News Broadcasting
Sab pitches ‘Twinkle…’ in the tough 9 pm slot
headlines/y2k6/may/may196.htmMUMBAI: Reinforcing its commitment to reach the Hindi heartland, the ‘lighthearted’ general entertainment channel Sab is now launching a new show – Twinkle Beauty Parlour – on 15 May in the 9 pm slot.
The show will be aired from Monday to Thursday and will replace Maahi Ve – the channel’s first daily after its revamp – that was launched on 5 December last year.
Sab senior vice president and business head Vikas Bhal said, “Sab has been providing its viewers a kaleidoscope of entertainment ranging from light-hearted comedies to romantic melodrama through its innovative programming. Continuing this trend we are launching Twinkle Beauty Parlour, a show dedicated to the middle class women of India, who constitute the biggest part of our population.”
The show has been pitted in the 9 pm slot and will have to compete for eyeballs from Zee TV’s Kasamh Se (which has been doing well), Star Plus’ Miilee, Sony’s new show Aisa Des Hai Mera and Star One’s India Calling.
But Sab programming head Priya Mishra is confident of her product and is not deterred by competition. “As opposed to other shows in its slot, Twinkle Beauty Parlour would be a refreshing breather for the audience as the treatment of the show is light while the drama is gripping and thought provoking,” she said.
Phase 1 of the campaign for ‘Twinkle Beauty Parlour’
Twinkle Beauty Parlour is produced by Shrishti Arya Behl’s Rose Audio Visuals. “The show has multiple protagonists. We have deliberately moved away from the central character norm. Dealing with various lives – four families and five key characters played by the five female protagonists, the show works at different levels,” said Behl.
Phase 1 of the campaign for ‘Twinkle Beauty Parlour’
The three phase campaign around the show, which was rolled out some time back is currently in its third phase. While the first phase informed people of the location of the beauty parlour, the second phase had women sporting mustache.. waiting for the parlour to open its doors. The third phase of the campaign will be rolled out next week with the tagline – ‘Sab par khul gaya hai,’ which will inform people that the show is now on-air on Sab.
Sab is also readying another show for the primetime slot – Left Right Left produced by Tony and Deeya Singh, which is scheduled to launch in June. However, the channel has not yet decided whether it will be a 9.30 pm show or if Twinkle Beauty Parlour will be shifted to the 9.30 pm slot to give way to the new show at 9 pm. If Left Right Left is placed in the 9.30 pm slot, it will be competing with Saat Phere… Saloni Ka Safar on Zee TV, Kavyanjali on Star Plus and Thodi Khushi Thode Gham on Sony.
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.
