News Broadcasting
SS Music attempts to grow ‘younger’ in its sixth year
MUMBAI: Southern Spice Music (SS Music), the Chennai-based multi-lingual music channel targeting the youth, has entered its sixth year of operations. The channel is firing on all cylinders to keep up with its young and contemporary image, and on the anvil are a few new properties.
This year, the new program line-up begins with Reliance Launchpad, a new programme aimed at discovering new singing talents. The show will be a contest for aspiring singers, hosted by a VJ/singer and judged by a prominent personality. All shortlisted participants will be promoted by the channel and the public will vote to choose the winners.
Cinema Central is a new film-based programme on Southern Spice Music, hosted by VJs Pooja and Gibran. Cinema Central focuses entirely on film personalities and their respective films. It flows as either a film-based episode or artist-based episode. Each episode shall be a weekly, 30 minutes programme featuring about a film or film-star. The interaction mainly focuses on the star’s entry into the film Industry and the developments in career of the artiste to date. Cinema Central screens exclusive clips of an particular film star and also focusses on the performance of the team behind the camera.
Briefing indiantelevision.com, SS Music programming & production manager James D’Cruz states, “It is popularly observed that it is a mammoth task to retain attention of the youth for any period of time. A vibrant youth-targeting channel as ours needs to retain not only their interest and viewing, but also encourage involvement through interactions with our VJs. And this quest for new programming from our end has led to introduction of new programs, currently welcomed by our target viewers. We do hope that our upcoming properties will go on to make a big success of themselves and in the process, help maintain the top of the line ranking among music channels, particularly in South India.”
Alternately, Southern Spice Music will propose a theme for every month and scenes from movies within that theme will be telecast accordingly. For instance, if it’s the Vijay month, the viewer will have the pleasure of getting to see excerpts from four movies starring Vijay that month. This will be accompanied by interviews and reviews of the star.
The channel will retain its ‘senior-most’ property Reach Out, which is into its sixth year. VJ Craig continues to host the show.
One of the recent properties SS Music has launched, Room with a View, delves into the glitzy world of cinema with our movie aficionado VJ Shyam, who interviews stars, reviews the latest block-busters and takes you into the world of movie-making. An add-on to this show is the premiere night titled Red Carpet, which covers film premieres and celebrity parties.
New properties Is-cool and Between the Lines mainly target viewers, who are looking for non-film/non-music content. Is-cool is a programme that captures the snapshots of the school life. The show incorporates the history of the school that is being profiled, its vision, academic curriculum and extra-curricular activities. Is-cool was launched in March.
Between the Lines, which also launched in March 2006, is a 20-minute talk show. The programme features high profile personalities from the world of literature and the fine arts.
News Broadcasting
News18 India launches Command Centre war explainer with Arya
New show shifts from debates to decoding global conflicts and impacts
MUMBAI: News18 India has rolled out a new war-focused programme, Command Centre, featuring Gaurav Arya, as it looks to offer viewers a sharper, more grounded take on global conflicts amid rising tensions in West Asia.
Positioned as an “insider war room”, the show moves away from conventional panel debates and instead focuses on explaining military developments, decoding strategy and connecting global events to their everyday impact, from fuel prices to economic shifts.
The format leans heavily on visuals and data. The studio has been designed like a command hub, complete with large LED war maps, real-time graphics and an alert system to track developments as they unfold.
At the centre of it all is Arya, who brings his military background to simplify complex war strategies for viewers. His signature line, “Seedhi baat samjhiye”, anchors the show’s promise of clarity over noise.
News18 India managing editor Jyoti Kamal said, “Command Centre, featuring Major Gaurav Arya is designed to deliver accurate insights and a clear perspective on how evolving conflicts impact everyday life, from household budgets to national security. With expert voices analysing every development in real time, the show goes beyond headlines to decode what’s happening now, what it means, and what could come next.”
Echoing the intent, Gaurav Arya added, “In times of war, confusion is the biggest threat. With News18 India’s Command Centre, we are bringing viewers inside the war room, decoding strategies, tracking every escalation, and explaining, in the simplest terms, what it means for India and for every household. Seedhi baat samjhiye, this is where you understand not just what is happening, but what happens next.”
The weekday show will air in the afternoon slot and will also feature Gaurav Shukla, adding to its editorial depth.
With its mix of analysis, visuals and a clear focus on impact, the show reflects a broader shift in news consumption. Viewers are no longer just watching events unfold, they are looking to understand what those events mean for them.
