iWorld
Zee5 partners with BBC to expand its premium content offerings
Mumbai: Video streaming platform Zee5 has announced a partnership with BBC Studios India. The two top entertainment companies will work to build a robust content slate of new Zee5 originals in Hindi across genres exclusively for Zee5 viewers.
With this partnership, Zee5 aims to further bolster its existing premium content offerings with captivating and diverse stories based on successful British formats.
The first Hindi project introduced as part of this ongoing partnership is an original drama series titled “The Broken News,” which also marks actor Sonali Bendre’s debut on OTT.
In line with the theme of the new series; to generate excitement amongst the news viewers, Zee5 will announce the release of “The Broken News” in the primetime slot across prominent news channels on 11 May.
It is an adaptation of the popular British series “Press,” directed by award-winning director Vinay Waikul with a stellar star cast featuring theatrical favourites like Jaideep Ahlawat, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Indraneil Sengupta, Taaruk Raina, Aakash Khurana, Kiran Kumar, amongst others. The plot of the show features two rival news channels based in Mumbai – Awaaz Bharati, an independent, ethical news channel, and Josh 24/7 News, which offers sensationalist and invasive journalism, and what transpires between the main characters in their quest for news.
Commenting on the partnership, Zee5 India chief business officer Manish Kalra said, “This year we have a fantastic line-up with many big titles announced in the first quarter of the year.”
“The focus for 2022 is to bring premium quality content across genres and languages. Zee5, in addition to bolstering its portfolio of Hindi originals, is simultaneously working on curating a list of unique stories across formats and languages to build a platform of varied choices for its viewers,” he explained.
“With ‘The Broken News’ we are marking the beginning of another partnership with a reputed content studio to bring interesting and unique story narratives for our audiences. This partnership is in line with Zee5’s strategy to build a portfolio of unique and compelling content for an enhanced value from the services. We are sure our audiences will enjoy and love it as much as they have loved our content so far. Zee5 has been working with the best talent in the creative ecosystem to create a riveting slate of originals, in line with our content strategy of keeping the viewers at the centre of the business,” added Kalra.
On the announcement of the new title, Zee5 Hindi originals chief content officer Nimisha Pandey said, “’The Broken News’ is an extremely relevant story for the times we live in. We are glad to partner with BBC Studios India and director Vinay Waikul to bring this story to life.”
“It is a riveting drama depicting the nuances of the media houses and the daily hustle-bustle of a newsroom. The story revolves around the ideological differences of the protagonists, beautifully played by Shriya Pilgaonkar and Jaideep Ahlawat. The story has a strong, contemporary and compelling narrative making it a perfect addition to our content bouquet,” she added.
Speaking on the partnership, BBC Studios India general manager Sameer Gogate commented, “We are thrilled to join forces with Zee5 as part of this partnership to produce this riveting BBC Studios format, set in the fascinating world of TV news journalism. The strength of our formats lies in their ability to transcend across cultural boundaries and languages. We are honoured that Jaideep Alhawat, Sonali Bendre and Shriya Pilgaonkar will be a part of this journey directed by Vinay Wiakul and we hope Zee5’s Hindi audience will enjoy the gripping personal and professional dramas facing the characters under the pressure of a 24-hour news cycle.”
iWorld
Epic Company launches unified Epic Studio for films and OTT
Vivek Krishnani to head films business; Samar Khan leads OTT & Television.
MUMBAI: Epic just merged its creative superheroes under one cape because when films and OTT need to fight for attention together, you don’t keep them in separate universes. The Epic Company has launched Epic Studio, a next-generation creative and production powerhouse that unites Juggernaut Productions and Movieverse Studio under a single banner. The move creates a streamlined, scalable platform for premium storytelling across theatrical films, OTT originals, television, digital-first formats and branded content.
Vivek Krishnani has been appointed chief executive officer, Epic Studio (Films), overseeing the theatrical and film business with a focus on culturally resonant narratives across Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati and Malayalam cinema. Samar Khan continues as chief executive officer, Epic Studio (OTT & Television) and retains his role as chief content officer for Docubay and Epic On.
The Epic Company managing director Aditya Pittie said, “Epic Studio brings together our entire creative ecosystem under one unified studio vision. This is not just an integration of verticals, but the creation of a collaborative environment where writers, filmmakers, creators, and brand partners can seamlessly develop and scale stories across formats and screens.”
Vivek Krishnani added, “We are building an audience-focused mainstream film studio committed to delivering fresh, engaging, and innovative stories for both theatrical and streaming platforms.”
Samar Khan commented, “This alignment allows us to approach storytelling with a unified studio mindset. We are building IP under one creative umbrella, with scale and longevity in mind from inception.”
The unified structure eliminates silos, enabling ideas to flow fluidly from concept to screen while adapting to evolving audience behaviour. Epic Studio positions itself as a creator-led ecosystem championing purposeful, resonant storytelling with commercial strength.
In an entertainment landscape where stories now leap between screens faster than plot twists, Epic isn’t just building a studio, it’s crafting a single launchpad where every tale gets the best shot at soaring across every platform.
