Mumbai: It is a common belief that marriages are made in heaven which we solemnize during our existence; however there is a stark difference between dreams and reality! STAR Pravah, Maharashtra?s No 1 General Entertainment Channel brings alive this thought through its newest fiction ?Devyani?. The show launches on March 19th, Monday - Saturday at 8.30 pm replacing Bandh Reshmanche.

?Devyani? is the story of a young girl whose life witnesses a sea change as she enters the wedlock with her obsessive and uncouth lover Sangram Vikhe Patil. While Devyani is a simple girl who believes in her father?s principles, Sangram is a complete opposite who never follows rules in his life and is his own master. The show changes course when Sangram falls head over heels with Devyani and is hell bent on winning her while Devyani?s marriage has been arranged with Dr Namit. The show introduces Shivani Surve and Sangram in lead roles, while the versatile Nagesh Bhonsale makes his come back to Marathi GEC space. Nagesh Bhonsale will be seen playing the head of Vikhe Patil family, father of Sangram. Known for his stellar performances in the past, Nagesh is bound to enthrall the audiences in a never seen before avatar this time around.

Shrabani Deodhar, Head of Programming, STAR Pravah, says" Devyani is a simple story of a girl whose life undergoes a huge transformation once she enters the phase of marriage. We are sure the audiences would establish a connect with Devyani and her will to overcome all difficulties."

The show is produced by Anuj Saxena?s Maverick Productions in association with Swapna Waghmare Joshi and Sanjay Memane. After a successful stint in the South, Anuj Saxena now enters the Marathi GEC Space with Devyani.

Commenting on the show, Yogesh Manwani, VP Marketing says," STAR Pravah?s constant efforts have been to depict various shades of human relationships in a different light. With Devyani, we touch upon the unbreakable bond of marriage. We hope our viewers will show a positive response to Devyani as they have been towards other fiction and nonfiction offerings."

As a part of the unique marketing initiative, STAR Pravah?s Mumbai and Pune viewers will get an exclusive opportunity to interact with the cast of Devyani. A special ?Haldi Kunku? activity will be organized across 50 societies that have been identified across Mumbai and Pune.

Mumbai: CNBC-TV18 will offer a comprehensive lineup of dedicated programming on the budget day led by its editorial team and a stellar panel of global and Indian voices from markets, policy and India Inc. CNBC-TV18 has launched a special line-up of initiatives analyzing the challenges and opportunities facing the Finance Minister this year and will also air views and expectations of stakeholders across the country.

On the morning of March 16, 2012, CNBC-TV18 shall initiate Budget day with an exclusive Budget Breakfast at 7 am. Following that, CNBC-TV18 Managing Editor, Udayan Mukherjee will present Budget Day: Morning Call, at 8 am. Post the show, CNBC-TV18 will telecast LIVE and uninterrupted coverage of the FM?s Budget Speech from 11 am-12:30 pm. During the speech, CNBC-TV18 will focus on the minute details and impact of budgetary proposals, as they are presented in the parliament, through razor sharp on-air graphics. This will be done by a battery of experts who will be analyzing the measures announced and its ramifications on the Indian economy. The channel will present exclusive and comprehensive LIVE budget coverage through the day from multiple locations. It will showcase reactions from corporate India, government voices, market experts and leading thinkers in The Market Verdict & The Corporate Verdict. This will be followed by the Final Trade, the definitive markets ending show on Budget 2012?s impact. In primetime evening, CNBC-TV18 will present a budget special of its primetime show, India Business Hour ? Budget Special, which will round up the day?s coverage and provide a comprehensive review of the national reaction to Budget 2012.

Speaking on the Budget Programming special, Mr. Anil Uniyal, CEO, CNBC-TV18 said, ?Considering the context that this budget has for the govt. and our nation, it is all the more crucial as it can impact the near future of the Indian economy. Therefore the channels approached Budget 2012 with a theme that epitomized the expectant atmosphere prevalent and looked to answer the big question, ?Will Budget 2012 lead to bounceback or breakdown?? As in earlier years, on Budget day, CNBC-TV18 will present exclusive and comprehensive budget coverage through the day and from multiple locations, showcasing reactions from the leading names in India Inc. and policy making, the nation?s biggest market experts and fund managers, tax specialists and views of India?s flagship industry bodies. Thus, ensuring we can give the most comprehensive views and analysis to the various stakeholders be it the CEOs, the SMEs, the professionals or the common man.?

On March 17th, day after the budget, CNBC-TV18 will host an exclusive star-studded ground event called The Verdict, which will present the definitive and decisive analysis of Budget 2012 from the corporate and personal finance perspective. Led by CNBC-TV18?s Senthil Chengalvarayan, The Verdict will include leading names from markets, policy and corporate India.

CNBC-TV18 will also engage viewers through a variety of new media platforms, delivering its power packed Budget day content. On the online front, this will include LIVE STREAMING on the Budget day programming on Moneycontrol.com as well as You Tube, an exclusive alliance with the global online major (www.youtube.com/cnbctv18), special budget initiatives on LinkedIn.com and Facebook.com including polls and contests.

On mobile, CNBC-TV18 will be delivering a host of power packed content on the mobile through the 51818 platform, focusing strongly on adding value to the viewer experience and building interactivity on the day of India?s most important economic event. From BUDGET NEWS ALERTS (SMS ALERT TO 51818) to PROGRAMMING UPDATES (SMS BUD to 51818), from MARKET REACTIONS to LIVE TV (SMS MOM to 51818), the channels will provide the best on budget day, to investors and consumers, on the move.

