all different genrewise - comedy, thriller and drama. April will see two more shows launched Pantvaidya said.

    When questioned as to why Sony was doing a hospital show when rivals already had one on air with the similar theme (Star Plus launched Sanjivani on 16 January), Dasgupta pointed out that Dhadkan was in the making for seven months. Rival channels simply wanted to beat the air time the moment they got a whiff of what Sony was up to, he said.

    DHADKAN: The marketing strategy for Dhadkan spans the media like print and outdoors. Region specific marketing has also been undertaken in Delhi and Mumbai. In Mumbai the railways have been roped in while in Delhi DTC busbacks are being used.

    Dhadkan is an effort on the part of the channel to take the experience of being in a hospital further by taking viewers right into the heart of the Operating Theatre by simulating reality, the channel avers.

    The setting is Seth Deen Dayal Hospital. When Seth who started the hospital dies his son takes over but his vision is different. He is only interested in the word profit. The show also examines the personal lives of doctors and their daily struggle to cope with job pressures. It goes beneath the deceptively calm suface and reveals the edgy atmosphere and turmoil prevailing. It has been produced by Aqua pictures and directed by Umesh Padalkar.

    Padalkar said the show took the help of six doctors. Hospital layouts were studied and design principles were taken into account when utilising the 9-10,000 square space. The Operating Theater Floor was elaborate and for this modular sets were designed probably for the first time in India. This allows walls to be added or subtracted. Even lighting could be changed. An associate director took care of the background activity. The actors underwent extensive drills on how to use instruments like a stethoscope and for scrubbing and even basic procedure like how a doctor enters the OT Theater.

    The doctors present praised the channel for taking the initiative to consult them. They were critical of the ridiculous manner in which the profession is depicted in Bollywood films and teleserials. The equipment seen on the show has apparently been procured form dealers who supply hospitals. The idea was to basically explore life in its fullest with inspiration from shows like ER and Chicago Hope.

    The main problem for Sony is that Star got some lead time with the launch of Sanjivani on 16 Jan and so no matter how authentic Sony‘s show may be, it has some catching up to do.

    HUBAHU: In contrast to the hospital drama, Hubahu is about twin sisters who are as different from each other as chalk from cheese. Sandhya Mridul plays both the roles. Aditi lives in India and her life is rather conservative. Ananya is smart, sophisticated and lives in Bangkok. The story revolves around them switching identities and the comedy and tragedy that follows.

    Speaking on this Anupama Mandloi, director on air programming, said: "The basic concept of this show is ‘If I were you‘. Two people discover that the grass is not always greener on the other side." It has been produced by E-motion Pictures. This represents the first collaboration between them and the channel. Milind Soman and Parvati Balagopalan are the producers. Milind Soman said that the concept has been done before in films like The Parent Trap and on the stage. However on the small screen there is scope to explore and play with every possible incident which leads to heightened drama.

    Whether the show can sustain audience interest for 52 episodes on an identity switch proposition remains to be seen though.

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