MUMBAI: Ogilvy Mumbai launches first ever TV commercial for Scrabble in India. The commercial was released in December of 2010.

"Infotainment is a much abused portmanteau word. Used in the context of television, it refers to programmes that provide both information and entertainment. But long before television coined this word, there was a board game that provided infotainment: Scrabble. This delightful game improves children‘s word power without ever giving them a whiff of its educational value -- making not just the children but their parents happy too," says Sumanto Chattopadhyay, Executive Creative Director South Asia. He continued, "In keeping with the genre of infotainment, the Scrabble TVC appeals to children‘s sense of mischievous fun, by showing them how knowing big words can get them out of tight spots. Of course, parents viewing the commercial would read between the lines and know that Scrabble promotes learning in a manner that children would be receptive to. They would likely be convinced to go out and purchase this winning tool with which to boost their child‘s English vocabulary, something so essential to finding one‘s way in today‘s world.

Incidentally, the word infotainment has a score of 17 in Scrabble!"

"This commercial shows that knowing big words isn‘t boring. In fact, it‘s so much fun that now a child will learn big words to use it to his advantage. And nothing excites a parent more than seeing their children learn big words on their own," said Sukesh Kumar Nayak, Senior Creative Director.

Heeral Akhaury, Senior Creative Director said "The more words you know the smarter you get and this was a great way to demonstrate it. Being a mother of 2 kids, its always been a challenge to get them to learn new words. The commercial not only did that, in the bargain I too added some new words to my vocabulary."

"The learning was that Scrabble is not a self starter game and does not feature very high among the kids favourite unlike other board games. Therefore the challenge was to position Scrabble as a fun game that also enhances your vocabulary. The TVC clearly communicates that Smart kids play Scrabble," said Ajay Mehta, Client Services Director.

"Scrabble is easily the world‘s most-popular word game, having sold more than 150 million sets in 30 languages in the last sixty years. Compared to its compatriots, Scrabble stands apart as a game that not only promotes a sense of competition and fair play, but at its core is all about "Fun with words". The fact that you get ‘smarter with words as you play more Scrabble‘, was precisely the point we make in the current TVC. We feel that this is a viewpoint that will resonate strongly among Scrabble enthusiasts across all ages throughout the country," said Rahul Bhowmik, Head - Marketing, Mattel Toys India Pvt. Ltd.

MUMBAI: Keeping the spirit of civic activism alive and building awareness about the power that a common man has, IBN18 brings to you a unique platform where the most sensational and powerful news is unearthed by none other than the common man who brings about a change in the system for a better tomorrow. To honour these courageous citizens from various walks of life who took a step ahead to bring the most credible news, IBN18 in association with IDEA Cellular presents the 3rd edition of the Citizen Journalist Awards. The award ceremony will be held on 19 January 2011 in New Delhi.

Watch the nominees? special episodes from January 8 - 23, 2011 every Saturday on CNN-IBN at 9:30 pm; IBN-Lokmat at 6:30 pm and every Sunday on IBN7 at 10: 30 pm.

The Citizen Journalist (CJ) Awards will be given in six different categories which are as follows:

? Fight Back CJ ? A category where CJ?s can fight for their rights or against any wrong they see around them
? Save Your City ? A category where the CJ?s highlight city-centric problems
? Be the Change CJ - This category witnesses participation from volunteers who experience the problem first hand and brings about a change in the system
? Fight for her Right: A special category instituted to provide a platform to the forgotten and ignored section like girl child to voice their concerns and issues
? CJ Video - This category highlights alert CJs, who have a mobile camera at their disposal and have clicked videos about the issues that affect society
? CJ Photo - The category where CJs reported a story using a picture to communicate the issue.

The award adheres to a 2-tier selection process involving The IBN18 Editorial Board that generates a list of nominees across these six categories & The Jury comprising Eminent Citizens who select the final Citizen Journalist Award winners.

Speaking about the initiative, Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief, CNN-IBN, IBN7 & IBN-Lokmat, said, ?IBN18 Network salutes the spirit of these Citizen Journalists by honoring them in the 3rd edition of Citizen Journalist Awards. It is an exceptional platform to pay a tribute to civil heroes of the society who reported fearlessly and dared to raise their voice against injustice and all odds of society for a better tomorrow.?

Speaking about the award, Ashutosh, Managing Editor, IBN7, said, ?We at IBN18 are delighted to announce this prestigious award as we believe these awards will recognize the efforts of the fearless individuals of our society. The Citizen Journalist Awards is a token of our gratitude to recognize the unparallel efforts taken by these courageous individuals.?

Enumerating about the award, Nikhil Wagle, Editor, IBN-Lokmat, said ?The Citizen Journalist is an empowering tool given to the citizens of India. It provides a platform to these daring heroes to fight for justice. It is a noteworthy initiative taken by the IBN18 Network to publicize the daring acts by bona fide champions of the society.?

MUMBAI: 3rd January: Aaj Tak, India‘s No. 1 News Channel completed a decade of successful broadcast as a 24-hour news channel on 31st December, 2010.

Aaj Tak was launched by TV Today Network as a 24-hour Hindi news channel on 31st December 2000 in line with the India Today Group‘s mission of exploring the television medium. Aaj Tak emerged as a clear trendsetter by making news a part of the average Indian‘s daily life. Aaj Tak‘s focus on accuracy and timeliness of content and its innovative presentation style have been well facilitated by the fundamental belief in "Aankhen Khol De" journalism.

