GECs
Panel to look into Karnataka film industry problems
BANGALORE: The Karnataka government has decided to set up a committee of experts to look into the problems faced by the Karnataka film industry. A team of experts, elected representatives, officials and representatives of the film industry will be part of the committee that will come up with an integrated policy and programme document.
Announcing the decision during a discussion in the legislative assembly in Bangalore, the State water resources minister Mallikarjun Kharge also assured the industry that subsidy dues to the extent of Rs 30 million would be cleared.
BJP member Chandu, who initiated the discussion, wanted the Rs 30 million raised from the additional tax of Re.1, imposed on the exhibitors two years ago, to be used for the betterment of the industry as intended when the tax was imposed. Chandu also felt the framing of the show tax imposed for every screening of a film needed to be looked at afresh. This show tax was particularly harmful to exhibitors outside Bangalore and touring cinemas, who often had to shell out more than the worth of their infrastructure. Lack of definition of a proper policy and protocol results in an exhibitor charging unreasonably high, he felt.
Earlier, the industry had called for a strike on 23 July as the government didn’t oblige the Kannada Film Producers Association’s (KFPA) request to maintain the entertainment tax on non-Kannada films at 70 per cent (as was the case pre-budget) and instead reduced it to 40 per cent. The Kannada Film Producers Association (KFPA) had also demanded that the government should extend subsidy to all the Kannada films produced in the State, with the exception of remakes and sex and violence-dominated films.
GECs
ZEEL overhauls sales structure to chase growth across TV and digital platforms
New structure sharpens digital push as viewing habits fragment fast
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. is reshuffling its sales playbook as it looks to keep pace with a fast-changing media landscape, where audiences are scattered, screens are multiplying and advertisers are following the data.
According to media reports, the rejig is anchored in the company’s push to build a more integrated, data-led monetisation engine, one that can straddle both traditional television and fast-growing digital platforms with equal ease.
At the heart of the move is a reworked sales architecture designed to deliver cross-platform solutions. With connected TV gaining ground and digital consumption surging, ZEEL is aligning its teams to move quicker, think broader and sell smarter.
The restructuring is being led by chief operating officer, advertisement revenue, Sandeep Mehrotra, at a time when the company says it is seeing tremendous growth. The idea is simple: match the right talent to the right opportunity in a market that is anything but static.
As part of the overhaul, several long-serving executives have been elevated to chief sales officer roles across regions and content clusters. Sanjoy Chatterjee will head the east market, while Gunjarav Nayak takes charge of the west along with high-margin verticals such as hmg, brand works, intellectual properties and digital sales. Rajnish Gupta will oversee bengaluru and chennai markets alongside the kannada and tamil clusters.
In other key moves, Divjyot Dhanda will lead hyderabad and kochi markets and manage zee tv, zee keralam and the telugu cluster. Roshan Vasu Kotian will supervise a diverse portfolio including Zee Marathi, &tv, Zee Punjabi, Zee Anmol, Big Magic and Zee Biskope.
The company is also strengthening its bench, appointing national sales heads across retail, regional clusters, digital and brand solutions. Ankur Kapila’s appointment to lead digital sales signals a sharper push into a segment that continues to outpace traditional formats.
Behind the scenes, dedicated strategy and operations roles have been carved out for both linear and digital businesses. Nitin Shetty, Rajkiran Shrivastav and Priya Nambiar will take on key responsibilities to ensure the new structure runs with precision.
The broader aim is clear. ZEEL wants a bigger slice of advertising budgets that are steadily drifting towards digital and connected TV ecosystems. By integrating its offerings, the company hopes to deepen client relationships while unlocking new revenue streams.
The new structure takes effect immediately, with Mehrotra continuing to report to chief executive officer Punit Goenka and steer the company’s advertising revenue strategy. Senior executive Laxmi Shetty will support the transition, with her revised role expected to be announced soon.
In a market where content is everywhere but attention is scarce, ZEEL’s latest move is less about rearranging the org chart and more about staying in the game.
