MUMBAI: Samsung India today announced the names of its torchbearers for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay , to be held at New Delhi on April 17, 2008. Samsung , the Presenting Partner for the ongoing Olympic Torch Relay , has selected Sprint Queen PT Usha , ace shooters Manavjit Singh Sandhu and Abhinav Bindra , Sarod Maestro Ayaan Ali Khan , ‘Chak de‘ girl - Sagarika Ghatge and Powerlifter Rajinder Singh Rahelu , who won the Bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Paralympics .

Announcing the Samsung Torchbearers , states Mr H B Lee , President & CEO , Samsung South West Asia Headquarters , " As Presenting Partners for the Olympic Torch Relay , we are indeed proud to have as our Torch bearers , men and women , who are indeed achievers in their own right and role models for the Indian public". Some of these Torch bearers were nominated by the public during the ‘Spread the Olympic Flame‘ Nomination Program , organized by the Company in October 2007 .

On her being Torch bearer for the India leg of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay , states P T Usha, " "I am honored to be a part of the Beijing 2008 Olympics Torch Relay . I will be taking part in the Run for our motherland , with joy and sportsman spirit." Echoing the same sentiment , states Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award Winner and World Shooting Champion 2006 , Manavjit Singh Sandhu, " Carrying the Olympic Torch is indeed a matter of great pride and privilege for any individual .As a sportsman, I feel very honored to be given the opportunity by Samsung to carry the Olympic Torch and promote the Olympic movement in the country."

Amongst Samsung‘s list of Torchbearers is Rajinder Singh Rahelu , who is a Powerlifter and has done the country proud by winning a bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Paralympics . He has also won 2 silver medals at the 2007 Asian Power Lifting Cup and a silver medal in IWAS World Games TAIPEI 2007. Rajinder will carry the ‘Olympic Torch‘ on his wheelchair and states that the ‘Olympic Spirit is all about striving to reach higher goals and by carrying the Olympic Torch he would like to inspire others to overcome obstacles and aim higher ." Sarod Maestro Ayaan Ali Khan feels that by participating at the Olympic Torch Relay , he would be "promoting the Olympic ideals and celebrating the spirit of human achievement in sports."

Film actor , Sagarika Ghatge , better known as ‘Preeti Sabarwal‘ of ‘Chak de India‘ is happy to be promoting Sports and Olympics in ‘real life‘ as against her ‘reel life‘ role in ‘Chak de India‘ , while Abhinav Bindra , the youngest Indian participant at the 2000 Olympic Games and the first Indian shooter to win a World Championship Gold in Zagreb in 2006 , feels that the Olympic Torch Relay in India will ‘fuel the interest in Olympics‘ amongst the Indian masses and promote the Olympic movement .

Samsung India‘s association with the Indian Olympic Association commenced with the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games and ever since the Company has supported the Indian Contingent to the Y2000 Sydney Olympics, Y2002 Busan Asian Games, the Y2004 Athens Olympics and now the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Samsung is supporting select Indian athletes in their preparation for the Beijing Olympics through a Samsung Scholarship Program called the ‘Samsung Olympic Ratna‘ Program , instituted in October 2007 and going up to the Beijing Olympics 2008 . Samsung Electronics , the parent Company of Samsung India , has been the Olympic Partner in the wireless communications equipment category , since 1997.

MUMBAI: With its sights set firmly on the Indian market, Tourism Australia is back on air with BBC World with the launch of a special set of celebrity testimonial advertisements that showcase the travel experiences of well-known Indian personalities in the fields of business and entertainment.

The three segments will run throughout the day on BBC World‘s South Asia beam to complement Tourism Australia‘s "So Where The Bloody Hell Are You?" advertising campaign, and "two Australian cities for the price of one" Qantas airfare promotion.

Created by BBC World‘s Creative Solutions team, the Tourism Australia commercial presentations highlight the richness of experiences and wealth of attractions that Australia has to offer as the destination of choice across three different travel categories: business meetings and incentive travel (MICE); adventure travel; and family holidays. The presentations feature Indian personalities Rohit Gupta, Homi Adajania and Deepti Bhatnagar, who recounted their own experiences of visiting the continent via individual 60 second film segments.

