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Jang Group's CEO and editor-in-chief Mir Shakil-Ur-Rahman visited
New Delhi earlier this week, to discuss distribution deals for the
channel in India. On 19 August, he is said to have met information
and broadcasting minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to talk on policy
initiatives. Later on, he also discussed possible business deals
with media and film persons.
According to media reports, well-known television actors like Annu
Kapoor, Ashok Saraf, Amit Behl, Sudha Chandran, Ravi Gosain and
Anil Pandit have signed up for various shows with the channel. They
will be working with Pakistani artistes like Faisal Qureshi, Javed
Sheikh and Ismail Tara among others.
Sources in the media say, even Usman Peerzada, the renowned theatre
and screen actor and director from Pakistan, has been roped in for
one such Indo-Pak venture. From Bollywood, yesteryears' villain,
Ranjeet will make an appearance on the channel.
Among the forthcoming Indo-Pak programming are the Sunil Salgia
directed sitcom Lakhon Mein Teen. The 52-episode comedy involves
around the adventure of three friends -- two Pakistanis and one
Indian -- who go to Dubai in search of a job. The cast includes
Ashok Saraf and Pakistan's Javed Sheikh and Ismail Tara as the three
friends. Ravi Gosain and Anil Pandit are also roped in for the sitcom.
Kamran Durrani, who has penned down dialogues for the sitcom says,
"The show is slated to be released by the first week of September.
Every episode of the sitcom will be a short tale in itself -- all
revolving around their three friends and their dalliance."
Durrani is currently writing dialogues for Khushi, a programme
on women also for telecast in Geo TV.
Lakhon Mein Teen is one of the three shows being produced
by Mumbai-based Ramesh Prasanna and Chitresh Srivastava. Their other
two ventures are Faslay, a 26-episode family drama directed
by Seema Kapoor, starring Ranjeet, Amit Behl and Sudha Chandran,
Usman Peerzada and Faisal Qureshi; and Gayegi Duniya Geet Mere,
a music game show, directed by Pratik Kadam, anchored by Annu Kapoor
and singer Saima Shirazi from Pakistan.
Geo TV went on air from August 14, 2002. The channel broadcasts
24 hours a day from Dubai Media City to give viewers in UAE, Pakistan,
Mauritius, the US and Bangladesh news besides reality and talk shows,
soaps and quiz shows.
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