GECs
Zee TV finally hires broadcasting CEO
Zee Telefilms Ltd (ZTL) has hired another CEO, adding to the clutch of chiefs who run the company. This time it is advertising agency Rediffusion DY&R president Sandeep Goyal who is going to be at the helm of its broadcasting operations.
“We are happy that we have found in Sandeep the right mix of creativity and commercial acumen,” says Zee TV chairman Subhash Chandra. “Despite him being young – just 38 years- Sandeep will be able to build on the strengths of the Zee Network which he is inheriting. He will be able to build stronger bonds with stakeholders (media buyers, viewers and the society) by providing them the infotainment they are looking for. We welcome him on the team.”
Goyal has 15 years of advertising industry experience with agencies ranging from HTA, Trikaya Grey, Mudra, to Rediffusion Advertising. He will take up his posting from June 2001.
Will Goyal be able to work some magic into Zee especially at a time when it needs some of that badly? It’s a tricky question.
One will have to wait and watch how the other CEOs in the group react to the appointment and how much leeway Chandra gives Goyal. Chandra obviously is banking on his youth to bring in some refreshing changes. And since television is an untried and untested area for him, he well may.
With the announcement of Goyal’s appointment finally being made, rumour that HFCL Nine Broadcasting CEO Ravina Raj Kohli would join Zee TV can now be put to rest.
Sandeep Goyal Picture courtesy Business Standard
GECs
Sony ties up with EU for MasterChef India finale
GI-tagged European ingredients headline finale week
MUMBAI: Sony Pictures Networks India has struck what it calls a landmark association with the European Union for the finale week of MasterChef India, marking the first such collaboration between the bloc and an Indian television format.
The tie-up will culminate in the “European Union mystery box challenge”, which opens the much-anticipated finale week. The task will see the top six contestant pairs cook with a curated basket of ingredients bearing geographical indications (GIs) from across EU member states: a nod to provenance as well as palate.
Chef Ajay and Chef Guntas, introduced as chef ambassadors to the European Union, will present the mystery boxes and set the brief: use the fewest ingredients from each category and produce a MasterChef-level dish that marries European produce with Indian flavour sensibilities. Precision and restraint, rather than extravagance, will be tested.
For Sony, the move signals a push towards high-value integrations that blur the line between sponsorship and storytelling. The network said the association underscores the show’s growing global stature and its ability to attract world-renowned institutions to Indian screens.
Chef Ajay Chopra, food ambassador in the European Union, described the collaboration as a strategic opportunity to spotlight the heritage and authenticity of GI-tagged European products to India’s vast food-loving audience.
Over the years, MasterChef India has positioned itself as a gateway to global cuisines. The EU partnership sharpens that pitch, turning the finale into a stage for cross-continental culinary diplomacy.
The finale week will air from 2 March, 2026 at 8 pm on Sony Entertainment Television and stream on Sony Liv.
