History TV18 launches Urdu feed

MUMBAI: History TV18, a joint venture between A+E Networks and TV18, is launching its eighth regional-language feed, this time in Urdu.

In another major move, the factual entertainment channel has readied a local show to air for the first time. Titled The
Greatest Indian, the show will be in conjunction with CNN IBN and BBC Worldwide from whom the format rights have been bought. The initiative is on the lines of the greatest Briton where people vote for whom they think is their greatest Indian.

A+E Networks TV18 president Ajay Chacko believes that Urdu is not a small market; 27 million people watch Urdu content.

Indiantelevision.com had reported in January 2012 that the channel was planning to launch two more language feeds.

History TV18 channel has the widest regional language spread. The other language feeds include Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Hindi, English and Gujarati.

The aim of the local show is to celebrate the idea of India and its diversity. Said IBN18 editor in chief Rajdeep Sardesai, "We want to find out who people think is the greatest Indian after 1948 since Mahatma
Gandhi. People can compare greats of the past to the present like Sunil Gavaskar to Sachin Tendulkar and Jawaharlal Nehru to Manmohan Singh. The aim is to have fun, entertaining and informative content.

AETN 18 programming head Ritu Kapur said that pre-production work has started and the initiative will kick off in April. There will be debates and discussions.

?History Har Din? is a social media initiative and a site has been created, historyhardin.in.com, which went live today. People can upload photos and videos where they feel that they have made history.

"History is personal. A woman might feel that she has made history with the birth of her first child, for instance. People can share their stories and experiences. We hope to create vignettes which will air on the
channel. We are doing a lot of social media marketing to push this initiative. We are also using our own channels. We will use themes. For instance when the IPL is on, we could ask people to share their experiences in terms of history being made at the IPL" said Kapur.

The channel?s brand ambassador Salman Khan, who was present at a pres conference here, uploaded a photo of himself on a horse. "People who have a made a big contribution to humanity qualify for being The Greatest Indian like Mother Theresa," he said.

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