GECs
Zee forays into Marathi feature film production
MUMBAI: Zee Network’s chairman Subhash Chandra has announced its foray into Marathi feature films, by which the network will provide the financial backing to produce, market and distribute the movies in India and Internationally.
“After the making of the film, the responsibility of its marketing, distribution, telecast etc (for Indian and overseas territories) shall be the responsibility of the Zee Group,” added Chandra.
Zee executive vice president regional channels Nitin Vaidya told Indiantelevision.com that the network will attempt to raise the bar for financial investments in Marathi movies, by about 50 per cent depending upon the content requirements and production elements. The normal monies pumped in towards Marathi films varies between Rs 50,000,000 – 60,000,000.
As a start up, the network has commissioned five production houses, namely Mahesh Manjrekar’s Ashvami Films, Gautam Joglekar’s SOC, Shrirang Godbole’s Indian Magic Eye, Smita Talwalkar’s Asmita Chitra and Rakesh Sarang’s Cams Club. In the next two years, these producers are to present the network with 15 Marathi films, three films each. Zee is also looking to tie-up with other production houses for the same.
“With almost 60 -70 Marathi films produced this fiscal, we saw the strength of this market and decided to develop a business process to boost Marathi cinema,” added Vaidya.
Chandra announced the latest Marathi film venture at the 8th Annual Parachute Jasmine Zee Gaurav Awards, where he also announced the launch of Zee 24 Hours, the first dedicated Marathi news channel.
The Zee Gaurav Awards recognizes excellence in the Marathi film and theatre industry across 18 categories in films, 12 categories in commercial plays and five categories in experimental plays.
This year in the films category Mission Champion bagged six awards for the best film, direction, story, screenplay, dialogue and child artist. In drama, Makdachya Hati Shampaign won five awards for music, script, actor, director and best drama, informs an official release.
Zee Marathi also felicitated legendary actor Dr Shreeram Lagu and veteran music director Datta Davjekar for the lifetime achievement award – Zee Jeevan Gaurav Puraskar. While the Mee Marathi Award was given to Lage Raho Munnabhai lyrist Swanand Kirkire by Bollywood’s director Vidhu Vinod Chopra.
The Zee Gaurav Awards will be telecast on Zee Marathi on 10 February at 7.30 pm.
GECs
Samsung TV Plus launches Kings of Comedy channel
New free FAST channel brings iconic Hindi comedy shows to millions of Samsung Smart TV owners.
MUMBAI: Samsung TV Plus has just turned up the laughter volume and it’s completely free. The leading free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service in India has launched Kings of Comedy, a premium comedy channel featuring some of the country’s most beloved primetime shows. Available exclusively on Samsung TV Plus, the channel delivers back-to-back hits including Comedy Nights with Kapil, Khatra Khatra Khatra, and Comedy Nights Bachao, with no login or subscription required.
The launch marks a milestone for free streaming in India, offering audiences a dedicated comedy destination directly from their Samsung TV home screen. It arrives as Samsung TV Plus India celebrates its 5th anniversary, during which the service has grown its monthly active users by 42 per cent and more than doubled its total viewing hours. The platform now offers over 180 free channels across 14 languages.
Samsung TV Plus India general manager and head of business development Kunal Mehta said, “Comedy is the heartbeat of Hindi entertainment, and Kings of Comedy brings together the shows Indians already love, completely free on their Samsung TV. Our focus remains the same take the content people know and make it effortless to access.”
Globally, Samsung TV Plus has surpassed 100 million monthly active users across more than 4,500 channels, solidifying its position as one of the world’s leading free streaming services.
Kings of Comedy is now available on all compatible Samsung Smart TVs. For viewers seeking non-stop laughter without any cost, this new channel delivers a royal treat proving that sometimes the best entertainment really does come with no strings (or subscriptions) attached.
