MUMBAI: UTV Action, India‘s ultimate action channel will hold a special preview of ‘Legion‘, on 3rd March 2010, in partnership with Sony Pictures.

UTV Action offers the perfect platform to promote Action content in Hindi and ‘Legion‘ is touted to be one of the biggest movies from Sony Pictures in 2010. this makes way for a natural association between UTV Action and Sony Pictures who have thus come together to promote ‘Legion‘ to audiences across India. UTV Action is the exclusive Movie channel partner and will be showcasing exclusive content on the channel pre-launch of the movie.

Post Rock Climbing and Sky Diving, UTV Action now takes a leap forward, partnering Sony Pictures to offer associates a first hand preview of ‘Legion‘. This is another extension of the channel on ground brining action to its audiences and associates.

The Preview will be held on 3rd March, wherein they would get to witness; an out-of-the-way diner becoming the unlikely battleground for the survival of the human race. When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity‘s only hope lies in a group of strangers, trapped in a desert diner with the Archangel Michael.

UTV Action, launched in January this year is the first Indian channel dedicated to the action genre.

Sameer Ganapathy, Channel Head comments "We at UTV Action are always looking for opportunities to create avenues for our audiences and clients to experience Action firsthand. The preview is another extension of our brand promise. As UTV Action is the ideal platform to promote Hollywood action titles to Indian audiences we shall be partnering with the best of Action films through the year during their theatrical release."

MUMBAI: After a successful completion of Season I of its travel show ‘Inside Luxury Travel‘ ET NOW, the 24-hr English business news channel brings to its viewers luxurious destinations in the new Season of the show. In this series, the show takes the viewers through the exotic travel destinations of South Africa - Western Cape, Canada, Ireland, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Thailand and many more.

This week Varun Sharma, anchor of the show, travels to the Western Cape of South Africa to explore the exhilarating locations of the city. He begins his journey from the distinctive and sophisticated La Residence set in the lush Franschhoek Valley and takes you around the spectacular Maharani Suite with views to the vineyards from its stunning bathroom.

He then takes you through the wine estates, chocolate & cheese shops; an ostrich farm where he discusses the history of the big bird and finally to a super-luxury 10-berth yacht to take in the vistas of Cape Town from the ocean. As he moves further to the Thunder City, Varun Sharma takes you for a flight over land and sea in a Buccaneer Jet.

To catch all this & travel to more exciting, vibrant, picturesque & extravagant holiday destinations around the world tune in to ET NOW on 13th November at 9.30pm and 14th November at 3pm & 11pm.
 

MUMBAI: India?s channel of impact and Bajaj Allianz, India‘s leading private insurance company today, announced the second edition of ?Super Idols? Award. The unique initiative will honor 13 icons who have achieved success despite many hurdles, bringing immense pride to the nation. The initiative is aimed at highlighting the human spirit and the untiring zeal to overcome any obstacle. The award ceremony will be held on 29th Nov ?10 in Mumbai.

The award adheres to a unique process of selection where the Network18 Editorial Board, drawn from the editorial masterminds of CNN-IBN, IBN7 and IBN-Lokmat, deliberate to finalize 13 icons, keeping in mind their sterling contribution to humanity. ?Super Idols? will be conferred across spheres like Art, Culture & Entertainment, Business and Self Achievers, Education, Idol-maker (Abled), National Service & Rehabilitation, Sports, and Lifetime Achievement. The success story of these Super Idols will be showcased on IBN7 in a special ? hour episodic series being telecast on every Sunday at 10:30 pm starting from 14th November till 28th November ?10 with a repeat telecast on every Monday at 4:30 pm.

The Super Idols being awarded in different categories are as follows:

Art, Culture and Entertainment

? Manji Bhai L Ramani: Lost both his arms in an accident, but he never lost hope and has been involved in mouth painting since 1978.

? Vinod Thakur: Born without legs as a result of a birth defect, Vinod learnt dancing on his own by copying the moves of professional dancers in dance videos. He participated in India?s Got Talent where he danced on his hands to the sheer astonishment of the entire nation.

Business and Self Achievers

? Kamlesh Shah: A Chartered Accountant by profession, Kamlesh?s life is an inspiring tale. Despite all his limbs becoming dysfunctional, he decided to fight for his existence and determined to make a mark in his professional life.

? Samuel Mani: Affected with Cerebral Palsy, Samuel who uses the wheelchair for his mobility is the first person in India to be appointed as Microsoft Authorized Refurbisher (MAR).

Education

? Madhu Singhal: A visually impaired woman of substance, Madhu is the proud Managing Trustee / Founder of Mitra Jyothi, a charitable trust that works with the objective of integrating people with special abilities into mainstream society.

