News Broadcasting
Sony’s Achanak… completes first cycle on Friday with a twist in the tale
Achanak… 37 saal baad the weekly late night supernatural thriller on Sony is all set to conclude the first cycle with a ‘major revelation’ this Friday.
Series writer Sridhar Raghavan says this week’s episode will reveal the person responsible for the strange goings-on at Gahota, which have fuelled and propelled the story thus far. This would turn the plot inside out, as the protagonist is a person who has been a main figure throughout the story.
Raghavan says the show, that kicked off on 22 March is divided into four cycles, with the first one concluding with the unmasking of the villain. CID was rational, Aahat was irrational, bordering on the extreme. Achanak… lies somewhere in between, with small, strong occurrences occurring in conjunction making people question their lives and sanity, he says.
The cycle structure adapted by Achanak… was designed to make it easy for viewers to catch up on the happenings even if they missed five to six episodes, says Raghavan. “If the viewer does not latch on to what is happening within ten minutes, it means something is wrong,” he says. This is because the serial has been crafted in such a way that picking up the thread should not be a problem even though the story was continuous, he says. Another advantage the cycles offer is that there is no need to compromise on pace, he adds.
Cycles exist as structural levels we can play with. The show should
Sudden shocks…A still from Achanak 37 Saal Baad
ideally bewilder rather than confuse audience members. It wont drag he promises. Another unique aspect of the serial is that a couple of heroes have already been killed in the storyline, so ordinary people realise their potential by having to deal with extraordinary circumstances.
Talking about the future of the serial, Raghavan says the second cycle starts with people in Gahota not remembering any of the strange occurrences that have taken place over the past three months. Amnesia descends like blanket on the town and the minds of people are full of false memories. There will be fewer characters in this cycle as a few people have died in the first cycle, says Raghavan.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
