MUMBAI: Seeking to tap a growing demand for trained personnel in India?s vast entertainment industry besides meeting its own needs, Balaji Telefilms is soon going to launch a chain of academies under the banner of Institute of Creative Excellence (ICE) that will train students aspiring for a career in TV and film entertainment industries.

The new academies are likely to come up in Delhi, Kolkata and Hyderabad besides Mumbai where the ICE?s pilot project was launched last year. The academies will offer courses in acting, direction, editing and scriptwriting, sound recording, cinematography and production among others, divulged ICE CEO Anurag Gupta.

The company will employ graduates to work on its content; it will also help meet the needs of the rest of India?s vast entertainment industry. The fees of the academies will range between Rs 300,000 to Rs 600,000 per semester.

Gupta, however, refused to divulge on the kind of investments that will go into the setting up of the academies as a matter of his company?s policy.

ICE offers three-six-month certificate programmes.

MUMBAI: As part of its engagement with fans for the upcoming IPL season, Kings XI Punjab has tied up with Indraprastha All India Sports Foundation for its talent search based reality ?Cricket Champs".

The show that aims at providing a platform for budding cricketers to showcase their talent in front of millions of viewers will be aired by UTV Bindass.

Since the reality show is being powered by Kings XI Punjab, a number of players from the franchisee shall also form part of the proceedings. These players would render their view points on player selection, ability, tasks, game strategy, etc.
 
Speaking on the initiative, KXIP COO Col. Arvinder Singh said, ?Kings XI Punjab has always been at the forefront of unearthing fresh cricketing talent. Our association with the venture aims to provide these young guns with a platform to perform. I wish the participants all the very best and am sanguine that we should be able to spot ?real talent? whom we shall help groom for their future cricketing endeavors.?

A total of eight teams from Bihar/Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore/Hyderabad, and Haryana comprising 15 players each will participate in the show.

The fate of these players will later rest in the hands of the public/viewers, who can choose their favourite captain out of the three for each team through national voting.

The team which emerges as the winner would be awarded with the National Trophy and a cash prize of Rs 1 million. Besides, top 10 cricketers would get a chance to get training with Kings XI Punjab players and an opportunity to play first class cricket.

MUMBAI: The Delhi High Court?s ruling notwithstanding, the International Hockey Federation Wednesday maintained its stance that the World Series Hockey remains an unsanctioned event.

The Delhi HC had on Monday ruled that the Indian players must be allowed to participate in the cash rich league provided it does not clash with their national commitments.

Talking to reporters at the launch of Hockey Olympic Qualifiers in Delhi, FIH CEO Kelly Fairweather reiterated that there was no question of granting recognition to the league since it is co-promoted by Indian Hockey Federation, which is not recognised by the world body.

?We have read the judgement and it actually reinforces the rules of FIH. As far as WSH is concerned, there is no change in our stance, it is an unsanctioned event because IHF is not a member of FIH,? Fairweather said.

?We have been clear about our position from the very beginning. The international calendar is packed. Where is the space? There are six qualification tournaments till the Olympics, which means there is international hockey every week,? he said.

He also questioned the commitment of players, who have signed up for the league, towards their national duties. ?Anyone planning to play six weeks of a private league before the Olympics is certainly not serious about the game.?

While affirming that the FIH and its national members will act against players who play for WSH, Fairweather hastened to add that participating or not was solely a player?s prerogative.

?The rules are very clear and we will go according to our rules. But at the end of the day the players need to make their own decision,? Fairweather stated.

?We can?t stop anyone from joining any team. That?s his or her personal decision. But our stance is pretty clear regarding WSH,? the FIH CEO maintained.
Meanwhile, debunking FIH CEO?s statement, Nimbus the commercial partner of IHF, has said that the WSH is a domestic event and does not clash with the players national commitments.

Nimbus COO Yannick Colaco said there are examples galore where national competitions and club-based leagues go hand-in-hand. He cited the example of African Nations Cup which is held even as club football was on in Europe.

?Even in cricket there are bilateral series (in other countries) when the IPL is being played in India. In WSH, 80 per cent would be Indian players. So where is the problem," he pointed out.