MUMBAI:Recognizing the power that cinema has in India in bringing about social change, PPC is proud to launch ‘PPC Cause Cinema‘ in partnership with India‘s wellness guide and mentor Ms. Sunita Menon.PPC Cause Cinema will be a division of PPC which will seek to create and market cinema with a specific social intent and message.

This is the first organized initiative by any film company in the country to go beyond the profit motive and use the persuasive powers of Bollywood to address real social issues that touch the lives of millions in India.

Apart from its own projects, ‘PPC Cause Cinema‘ will also provide a platform that brings together Bollywood‘s film-making talent on the one hand and the Indian corporate world on the other, to enable corporations to fulfill their aspirations of helping bring about a social change.

Percept Picture Company had created ‘Phir Milenge‘ (2004) which supported AIDS as a cause, starring Salman Khan, Shilpa Shetty and Abhishek Bachchan in lead roles.

Speaking on the occasion, said Mr. Shailendra Singh, Jt. Managing Director, Percept Holdings, "Cinema is entertainment, but if at the end of an enjoyable two-hour experience, a film can leave behind a strong social message, that‘s magic; and it will be our intent to create that magic in all our Cause projects.

We are delighted to have Sunita Menon on the Board of ‘PPC Cause Cinema‘ and as an equal partner in the initiative. Sunita has been a friend and well wisher of the group, but more than that she has a passion to do things which can help us and our social environment. It‘s this mutual interest that led to the creation of the PPC Cause Cinema initiative."

Said Ms. Sunita Menon, "PPC came up with this idea of Cause Cinema which interested me immensely. I believe that there is a gap in the Bollywood offering today, and our endeavor will be to fill this void by providing thought-provoking Cause Cinema for the audiences.

Cause films will tell a story in a seemingly objective manner on subjects like AIDS, poverty, illiteracy, women empowerment, rape, children issues, sex-education, drugs, prostitution, crime, juvenile delinquency, smoking etc. They may also carry an overt ideological message or create subversive images as intended by the filmmaker that can encourage a range of attitudes from the audience"

Mr. Preet Bedi, CEO, Percept Picture Company said, "There‘s no better media tool to communicate social change than cinema. You just have to go back into the past to see how cinema has played a crucial role in ushering in change time and time again. We are proud to be the first motion picture corporation to ensure a professional and focused approach in social cause cinema through PPC‘s Cause Cinema"

PPC has a strong line-up of talented directors for the cause films division. The first film with a backdrop of AIDS as a cause will be directed by Saket Chaudhary followed by a film with Nagesh Kukunoor, who has also directed the award winning film IQBALwhich is a good case in an example in the cause cinema category.

Percept Picture Company‘s ‘Cause Cinema‘ will identify various causes in co-relation with the film scripts keeping the changing social scenario in mind. A percentage of the profits generated from these films will be contributed towards these pre-identified social causes.

About Percept Picture Company (PPC)
Established in 2002, Percept Picture Company (PPC) is India‘s fastest growing and fully integrated Content Creation, Aggregation and Distribution Company. PPC expertises in producing Motion Pictures, Television Software, Film Distribution and Marketing, Ad Film Production, Corporate Films, Live Events and Special Projects. PPC produces innovative and quality films through an efficient film making process, by integrating content production, distribution, tie-ups for exhibitions, broadcasting and music rights. Through innovative marketing, content quality and distribution techniques, PPC has succeeded in securing long term relationships with its clients.

Percept Picture Company is a part of Percept Holdings, a strategic holding company that promotes, owns and manages a spectrum of marketing communication companies. Percept Holdings has a capitalized billing of INR 16.5 billion and employs over 1,000 employees in 64 offices across 22 locations.

PPC‘s Firsts
PPC produced Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi (1998) with 300 debutantes, an industry first. Also a first for an Advertising Agency to produce a full length film

Makdee (2002) a children‘s film released won the Jury Award at the Chicago International Film Festival for Children?.a first for India

Hanuman" (2005) is India‘s first animation film with over 100,000 images to win a mention in the Limca Book of Records

PPC released Spider-man 3 - The biggest Hollywood film release in India with a record breaking opening collections at the box office.

MUMBAI: Zee Marathi continues to be the most popular channel among the television audiences in all Maharashtra including Mumbai.The channel has surpassed Star Plus in the overall GRPs with respect to all viewers (cs 4+ Zee Mar 323 and Star Plus 284). In female 15+ ABC the GRPs are Zee Mar 448 and Star Plus 393.

With the introduction of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa - Yuddha Taryanche with Celebrities from Marathi industry, the channel has set a grand success in all Maharashtra. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Celeb Special is not the only feather in its cap, all the other prime time programs such as Ya Sukhano Ya, Avghachi Sansar, Asambhav, Abhilasha, Adhuri Ek Kahani and Vahinisaheb are fetching higher ratings compared to competition. And that‘s not all. Zee Marathi‘s special series of Home Minister 1000 and new recipe special daily show, Aamhi Saare Khavayye which is anchored by most popular hero Prashant Damale are contributed good TRPs for the Zee Marathi.

