News Broadcasting
Hungama launches third Captains Hunt; to search for leaders of tomorrow
MUMBAI: Hungama TV has launched the third edition of its Captains Hunt, which will search for 10 of the smartest kids across the country, between the age group 8 – 14 years. These kids will be on the board of directors of Hungama TV and run the channel for the next one year.
The channel has set aside a budget of Rs 10+ million for this year’s Captain’s Hunt. While in the initial phase the concentration will be on school contact programmes in 10 cities; the focus will shift to mass media during November – December, when the hunt will culminate.
The hunt kickstarted on 15 August 2006 and will travel to Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Ludhiana, Lucknow, Indore and Baroda targeting more than 500,000 kids in 500 schools across these cities. These kids will offer regular inputs on programming, marketing, distribution and competition.
This year the premise of the Captain’s Hunt has been changed. The aim is to find and shape the future leaders of India. The final 10 will be trained by industry leaders from various fields and will provide them with advice and direction to develop their potential and emerge as leaders of tomorrow. The kids will be judged on the basis of articulation, intelligence, confidence, ambition and talent.
UTV senior vice president – marketing and communications Siddharth Roy Kapur said, “At Hungama TV, our Captains are always an integral part of decision making, be it programming, marketing initiatives or on-ground research. Hungama TV Captains have helped the channel reach the position it has today and we really value their inputs. This year we are looking for the best and brightest kids across the country to run the channel and benefit from personal mentoring by iconic leaders of today.”
Once the entries are received from the 10 cities, 1000 kids will be shortlisted from each city in the second round. Thereafter, 50 kids will be chosen in the third round after which the number boils down to two kids from each city. Out of these 20 kids, 10 will then be chosen (one per city) to be the Captains.
The last day for receiving entries is 30 September. The auditions will take place in November and the finale on 9 – 10 December.
The 2007 captains will have many opportunities in store. A Captains Advisory Council (CAC), which will comprise leaders from various walks of life, will mentor these captains. The Captains will have exclusive access to the Council to seek advice and guidance on a regular basis. Also, Hungama TV will support a unique talent of every Captain by funding their coaching or training during their tenure.
Origentest, the research and implementation arm of IMS Learning Resources Pvt. Ltd, has been roped in as the knowledge partner and will be responsible for developing the various tests of the hunt.
This year’s hunt has Parle-G as the presenting sponsor and Boost Chocoblast as the co-presenting sponsor. The associate sponsors are Colgate, The Sugar & Spice, Reynolds, Kellogg’s Chocos, Dukes Big Bite and Boomer Mango Jelly.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
