Movie Channels
HBO stakes its all on ‘Band of Brothers’
Hoping to turn conventional wisdom as to what sells in India in the movie business on its head, HBO tonight premieres its $ 120 million epic miniseries, Band of Brothers, to the hail of a veritable media blitzkrieg across the country.
According to Shruti Bajpai, director, marketing of HBO South Asia, it is the most heavily promoted event for HBO India in 2001. There is a multimedia campaign planned around the launch of the show, involving outdoor presence, press ads in various publications in major cities, Internet, radio and cinemas in all metros.
Says Bajpai: “We also have an on air promotional plan which is the most expensive on air promo ever being done on the channel.” The teaser campaign, programmes on the “making of” behind the scenes, exclusive interviews with Hanks, critics’ reviews, audience reactions and a ten day countdown were all part of the promotion. In addition, the Band Of Brothers book is also being promoted at leading bookstores across the country.
After tonight’s launch of Band Of Brothers, there will also be episodic recaps of all episodes. The channel is also pushing the series on MTV and Discovery Channel, Bajpai says. Apart from vantage point hoardings in Mumbai and Delhi, HBO has gone in for interesting media innovations with some leading English newspapers in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore. An example: today’s edition of Mumbai’s top-selling Mid Day tabloid had a double page centrespread foldout devoted to the launch.
Ad spend on the 10-part miniseries, the most expensive original production by HBO till date, is approximately 25 per cent of the channel’s overall marketing budget, Bajpai revealed. Industry sources say HBO’s ad spend for the year is roughly Rs 150 million so that would indicate a figure of Rs 37.5 million or thereabouts as the promotional spend on Band of Brothers.
If Band of Brothers does succeed as HBO expects it to, the prevailing wisdom that viewership on movie channels is title-driven and made for television productions cannot succeed will have been effectively disproved.
As for the episodes themselves, for 10 Mondays beginning tonight 9.30 pm, Band of Brothers will tell the story of World War II from the viewpoint of Easy Company, an elite team of American paratroopers who were among the first to land in France on the fatal D-Day morning and played a vital role in the capture of the Bulge. They also freed a concentration camp in Germany.
Based on Stephen Ambrose’s book, the series is produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. The series is refreshingly free of the usual cliches associated with a war drama, according to the official release. No fake Pearl Harbour romantic triangle, no sickening patriotic rah rah. Just raw gritty drama that examines the human condition at the time of a war. Hanks has also directed Brothers’ fifth episode called Crossroads.
Production for the series started last April and finished in November. The series has 500 speaking parts and 10,000 supporting actors were involved. The cast was trained on the usage of the weapons. They also had to undergo the hardships of a boot camp and each working day lasted 16 hours. They were trained in movement both during the day and night, hiding in foxholes and jumping from an aeroplane.
Tonight’s episode is Currahee and shows how the members of Easy Company train. David Schwimmer of sitcom Friends’ fame plays the nasty Lieutenant Sobel whose bullying attitude causes the men under his command to despise him.
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.
