MUMBAI: A t?te-?-t?te with the hottest Bollywood celebrity of the season with the chirpy and vivacious Tarana Raja is Zee Cinema?s cool new offering to the viewers. The show ?Buzz of the week? will feature the most?wanted filmstars in an exclusive chat, sharing the behind-the-scenes secrets of their soon-to-be released movies, every Thursday at 8 p.m. What?s more!!!! In her charming andaz, Tarana would extract the juiciest and most interesting gossips about theses stars - their movies and personal lives.

Mohan Gopinath, Business Head, Zee Cinema said, ?With Bollywood entertainment going beyond movies alone, ?Buzz of the week? makes interesting content, with the stars talking about their personal experiences directly to the viewers. Going forward, we would also like to incorporate a high viewer?interactivity in the show wherein the ultimate desire of a movie fan - to meet their favorite Superstars, would come alive. Tarana Raja is a well known RJ & host and we are extremely confident that she would create a sizzling chemistry with the actors and viewers.?

The episode on Feb 11th will feature one of the most talented filmmakers of the country ? Karan Johar along with the beautiful actor Kajol talking about their decade long association and friendship.

Stay tuned for ?Buzz of the week?, every Thursday, 8p.m only on Zee Cinema.

MUMBAI: At the Kerala State Television Awards 2008,announced by Mr M.A.Baby,Minister of Education & Culture ,Amrita TV got 11 Awards: the maximum number of Awards among all Malayalam channels

The honours for Amrita TV was bestowed for three of its programmes telecast during 2008 viz the serial based on the classic novel, "Aranazhika Neram"; the pathbreaking reality show,"Best Citizen Journalist"; and entertainment serial,"The Officer"

"Aranazhika Neram" bagged 9 Awards for being the Best in the following categories:
Teleserial;Director;Scriptwriter;Actor;Actress;Supporting Actor;Dubbing Artist(Female);Music Director;and Art Director

The Award for the Best TV Show(Current Affairs) was given to the first citizen journalist reality show in Malayalam,"Best Citizen Journalist"

The Special Jury Award for Best Actor in the Teleserial category was bagged by "The Officer"

Amrita TV is the only channel in India to have won 40 State Awards for Excellence in Television in just four years since inception.
 

MUMBAI: Times Now, the country?s most watched general English news channel completes four glorious years since its launch in 2006. The channel?s emphasis on thorough reporting and incessant questioning has heralded it as the undisputed ?Number One? for two years and counting.

The channel has firmly set itself on the growth trajectory leaving competition far behind emerging as the Indian viewer?s number 1 choice for English news. Indian viewers have chosen Times Now for its incisive and ?in your face? journalism that has cut through the information clutter to deliver news as is, unadulterated and pure.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Sandeep Sharma, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales, at TGBCL, said, ?Since inception, we have strived to always be with the news and deliver the same to our viewers in an insightful manner. The focus on news, responsible and unbiased reporting backed by strong marketing support has led to this feat. We will strive to see Times Now maintain this leadership position in the years to come and our commitment to deliver relevant news will continue throughout.?

NEW DELHI : Veteran actress Zohra Segal who was named for the Padma Vibhushan last week and actress and former swimming champion Nafisa Ali Sodhi were among the recipients of the Kalpana Chawla Excellence Awards this year.

The awards are given away every year to coincide with the death anniversary of India?s space woman Kalpana Chawla, and have been instituted by PECOBA, which is the alumni association of the Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, where she had had her initial training before going to join the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States.

Among the other women achievers who received this award were Padma Bhushan awardee and Kathak dancer Uma Sharma, and Padmashree recipient and veteran singer Shanti Hiranand.

The awards were given away by Kalpana?s father Banarsi Lal Chawla at a function presided over by National Commission for Women Chairperson Girija Vyas.

Segal, now 98, has been acting on stage, TV & Films for the last 75 years. Her award was received by her daughter and Padmashree awardee Kiran Segal.

Vyas said Kalpana is now a popular role model for the youth of India. Banarsi Lal Chawla narrated many personal incidents about his daughter and her love for greenery and environment protection.

Mr Amarjit Singh Kohli, General Secretary of PECOBA founded by him in 1967, also spoke on the occasion.

