News Broadcasting
Creative Eye in expansion mode, to make show for Star
MUMBAI: Mythological soap opera specialist Creative Eye is set to start shooting for a weekly hour-long ‘social drama’, set on a Spanish format show, that will begin airing on Star Plus by September.
The production house, which created the recently launched kids’ comedy show Ruby Duby Hub Dub on Sahara Manoranjan, is also producing two new shows that will commence airing on Doordarshan later this month. Khoj, a suspense thriller has been put in the 10:30 pm slot, while Tumhare Liye, a social series, will air at 9:30 pm. While details of the show scheduled to launch on Star Plus are not available, it is learnt that shooting for the series will commence in 10 days time.
According to chairmman and managing director Dheeraj Kumar, the company is in an expansion mode currently and has elevated CFO Sunil Gupta to the position of COO and is now on the lookout for a new CEO. Roopa Das, who had been brought in to head a newly created creative cell, has quit and a new V-P, programming and two executive producers are likely to be appointed in the next week, says Kumar.
The 3D Plus technology powered kids’ fantasy feature film Abra Ka Dabra, which was earlier scheduled for a June launch, is now being readied for a Diwali launch on 5 November. The company has tied up with Music Today for the music rights of the film, and the music is scheduled for release on 4 September.
Abra Ka Dabra, which will have a simultaneous release in the US, UK, the Middle East, Indonesia and Malaysia, along with India, is also to be dubbed in Arabic for the Middle East audiences, as also in Tamil and Telugu for South Indian viewers. Produced on a Rs 90 million budget, corporates Parle and Camlin, which have entered into brand tie up agreements with Creative Eye for in-script placements of their products in the film, are expected to launch a Rs 10 million promo blitz for the movie.
Creative Eye has also acquired a feature film The Hope, directed by Kamal Nathani, and is poised to acquire two more feature films in the next quarter, says Kumar.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
