News Broadcasting
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa announces ‘L’il Champs’
Mumbai, July 3, 2006: After the mega success of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 & Ek Main Aur Ek Tu, Zee TV announces a completely new series – “L’il Champs” with twenty-two new young contestants. L’il Champs will provide a platform for the first time to young participants, all in the age group of 7 to 14 years. This series will have the little talents singing to a live band on the show. L’il Champs also marks the return of the extremely popular anchor Shaan, to Sa Re Ga Ma Pa after a brief hiatus.
Speaking on the launch, Gajendra Singh, Creative Director, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa said, “Following Challenge 2005 & Ek Main Aur Ek Tu, we thought of L’il Champs, a completely different series from the earlier ones. Music is an integral part of Indian culture and talent should be nurtured from an early age, therefore, L’il Champs will identify young talent. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa has always been a platform for the best talent in the country, L’il Champs will bring out the best in young talent from across the country.”
Adding further, Ashvini Yardi, Head, Programming, Zee TV said, “L’il Champs will be an absolutely new experience for all of us, as we will be dealing with little children as participants. We look forward to providing our viewers a refreshingly new show with L’il Champs, some talented singing with loads of fun. We also have new judges – Alka Yagnik, Bappi Lahiri & Abhijeet. All of them established professionals from the music industry, who will guide & judge our little contestants.”
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs will be on Zee TV, Thursdays and Fridays, 10 to 11 p.m.
News Broadcasting
GenNext takes charge as Network18 reshuffles leadership
With Avinash Kaul bowing out, Network18 hands reins to younger leaders, streamlines operations, and pushes data-driven growth across TV, digital and regional markets
MUMBAI: Network18 is redrawing its leadership map just as a long-time lieutenant bows out. Avinash Kaul, a central figure in the broadcaster’s rise since 2014, is leaving after 12 years to pursue “professional and personal goals”, triggering a broad-based reshuffle that puts a younger cohort directly under the top brass.
Kaul joined at a pivotal moment during the company’s transition and went on to scale the television business, combining strategic nous with data-led decision-making and a sharp read of the news landscape. “Avinash has been an integral part of the Network18 story,” the company said, thanking him for his leadership of the broadcast business and wishing him the best for the future.
In his wake, Network18 is betting on what it calls a “young and restless” leadership bench. “The team has taken charge and proved its mettle in quite adverse circumstances,” the note said, adding that “GenNext has seamlessly stepped in as we continue to outperform our peers.”
Operationally, the structure is being flattened. Smriti Mehra, S Shivakumar and Mitul Sangani will work directly with the top leadership, as they did in the fourth quarter. Ganesh Iyer and Abhinay Chauhan continue in their existing roles, while younger executives are being handed wider mandates across social, digital, connected TV and linear.
The reporting lines are being tightened to drive revenue and product momentum. Prabhat Chatterjee, business head–Forbes, and Arun Thapar, president–content and communication for AETN-18, will report to Smriti Mehra, alongside Mallika Nath Handa, who will lead special projects spanning new shows and non-linear properties. Jayesh Gokalgandhi, CFO for AETN-18, will report to Ramesh Damani.
Mitul Sangani will oversee expansion in Hindi and regional markets, with Sidharth Newatia, CRO–ILC, focusing on reach and revenue growth, particularly in tier-II and III markets. Pankaj Soni, head of marketing–ILC, will also report to Sangani while working functionally with Ganesh Iyer.
The group is also consolidating its branded content play. Moneycontrol’s branded content business will be folded into News18 Studio, with Don Zarrar moving to work with Shivakumar while continuing to lead existing studio and Focus teams.
International and platform growth are being bundled together. Pranav Bakshi takes on additional charge of the international business alongside connected TV and social platforms, with Naveen Mathur, who leads revenue management for the international unit, reporting to him. Bakshi continues to report to Puneet Singhvi.
On the technology and operations side, Rajesh Sharma, head of broadcast technology and IT; Rahul Singh, head of events and technical operations; and Bhupender Bhardwaj, head of IT security, will now report to Singhvi. Darshil Parekh, head of sales strategy, planning and operations, will work directly with Ramesh Damani and the top leadership, with Stanley Cyril, who manages digital sales operations, reporting to him.
Data is being pushed to the centre of decision-making. Jitamitra Mohanty, who leads research and analytics, will now work with Santosh Menon to turn audience data into “actionable insights that drive content strategy, product innovation and sustainable viewership growth”.
The message is clear: fewer layers, faster calls, sharper bets. With Kaul’s exit closing one chapter, Network18 is handing the wheel to a younger crew and doubling down on scale across screens. The race, it signals, will be run at full tilt.
