Movie Channels
Star Movies and Star World all set to broadcast 93rd Oscars on 26 April
MUMBAI: Home to the prestigious Oscars for over two decades, Star Movies is all set to bring alive the magic of the 93rd Oscars ceremony live and exclusively for its viewers on 26 April, starting 5:30 am.
Colloquially known as Oscars, the Academy Awards are considered the most prestigious awards in the world of cinema. The awards ceremony was initially scheduled to take place on 28 February, but was later postponed to 26 April amid the Covid2019 pandemic.
Marking the end of the awards season, Oscars 2021 will be telecasted live 5:30 am onwards on Star Movies and Star World. The awards ceremony will simultaneously air on Star Movies Select and Star World Premiere. Keeping up with the festive fervour, the awards will be aired once again on the same day at 8:30 pm.
With the current situation in mind, the Academy has gone to utmost lengths to assure maximum safety of those attending. For the third year in a row, the 93rd Oscars will be conducted without any host. However stars like, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Reese Witherspoon, Halle Berry, Zendaya will be seen presenting. The audience capacity has been limited to 170 this year.
Despite fewer film releases, the competition is tough across categories. With nominations announced almost a month ago, viewers are now on the edge to know the winners.
This year, female directors broke the record for maximum number of nominations, with Chloé Zhao (Nomadland) and Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) competing for the best director award.
Legendary veteran actor Sir Anthony Hopkins is the oldest best actor nominee ever and could become the oldest winner as well at 83.
India has a special moment this year with Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra’s The White Tiger being nominated in the Best Adapted Screenplay category. The nomination comes in after almost 20 years since Lagaan. The other film being closely watched is Man’ which has received a total of 10 nominations leaving behind The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, Nomadland, Sound of Metal and The Trial of the Chicago 7 that have received six nominations each.
Movie Channels
Zee5 launches five free FAST channels on Samsung TV Plus India
New genre-led channels bring comedy, drama, horror, classics and South films to Smart TVs.
MUMBAI: Zee5 just turned Samsung Smart TVs into a free entertainment buffet because when premium content costs nothing, even the remote control starts smiling. Zee5 has launched five curated free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels on Samsung TV Plus India, making high-quality, genre-specific entertainment available subscription-free to millions of Samsung Smart TV owners across the country.
The five channels now live are:
Zee Comedy Nation – Popular comedy shows and movies
Zee Dil Se – Compelling drama series
ZEE Horror Nights – Horror and supernatural content
ZEE Cine Classic – Timeless Indian films
ZEE South Flix – High-energy South Indian films dubbed in Hindi
All content is drawn from Zee5’s extensive library and programmed in a lean-back, always-on format ideal for large-screen viewing. This launch strengthens Zee5’s Connected TV strategy at a time when 64 per cent of its premium content watch time already comes from connected devices.
Zee5 chief business officer Siju Prabhakaran said, “At Zee5, we believe accessibility and scale will define the next phase of digital entertainment growth in India. Our presence on Samsung TV Plus strengthens our Connected TV strategy, enabling viewers to discover curated, genre-led content in a seamless, free, and premium environment.”
Samsung TV Plus India head of partnerships Kunal Mehta added, “Local partnerships are at the heart of how we grow Samsung TV Plus in India. Zee Entertainment is one of India’s most iconic media brands, and bringing their channels to our service means millions more Samsung Smart TV owners can enjoy premium local content, subscription-free.”
The channels are available directly through the pre-installed Samsung TV Plus app with no login or subscription required. This marks another milestone in Zee5’s CTV expansion and builds on its growing international presence, with Zee channels already available on Samsung TV Plus across Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
In a streaming world where paywalls often block the fun, Zee5 and Samsung have quietly opened the gates, proving that sometimes the best things in life (and on your TV) really are free especially when they come with a side of comedy, drama, horror, classics and South Indian blockbuster energy.
