GECs
Colors to pull all stops to make Stardust Awards bigger & better
MUMBAI: Colors is gearing up to pull all stops to make the 13th edition of the Sansui Colors Stardust Awards bigger and better this year.
The awards, which will be held on 21 December in Mumbai at the Reliance Jio Gardens in BKC, will see more investment being pumped in for a larger stage and bigger performing acts.
A source close to the development informed Indiantelevision.com, “The production cost of last year’s Stardust Awards was approximately Rs 12 crore, which has gone up by 30 per cent this year to approximately Rs 15.6 crore.”
Commenting on this year’s awards, Colors CEO Raj Nayak said, “Last year we partnered with the biggest names in the consumer electronics and publishing business namely Sansui and Stardust to launch The Sansui Colors Stardust Awards. This partnership of three leaders went on to make the Sansui Colors Awards the No. 1 Awards show on Indian television. This year, based on feedback from all stakeholders in the industry, we have re-looked at the categories to make it more credible and robust. Our aim is to make the event exceedingly significant, entertaining and colossal this year.”
Talking about the association with Stardust, Sansui COO Amitabh Tiwari said, “At Sansui, it is our goal to make entertainment synonymous to the brand, and through our continued association with Stardust and Colors, we feel more connected to this vision. Last year, Stardust Awards was rated as the best award show and this year we are all geared up to raise the bar of entertainment to the next level. We aim to bestow upon our audience the best of entertainment and are all set to enthral them. We have had a wonderful kick start with Stardust and are confident that the relationship will strengthen with each passing year.”
Magna Publishing chairman Nari Hira added, “If last year’s scale and grandeur was top-notch, we are all set to surpass all benchmarks and make this new edition an even bigger entertainment extravaganza. 2015 has been an outstanding year for Indian cinema and we are looking forward to paying homage to the stalwarts whose showmanship has added to the industry’s success not only in India but also internationally.”
The evening will be hosted by Abhishek Bachchan and Riteish Deshmukh along with co-host Farah Khan.
Given their expertise in putting together large scale shows, Cineyug has been roped in as the events partner for the affair. The sets have been designed by Omung Kumar.
“The award show is planned on a very grand scale this year. Last year we brought Stardust Award from Sony Max to Colors. This year we have a grand star cast with some amazing performances. We also have we have the Dilwale team performing on the award night. Apart from that we have a great line up of actors performing including Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Shahid Kapoor and Jacqueline Fernandez. This year, we are performing acts on the new grand ground Jio Garden,” said Cineyug Entertainment director Mohammad Morani.
Magna Publishing marketing head Shivendra Parihar added, “This year the focus will be making award night bigger and better than last year. Last year, we were the number one rated award show on Indian television. This year the focus will be taking it a notch higher and having great viewership across the world for which we have made award content and performances engaging.”
GECs
Samsung TV Plus launches Kings of Comedy channel
New free FAST channel brings iconic Hindi comedy shows to millions of Samsung Smart TV owners.
MUMBAI: Samsung TV Plus has just turned up the laughter volume and it’s completely free. The leading free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service in India has launched Kings of Comedy, a premium comedy channel featuring some of the country’s most beloved primetime shows. Available exclusively on Samsung TV Plus, the channel delivers back-to-back hits including Comedy Nights with Kapil, Khatra Khatra Khatra, and Comedy Nights Bachao, with no login or subscription required.
The launch marks a milestone for free streaming in India, offering audiences a dedicated comedy destination directly from their Samsung TV home screen. It arrives as Samsung TV Plus India celebrates its 5th anniversary, during which the service has grown its monthly active users by 42 per cent and more than doubled its total viewing hours. The platform now offers over 180 free channels across 14 languages.
Samsung TV Plus India general manager and head of business development Kunal Mehta said, “Comedy is the heartbeat of Hindi entertainment, and Kings of Comedy brings together the shows Indians already love, completely free on their Samsung TV. Our focus remains the same take the content people know and make it effortless to access.”
Globally, Samsung TV Plus has surpassed 100 million monthly active users across more than 4,500 channels, solidifying its position as one of the world’s leading free streaming services.
Kings of Comedy is now available on all compatible Samsung Smart TVs. For viewers seeking non-stop laughter without any cost, this new channel delivers a royal treat proving that sometimes the best entertainment really does come with no strings (or subscriptions) attached.
