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MUMBAI: Sukesh Motwani, the programming head for fiction at Zee TV, has decided to move on.
"I have resigned. I will be taking a break before moving to my next venture," Motwani told Indiantelevision.com
Earlier in September 2012, Zee TV non-fiction programming head Ashish Golwalkar had quit to hold a similar position at Star Plus. He has yet not been replaced at Zee TV. Both Golwalkar and Motwani used to report to Zee TV programming head Ajay Bhalwankar.
Motwani, who was behind successful shows such as Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo, Chhoti Bahu and Jhansi Ki Rani, had joined Zee in June 2007 to head content at Zee Next. But Zee?s experiment with a second Hindi general entertainment channel failed and it closed down.
He moved to Zee TV in August 2008 as creative director. In October 2009, he finally settled down as Zee TV?s programming head for fiction.
Prior to joining Zee Network, Motwani has worked with companies like Nimbus and UTV.
MUMBAI: Zee TV is launching a Muslim social drama for the first time to take on the 9.30 pm time slot.
Titled ?Qubool Hai?, the daily show will air from 29 October between Mondays to Fridays.
The show is replacing ?Phir Subah Hogi? which will now air at 11 pm slot. With this, the channel is extending its prime time offering till 11.30 pm.
?Qubool Hai? explores the lives of three individuals Zoya, Ayan and Asad who are very different from each other and yet their lives are entwined by the threads of destiny. The show is an attempt to remove certain misconceptions that people have about Muslim culture.
?Qubool Hai? is being produced by Four Lions Production.
Set in a Muslim milieu, ?Qubool Hai? is a family saga that will cut across generations. It is a story of a culture which is so rich and yet misunderstood the most. The show reveals the fine distinction between modernity and traditionalism. The show is going to be very atypical of the archaic and old school thinking.
"The manner in which Zoya embraces the codes of her culture and yet does not get tied down by the extremities that the society imposes will surely make her unique and very relatable to the audiences. To ensure that we use Pavitra Rishta?s leadership position, we have placed Qubool Hai at a 9.30 pm slot and created an alternate slot for Phir Subah Hogi at 11pm," Zee TV fiction head Sukesh Motwani said.
The marketing campaign around Qubool Hai will launch around Eid and will aim at changing the perception of Muslim women in contemporary times through the eyes of Zoya (the lead character).
The show is also being promoted heavily on digital. The channel has developed a focused IVR platform for the viewers to have a personal dialogue with Zoya who shall help them solve their problems in her inimitable style. The focus of the campaign has also been to highlight Zoya?s modern sense of fashion and style.
MUMBAI: Taking a cue from Star Plus, Zee TV is now gearing up to offer original content in the Sunday morning slot.
Starting 12 August, Zee TV will air mythological - Ramayan every Sunday at 11 am.
Ramayan, produced by Sagar Arts, will directly compete with Star Plus? Lakhon Mein Ek, which is being launched on 5 August in the same time slot.
Zee TV wants to reach out to the young viewers who had not watched the Ramanand Sagar-produced Ramayan aired decades ago. It also aims to foster family viewing of television programmes.
Interestingly, this is for the fourth time that Ramayan will be aired on television and second time on Zee TV. After its epic run on DD, Zee TV tried with a remake of Ramayan with BR Chopra. However that did not work well with the audiences then.
Later, in 2008, Imagine TV (then NDTV imagine) was launched with Ramayan as one of its flagship primetime properties.
Ramayan and Lakhon Mein Ek will be the only original shows to air in the Sunday morning slots on Hindi GECs. Lakhon Mein Ek will replace Aamir Khan?s Satyamev Jayate, which highlighted social issues ranging from corrupt doctors to female foeticide. The last episode of Satyamev Jayate was aired on 29 July.
Earlier, Colors had launched All Is Well with Dr. Ahluwalia for Sundays but had failed to attract viewers. This programme was aired at 12.30 pm every Sunday.
Zee TV head-fiction programming Sukesh Motwani said, "As a story, Ramayan is timeless and will never lose its relevance. It is rich in the core values, ideals and principles that form the crux of the Indian culture and upbringing."
"We have roped in the only team in India truly equipped for the task, the Sagars. Ramanandji (Sagar) did it brilliantly once. Moti ji and Minakshi, who have inherited Ramayan as a part of their core DNA, are all set to recreate the classic," Motwani added.
It is learnt that Colors will launch a mythological programme based on Goddess Durga, which is also being produced by Sagar Arts. However, the launch date and time slot is not known.
Jai Jai Jai Bajrangbali (Sahara One) and Devon Ke Dev... Mahadev (Life OK) are the other mythological shows currently running on Hindi GECs.
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