News Broadcasting
‘Telebrands’ gets into Hindi film production
MUMBAI: ‘Telebrands’, the US based telemarketing and mail order has made its entry into the entertainment industry with a film titled Aryan in association with ‘K Factor Entertainment Pvt Ltd’.
Purportedly the largest telemarketing, mail order and wholesale organisation headquartered in the United States with operations spanning over fifty two countries, the company revolutionized the concept of telemarketing in India in 1994 by providing ‘Telebrands India’ which markets products in over 127 cities in the country.
‘K Factor Entertainment Pvt Ltd’ is a new company set up by Vinay Anand, younger brother of music director Anand Raaj Anand and remix expert Harry Anand. Vinay will produce the film jointly with Poonam Khubani who is a partner in ‘Telebrands’.
Speaking to indiantelevision.com, Vinay explained the name given to his company. “The success of my elder brother’s Anand Raaj Anand’s Kaante and Harry Anand’s remix Kaanta Laga, during the biggest recession period of the audio market, inspired the name.”
Aryan was launched at Riverdale Studio in Mahim on Sunday evening. The film stars Sohail Khan, newcomer Sneha Ullal, Inder Kumar (the guy who replaced Amarr Upadhyay as Mihir Virani in Balaji telefilms’ flagship Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi before Ronit Bose Roy stepped into his shoes), Gulshan Grover, Farida Jalal, Satish Shah, Supriya Karnik, Master Ehsaan Chandna and Kapil Dev in a special appearance.
The mahurat shot was filmed on an interview of Kapil Dev by Sohail Khan. In the interview, Dev (who plays himself) explains that one needs to be madly passionate about his/her goals in life if he/she want to make it big in this world.
Balaji Telefilms chairman Jeetendra and daughter Ekta Kapoor, the creative head of the company were present on the occasion. Jetendra gave the mahurat clap. The film has been written and will be directed by Jeetendra’s nephew Abhishek Kapoor who has earlier had a failed stint as an actor.
The director volunteered a little about the film. “It is based on boxing. Sohail wants to make it as a boxer but loses his focus along the way. He goes on to become a television anchor. This interview re-inspires and recharges him and puts him back on track.”
Speaking to indiantelevision.com, soon after the mahurat shot, Hiten Israni (‘Telebrands’, Director) said, “Anand Raaj Anand came up with this idea and we quite liked it. He introduced me to Gattu, who had the script ready. His narration was quite live. I thought I was seeing the film. We joined hands.”
Israni was not hesitant to reveal his future plans as well as the budget decisions taken with respect to his company’s new agenda. “We want to make many more films in the future. Our future track will not depend on the fate of this film. We are sure about implementing our decisions. Also, we at ‘Telebrands’ want to have a full fledged production house which will churn out soaps, thrillers, talk shows, chat shows and game shows on television. In fact, we have already shot a pilot for a soap which has gone for approval to a channel. I don’t think we’ll have much problem with the channels. Our tele-shopping programme is telecast on nearly 40 channels. We have a good equation with most of them. On date, we have thought of investing close to five million dollars,” he revealed.
Quite charged up about his new venture, Israni concluded on a spirited note, “I discount the theory that I am taking a risk in today’s times because most films are falling flat at the turnstiles. In a sense, every business is a risk.”
Aryan is being planned for a Diwali 2004 release.
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:Â 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.