? Avinash Kumar Tiwari: A polio patient since childhood, Avinash devoted his life for specially-abled people by opening a school for them.

Idol-maker (Abled)

? Dr. Mithu Alur: For over 36 years Dr. Mithu Alur has been working relentlessly in the realm of education, healthcare and employment for women and children; leading to social change, legislation and social policy. Dr Alur is a researcher, academician and activist having authored many books.

? Dr. Usha Punjabi: Dr. Usha Punjabi whose husband is hearing impaired, runs ?Mook Badhir Sangathan?, that provides security and opportunity to many illiterate and unemployed hearing impaired individuals.

National Service & Rehabilitation

? Dipendra Manocha: Despite being visually impaired, Dipendra developed a Hindi screen reading software SAFA meant for visually impaired people

? Madhukar Vishwanath Shirdhonkar: Became the first visually impaired physiotherapist, helping many visually impaired people through several associations and federations that he founded for the rehabilitation and empowerment of these individuals.

Sports

? Prasanta Karmakar: An accident caused Prasanta to lose his right arm during his early childhood, but this did not deter the innate fighter from taking up his recreational sport ? swimming as a career. He won a bronze medal at the Common Wealth Games 50 meter freestyle Para swimming.

? Binod Kumar: 20-year-old Binod Kumar from Kolkata does not possess arms from the shoulder since birth, but despite this problem, Binod went onto become a national level swimming champion having won various accolades for the same.

Lifetime Achievement

? Sanjana Goyal: A victim of Muscular Dystrophy, Sanjana is working to ameliorate various Muscular Dystrophy (MD) patients across India. She is the founder President of the Indian Association of Muscular Dystrophy (IAMD) based in Solan, Himanchal Pradesh.

Speaking about this initiative, Ashutosh, Managing Editor, IBN7 said, ?It gives us immense pleasure in lauding these Super Idols who reinforce the word ?Hope? and set a bench mark for others to follow. Through this platform we wish to pay gratitude for the outstanding and beyond belief work that has been undertaken by them.?

Enumerating on these awards, Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief, CNN-IBN, IBN7 & IBN Lokmat, aptly remarked, ?To become successful one doesn?t necessarily need physical ability, what one needs is ample courage ? a quality redefined by these heroic achievers. It is commendable the way these idealistic individuals have been able to overcome all obstacles by adopting an equitable mix of spirit and effort to earn acceptance and success.?
 

MUMBAI: Star Plus bids a colourful farewell to one of its most successful prime time telly drama- Sapna Babul Ka Bidaai with the two hour long finale Maha-episode this Saturday, November 13th at 7 pm. Adorning the Star Plus bouquet since Oct 2007, the show has sent the TRP charts soaring and has remained one of the most watched Hindi shows on Indian television and continues its slot leadership in its recent week with a 4.7 TVR (TAM Ratings, Week 44 of 2010).

This story of two sisters, Sadhna and Ragini, captured the imaginations of the Indian viewers who grew with these sisters, celebrated in their happiness and grieved in their sorrows. The characters played Sara Khan (Sadhna), Parul Chauhan (Ragini), Angad Hasija (Alekh), Ranveer (Kinshuk Mahajan), Alok Nath (Mamaji), Vibha Chibbar (Kaushalyaji), Apoorva Agnihotri (Anmol), Ashita Dhawan (Malti), Amardeep Jha (Sumitra), Naveen Saini(Vineet) became members of every Indian household. The show had some memorable moments like the romantic union of Ranveer and Ragini at Taj Mahotsav, the sisters clash at Natraj Mahatosav and the unforgettable Ragini-Ranveer wedding that fetched an average of 8.9 TVR, the highest that any Hindi GEC shows fetched in previous 100 weeks prior to week 2 of 2010. The most tragic turning point of the story, Sadhana‘s death, came as a shock to the fans, making it almost impossible for them to get used to the idea of Sadhna not there in their lives. Despite that, the show never failed to attract its viewers to tune in at 9 pm, day after day, week after week making it the staple diet of every television buff in the country.

As the show inches towards its climax this November 13, watch if the soul mates reunite on the show. Watch if misunderstandings stand a chance when faced with true love. What‘s in store for Ragini, Anmol, Alekh and Sakshi? Find out all this on the final episode of the show. Also Star Plus‘ most loved characters - Suhana & Ishaan (Sausral Genda Phool), Priya & Aditya (Maryaada) and many more will put together a special performance on this finale episode.

MILESTONES ACHIEVED BY BIDAAI
Star Plus bids farewell to its most successful telly drama ‘Sapna Babul Ka Bidaai‘
8th October, 2007 - Bidaai Launches at 4.6 TVR. The show replaced Meri Awaaz Ko Mil Gayi Roshni which was rating 2.9TVR in its closing week. Bidaai was indeed a big boost for the slot.