Aaj Tak, started as a 20-minute daily news capsule on the terrestrial network and is making strides as a leader in the television news space in India and in several international markets like US, UK, Canada, Australia, etc. Aaj Tak has been a pioneer of technology and innovation in the news space and has won several accolades including the prestigious Indian Television Academy Award for the Best News Channel for a record 10 years in a row.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Aroon Purie, Chairman and Managing Director of TV Today commented, "It is indeed a proud moment for Aaj Tak and the entire TV Today team. This has been the decade of exponential growth for India and Aaj Tak has done extremely well to showcase the same and be part of the India growth story. Aaj Tak is one of the biggest media success stories of the decade and I am sure it will continue to set new benchmarks through innovation in news gathering and cutting edge reporting."

Mr G Krishnan, CEO and Executive Director of TV Today said - "Aaj Tak continues to dominate the news space inspite of increased competition. The channel, in addition to being a disseminator of news and information, continues to impact and empower the consumers as the most trusted and credible news brand in the country. Going forward Aaj Tak will continue to remain relevant for the consumer and available across markets, platforms and touch-points."

MUMBAI: Not one or two, but three out of the six films nominated for the Best Film Category? at the prestigious Star Screen Awards are from the UTV stable. The movies nominated in this category are Raajneeti, Udaan and Peepli [Live].

Raajneeti, the multi- starrer blockbuster of 2010, directed by Prakash Jha and co-produced by Prakash Jha, Walkwater media and UTV Motion Pictures is the 5th biggest Hindi film of all times.

Udaan, directed by Vikram Aditya Motwane, and produced by Sanjay Singh, Anurag Kashyap and UTV Motion Pictures, was a fantastic example of a small film which received overwhelming recognition worldwide. The film competed in the Un Certain Regard category at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and was first Indian film to be part of this section in seven years.

Peepli [Live] directed by Anusha Rizvi and produced by Aamir Khan Productions and UTV Motion Pictures was another critically acclaimed film and classic example of how a small film was made big. A brilliant storyline coupled with a talented folklore star cast from the locales, to aggressive marketing and phenomenal distribution got the film its due recognition and acclaim from the critics and the audiences across the globe.

?It?s a great way to start the year with three of our films nominated at one of the most prestigious awards in the country. Raajneeti, Udaan and Peepli Live are movies which have scored at the box office, and at the same time received tremendous critical acclaim. We are really proud to have backed the vision of these film makers and this recognition gives us the encouragement to continue in the same vein in the years to come,? said Siddharth Roy Kapur, CEO - Motion Pictures, UTV.
 

MUMBAI: Sit back, relax and allow yourself to be blown over. This January, Discovery Turbo brings an enthralling series, where ordinary vehicles are turned into awe-inspiring, biggest, meanest and coolest of machines - in just seven days. The premiere series, Monster Garage, follows the action as a team of five people with designing, mechanical, fabricating and modifying expertise re-assemble to modify vehicles into ?mean monster machines.?

Hosted by master builder Jesse G. James, Monster Garage will air on Discovery Turbo, every Friday at 10 pm, beginning 7th January, 2011.

Commenting on the launch of the series, Rahul Johri, senior vice president & general manager, India, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific said, ?Monster Garage is an innovative series which complements Discovery Turbo?s strong line-up of automotive, design and customisation focused programming. The series encapsulates the drama, the artistry and behind-the-scene action behind some of the most incredible vehicle overhauls.?

Jessie James is one of the premier motorcycle builders in the world who has built one-of-a-kind bikes for some very high profile customers. In each episode of Monster Garage, Jesse and his gang of maverick mechanics rip, grind and burn, transforming ordinary street vehicles into monster machines. The team gets seven days and nights to design, build and race the car. If the team is successful, they will each be awarded a Mac ToolKit valued at 3400 dollars.

The action gets bigger and better as the Monster Garage team transforms a 1990 Mustang GT five-liter convertible into the world?s fastest lawnmower. And it just doesn?t get any better when a VW Beetle gets trimmed into a bayou blastin-airboat and a 1973 death black Miller Meteor Cadillac Hearse, a collector?s dream car, gets ripped apart and overhaluled into a car-crushing, car-destroying machine.

The team has the heart and soul of the ?Modifying spirits?-- the "can do" attitude. These are the folks who keep things running and fix them when they break. Most times their jobs remain unrecognized and unheralded. MONSTER GARAGE is their time to shine.

MUMBAI: We are wired to connect. We are wired to give and receive warm fuzzies. We are starved for what psychiatrist Edward Hallowel calls a Human Moment. The human moment, he says, has begun to disappear from modern life and we all may be about to discover the destructive power of its absence. When we don?t get enough human moments, our bodies pick this up and we begin to lose a sense of wellbeing. As techno-creep advances insidiously into every area of our life, we need the antidote of face-to-face connection. Of touch, of a hug, of eye contact. And of someone paying you full attention when you are with them. When was the last time that ever happened to you?

Watch Simran Bhargava in conversation with Daniel Goleman, Psychologist from Harvard University. His recent work zeroes into exciting new areas of social neuroscience, and how our brain circuitry is designed to make us connect with others