MUMBAI: This week on ?A Journey Like Never Before?, meet Nagesh Kukunoor, winning film maker who brought a refreshing approach to Indian cinema with his experimental films. Nagesh in a candid talk admits how the tyranny of a typical life motivated him to shift from his career as a chemical engineer in Atlanta to make off-beat Bollywood movies.

On the show, he reveals his healthy altercations with Naseeruddin Shah and his numerous accidents that he met with in his life. Tune into Fly Kingfisher presents ?A Journey like Never Before? on 3rd October, Saturday at 8.30 pm with a repeat telecast on following Sunday 10:30am and 5.00 pm only on NDTV Profit.

MUMBAI: CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards 2009 was held in Mumbai today to felicitate India‘s most preferred brands. The award ceremony, presented in association with ICICI Bank was presided over by esteemed luminaries like Digvijay Singh - General Secretary, All India Congress Committee, Chanda Kochhar - MD & CEO, ICICI Bank, Nitin Paranjpee - MD & CEO, Hindustan Unilever and O P Bhat - Chairman, State Bank of India.

Leading research organisation, The Nielsen Company conducted the research across 12 cities spanning 11 states in India, a total of 2066 consumers were approached covering all strata of society, presenting a comprehensive analysis of consumer preferences. The research was conducted via the random sampling method to ensure proper representation of the universe in the North, East, Central, West and South zones of the country.

The precursor to the award ceremony was a panel discussion hosted by Mr. Sanjay Pugalia to understand today‘s consumer trends. Mr. Digvijay Singh, General Secretary, All India Congress Committee commented on the significance of rural India in the consumer market. To explain the consumer scenario, Mr. Singh cited a Chinese adage, ‘Don‘t give them fish but give them the skill to fish‘, which explains the crying need to educate consumers rather than forcing them towards the products. He reiterated how the Congress, since the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru era, has always focused on the agricultural community which, even though, has been perceived as weak, has proved to be India‘s economic growth driver in today‘s scenario. Ms. Chanda Kochhar, MD and CEO, ICICI Bank brought to light the responsible and balanced approach of the Indian regulatory environment that has helped significantly in maintaining debt at a manageable level. Mr. Nitin Paranjape, MD & CEO, HUL mentioned that the FMCG sector has not been hit despite the slowdown. He also advised that the companies should not compromise on quality to save costs. Ad Guru Piyush Pandey stressed the importance of going down to the grass-root level to understand the exact needs of the consumers.

As per the research conducted for the awards, the consumer continues to be the ‘king‘ despite the economic slowdown. He is empowered not only with monetary purchasing power but also with a variety of choices at his disposal that keep increasing year on year. In order to simplify the decision process for prospective consumers and honour the achievement of brands that have made it big, ICICI Bank presented CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards 2009.

Commenting on the CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards, Mr. Neel Chowdhury, Vice President, Marketing CNBC-TV18 and CNBC AWAAZ said: "Over the years, CNBC AWAAZ- Consumer Awards have proven to be the unequivocal voice of the consumers. The awards, fifth year in running will salute those brands that millions of Indians have chosen to buy, experience and own."

Consumers today are well - informed of the choices available to them in the market hence brand building has become much more vital and competitive. Brands are evolving everyday and trying different avenues to cater to the changing preference of today‘s consumer. Keeping in mind the current Indian scenario, CNBC AWAAZ has arrived at a list of the "Most preferred Brands" (as perceived by the end-consumer) for each of the product categories covered in this study. Financial Services, FMCG, Consumer Durables, Telecom, Automobiles, Retail are the categories that the research covered.

MUMBAI: Fever 104 FM, Mumbai?s most popular music station in association with Saregama launched Ameen Sayani?s latest album, ?Geetmala ki Chaaon mein? (Vol 6-10). The compilation comprises rare interviews and interactions with Bollywood veterans and celebrities of yesteryears like Madan Mohan, Kishore Kumar, B R Chopra, Raj Kapoor, Praan, Wahida Rehman etc.

As a part of the association, Ameen Sayani was featured all through this week on Roobaroo with RJ Karan Singh at 9 p.m, the most popular evening show on Fever 104 FM, Mumbai.

?Roobaroo?, is a unique show that airs every day 9pm onwards on Fever 104 FM! DJ Karan Singh with his inimitable style captivates listener?s imagination by sharing soul-searching music, romantic poetry, his philosophy on love, life and much more.

In a freewheeling chat with RJ Karan Singh, Mr. Sayani revealed how he got initiated into radio, Geetmala‘s journey over the years and delved on some of the most memorable cinematic moments of the past.

Commenting on the initiative, says Mr. Neeraj Chaturvedi, National Marketing and Promotions head, Fever 104 FM, ?Ameen Sayani is a legend in the radio world, and we are very pleased to extend our association with Saregama to launch this wonderful album. We have also tried to capture some of the magic on our show Rubaroo, which we hope our listeners will enjoy listening to.?

