Danny The BBC Television Director Resigns
After a stint of 8 years, BBC director of television Danny Cohen has stepped down from his post to pursue a new leadership challenge.
Cohen will leave the pubcaster at the end of Nov, 2015. BBC controller of entertainment commissioning Mark Linsey will take on his responsibilities until an appointment is made.
Zee Cafe launches ‘The Criminal Minds’
America’s suspense – thriller show ‘The Criminal Minds is all set to get you to #ThinkLikeACriminal starting on 14th Oct, 2015 at 10pm on Zee Cafe. Led by special agent Aaron “Hotch” Hotchner, each member of the BAU (Behavioral Analysis Unit) brings in their unique art of profiling to track – the predators’ motivations and identify their emotional triggers in an attempt to stop them. Based in Quantico, Virginia, the BAU is a subsection of the FBI and are called in by the local police departments to assist with crimes that are of an extremely violent nature where the perpetrator is unknown. The highlight of the show is the fact that, viewers not only get to watch the profilers solve the crime, but also get to understand the criminal’s psychological intention while he commits it. The BAU uses evidence from the case and matches that information to historic precedents & psychological analyses as a means to solve the case.
Ashish The Executive Director & CEO Of ZMC Resigns
Zee Media Corporation’s executive director & CEO Ashish Kirpal Pandit has resigned from the company with effect from 12 Oct, 2015. He handled senior management roles for more than 27 years in industries ranging from telecom to retail. He has been associated with brands like Alcatel, Efirst Technologies, Fortis Healthcare Limited, Reliance Webstore & Tata Teleservices. Pandit joined Zee Media Corporation in Oct, 2014 and looked after senior management team. Pandit was with Digicall Global for 3 years before joining Zee.
Colors Firms Up Weekend Programming
After launching the new season of Bigg Boss, Colors is gearing up to firm up its weekend programming with the launch of another show titled ‘Naagin’starting from 31st Oct, 2015 the show will be aired on Sat & Sun at 8 pm. It will replace the channel’s celebrity talk show ‘The Anupam Kher Show – Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai’ at 8 pm hosted by Anupam Kher. The concept of ‘Naagin’ is not new to India. There have been multiple movies based on the Ichhadhari Naagin like the Sridevi starrer ‘Naagin’, ‘Nagina’,’Sheshnaag’ and more recently, Mallika Sherawat’s Hiss. Moreover, in 2007 Zee TV launched a show on the same concept titled ‘Naagin – Waadon Ki Agnipariksha’, which was produced by A K Films. The series ran for 3 years and completed 219 episodes.
Big Magic & Big FM All Set To Launch ‘Fakebook With Kavita’
Reliance Broadcast Network’s entertainment channel Big Magic & 92.7 Big FM is all set to launch an integrated satirical comedy show called ‘Fakebook With Kavita’ with TV actress Kavita Kaushik. The show, which will be aired as a simulcast on television & radio for the 1st time in the industry, is a fresh take on the hypocritical Indian society, focusing on topical issues, which make you sit up, think & introspect, albeit with a pinch of humor. Starting from 19th Oct, 2015 ‘Fakebook With Kavita’ will be aired at 9 pm on Mons & Tues on Big Magic & from Mons to Thurs on 92.7 Big FM. In line with the programming strategy, the content will be sarcastic, irreverent, relatable & cutting edge. Kaushik will be seen doing sketches where her character will vary depending on the situations.
Sony Turns 20 In India
Glory, agony, poison, panacea…….As Multi Screen Media (MSM) (erstwhile Sony Entertainment Television India) completes 2 decades in the Indian broadcast space, it has witnessed it all. The broadcasting company, which started with 1 channel, is now 16 channels strong with even more additions in the pipeline. In a rapidly changing scenario, where the entire ecosystem is moving towards the digital platform, there are challenges & opportunities alike. And MSM CEO N P Singh is ready to take them all head on. A Sony veteran, Singh has been privy to the business affairs of the company for as many as 16 years since first joining the organisation in 1999 as chief financial officer (CFO).
Epic To Celebrate 1 Year Mark
In the entertainment world abound with clutter, niche television channels have to fight an uphill battle in order to get the necessary traction from viewers. As the Indian cable & satellite industry slowly but surely moves towards digital addressable systems (DAS), more & more niche channels will be viable with digitisation cutting distribution costs. One such niche channel that’s in it for the long haul, is The Epic Channel, which is on the brink of completing a year on air. Launched on 19th Nov, 2014, The Epic Channel will be celebrating its 1st anniversary by offering 2 news shows to its viewers. What’s more the channel also went High Definition (HD) on the Tata Sky DTH platform recently.
‘Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi’ All Set To Air From 18th Oct 2015
Star India’s Hindi General Entertainment Channel (GEC) Star Plus is all set to launch its new show ‘Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi’ (AKRHZ) with Amitabh Bachchan as the host on 18th Oct, 2015. The show will be aired on Suns at 8 pm. AKRHZ will replace the channel’s reality show Dance+, which concluded on 11th Oct, 2015. On Suns at 8 pm, Star Plus’ AKRHZ will be pitted against the following programmes across other Hindi GECs: While Colors’ airs ‘The Anupam Kher Show – Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai’ in the 8 pm slot on Suns, Zee TV airs Hindi movies from 7.30 pm onwards. On the other hand, Star’s other Hindi GEC Life OK airs ‘Dafa 420’, Sab airs ‘Police Factory’, &TV airs the game show ‘Deal Or No Deal’ hosted by Ronit Roy & Sony Entertainment Television airs ‘Deva Shree Ganesha’.
Zing Launches ‘Bad Company’
Zee Entertainment Enterprises’ youth entertainment channel Zing launched a talk show called ‘Bad Company’ that will bring Indian television stars closer to the viewers. The show started airing from 10th Oct, 2015 in the 7 pm slot every Saturday. The no-holds barred talk show is being hosted by Vikas Gupta. The show will feature television stars like Ranvijay Singh, Gurmeet Choudhary, Karanvir Bohra, Kushal Tandon, Divyanka Tripathi & Prathyusha Banerjee amongst others.
Zee Pledges To Go Green
ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) once again leads the way by pledging to go Green with the launch of its ‘ZEE Is Green’ initiative recently. As a pilot project, ZEE has successfully transformed the set of &TV’s ‘Gangaa’ as a ‘Green’ set.