The Function was followed by a unique audio-visual musical programme on the life of Kalpana Chawla entitled ?Kalpana Ki Udan, Naari Ka Samman? produced by cultural organization Sakha and directed by Kohli.

Sodhi had begun her film career with the National Award-winning ?Junoon?(1979) with Shashi Kapoor. Hiranand started singing from Radio Lahore at the age of 14 and continues to sing till date for the last 63 years. She wrote a book on her guru and mentor ?Begum Akhtar ?The story of my Ammi?. Begum Akhtar announced publically in a concert ?If you want to hear my music after my death, hear it through Shanti?s singing?. Uma Sharma is Director of the Bharatiya Sangeet Sadan. Revolutionised Repertoire of classical form of Kathak by enriching it with literacy and intellectual substance through her extensive research on the origins of Kathak.
 

MUMBAI: Known for her bold business moves, Sulajja Firodia Motwani, Managing Director of Kinetic Motor Company Ltd, has announced plans to co-produce along with India‘s leading business channel, Zee Business, and also host a 13 part special TV show series - ?Legends and Legacies".

Sulajja‘s excellence has not been limited to academics and corporate world only. She excelled in Badminton at the national level, runs the marathon and has recently walked the ramp towards a social cause.

Legends and Legacies, a landmark concept on Indian business television, will have Sulajja in conversation with India‘s business czars like N.R.Narayana Murthy, Rahul Bajaj, Adi Godrej, Harsh Mariwala, Navin Jindal and the likes. Their discussions would focus on the value systems of these businesses and their success secrets, and would bring out the journey of these legendary business houses alongwith the contribution they have made to the progress of our country, and in a way helped shape its future.

Each episode will unravel the legacies of these icons in a face to face interview capturing truly the foundation that has made the business families the iconic towers today.

Commenting about her new role, Sulajja Firodia Motwani said, "This is a pet project for me. I am deeply passionate about India and about business, and the effort here is to bring out the great contribution and archive the triumphs of legendary business houses of India. A strong value system has been the guiding principles of our family‘s approach to business. Infact, the genesis of the Firodia family‘s entry into business was an objective to make millions of Indians mobile and bring self reliance in our auto industry. I was always intrigued to explore what are those values that had shaped the fortune of other leading Indian corporate houses. It is a rare experience to engage in discussions with such personalities and not only to learn from them their untold journeys, but also to chart out their success stories to inspire other aspiring business-creators. "

Launching the series, Barun Das, CEO, Zee News Limited, "‘Legends and Legacies‘ would possibly be the first business show in our country focusing on corporate value systems. To my mind, the value systems and ethics have been the foundation of every corporate success story. Sulajja came up with questions which possibly an entrepreneur of her stature could only thought of. It is not like a usual television chat-show. Rather it is an interaction between two brilliant business minds. Each episode will be a story of how an institution has been built over the years, pursuing certain strong value systems and thus shaped the making of India Inc."

Hosted and co-produced by the dynamic Sulajja Firodia Motwani, scion of an illustrious Indian business family, the special series (beginning, January 30, ever Saturday at 9:00pm in Hindi and Sunday 10:00am in English), will
showcase the stories of legendary leaders and the businesses they built.
 

MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel, Asia?s leading integrated telecom service provider, today announced the launch of India?s first ever Family Tunes service for its 2.9 million Fixed Line customers across the country.

Airtel?s Family Tunes will provide its Fixed Line customers another Call Management service by offering a pre-recorded Welcome Message customized to the customer?s individual Family Name to greet callers instead of the conventional tone. A library of more than 1000 most common Indian Family Names will be available for customers to choose from.

Announcing this, Mr. Vikas Singh, Chief Marketing Officer?Telemedia Services, Bharti Airtel said, ?For most homes today in the country, the Fixed Line remains irreplaceable as the family phone, distinct from the personal mobile phones of each member of the family. Having a Welcome Message customized with their own Family Name will help our customers to enhance the calling experience and make the most of their home phone.?

Airtel Fixed Line customers may access the Family Tunes by dialing 5432151 on their Airtel Fixed Line. Customers will be charged a one-time Download Fee of Rs. 15 for a Family Tune and a recurring Monthly Hello Tune Subscription fee Service Fee of Rs. 30 per month, which would be added to the customer?s monthly bill.