GECs
Bobby Bedi has epic plans for ‘Mahabharata’
MUMBAI: Noted film producer and Kaleidoscope Entertainment promoter Bobby Bedi is on an epic project. His plan: to repurpose Mahabharata so that it can roam across various formats including a TV series, a film trilogy, an animation product, and a theme park.
Bedi had first announced plans for the Mahabharat project around the time his big-budget film Mangal Pandey released in August of 2005.
“For creating the entire chain of products, it would require an investment of around Rs 4 billion. The idea is to make it for the global market,” Bedi tells Indiantelevision.com.
First would be the creation of reality TV through a talent hunt for the Mahabharata characters. This, he says, would take about a year.
The talent hunt would next move to a Mahabharata TV series which could stretch to 150 episodes. Dr Chandraprakash Dwivedi would direct the series. “It will transform Indian television and travel across the world. We can make it in many languages,” Bedi says.
Bedi intends to invest Rs 160-170 million in just the development stage. “For completing the entire chain, it would require over three years. Developing gaming would require around $2 million,” he says.
The animation work will be assigned to a company which has US and Indian base. He, however, refused to divulge the name of the animation firm.
Will he rope in joint ventures to fund the project? “No, the investment will be done by Kaleidoscope. We may have partners,” he says.
Mahabharata will be made into a comic book series as well. A theme park based on the Mahabharata is also in the pipeline.
Delivering the keynote address at “India – The Big Picture,” Bedi said the project would involve multiple location shoots and be in multi-languages. “This is the direction Indian entertainment should be taking,” he added.
GECs
Sebi sends show-cause notice to Zee over fund diversion, company responds
Regulator questions 2018 letter of comfort and governance lapses; company vows robust legal response
MUMBAI: India’s markets watchdog has reignited its long-running scrutiny of Zee Entertainment Enterprises, issuing a sweeping show-cause notice that drags the broadcaster and 84 others into a widening governance storm.
The notice, dated February 12, has been served by the Securities and Exchange Board of India to Zee, chairman emeritus Subhash Chandra and managing director and chief executive Punit Goenka, among others. At its heart: allegations that company funds were indirectly routed to settle liabilities of entities linked to the Essel Group.
The regulator’s probe traces its roots to November 2019, when two independent directors resigned from Zee’s board, flagging concerns over the alleged appropriation of fixed deposits by Yes Bank. The deposits were reportedly adjusted against loans extended to Essel Group entities, triggering questions about related-party dealings and board oversight.
A key flashpoint is a letter of comfort dated September 4, 2018, issued by Subhash Chandra in his dual capacity as chairman of Zee and the Essel Group. The document, linked to credit facilities availed by certain group companies from Yes Bank, was allegedly known only to select members of management and not disclosed to the full board—an omission SEBI believes raises red flags over transparency and governance controls.
Zee has pushed back hard. In a statement, the company said it “strongly refutes” the allegations against it and its board members and will file a detailed response. It expressed confidence that SEBI would conduct a fair review and signalled readiness to pursue all legal remedies to protect shareholder interests.
The notice marks the latest twist in a saga that has shadowed the broadcaster since 2019. What began as boardroom unease has morphed into a full-blown regulatory confrontation. The final reckoning now rests with SEBI—but the reputational stakes for Zee, and the message for India Inc on governance discipline, could scarcely be higher.
