MAM
KBC 4 tops the chart, propels Sony to No 3
MUMBAI: The grand old man of Bollywood is proving his magic yet again on television. Amitabh Bachchan has anchored the fourth season of Kaun Banega Crorepati to explosive numbers, making it the top-rated show among the Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) and aiding Sony Entertainment Television (Set) to race to the third spot ahead of Zee TV.
On the launch day, the one-and-a-half hour episode of KBC 4 fetched a TVR of 6.2 in the Hindi speaking markets (HSM).
Surpassing the opening day ratings of all the reality shows launched in recent times, KBC 4 managed an average TVR of 5.3 for the whole week.
Says an elated Bachchan, “I am humbled and delighted with the performance of KBC. These numbers show that we have managed to touch a chord with the ‘aam aadmi’. It is especially gratifying that it has brought whole families together across the entire country. Only a few days back, a viewer wrote to me saying after so many years, three generations of her family – she, along with her teenage daughter and mother-in-law – all watched television together, thanks to KBC.”
Master Chef on Star Plus and Rakhi Ka Insaaf on Imagine TV, the other two celebrity-driven reality shows launched during the week, managed only 2.6 TVR and 1.9 TVR respectively.
“The first week ratings are pretty encouraging. The fact that viewers are glued for the whole week is very good news for us,” says Set business head and EVP Ajit Thakur.
Sony, in fact, has edged out Zee TV with 221 GRPs (gross rating points) for the week ended 16 October, according to Tam data.
Zee TV mopped up 178 GRPs, prompting industry experts to believe that Sony has a high possibility of staying at the third spot at least till KBC gets over. The channel has signed Bachchan for nine weeks (36 episodes).
KBC, in fact, has had more punching power in the opening week than all the major shows launched recently. Bigg Boss 4 on Colors had opened to a 4.8 TVR, but the average ratings fell to 3.15 TVR and 2.27 TVR in the first and second week respectively.
The debut episode of Khataron Ke Khiladi x3 had clocked a 5.5 TVR, but the first week ratings stood at 4.4 TVR.
Among the different age demographics, KBC‘s ratings from 4-14-year-olds stood at 5.8 TVR, lower than the 15-24 age group which had a TVR of 7.1.
Among the 25-34-year-olds the TVR stood at 5.3, while the TVR was 6 for the 35-44 age group, 7.4 for 45-54 years and 6.2 TVR for audiences over 55 years.
The modest ratings of Master Chef, however, won’t hurt Star Plus (361 GRPs), which is leading the flock with a 100 GRP gap over Colors (261 GRPs). Star Plus’ four shows – Pratigya, Bidaaii, Sathiya Saath Bibhana and yeh Rishta – are among the top 10 shows during the week, and all of them have ratings of over 4.3 TVR.
Meanwhile, Colors‘ flagship fiction, Balika Vadhu, is knocked out of the top 10 shows. The channel now has three shows – Uttaran (4.4 TVR), Bigg Boss –Aakhiri Salaam (4.17 TVR) and na Ana Iss Desh Laado (3.99 TVR) – in the list of top 10.
Zee TV has lost some ground as it has only one show, Pavitra Rishta (4.93 TVR), among the top 10.
A quick look on the other GECs: Sab is fifth with 99 GRPs (109 GRPs in prior week), Imagine with 81 GRPs (from 75 GRPs) takes the sixth spot, followed by Star One (38 GRPs), and Sahara One (25 GRPs).
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
