GECs
Zee Biskope Originals: a new wave of Bhojpuri movies
Mumbai: Bhojpuri is a distinctive local stronghold with a consumer base spread throughout India and beyond due to its status as the most migratory community in India. It offers a wealth of social, cultural, historical, and demographic resources to be utilised. Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s inaugural and leading Bhojpuri movie channel, ZEE Biskope, is focused on providing content and projections tailored to the audience’s specific needs, aspirations, and psychography. The channel is proud to announce the launch of its latest initiative, Zee Biskope Originals (ZBO). With this unique project, the channel aims to provide its viewers fresh, relatable, and high-quality Bhojpuri content that caters to the entire family. Zee Biskope’s remarkable success can be attributed to its unique positioning as the first curated movie channel in the Bhojpuri category. However, the channel has gone one step further and taken complete control over content creation by producing its own movies. This amplified approach has contributed significantly to their success.
Zee Biskope Originals will feature movies specially curated for Bhojpuri viewers, based on stories inspired by the region’s culture, beliefs, and daily lives. These movies will be produced by Zee Biskope and will be made with cinematic quality and presented in a manner that will resonate with the audience’s sensibilities. ZBO will showcase prominent filmmakers from the region as well as from the Hindi fraternity, thereby providing a diverse and compelling range of films. The movies featured on Zee Biskope Originals will be free from any uncomfortable or embarrassing content, making them perfect for family viewing. The channel promises to bring hitherto unexplored or under-represented genres to the forefront, providing a wider palate for its audience to choose from.
The first movie to be featured on Zee Biskope Originals is titled Preet Ka Saaya on 14 May 2023. This social drama with a supernatural backdrop is centered around a core belief in the region that any human being’s journey is not complete till their unfulfilled wishes from any life are complete. It is a Socio-supernatural-dramedy which is a novelty in this category. Zee Biskope Originals promises to be a game-changer in the Bhojpuri film industry, and viewers can expect a range of engaging, high-quality movies in the future.
“The core premise of ZEE Biskope is to establish, celebrate, and elevate consumer truth in its most engaging form. Since the beginning, the brand has been a shining example of living this philosophy and transforming the category dynamics. It not only changed viewers’ expectations but also elevated Bhojpuri to a reputable level in respected national and global professional forums. We are excited to offer our viewers a new range of movies with Zee Biskope Originals. These films are unique and relatable, and showcase the best of Bhojpuri culture. We are confident that our viewers will enjoy these movies and appreciate the effort we are putting in to provide them with fresh and high-quality content,” said Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd chief cluster officer – East – Samrat Ghosh.
Bhojpuri Cluster chief channel officer Amarpreet Singh Saini added, “We are thrilled to launch Zee Biskope Originals, a new wave of Bhojpuri movies. With this initiative, we aim to provide our viewers with fresh, engaging, and high-quality content that they can enjoy with their families. As a curated movie channel in the Bhojpuri category, Zee Biskope provides unique opportunities to advertisers/brands to explore in-movie integrations, brand placements, and brand presence. This enables them to find a deeper and more meaningful connection with our audience of movie lovers. The team’s dedication to bringing the Bhojpuriya soul to screen has not only been appreciated by our ardent viewers but has also been recognized. Here’s to ZEE Biskope’s Bhojpuriya spirit: Aanthon Pahariya Loota Lahariya!”
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.
