MUMBAI: Mercedes-Benz India inaugurated its new showroom and authorised service center, Benchmark Cars in Ahmedabad, showcasing the powerful roadsters from their enthralling AMG range the SLK 55 AMG & the SL 63 AMG. Benchmark Cars, the only dealership in the state of Gujarat, was inaugurated by Dr. Wilfried Aulbur, Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India and Mr. Sanjay Thakker, Chairman, Benchmark Cars.

Benchmark Cars is strategically located on the SG Highway and is spread over an area of 25000 sq. ft. This dealership and service center utilizes the ultra modern Mercedes-Benz 3-S integrated facility concept offering a one stop solution for Sales, Service & Spares to customers in Gujarat.

This state-of-the-art dealership embodies all the brand attributes of Mercedes-Benz - magnificent showroom, drive-in valet service, a luxurious customer lounge and well trained staff to complete the Mercedes-Benz experience. The service center is equipped with eight mechanical bays and six body paint bays with trained service personnel geared to ensure quick, efficient service delivery.

Speaking at the inauguration, Dr Aulbur said: "At Mercedes-Benz India we constantly endeavor to delight our customers with the finest products from our stable. In 2009 we have already launched the entire range of AMG‘s, the New M-Class, the Special Edition E-Class as well the C220CDI in the sporty Avantgarde styling line. To ensure that we are able to offer our customers best in class service and support, we have an extensive network spread across 25 cities across the country which is the largest as compared to any luxury player in India."

"It is our constant endeavour to work with people who share the same passion and commitment towards the customer satisfaction; our association with Benchmark Cars is another step towards establishing a world-class car ownership experience for Ahmedabad as well as for the state of Gujarat." added Dr. Aulbur.

Mr. Sanjay Thakker, Chairman of Benchmark Cars is the promoter and chairman of Landmark Group which has diversified businesses. Mr. Sanjay Thakker commenting about the new venture stated: "We are proud to start our association with a prestigious brand like Mercedes-Benz. With a strong support of all our qualified professionals, we at Benchmark Cars will put in every effort to provide customers with an unmatched experience at our dealership for years to come. Gujarat is well known as a strong luxury market and we realize that there is significant potential not just from Ahmedabad but also from the adjoining cities, towns and rural areas. Our focus will be to reach out to the existing and potential customers in a step-by-step manner."

In Gujarat, Mercedes-Benz has a strong base of 600+ satisfied customers and sees significant potential in this market.

MUMBAI: Water scarcity is a real threat that could lead to civil wars in the future. The water is there. But what has gone awry is its management. We know the crisis. But what does this essential resource signify? What is its value to the society? To know answers to these questions follow ‘Witness‘.

Experience the severity of water crisis across India and beyond through the eyes of NDTV reporters on Witness on Sunday, June 14th 2009 at 9:30pm only on NDTV 24x7.

MUMBAI: The MotoGP World Championship arrives at Spain?s crucible of Grand Prix racing, with three candidates in the thick of the championship and a fourth looking to rebound and repeat his 2008 victory at Barcelona?s majestic Circuito de Catalunya (called Montmel? by locals).

And all the action will be Live on TEN Sports (see schedule below).

The 2009 Catalunya GP is the sixth race of a season that has three riders currently separated by just nine points at the top of the MotoGP standings. Ducati Marlboro?s Australian rider Casey Stoner leads the pack with 90 points, 4 more than Fiat Yamaha?s Spanish rider Jorge Lorenzo. The legendary Valentino Rossi is hot on their trail with 81 against his name, as he continues his quest for an unprecedented 9th Grand Prix title.

The area around Barcelona has produced more MotoGP racers than anywhere else in the world, and the best among them is Repsol Honda?s Dani Pedrosa, the 2008 race winner. Just days prior to the GP weekend, Pedrosa confirmed that he wouldn?t allow injuries suffered in the previous race in Mugello to keep him from defending his title. The 23-year-old hails from Castellar del Valles, hardly 30kms from the circuit, and can count on the support of a weekend crowd that should approach 200,000. Pedrosa, who now makes his home in London, spent the one weekend break between races resting, and had one final checkup before getting the green light to race.

Meanwhile Scot Honda?s Hiroshi Aoyama hopes to replicate the success he had during his last visit to Spain, when he won the Jerez GP three races ago. Aoyama, who lives in Barcelona during the season, hasn?t finished worse than seventh during five previous visits to Montmel?. What?s more, he hasn?t finished lower than eighth this year. The reward for that consistency has been the second place in the 250cc World Championship, seven points behind leader and Spanish rider Alvaro Bautista of the Mapfre Aspar team.

Finally, the tense battle at the top continues in the 125 cc category, with Bancaja Aspar?s two riders Bradley Smith and Julian Simon separated by just 3.5 points. The former pulled clear thanks to his win in the Gran Premio D?Italia Alice, but will want to extend that lead, fully aware of the fact that his compatriot will pose a real threat over the rest of the season.

