News Broadcasting
Everybody is getting into Suits
MUMBAI: This October get ready as Comedy Central lines up the biggest show of the year – Suits. After two super hit seasons, Comedy Central brings back Harvey Spector and Mike Ross on Suits-Season 3. Premiering on October 7th Season 3 promises to be bigger & better than the previous two super hit seasons with more drama & sharp witty one liners than ever before!
The third season premieres with a shift in the dynamics at New York’s top law firm. After merging with a top British firm, Harvey is at odds with his boss and mentor, Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres). Meanwhile, Mike and Rachel Zane’s (Meghan Markel) romance has its up’s & down’s as well. The script beautifully captures the inner conflict of the characters as well as their personal bond and conflict with each other.
The season has been described as “Intense, Witty & with fine performances” by Tom Gliatto of People Weekly & Denise Warner from Entertainment Weeks says “The result finds the actors inhabiting their characters’ backstabbing natures as comfortably as their outfits.”
Commenting on the new season, Ferzad Palia, Senior VP and GM – English Entertainment, Viacom 18 Media Pvt Ltd, says “With two brilliant previous seasons Suits has developed a cult following in India much like it has in many other countries the world over. Season three has been huge in the US garnering record audiences & we intend on making it really big in India as well. Keeping in mind the popularity of the show, we’ve planned a 360 degree marketing campaign that will take viewer interest to the next level”
To further promote the Suits fever among fans, the channel has undertaken a 360 degree marketing strategy ‘Everybody in Suits’. This campaign will engage Comedy Central fans through on-air promotion, on-ground activities and digital media. One of the activities the channel is undertaking as a part of its marketing strategy is to partner with Café Coffee Day. On launch day,all patrons wearing Suits at Café Coffee day outlets across the country will be offered a free cup of coffee. Another interesting concept that will be executed during the launch period will be in partnership with Pressto, where all customers bringing in their SUITS to be dry-cleaned will find communications in their freshly cleaned Suits asking them to tune in to the show on launch day.
On premiere day, one will witness the suits fever with people dressed in Suits at the most unlikely locations like Gyms, Petrol Pumps and Parks all across the leading metro’s – Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore and Kolkata
The season will also be promoted through a contest amongst both viewers & media agencies which will urge them to wear Suits on the day of the launch. Participants will have to take a picture of themselves in suits and send them to Comedy Central India. All images will be collated and the lucky winners will be gratified with a vacation fit for Harvey Spector where winners will enjoy a once in a lifetime experience at the Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur. Accommodated in one of the luxury lake-view rooms for two nights & three days, Winners will enjoy Spa sessions, a fine dining experience, a Jaguar for travel services & the whole experience of the Harvey life!
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
