News Broadcasting
‘Kasautii’ edges past Balaji siblings to reign over ratings
MUMBAI: Once might be perceived as the luck of the draw. But two weeks running certainly raises questions?
Balaji offspring Kasautii Zindagi Kay, for long the lesser sibling of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii, has shot past both to lead the stakes for the second week in a row in the ratings just released by TAM for the week ended 24 May 2003.
Kasautii …has usurped the first three slots dominated by the other two ‘K’ serials in the last two years. More importantly, Kasautii… has helped pull the ratings scorecard into double digits once again. In a slot occupied once by the mighty Kyunki… with TVRs that went over 12, Kasautii…today is at a respectable 10.9.
However, another slow and steady winner, Aruna Irani’s Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand, which topped the heap for the week ended 10 May, continues to hold its own against the mighty Balaji rivals, save Kasautii…, of course. Des Mein… this week appears at the fourth spot with a TVR of 9.5 (erstwhile Balaji star Amarr Upadhyay who split with the production house to try his luck in films, is back on the small screen with Des… for the last one week, incidentally).
Kyunki… makes its appearance only at the sixth place and Kahaani…. finds pride of place only further down at the eighth place, with a TVR of 8.1.
Are the two mighty pillars of Star Plus’ programming finally entering their autumn period? Another week of similar ratings and it could be said with more certainty whether there is a trend developing here.
Will the next few months see a battle royale between Ekta’s Kasautii…. and Irani’s Des Mein….? The ratings will tell.
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
