News Broadcasting
Sahara launches Balaji soap ‘Kahin To Milenge’
MUMBAI: Balaji Telefilms intention is to spread its programming across as wide a canvas as possible. Yesterday it made another move in that direction with the launch of a youth oriented serial Kahin To Milenge on Subrata Roy’s Sahara TV.
The soap, which has a completely fresh (some would say raw) lead starcast, is based on the story of four separated and adopted siblings destined to come together, it was announced at a press briefing yesterday.
“Since this is our first venture with Sahara channel we have opted for a serial based on an entirely different genre than the usual family drama,” said Balaji Telefilms chief operating officer, Rajesh Pavithran.
On being asked why they chose Sahara he had this to say: “We are sure that the serial will achieve TRPs similar to what our soaps have for other channels and that will be an added feather to our cap. We want to extend our reach and not limit ourselves to a few select channels.”
“The offbeat storyline of this serial will keep our viewers absorbed as the concept is new and has a very promising fresh starcast,” says Sahara TV, vice-president (publicity and PR), Priya Raj.
As part of it strategy to enhance its image as an entertainment channel and compete with the leading channels, the channel has mega serials starring Bollywood bigwigs like Sridevi and Karisma, slated for a launch sometime in January, a Sahara programming executive revealed.
Kahin to Milenge, is the second serial to premiere on the channel this month and will air Monday to Thursday at 8:00 pm. Bhagyashree’s Kagaz Ki Kashti was launched on 4 November.
For Balaji, this is one of two new soaps it expects to launch before the year is out. Balaji had announced in the beginning of October plans to also launch a big-budget one-hour weekend soap Kaalki on Star Plus.
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