The Ratings of current week (TAM all Maharashtra cs 15+ ABC female)

Beside these programs, there were two special properties contributed major GRPs on Zee Marathi. In week 18, Zee Marathi‘s Maha cinema and mega event of Maharashtra Rajya Chitrapat Mahotsav, the State Awards for recognition of talent in Marathi film industry have been the major contributors of this achievement.

The Maha cinema, Shubha Mangal Savadhan, garnered 8.1 TVRs whereas Star Plus got 1.8 and ETV Marathi got 1.0 from all Maharashtra. The Maha Cinema, reached to approximately 39.2 lacs viewers (TAM cs 4+). During this slot, Zee Marathi pulled 34.6 per cent channel share among all channels as against Star Plus‘s 7.5 per cent. Among Marathi Channels this film garnered 85% slot channel share for Zee Marathi.

Not only that, the mega event of 44th State Awards for Marathi Films (telecast on Saturday, 5th May 07) got 6.1 TVRs against Star Plus with 2.1 and ETV Mar with 0.5. (TAM cs 4+ all Maharashtra). The event reached to 41. 2 lacs viewers across Maharashtra as per TAM. This four and half hrs event on Zee Marathi, out performed all Marathi as well as Hindi channels viewership. During this slot, Zee Marathi captured 24. 3% share among all channels with Star Plus next in the line getting only 8.5 per cent channel share. Among Marathi Channels the slot share for Zee Marathi is 84 per cent

Both Maha Cinema and this mega event were no exception when it came to female category. The ratings in cs 15+ abc female, for Maha Cinema and for 44th State Awards for Marathi Films are 8.6 and 8.5 respectively.

Zee Marathi has been a pioneer in Marathi television and the TAM figures are only a reflection of the fact that despite these audiences being conversant with Hindi and Marathi, they prefer watching quality programs in their local language.

NEW DELHI: ESPN STAR Sports, Asia‘s leading sports broadcaster, will bring LIVE all the excitement of the F1 racing which has started off with Ferrari and McLaren posing strong competition to each other, from Spain.The channel will telecast LIVE and EXCLUSIVE the opening Grand Prix from Barcelona with its signature pre race show, Race Day and post race show as part of its comprehensive F1 programming for the Indian viewers.

After over two months in Australia and Asia the second leg of the season begins with the first race in Europe - the Spanish Grand Prix. The previous race in the Desert Kingdom of Bahrain showcased the Ferrari strength of speeding away from other teams in straight lines. Felipe Massa, who dominated both the qualifying and race day in Bahrain, will have to face the challenge once again from Fernando Alonso, who will be on his home circuit.

The 66 laps of Circuit de Catalunya are going to be grueling for the drivers as the circuit has some demanding corners and short straights combined with long high speed straights. The 4.6 km long circuit was dominated by Fernando Alonso last year and this being his home race he is the driver to watch out for along with team mate Lewis Hamilton who has impressed one and all with his maturity and the three podium finishes. However Felipe Massa and Ferrari are bound to provide stiff competition to Alonso and McLaren as Ferrari has pre-dominantly performed well in Europe.

The title race is a four way battle with Raikkonen, Alonso and Hamilton all tied up at 22 points. Massa who has had two pole starts and one podium finish is at number four in the standings with 17 points. Ferrari driver Raikkonen, who won the Spanish GP in 2005 is the only driver in history to have won here but not gone on to become Champion. He would be looking forward to changing this dubious record this time around in 2007.

MUMBAI: Star Gold Comedy Honors will premiere on Star Gold on 12 May at 8 pm. A month long celebration of comedy in Indian cinema finally culminates at a grand finale as Star Gold Comedy Honors, a tribute to comic excellence in Indian cinema at the Mehboob studios in Mumbai.

Star Gold comedy honors were bestowed on some of the all time favourite stars with comic excellence

The Star Gold Comedy Honors 2007 Grand Finale is hosted by Shreyas Talpade along with Purbi Joshi, will also see performances featuring Govinda choreographed by Ganesh Acharya, some entertaining acts by Rimi Sen and Delnaz Paul along with duo Ranvir Shorey and Vinay Pathak and standup act by Sajid Khan and more.

Shah Rukh Khan, Jeetendra, Kunal Kohli, Aziz Mirza, Soha Ali Khan and Chunkey Pandey along with many others were also present at the occasion.

MUMBAI: BIG 92.7 FM‘s Chennai station has set up its broadcasting tower in the heart of the City with the motive of getting close to its listeners. With this move, the transmitter will now be located at Mount road.

BIG 92.7 FM uses IP technology for broadcasting. This technology ensures best and reliable audio quality which is cost effective and easy to use. Broadcasting from inside the city gives out crystal clear sounds, which ensures the most superior quality of entertainment to listeners. Says an official release.

Speaking about this initiative Big 92.7 FM VP South and regional head Lakshmi Sharath said, "Radio is an aural medium of entertainment, which makes sound clarity an extremely critical aspect. We have a great programming mix coupled with superior technology, which offers listeners best quality output. This movement of our tower, will further better our transmission, which will work very well for our listeners."

BIG 92.7 FM is part of Adlabs Films. Ltd. The Station is heard across 45 cities.