News Broadcasting
Actress Shilpa Shetty to feature on CNN’s ‘Talk Asia’
MUMBAI: Indian actress Shilpa Shetty will feature on CNN’s chat show Talk Asia on 12 May at 8:30 pm and on 13 May at 6:30 pm. She reveals why she is unrepentant about her public kiss with actor Richard Gere, what she learnt from her time in the Big Brother household, thoughts on her love life, film career and more.
Reaction to Gere’s prolonged kiss ranged from amusement to outrage, but Shetty is admant that the extreme reactions from some do not reflect her country: “I would describe the ‘some’ as a lunatic fringe. And that is so not the sensibility of the majority of India”.
The star also explains why she is relaxed at the thought of a potential six year jail sentence in the wake of the controversy before venting her frustration as to why effigies of Gere have been burned: “I don’t know if Richard is going to come back to the country, the losers…it’s us again as he was only trying to help us out.” As to those pursuing the litigations, she asks: “I want to actually ask them what they’ve done for us, what have they done for this country?”
Shetty also talks about her time in the UK’s Big Brother household, where she reached “The lowest point in my life”. Despite this, she is convinced that to have walked out “Would be such a loser thing to do, to give up” and that her final victory “Was a huge victory as an Indian to have won something abroad”.
Satinder also asks Shetty about her success in relationships, quizzing her on boyfriends, what dating her would entail and why she ultimately wants “A happy marriage and whatever it takes to achieve that”
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
