News Broadcasting
Ahimsaa channel to be launched on 30 Jan 2003
MUMBAI: Ahimsaa, a 24-hour global satellite television channel is all set for its launch on 30 January next year. The content of the channel will primarily comprise social, environmental and women empowerment issues.
The first official announcement about the launch was made at the ‘Converging World 2002’ held in Bangalore between 3-5 December. The channel is promoted by the Kolkata based Santosh Kumar Jain who besides being a partner in Aastha Television and CMM Music has also promoted ATN World and ATN Bangla in West Bengal. It is being backed by The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKWSU) which is headquartered in Mount Abu, India.
“We propose to have kids shows; serials aimed at the youth and career guidance; women’s rights and issues beauty tips; and even cooking. We shall even cover issues like Aids, health, alternate therapies and cures,” Ahimsaa Global Media Director, Sonal Jain elaborated while speaking to the indiantelevision.com team.
The channel will reach out to over four billion people in more than 150 countries through its programmes on spiritual, ethical and social themes, stated an official release. It will show children’s programme like ‘moral story telling’ sessions, alternate methods of education and special programmes for the youth on career guidance, awareness regarding drugs, AIDS and other issues, the release added.
“Negotiations are on with the managements of PAS-10 and Thaicom for uplinking facilities. We are also commissioning inhouse content at Kolkata. Within two years, we expect the advertisers to provide content. At present we have programming content of around eight hours and there will be repeat telecasts. We propose to increase the programming content as time goes by, ” said Brahma Kumaris’ chief of multimedia, B K Karuna.
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.
