News Broadcasting
Crest CEO AK Madhavan to continue as international business head
MUMBAI: Indian animation major Crest Communications has appointed AK Madhavan, formerly its international business head, as its chief executive officer, for its Indian operations.
This decision was taken by the board of directors in a meeting convened on 5 March. His appointment will commence with effect from 1 April 2004.
Speaking to indiantelevision.com, Madhavan said that he would be “handling both portfolios” for the near term, that is to say CEO as well as head of international business. He said that this was primarily due to the fact that the market he is handling is very niche, and hence it would take time for a person to understand the market thoroughly. Madhavan said this arrangement would continue until someone internally is trained to take charge of the post.
Crest Communications has gone through an internal restructuring as well, so as to formalise the whole set up in terms assigning reponsibles for various facets of the company.
Says Madhavan, “Earlier, there was no real organisational structure, and it was a very informal set-up. But looking at the growing complexity of corporate governance, one needs to look at a more organised set-up.”
Furthermore, he states that this was most integral at this point of time, as the company is moving towards a completely transparent set-up and building best practices wherein stringent standards would be put into place which would be a benchmark for the industry, more so considering the fact that the animation industry in India is still at a very nascent stage.
Crest Communications is one of the leaders in 3D animation in India.
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.