Sunita Rajan, Vice President Sales, Asia and Australasia, BBC Global Channels, Asia Pacific says, "We have a long-standing relationship with Tourism Australia and were delighted when they asked us to work with them on creating a bespoke communications campaign to run on BBC World. Our brief was to create a communications campaign that would address the business decision-makers, leisure travellers in search of new adventures and experiences and families looking for enriching, entertaining and fun-filled family vacations."

"Having well-respected personalities communicate their special personal experiences while visiting Australia on the respective travel genres, brings to life the wealth of beautiful sights and activities on offer in Australia. We felt this would resonate well with the channel‘s audience of affluent internationalist Indian travellers."

Maggie White, General Manager, South/South East Asia and Gulf countries, Tourism Australia, says, "Tourism Australia is keen to tap into the tremendous outbound tourism potential offered by India. We are happy to have partnered with BBC World to run a unique campaign that has celebrated Indian personalities coming forth to share their real experiences in Australia. We believe those who have experienced the unique wonders of Australia can‘t help but want to share them with others! We hope this testimonial campaign would spark further excitement in Australia as a great holiday and MICE destination for Indians."

MUMBAI: Amrita TV has lined up a bouquet of exclusive programmes for the Vishu festival(April 14), which marks the beginning of the new year for Keralites across the world.Vishu also marks the third Anniversary for the channel which commenced telecast on 14 April,2005

The Vishu-eve programmes on April 13 showcase the just-held 4th Amrita Film Awards,wherein Awards based on public voting were presented in 16 categories of film making.As is the tradition in each of its Annual Film Awards,this year also Lifetime Achievement Award was given to music maestro, Dakshinamurthy.Also a posthumous Award was presented to late Bharat Gopi,illustrious actor, for his multi-faceted contribution to Malayalam cinema.The Amrita Film Awards gala nite which will be telecast on 13 April,6.30 pm will feature performances by noted musicians and actors like Naresh Iyer, Mukta,Ramba,Vinith Srinivasan,Shweta comedian Suraaj,interspersed with the Awards presentation.

On 13 itself at 2 pm ,Amrita TV will be telecasting a special Vishu-eve chat show with Vani Jayaram,noted playback singer-- being interviewed by singer,Unni Menon

On Vishu day (April 14),the morning starts with a Live Telecast of "Vishukani" at 6 am from Abhedananda Ashram,followed by a special edition of "Udayamritam"( 7 am) highlighting the traditions and folklore associated with the festival and "Vishugeetangal" at 8.30 am

At 10 am ,the channel will be telecasting the award-winning film "Nottam",featuring Nedumudi Venu and Samvrita Verma followed by a special Vishu Cookery Show on Ambalapuzha Palpaysam,specially shot at Ambalapuzha Sreekrishna Temple(1.30 pm)

The post-lunch Vishu session starts with a programme ( 2 pm) on the famous singer of yesteryears,S.Janaki, in conversation with music director, M.Jayachandran, who has won the Kerala State Awards 2008 for Best Music Director.

In the evening ,Amrita TV is telecasting at 3.30 pm,South India‘s first digital film "Munnamathoral" starring Jayaram,Vineeth,Jyotirmayi,Sherin and Samvrita

Looking back,in the past three years,Amrita TV has cemented its position as an innovative channel known for providing content that is tasteful and differentiated,yet audience-centric and client-attuned

Amrita TV pioneered classy and family-oriented reality shows in Malayalam television with its "Super Star" in mid-2006 .For the past few months,Amrita TV is perhaps the only satellite channel to run four reality shows concurrently, 14 hours a week viz "Super Star Global" ,"Super Dancer Junior","Raga Ratnam Junior" and "Best Citizen Journalist" .And now on the anvil is the actuality show,"Great India Race" and a talent hunt for pairs, "Let‘s Dance". Under its public service initiative, "Send an SMS.Save a Child", the entire SMS revenue from all its reality shows is donated for the benefit of underprivileged children

During its brief existence,Amrita TV has taken the lead in creating content which is not solely dependent on serials and movie fare by focussing on programmes spanning all genres such as News& Features,Culture & Heritage,Mythology,Human Interest,Ecology,Comedy & Satire,Cooking ,Lifestyle et al.

