GECs
Big B relaunches ABCL as AB Corp
MUMBAI: It was a befittingly glitzy affair in the city yesterday as Indian cinema’s biggest brand Amitabh Bachchan marked his 61st birthday by relaunching ABCL as AB Corp.
The new corporate identity of the Big B of Bollywood was unveiled with the launch of the Rajkumar Santoshi-directed Ranveer, which has Bachchan playing the pivotal role with son Abhishek and Sanjay Dutt costarring. Ranveer is being jointly produced by AB Corp and DMS Films, producers of Khakee, which has Bachchan and Ajay Devgan playing the lead roles. AB Corp plans to produce three to four films in the first phase, all as joint ventures with other corporate groups.
AB Corp is not just about a name change. It is also an attempt by Bachchan to make a clean break with the troubled past that constituted the Brand Bachchan firm’s earlier avatar ABCL, which went into bankruptcy. It was referred to the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) and declared sick in 1999. At one time ABCL had 55 court cases against it. Bachchan has cleared Rs 900 million in debts due primarily to Prasar Bharti, financial institutions, banks and some private parties.
While making his inaugural address, Bachchan said he had three people in particular to thank for helping him through the tough times – politician and regular Page 3 socialite Amar Singh (first), Reliance Industries’ Anil Ambani and the Sahara Group’s Subrato Roy. To add to the glitz of the affair, Singh presented Bachchan with a Bentley as his birthday gift. While expressing his gratitude to the three, Bachchan was at pains to stress that there was no funding that had come from either of them as far as clearing his debt was concerned.
And keeping with the professionally managed persona that AB Corp is projecting, Leo Entertainment – the specialised arm of advertising agency Leo Burnett – will be promoting its films.
Head of Leo Entertainment Sanjay Bhutiani has been quoted in the Hindu Businessline as saying: “We will be developing brand strategies and advertising for all the forthcoming films produced by AB Corp.”
The latest on AB Corp, meanwhile is that it is in advanced talks with with AV Birla group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla’s Applause Entertainment for an alliance in feature film production.
According to a report in the Business Standard, the deal, which is expected to be inked in the next few days, will have the brand equity that Bachchan and son Abhishek command valued as equity.
Saturday evening was not the time or place to get any answers to this and any other such questions though (like when Bachchan would start work on the grand Sahara TV project?). It was your regular Bollywood “mahurat” party. On a much grander scale of course as befitted the occasion. And here indiantelevision.com went thinking there would be a media briefing of some sort. Filmi bashes are not about such things is one lesson we took away from the Big B’s big night.
GECs
Samsung TV Plus launches Kings of Comedy channel
New free FAST channel brings iconic Hindi comedy shows to millions of Samsung Smart TV owners.
MUMBAI: Samsung TV Plus has just turned up the laughter volume and it’s completely free. The leading free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service in India has launched Kings of Comedy, a premium comedy channel featuring some of the country’s most beloved primetime shows. Available exclusively on Samsung TV Plus, the channel delivers back-to-back hits including Comedy Nights with Kapil, Khatra Khatra Khatra, and Comedy Nights Bachao, with no login or subscription required.
The launch marks a milestone for free streaming in India, offering audiences a dedicated comedy destination directly from their Samsung TV home screen. It arrives as Samsung TV Plus India celebrates its 5th anniversary, during which the service has grown its monthly active users by 42 per cent and more than doubled its total viewing hours. The platform now offers over 180 free channels across 14 languages.
Samsung TV Plus India general manager and head of business development Kunal Mehta said, “Comedy is the heartbeat of Hindi entertainment, and Kings of Comedy brings together the shows Indians already love, completely free on their Samsung TV. Our focus remains the same take the content people know and make it effortless to access.”
Globally, Samsung TV Plus has surpassed 100 million monthly active users across more than 4,500 channels, solidifying its position as one of the world’s leading free streaming services.
Kings of Comedy is now available on all compatible Samsung Smart TVs. For viewers seeking non-stop laughter without any cost, this new channel delivers a royal treat proving that sometimes the best entertainment really does come with no strings (or subscriptions) attached.