In the past month, CNBC-TV18 has initiated a comprehensive programming plan for Budget 2011. These initiatives included editorial shows, ground events, on-air segments and vignettes and other special initiatives. From capturing the expectations of the markets and investors to India Inc.?s voices, from the voices of young India to the average tax payer, the channels focused on multiple perspectives within the larger theme of ?Will Budget 2011 make the Impact India Needs?. This programming plan was supported through a multiplatform marketing campaign, ranging from television to outdoor, radio, print, social media, mobile and direct marketing targeting both viewers as well as the marketing trade community.

Mumbai: With the culmination of the recently held 5 State Assembly Elections, TIMES NOW, India?s No.1 English news channel triumphed as the undisputed leader with MANDATE 2012 ? a contemporary analysis and in-depth coverage of the 5 state elections. As the results were guessed, debated and contemplated throughout the nation, viewers chose TIMES NOW?s comprehensive analysis along with its unmatched panel of experts.

According to the recent Television Audience Measurement (TAM) data, TIMES NOW garnered channel share of 37% whereas CNN IBN & NDTV 24x7 garnered 24% and 22% respectively. TIMES NOW further garnered a whopping 47% of channel share during prime time (1900 ? 2300) on Election Counting Day. (Source: TAM |Market: 6 Metros| TG: CS M 25+ AB| Period: 6th Mar ?12| Day part: 24 hours)

For the crucial developments that captured the attention of the entire nation, TIMES NOW created election specific programming with special shows like Political Juice, Game Changers, Punch Counter Punch, Poll Track and Newshour ? Special Edition. The advanced mathematical tools that dug into the numbers brought out the characteristics of the election analysis for today?s generation.

Commenting on Mandate 2012 which he presented along with TIMES NOW?s Political Editor Navika Kumar, Arnab Goswami, Editor-in-chief TIMES NOW said, ?The viewer has made his choice. The Eighties format of broadcasting elections is now a thing of the past. Elections have been de-jargonized and made more understandable. Millions of Indians related much better to the TIMES NOW style of election coverage.?

The unparalleled election analysis comprised top political analysts like ? Vinod Mehta, Lord Meghnad Desai, Sankarshan Thakur, R. Rajagopalan, Ashok Malik, Kumar Ketkar, Manisha Priyam Sahay, Arati Jerath, Hartosh Singh Bal, S.P. Singh, Wasbir Hussain, Neelabh Mishra, Shesh Narain Singh, Neerja Chowdhury and Jai Mrug.

TIMES NOW reinforced its popularity as the most watched English News Channel by being the undeniable choice of the viewers as the favourite channel at each and every stage of these elections.

MUMBAI: Prime Focus Technologies (PFT), the global Digital Content Specialist, has entered into a strategic alliance with South African ISP giant LaserNet. The agreement will see LaserNet bringing PFT.s CLEAR. unified content operations platform and supporting services to its substantial Media & Entertainment sector clientbase in the region.

This alliance reflects a synergy between PFT.s technological innovation and content operations expertise, and LaserNet.s established client relationships and network infrastructure. The merging of these complementary strengths will accelerate the already growing pace of digital transformation in the South African marketplace.

PFT.s CLEAR platform will allow content owners in South Africa to add new revenue streams, drive efficiencies, reduce cost and exploit content by enabling them to migrate to file-based workflows and capitalize effectively on new multi-platform opportunities.

With the dynamic combination of PFT?s technology and experience and LaserNet.s strong local foothold and infrastructure, the strategic alliance will result in new growth and development opportunities for the media and entertainment industry in South Africa.

MUMBAI: FoodFood, the food specialty channel, is launching a new show this year lifestyle and entertainment channel FoodFood recently launched the show ?CEO Brunch?. The show will be aired every Sunday at 12.30 pm on the channel FoodFood.

The show is hosted and produced by Deepti Bhatnagar and focuses on famous CEOs of prominent Indian and MNC corporates exploring their life through the lens of food, peppered with anecdotes and a journey down memory lane. The CEOs will be also be seen cooking along with charming host Deepti Bhatnagar. There is even a surprise element in the show where the CEO meets the people who made food special in their lives.

FoodFood channel promoter Sanjeev Kapoor said "With the launch of every new show on Food Food we aim to bring different food concepts alive for our viewers. In line with our promise of innovative and interesting 360 degree food entertainment CEO Brunch unveils the softer side of these formidable business moguls with food stories from their college days, their favourite hangouts, their love for cooking and eating etc."

MUMBAI: Tata Housing associates has teamed up with short film ?Kuch Spice to Make it Meetha? which stars Purab Kohli as the lead actor to endorse its Innora Park project in Pune. The movie has been launched through digital medium on Youtube.

The film also features Nauheed Cyrusi, Mansheel Gujral, Mustafa Hussain and is directed by Adeeb Rais and was recently released on 29 February and has already garnered over 9 Lakh views on You Tube.

The key objective of exploring this creative channel is because housing is an integral part of the storyline and this is the first time the housing company has tried a media initiative like this one.

Tata Housing marketing head Rajeeb Dash said, "In-film promotion has helped us to generate leads from our target group, of which 20-25 per cent come to know of us through internet which is a huge number. Hence, we decided to integrate our project with the film. Internet and social media has a real-time element and a wide reach. So it provides the right framework and environment and a culture that allows the message to spread in a viral and faster pattern."

Tata Housing is active on all social media forums, which helps consumers to directly interact with the project and give their feedback.