News Broadcasting
Entire Middle East Aaj Tak’s target for 2002
Aaj Tak, the Hindi news channel that has forayed into the UAE with a tie-up with a cable operator late last year, plans to cover the entire Middle East in the near future.
Aaj Tak signed a deal with E Vision, a leading UAE cable company in November 2001 offering the channel on a free to air window to all subscribers of the cable op, spread in Dubai and parts of UAE. According to CEO G Krishnan, the channel will shift to ‘a la carte mode’ from mid-February. In effect, the channel will be available to subscribers for a nominal payment after that. The deal, says Krishnan, was struck to explore the international market within the footprint area of its existing carrier satellite Insat 2 E. Aaj Tak is currently targeting Asian homes through E Vision, owned by ETISALAT.
The channel is also rationalising its rate card from 1 April 2002 in order to make it more attractive to advertisers. “Our ad revenues have consistently grown from the time we launched”, he says. The channel’s only source of revenue is advertising and Krishnan hopes to exceed revenue targets of Rs 400 million for the current fiscal. One big success that Aaj Tak has chalked up is in managing to mop up a wide range of ads from players who were traditionally not known to set aside budgets for television.
In India, Aaj Tak is currently available to 100 per cent of the cable homes while the current Cable & Satellite connectivity is over 85 per cent, claims Krishnan.
Krishnan says the company is also in touch with existing DTH players in the UAE and will be signing a deal shortly to attract all DTH homes as well in UAE. He hopes to acquire an additional 60,000 to 70,000 homes by the end of 2002 if a deal with any of the three DTH players in the region works out. Only two of the three existing DTH players in the region, he says, are interested in Hindi content.
Aaj Tak, which was rated as one of the most popular news channels by the time it completed a year of operation in December 2001, has however shelved its plans of launching an English news channel for the time being. Krishnan however is confident that the channel will have a better share of the international market by the end of next year.
At the time of inception, the Living Media group, TV Today’s parent had decided to offload up to 25 per cent in the new entity. While the Bharati group picked up a 10 per cent stake in the company recently, ICICI Venture Funds holds another 10 per cent. Krishnan says the company does not plan to offload any more equity in the near future.
News Broadcasting
Kamlesh Singh receives Haldi Ghati Award from MMCF
India Today Group editor honoured for three decades of journalism at Udaipur ceremony.
MUMBAI- Kamlesh Singh just turned a lifetime of sharp words into a shiny shield because when journalism wakes up a society, even the Maharana of Mewar wants to pin a medal on it.
The Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF) conferred its prestigious Haldi Ghati Award on Kamlesh Singh, a senior editor at the India Today Group, during a ceremony in Udaipur on 15 March 2026. The national award, instituted in 1981-82, recognises “work of permanent value that initiates an awakening in society through the medium of journalism.”
Singh, who leads several editorial initiatives including Aaj Tak Radio, the Teen Taal community and The Lallantop, was presented the honour by Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar, Managing Trustee of MMCF. The citation highlighted his three decades of contributions to Indian media, innovations in digital journalism, mentoring young reporters, and his popular podcast persona “Tau” on Teen Taal, which fosters thoughtful public discourse.
The Haldi Ghati Award, named after the historic Battle of Haldighati symbolising valour and resilience, is one of four national awards given annually by MMCF. Past recipients include Tavleen Singh, Piyush Pandey and Raj Chengappa.
Other honourees this year included Padma Vibhushan Pt Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Vedamurti Devvrat Rekhe, Treeman of India Marimuthu Yoganathan, Vir Chakra Capt Rizwan Malik, and US-based researcher Molly Emma Aitken, who received the Colonel James Tod Award for contributions to understanding Mewar’s spirit and values.
In an era where headlines often shout louder than substance, the MMCF quietly reminded everyone that real journalism isn’t about noise, it’s about the quiet, persistent work that stirs society awake, one thoughtful story at a time.
