GECs
New channel Channel Guide launching mid-May
There’s a new channel on the block that has been beaming as a test signal since 2 April and its called Channel Guide.
Channel Guide officially launches on 15 or 16 May with the aim of being the “channel junction” for the television viewer, says the company’s COO Ravi Deshmukh. It will be a free to air digital channel beaming off Thaicom-3.
The channel hopes to cover television, films, theatre, music and events with a very localised perspective. It will have genre-wise (also language-wise) anchored slots incorporating footage as well as interesting commentary about featured programmes.
Deshmukh appears undaunted about launching a channel at a time when the industry as a whole is facing a cash crunch with broadcasters cutting back on their projects rather than attempting new ventures.
Deshmukh says his channel provides a valuable service to the industry as a whole and expects both broadcasters and cable operators to support the channel. He aims to take his channel to 60 towns and cities across the country within the next four months.
GECs
Sony ties up with EU for MasterChef India finale
GI-tagged European ingredients headline finale week
MUMBAI: Sony Pictures Networks India has struck what it calls a landmark association with the European Union for the finale week of MasterChef India, marking the first such collaboration between the bloc and an Indian television format.
The tie-up will culminate in the “European Union mystery box challenge”, which opens the much-anticipated finale week. The task will see the top six contestant pairs cook with a curated basket of ingredients bearing geographical indications (GIs) from across EU member states: a nod to provenance as well as palate.
Chef Ajay and Chef Guntas, introduced as chef ambassadors to the European Union, will present the mystery boxes and set the brief: use the fewest ingredients from each category and produce a MasterChef-level dish that marries European produce with Indian flavour sensibilities. Precision and restraint, rather than extravagance, will be tested.
For Sony, the move signals a push towards high-value integrations that blur the line between sponsorship and storytelling. The network said the association underscores the show’s growing global stature and its ability to attract world-renowned institutions to Indian screens.
Chef Ajay Chopra, food ambassador in the European Union, described the collaboration as a strategic opportunity to spotlight the heritage and authenticity of GI-tagged European products to India’s vast food-loving audience.
Over the years, MasterChef India has positioned itself as a gateway to global cuisines. The EU partnership sharpens that pitch, turning the finale into a stage for cross-continental culinary diplomacy.
The finale week will air from 2 March, 2026 at 8 pm on Sony Entertainment Television and stream on Sony Liv.