December 2007 - The show went up another notch when the ratings touched 5.4TVR. This began from the episode where Ragini broke her marriage (her in-laws rejected her at the mandap because she was dark complexioned in comparison to her sister)
March 2008 - Bidaai reached a new high when Sadhana and Alekh‘s wedding took place in the show this month. The show touched a 6 TVR rating.

October 2008 - The show only climbed higher with the Taj Mahotsav event. Hema Malini participated in the Taj mahotsav with the sisters. The episode rated 8.8TVR which was the highest rating for a show on Hindi GEC in more than 500 days at that time)
October 2008 - January 2009 - Bidaai maintained the ratings with one hour episodes (between 9pm to 10pm).

January 2009 - Bidaai soared higher with Ragini Ranveer‘s wedding rating 9.6TVR!
Other facts you should know about Bidaai The show has been a slot leader for the longest time This has been the first show to beat Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi to the No.1 position in its early days The channel took a risk of knocking off the characters of Sadhana and Ranveer who were the life and blood of the show but still maintained the ratings. This only proved that people watched the show for the love of the story and not just the characters This show launched the careers of Parul, Kinshuk, Sara, Angad, Ashita and even Rajan Shahi. This show was also a great comeback for Alok Nath and Vibha Chibber.

MUMBAI: Primesite (Out-Of-Home Solutions), a Strategic Business Unit of Mudra Max has once again proved their capabilities in thinking and delivering effective OOH solutions for their client Reebok. To create excitement and a ‘wow‘ factor among the target audience, Primesite has innovatively promoted ?Reezig?, an international sports brand, in the Indian market.

Primesite created buzz for 21 days in Delhi and Mumbai respectively. The main objective of the campaign was to use the uniqueness of the iconic ?geometric zig zag shape? of the outsole to reinforce the benefit of ZIGTECH technology. The creative reads, ?Reezig ? The energy drink for your feet?. The campaign focused on communicating the benefits of ?Reezig? shoes crafted with ZigTech technology signifying its importance of reducing the wear and tear of the leg muscles by up to 20 percent.

Since it is a global campaign, Primesite created a larger than life projection of the shoe, attracting maximum attention of passers-by and breaking clutter in the market. To do so, a shoe of 16 X8 feet was created which was placed in 3 strategic locations in Delhi. Primesite exclusively emphasised this campaign through billboards, pole kiosks, translites, runner boards and bus shelters. Apart from these, mall elevators and drop downs were also branded inside malls.

Commenting on the campaign, Mandeep Malhotra, President, Mudra Max OOH, said, ?Our amassed experience over years has effected in this pulsating idea. ?Bringing the product to life? was the objective and we were successful in doing so, thus allowing the end consumers to actually sense & feel the brand closely inturn translating traffic into stores?.
Sajid Shamim, Director Marketing ? Reebok said, ?The larger then life shoes bought Zigtech?s unique zig zag shape to life and created unprecedented noise and talk in the market. At Reebok we believe in being clutter breakers and Primesite has helped us achieve exactly that.?
 

MUMBAI: Dish TV and content protection provider Conax further their long-term partnership. Part of Essel Group Venture, Dish TV is India?s largest and fastest growing DTH platform - experiencing exceptional growth since launch of its DTH operations in 2004. Renowned for its unique security record, content security provider Conax has provided the platform with smart cards for 7 years. To date, Dish TV has demonstrated a significant impact on the Indian market with 8.9 million Conax smart cards.

Dish TV is market leader in the highly competitive Indian pay-TV market, both in size and scale of growth.

?Together with our long-term content protection partner Conax, Dish TV is setting DTH standard in Indian market, says Mr. Rajiv Khattar, President of Projects, Dish TV. Conax continues to provide Dish TV with seamless cooperation and the core business benefits necessary to even further develop and manage the highly successful Dish TV platform; reliability, dependability and the trustworthiness.?

In Delhi for the contract signing, Conax CEO, Berit Svendsen, said ?Dish TV is a market leader and highly innovative DTH operator. Conax is pleased to continue our long-standing partnership providing Dish TV with world-class content protection and the flexibility needed for bundling the best products and services for sustaining and growing a successful operation. Conax provides Dish TV with full operational security as well as renowned Conax fingerprinting and chipset pairing technology.?

Dish TV provides subscribers with the next level of entertainment with futuristic features, such as EPG (Electronic Programme Guide), parental lock, games, 268 channels, interactive TV and movie on demand. Conax provides the content security necessary to ensure operational success.