GECs
Star Gold introduces two properties to end 2005
MUMBAI: Star Gold has lined up two properties to wind up 2005, the year which saw its re-launch. To begin with, the channel will introduce the concept of Pure Gold Triple Premiere where a movie will premiere on three Star channels on the same day. This will be followed by a Super Six package of six movies/events starting10 December.
To promote Super Six, Star Gold will unveil a promotional campaign featuring Bollywood star Rajpal Yadav.
According to the Super Six concept, Star Gold will telecast three movies/events on Saturday and three more on Sunday. Starting Saturday 10 December, at 1 pm, on every Saturday and Sunday, some of the most critically and commercially acclaimed blockbusters and popular events will be showcased as part of the Super Six line-up.
Some of the movies Star Gold has lined up include Kya Kool Hain Hum, Main Hoon Na, Black, Swadesh, Lakshya, Hulchul, Ab Tak Chhappan, Fida, , Gayab and Hera Pheri. Some of the events that will be showcased include the spectacular IIFA Awards 2005, Amsterdam; the Star Screen Awards and more, states an official release.
Yadav will star in the promotional campaign for Super Six as the astrologer Jyotishi Bhagwan Bharose Futurewale Baba and hosts lead-ins to all movies/events, analyzing them in hilarious astrological fashion. Viewers will also be given an opportunity to win a gold coin in every break of Super Six through an SMS-based contest.
Ahead of the Super Six series, Star network will try to bring a multiplex experience to its viewers by introducing an innovating programming strategy Pure Gold Triple Premiere. A movie will premiere on three channels on the same day and the campaign will begin with the premiere of Viruddh on 4 December. Audiences, therefore, will have three chances to watch the premiere of Viruddh, just like the multiple opportunities to catch a movie at a multiplex, the release adds. Star Gold will premiere the movie at 1 pm while Star Plus will follow suit at 4 pm. Star One will telecast Viruddh at 8 pm.
While the hardcore movie buffs will tune-in at 1 pm to watch Viruddh on Star Gold; families across India will switch on Star Plus at 4 pm and affluent upscale audiences will choose Star One at 8 pm to watch the premiere, the channel expects.
Says Star India EVP Marketing Ajay Vidyasagar, “Television viewing habits are changing and at the Star network we have seen that there is a huge audience for television viewing n the weekends. On television, Hindi film is the second biggest genre after Hindi general entertainment. Every weekend, then, Super Six on Star Gold, will bring to viewers the best of Hindi movies and film based events. With so much great Bollywood entertainment every Saturday-Sunday, weekend television will truly never be the same again. In addition, the unique triple premiere of Viruddh will extend to diverse audiences our promise of bringing to viewers the best and most recent hits of the Hindi film industry.”
GECs
Sahara One reports financial results, notes director exit and business realignment
Muted revenues, steady expenses and strategic adjustments shape company’s current phase
MUMBAI: In a tale where the sands seem to be slipping faster than they can be gathered, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited has reported another quarter of wafer-thin income and widening losses, even as a boardroom exit adds to the unease.
The company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its board, in a meeting held on April 4, approved its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2025. The numbers paint a stark picture. Total income for the quarter stood at just Rs 0.13 lakh, unchanged sequentially and sharply down from Rs 0.26 lakh a year earlier.
Losses, meanwhile, deepened. The company posted a net loss of Rs 24.16 lakh for the quarter, compared to Rs 18.81 lakh in the June quarter and Rs 39.69 lakh in the same period last year. For the six months ended September 2025, the cumulative loss stood at Rs 39.69 lakh, while the full-year loss for FY25 was reported at Rs 60.72 lakh.
Expenses continued to outweigh income by a wide margin. Total expenses for the quarter came in at Rs 24.30 lakh, led by employee benefit costs of Rs 6.51 lakh and other expenses of Rs 17.78 lakh. Earnings per share remained in the red at Rs (0.11) for the quarter.
The balance sheet reflects a company with significant assets on paper but limited operational momentum. Total assets stood at Rs 23,065.57 lakh as of September 30, 2025, broadly unchanged from March 2025. Equity share capital remained steady at Rs 2,152.50 lakh, while total equity was reported at Rs 18,004.85 lakh.
Cash and cash equivalents saw a modest uptick to Rs 6.75 lakh from Rs 4.68 lakh earlier, supported by a positive operating cash flow of Rs 180.01 lakh for the period.
Yet, beneath these numbers lies a more complex narrative. The company’s auditors flagged their inability to obtain sufficient evidence to form a conclusion on the financial statements, citing lack of access to records. They also raised concerns over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, pointing to insufficient funds, delayed recoveries, and stalled content investments.
Adding to the governance overhang, the company disclosed that Rana Zia has resigned as whole-time director, effective October 16, 2025, citing other professional commitments. The resignation, noted and accepted by the board, also brings an end to her role across company committees.
Regulatory pressures continue to loom large. The Securities and Exchange Board of India has already initiated penal actions for non-compliance with listing norms, with trading in the company’s shares remaining suspended. There is also a risk of promoter demat accounts being frozen.
Legacy legal issues remain unresolved. A substantial deposit of Rs 694,027.88 thousand linked to the long-running OFCD dispute involving Sahara group entities is still under the purview of the Supreme Court of India. Restrictions on asset disposal continue to weigh on the company’s financial flexibility.
Operationally, challenges persist across multiple fronts. Advances worth Rs 1,92,916 thousand given for film content remain stuck, with delays in project completion and uncertain recoverability. The company’s YouTube channel, despite being operational, has generated no revenue for over three years due to compliance lapses. In a further twist, management has indicated that revenues may have been fraudulently diverted through unauthorised changes to its AdSense account, with a police complaint in the works.
There are also missed revenue opportunities. Television content rights continue to be used by a related party despite the expiry of the licence agreement, with fresh negotiations still underway.
For now, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited appears caught between legacy disputes and present-day operational hurdles. As losses linger and governance questions mount, the road to recovery looks less like a sprint and more like a slow trudge through shifting sands.
