GECs
Kickstarting the ‘KBC 2’ jackpot
Star Plus launched KBC 2 on 5 August but preparation for the show started in early January.
The show had a five phased launch – all of which happened before 5 August. The idea was to come back with a bang, which captured the grandness of the show as well as spark off a feeling of nostalgia. This activity started with the Umeed phase – which had Bachchan talk about what it was that made people come back and never give up – it is Umeed, Hope. This was done through two commercials which played for a period of three weeks. This promo was in fact released simultaneously across all Star channels in a network road-block.
“We also decided not to overexpose Mr Bachchan, so the next phase was the “Are You Ready?” phase, where we showed people from across all walks of life getting ready for KBC 2. We did this through four commercials called – “The Coolie”, “The Marriage”, “The Increment” and “The Canteen”. These commercials were a first of its kind for KBC where we did not use AB nor the sets, but yet invoked a sense of ‘getting ready for the show’,” says Vidyasagar.
Around this time, the phone lines were thrown open. A multimedia national campaign to signify this was unleashed. An on air commercial called “Makkhan Singh” was the first. Here the character Makkhan Singh is told by his rather naughty neighbour, not to give up hope even though he has been robbed – he should pick up the phone and dial the numbers that could get him onto KBC 2.
Vidyasagar elaborates, “In this entry mechanism explanation promo we described how one could enter using landlines and mobiles. We also released print advertising across seventeen states in India with all the entry mechanism details. We also activated outdoor, internet and radio advertising for the same.”
The role of PR was also immense as the entire country was literally hungry to read about KBC 2 and how one could get in to the Hot Seat. The entry questions were shown on Star Plus.
The next phase was called “Fast Lane to KBC 2” which was a special entry mechanism for Airtel users, which would get them directly into the Fastest Finger First round.
About five weeks before the launch date, the final bunch of commercials were released, which were the tune-in films. These picked up the thread of Umeed, but exploded the concept to talk about Umeed Se Dugna.
Three commercials – “Actor”, “Cricketer” and “Musician”, each of which showed the principal character moving up in life because he never gave up hope were shown. Bachchan came back in his inimitable rap style to say “Don’t lose hope is the moral of the story.”
Ten days before the launch date, 10 more short commercials – in the form of a countdown – one every day till the day of launch were unveiled. “On the day of the launch we again activated about 20 markets with print advertising to remind people to tune in tonight. In this final phase we also activated outdoor, radio, internet, mobile, ground, in-train, and word-of-mouth advertising to supplement the campaign,” says Vidyasagar.
The entire five phased launch campaign lasted for three months before the launch date.
GECs
ZEEL overhauls sales structure to chase growth across TV and digital platforms
New structure sharpens digital push as viewing habits fragment fast
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. is reshuffling its sales playbook as it looks to keep pace with a fast-changing media landscape, where audiences are scattered, screens are multiplying and advertisers are following the data.
According to media reports, the rejig is anchored in the company’s push to build a more integrated, data-led monetisation engine, one that can straddle both traditional television and fast-growing digital platforms with equal ease.
At the heart of the move is a reworked sales architecture designed to deliver cross-platform solutions. With connected TV gaining ground and digital consumption surging, ZEEL is aligning its teams to move quicker, think broader and sell smarter.
The restructuring is being led by chief operating officer, advertisement revenue, Sandeep Mehrotra, at a time when the company says it is seeing tremendous growth. The idea is simple: match the right talent to the right opportunity in a market that is anything but static.
As part of the overhaul, several long-serving executives have been elevated to chief sales officer roles across regions and content clusters. Sanjoy Chatterjee will head the east market, while Gunjarav Nayak takes charge of the west along with high-margin verticals such as hmg, brand works, intellectual properties and digital sales. Rajnish Gupta will oversee bengaluru and chennai markets alongside the kannada and tamil clusters.
In other key moves, Divjyot Dhanda will lead hyderabad and kochi markets and manage zee tv, zee keralam and the telugu cluster. Roshan Vasu Kotian will supervise a diverse portfolio including Zee Marathi, &tv, Zee Punjabi, Zee Anmol, Big Magic and Zee Biskope.
The company is also strengthening its bench, appointing national sales heads across retail, regional clusters, digital and brand solutions. Ankur Kapila’s appointment to lead digital sales signals a sharper push into a segment that continues to outpace traditional formats.
Behind the scenes, dedicated strategy and operations roles have been carved out for both linear and digital businesses. Nitin Shetty, Rajkiran Shrivastav and Priya Nambiar will take on key responsibilities to ensure the new structure runs with precision.
The broader aim is clear. ZEEL wants a bigger slice of advertising budgets that are steadily drifting towards digital and connected TV ecosystems. By integrating its offerings, the company hopes to deepen client relationships while unlocking new revenue streams.
The new structure takes effect immediately, with Mehrotra continuing to report to chief executive officer Punit Goenka and steer the company’s advertising revenue strategy. Senior executive Laxmi Shetty will support the transition, with her revised role expected to be announced soon.
In a market where content is everywhere but attention is scarce, ZEEL’s latest move is less about rearranging the org chart and more about staying in the game.