MUMBAI: As the star power of India reaches the exotic milieu of Macau to celebrate the 10th anniversary of IIFA 2009, NewsX, India‘s only HDTV-ready English news channel, brings in all the ceremony and style that befits Bollywood. The annual Videocon IIFA Weekend and IDEA IIFA Awards are being held at the Venetian Macau-Resort-Hotel from June 11-13, 2009.
Being held in Macau to celebrate the recognition of Indian film industry on a global platform, the Awards will have performances, film premieres and interaction with stars. Some of the leading names expected at the weekend include The Bachchans, Hritik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Shahid Kapoor, Vidya Balan, Lara Dutta, Niel Nitin Mukesh, Kareena Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Singer Peter Andre, AR Rahman and Saif Ali Khan.

The star studded event will see the premieres of films- Hrithik Roshan‘s ‘Kites‘, David Dhawan‘s ‘Do Not Disturb‘ and Mani Ratnam‘s ‘Ravan‘. To add to the glitter, there will be music Launches and Fashion Shows by the likes of Manish Malhotra, Rocky S, Manav Gangwani and Anamika Khanna.

NewsX, in its endeavour to provide high-quality content to its viewers, brings the most extensive coverage on the event which includes event showcase, bites from the stars and the glitterati at the Red Carpet. The channel covers the event at IIFA in six different segments to run in the news hour from afternoon till evening prime time. At the end of the day, a wrap-up segment on the entire day‘s activities will be aired as a special five-minute capsule.

MUMBAI: With ‘Om shanti Om‘, she surprised many. The glamorous model-turned-actress, Deepika Padukone opens up to Swati Chaturvedi, the anchor of Kahiye Janab‘, a celebrity chat show on Zee News.

On rumours of Neetu Singh being upset with Deepika, she speaks "I don‘t know. I believe that if there were any truth in this, she would tell me herself and not through newspapers and media. I think she‘s an extremely talented and mature person, so why would she tell the media and not speak with me directly,".

Getting slightly emotional & touchy on her personal life, Deepika politely says, "I will not like to comment on my personal life. I think I‘m much beyond all that has been said about me. I‘m very happy in my relationship with Ranbir."

After some more probing, Deepika expands on her relationship with the suave Bollywood actor & she explains to the anchor the reason for making their relationship public. "The primary reason why we came out and opened up about our relationship was that we thought we‘ll get some privacy and that people would respect the fact that we‘re in a relationship?but nothing like this happened and things became worse."

As an actor, one is always under public scrutiny and this is heightened when one is in a relationship with a person in the same profession. So when Swati asked Deepika Padukone about Ranbir‘s and her professional views, she says, "I think we both are very professional? Sometimes I don‘t come to know whether the film I‘m offered is also offered to Ranbir. We‘re considering working with each other. We don‘t speak about our films that much because it would be extremely unprofessional. We read the scripts separately and meet with the directors separately too and this may be the reason that post Bachna Ae Haseeno we haven‘t done any film together."

The actress is very passionate about her acting career & will follow what her mind says on this, "I enjoy acting and till the time I enjoy it, I‘ll keep doing it. My parents have taught me, that you should always do what you enjoy the most. My father took up badminton as a career and my grandparents supported this career decision. Hard work and luck are very important for any career?. whether it is sports or films."

"I‘m lucky that I got a launch film with Shahrukh and Farah but I did try hard. It was while I was modelling that Farah noticed my talent and took me in her movie", added Deepika with a smile that reflects the truth of her words.

So? Come and watch Deepika Padukone‘s exclusive interview on Zee News‘ celebrity chat show Kahiye Janab.

It‘s all masala mix & Bollywood‘s most wanted news coming to your screen only on Zee News this Saturday at 7:30 pm, 13th June 2009.

‘Kahiye Janab‘, a one-on-one chat show with celebrities on Zee News showcases the people who have excelled in their respective fields. Woven around the ideology of delivering real News, the show aims at revealing the real person behind the fame quotient.

For those who miss it, Kahiye Janab on Zee News is repeated at 3.30 pm on Sunday. As "unplugged" at 11 pm on Zee Business, repeat telecast at 7.30 pm Sunday and 10:30pm Monday

MUMBAI: India‘s No.1 business medium, presents the second season of ‘Riders in the Strom‘ starting June 13th, 2009. This season, ‘Riders in the Storm‘ will focus on leading Indian companies and their strategies to ride the downturn, strengthen market presence and innovate strategically.

While speaking about the program Mr. Neel Chowdhury- Vice President, Marketing, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC AWAAZ said "Riders in the Storm‘ was started to highlight the spectacular efforts of India‘s best companies in managing the economic slowdown and thwarting challenges. The second season comes at a time when India Inc is trying to expedite growth rates and capitalize on the improved sentiment post the elections. We believe the series will be a great value add to CXO‘s planning the next strategic move for their organizations and to students of corporate strategy as well"

Hosted by Menaka Doshi, CNBC TV 18, ‘Riders in the Storm‘ will focus on understanding how business leaders with their core teams are translating the corporate vision into ground reality and planning for counter cyclical measures.