Amrita TV,launched in 2005,as a 24-hour Malayalam,general entertainment & news satellite channel with a global footprint,has been honoured with 26 State Awards for Excellence in Television--the only channel in India to be bestowed with such a recognition in just two years since inception.

MUMBAI: He has been nominated for the Academy Awards 3 times, he has won 5 Golden Globes and winning a Grammy Award has become pass? for him.Bryan Adams is back with a bang with his 11th studio album aptly titled ?11? ? an album featuring signature ballad. Catch the Canadian legend all this month on [v] Chosen One as he talks about his 11th studio album, his new single and his unique tour of 11 countries in 11 days.

With tracks like I Thought I?d Seen Everything, Oxygen and Broken Wings in his new release, Bryan is here again to strike on the hearts of million fans across the world. Using his singing abilities to raise funds for various social causes, Bryan performed at benefit concerts ranging from the Tsunami and Earthquake to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to name a few.

After a hiatus of 3 years, Bryan?s brand new album will surely hit the chart busters! So catch your favourite artist through April 2008 only on Channel [v] from Sunday 13 April, 2008, 6 pm onwards for some exclusive and entertaining information on Bryan Adams.

MUMBAI: A rejuvenated West Indies side will hope to build upon their fantastic win in the second Test match against Sri Lanka when the two teams clash for the three-match One Day International series starting Thursday, April 10.

The two teams, after drawing the two-Test series 1-1, will now view the ODI series as the decider. The Queen?s Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad, will be the venue for the first two matches of the series (April 10 and Saturday, April 12), followed by the final match on Tuesday, April 15, at the Beausejour Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia, which will be played under lights.

And Ten Sports, the most watched sports channel in the Sub-continent, will be the exclusive home for the series. Live telecast of the first two matches starts at 6:45 pm IST, while the day-night match starts from 11:45 pm IST.

West Indies hopes will be boosted not only by the win, but also by the form of their frontline batsmen, including second Test hero Ramnaresh Sarawan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, and most importantly, skipper Chris Gayle on top of the order. And to add to their advantage, Sri Lanka will be without the services of world record holder Muttiah Muralitharan and explosive opener Sanath Jayasuriya, both of whom were not picked up for the one-dayers.

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene will definitely look to clinch the series and return on a winning note. His team did well to win the first Test match ? their first Test win in the Caribbean ? but a second-inning batting slump put paid to their hopes of winning their first-ever Test series in the West Indies.

MUMBAI: This Friday, Idea Dhoom Macha De presents a Baisakhi Special episode! Joining the Dhoom Team in this fun filled festivity is a special guest? none other than? the bubbly and stunning actress Preity Zinta! Watch her have a blast as our singing superstars showcase splendid performances dedicated to the occasion of Baisakhi in a special presentation this 11 April at 8:30 pm only on NDTV Imagine!

The episode begins with Preity Zinta making a striking entry on the peppy anthem of her IPL cricket team Kings XI titled, ?Go Punjabi?, originally sung by the king of Punjabi pop, Daler Mehndi! She has a great time on the show cheering for her favorite singing superstars and commenting on their performances! The Dhoom team sings songs dedicated to this festival which marks the arrival of the harvesting season. While Devang sings a medley of Gujarati folk songs like Ashad Asaaram, Sambhelu, Aalaji Tara Kisaan Tere Sajde Mein Jaoon, Babul sings a Bengali song like Dhitang Dhitang Bole and the popular track Chappa Chappa Charkha Chale. Richa delves into Punjabi folk with songs like Jaavoni Koi Mod, Adlib, Challa Kariya Mirchaya, Aayi Hain Baisakhi and the popular song Kaava Kaava from the film Monsoon Wedding, while Baba Sehgal has the judges and audience applaud for him, with his lively performance on Rang De Basanti. Jaspinder sings some filmi favorites like Aayi Jhoom Ke Basant, Purva Suhani Aayi Re, Mere Desh ki Dharti and the lively Tera Rang Balle Balle, from Soldier which has Preity grooving on the stage with her! Also presenting a special stand-up act is comedian Bhagwant Mann as he has the audience and judges rolling on the floor with his incredible sense of humor.

Don?t forget to tune in to a very exciting and entertaining Baisakhi Special episode this Friday, April 11th, at 8:30 p.m. only on Idea Dhoom Macha De on NDTV Imagine!