Movie Channels
Filmy promises different menu for movie buffs, launches 26 January
MUMBAI: “Ma Kasam Filmy Hai!” Believe it or not, that’s the tag line of the new baby from the Sahara One stable – Filmy, which is due to launch on 26 January.
The channel name will not have ‘Sahara One’ as a prefix as is in the case of the other Sahara channels and will be launched as ‘Filmy’.
While channel officials were tight lipped about any developments, information available with Indiantelevision.com indicates that, post launch, a ‘Filmy Yatra will do the rounds of eight–10 cities across India with certain celebrities who will be the faces of the channel. The aim: To generate awareness around Filmy’s launch.
Hindi film actor Chunky Pandey and Vinay Pathak (of the Channel [V] Ranvir-Vinay duo) are two of the faces that the channel will sport.
On the programming front, the channel aims to redefine the way cinema is consumed on television. Filmy will deliver movie content in an exciting fun-filled way. It will not just be airing back to back movies but has a few shows lined up wherein the channel is trying to package movies into anchored shows. “The aim will be to try and showcase movies in a better way with a lot of cheek and lightheartedness, rather than just telecasting the movie,” says an industry source.
Filmy will be taking on channels like Zee Cinema, Max and Star Gold head-on, which will be quite a challenge. Last year, Star India COO Sameer Nair launched an initiative to give a push to Star Gold to make it the number one Hindi movie channel.
As a first step, movies in the weekend slot on Star Plus were taken off and pushed on to Star Gold.The initiative got an added impetus when Star India signed a deal with Sahara One last year for satellite broadcasting rights to 64 movies for limited telecasts between October 2005 to June 2007. The price Star, reportedly, paid for the movies: Rs 110 million.
This deal aside, Sahara One does have a bunch of big ticket movies under its belt, some of them being funded by another family company, Sahara One Motion Pictures.
It will be interesting to see Filmy’s strategy, especially when it will be taking on the likes of Zee Cinema, which has carved a niche for itself in the market. Max too has an advantage with rights to some hit Hindi movies of 2005 like Yash Raj movies’ Bunty Aur Bubbly, Salaam Namaste and Neal and Nikki. Not to mention the big daddy of entertainment in India — cricket in the form of ICC’s Champions Trophy later this year. Max is a channel that has woven a success tale with an unusual combination of movies and cricket.
With increasing fragmentation happening in the cable TV market, one problem that movie channels are facing is that while they enjoy a channel share of 12 per cent, their revenue share is only six per cent.
With increasing competition and a race to outdo competition, movie acquisition costs went up by almost 30 per cent last year. Now, with another player in the market, that figure is likely to rise even further.
In such a scenario, Filmy is aspiring to be a channel that will appeal to the urban audience. Traditionally, Hindi movie channels cater to the lower SECs unless it involves big ticket titles like Kabhie Khushi Kabhi Gham or Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, which draw in more urban viewers.
A pertinent question that comes to mind is: where and how is Filmy going to position itself amongst a host of movie channels? To use a cliché, only time will tell.
Movie Channels
Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat Premieres 14 Feb on Zee
Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat world TV premiere 14 Feb at 8pm passion meets politics.
MUMBAI: Cupid’s arrow just got a plot twist and it’s heading straight for your TV screen. This Valentine’s Day, Zee Cinema is turning up the heat with the world television premiere of Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat, a raw, rule-breaking romantic drama that proves love doesn’t always come wrapped in roses.
Set to air on Saturday, 14 February at 8pm, the film stars Harshvardhan Rane and Sonam Bajwa, directed by Milap Zaveri. It dives headfirst into obsession, heartbreak, and the kind of unconditional love that leaves scorch marks. Rane plays Vikramaditya, a powerful politician whose all-consuming passion for actress Adaa spirals into chaos when his feelings go unreturned unleashing a storm of emotion, misunderstanding, and life-altering consequences.
The timing couldn’t be sharper. Audiences are clearly craving intense love stories over sugar-coated ones, and this film taps straight into that vein. Harshvardhan Rane already has a loyal fanbase from his cult hit Sanam Teri Kasam, which cemented his status as the go-to guy for heart-wrenching romance especially among younger viewers who keep the film on repeat.
Milap Zaveri captured the film’s beating heart, “This film is about love that doesn’t follow rules. With Valentine’s Day being a time when audiences gravitate towards romantic narratives, the television premiere of Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat on Zee Cinema felt like the perfect fit. The continued love for intense romances shows there is a strong emotional appetite for such stories.”
Rane himself called it a story rooted in messy, honest emotion, “Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat explores love in its most intense and vulnerable form where emotions are messy and deeply human. It’s a story that doesn’t shy away from passion or pain on Valentine’s Day making it even more special as it reflects the many shades of love people experience.”
Sonam Bajwa added her take, “Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat is not a conventional love story, it’s raw, intense and emotional. Valentine’s Day is usually associated with happy romance but this film explores love in its most vulnerable form.”
So if your Valentine’s plans include more than chocolates and clichés, tune in to Zee Cinema at 8pm on 14 February. Because sometimes the most unforgettable love stories aren’t the ones that end neatly, they’re the ones that leave you questioning just how far passion can push before everything changes.