MUMBAI: The first episode of Sony‘s Entertainment ke Liye Aur Bhi Kuch Karega was opened by bollywood‘s hearthrob Salman Khan. Seems like apna bollywood machos love to have fun when not shooting.

After the hearthrob the next to grace the sets of Sony‘s Entertainment... is none other than the Khiladi man Akshay. Before your thoughts go wild... its not the superstar Akshay Kumar, but Vikalp Bhatti who is an exact replica of the superstar. This 19 year old who comes from a small town Pali in Rajasthan even managed to fool Alampana Anu and Queen Farah Khan. Vikalp not only has an uncanny resemblance of actor Akshay Kumar but an amazing sense of humour which made the audiences go crazy.

Judges Anu and Farah were so surprised, as Vikalp even sounded like Akshay Kumar! A surprised Farah quizzed Vikalp,"If Akshay sees you, he himself will be shocked! What will you give me if i introduce you to him?" Vikalp couldn‘t believe his ears when he heard this and quickly responded, "I will give you whatever I possess!" While Akshay Kumar is a superstar, Vikalp is also famous in his Pali and is fondly named as "Pali ka Akshay"!

Don‘t miss "Pali Ka Akshay" on the big stage on Entertainment Ke Liye Aur Bhi Kuch Karega
This Friday, October 2nd at 9.00 pm

Only on Sony Entertainment Television.

MUMBAI: Aiming to popularise tourism in India, My FM came up with an interesting activity in collaboration with Madhya Pradesh Tourism named as ?Hindustan Ka Dil Dekho?. In this activity, the MY FM RJ traveled around all destinations in Madhya Pradesh and also described the locations, sites, eating joints, handicrafts, people, culture etc. of the place. The RJ continued his journey as he narrated a brief account of the destinations live on radio so that listeners can get to hear and visualize the beauty of Madhya Pradesh.

This activity was planned like a live radio tour as MY FM?s Mobile RJ Nirvikar started his journey from Bhopal on the September 21, 2009 describing the exquisite locales of Madhya Pradesh. The journey culminated on the September 28, 2009 in Jabalpur after traveling through places like Bhimbetka, Bhojpur, Ujjain, Indore, Chanderi, Gwalior, and Khajurao.

MP Tourism?s ?Hindustan ka Dil Dekho? was promoted under the campaign called ?The Heart of Incredible India? which is a highly praised and is an interesting campaign all over world.

Commenting on this Mr. 94.3 MY FM Synergy Media Entertainment Ltd COO Mr. Harrish M. Bhatia said, ?As the largest radio network in the Madhya Pradesh Region, it was only natural that we join hands with MP Tourism and we are delighted that they have chosen 94.3My FM to popularize the state on this World Tourism Day. The radio tour activity is quite an exciting and innovative style that we have developed and I?m sure our listeners will greatly enjoy it.?

MUMBAI: Amrita TV is staging ??Aaghosham?? or ?Celebration?, a musical mega event that is slated to be held at the Al Nasr Leisureland in Dubai on October 1.

A joyful celebration of life through the medium of rhythm & music, ?Aaghosham?? sees the maestros of instrumental music, world-famous percussionists and noted playback musicians, pooling talents in a harmonious union of vocals & instruments

The star of the show will be South India cine super star Jayaram who will appear before Gulf audiences donning the new role of a percussionist playing the ?chenda? ,alongwith his guru Mattanur Sankarankutty , the ?Asan? of beats who took the Thayambaka to the world stage. Rocking to these native beats will be ?Drums? Sivamani, the king of percussion who can coax rhythm out of even spoons and forks, drumming up his audiences to the heights of rhythmic ecstasy.

Stephen, star keyboardist & founder of the retro remix revolution who tries to ?paint old music with new colours? to bridge the generation gap, will jam with Bala Bhaskar the child prodigy turned violin virtuoso who can make violin strings dance to his tunes

Madhu Balakrishnan and Afzal the front liners amongst young playback singers along with Roopa, the winner of Amrita TV?s ?Super Star Global? crown will complete the merry band of musicians .

The show will feature a percussion concert between Jayaram & Mattanur, who taught him the grammar of the ?chenda?, in which the ?shisya? tries hard to keep pace with his guru; ?rhythmic competitions? between Mattanur and Sivamani; jamming sessions between Stephen and Bala Bhaskar; solos and duets from the playback singers.

The highlight of this Amrita TV event show is a coming together of the five instrumentalists in a fusion of East & West, that will send the listener?s spirits and souls soaring in a rapturous rejoicing in the sheer joy of being.

As the sun sets, the cool middle east winter evening will reverberate to the notes of melody and tempo of beats in a show that is poised to deliver an unforgettable aural experience to thousands of expatriates & NRIs alike.

The event will be telecast exclusively on Amrita TV on a suitable date for the benefit of the channel?s audiences worldwide.