News Broadcasting
Flavia Agnes on Sony’s ‘Fair & Lovely Shikhar’ on 18 Sept
New Delhi, September 16, 2005: Tune in to your television sets this Sunday afternoon, 18th September 2005 to watch one of India’s most celebrated and extraordinary woman, Flavia Agnes, featured in Fair & Lovely Shikhar on Sony Entertainment Television.
This program, which premiered on Sunday, 28th August, is an initiative by Fair & Lovely, India’s largest skin cream brand. The serial aims to explore the inspiring stories of women achievers who have overcome all obstacles with their strong will and positive attitude and “changed their destinies”.
A lawyer by profession, Flavia Agnes has authored several books not only confined to law and legal issues but also women’s rights and social causes. Her autobiography-‘‘My Story, Our Story …of Rebuilding Broken Lives”, carries pioneering work on domestic violence and provides crucial insights into the dilemmas faced by victims of domestic violence.
Although today, Flavia Agnes is known as the successful co-founder of the Women’s Centre in Mumbai, and a social activist on women’s empowerment issues, she has had a very different beginning. She was a victim of domestic violence herself, and her path breaking story demonstrates her immense strength and belief in herself.
Flavia realizes the emptiness of sexual equality shy of economic independence and to increase women’s employment level, she launches an innovative job training, placement, and public awareness program. Her dedication, passion and courage have made her the success story that she is today.
In the coming episodes, Fair & Lovely Shikhar will be featuring some more women achievers like swimmer Bula Chowdhary, Red light activist Preeti Pakar and Photojournalist Sarvesh.
Says Mr Ashok Venkatramini, Vice President, Skin- Hindustan Lever Limited, “Fair & Lovely Shikhar is a salute to all the women who have, despite all odds, with their courage and determination achieved great heights, pursued their dreams to change their destinies. All the guests showcased in the serial are the face and spirit of Indian women. We want to, with Fair & Lovely Shikhar inspire the viewers to realize their dreams and ambitions and follow them to attain success”.
Speaking on show Mr Tarun Katial, Executive Vice-President, Sony Entertainment Television said, “The channel has always brought the viewers’ attention through various initiatives on social issues of the society. The channel now presents a talk show, which will focus on the heart and soul of India – ‘Women’. Fair & Lovely Shikhar is a unique concept based on a real life scenario of women from various walks of life that will inspire our viewers. With Fair & Lovely Shikhar, we also aim to introduce the audience to Sunday afternoon viewing.”
About Sony Entertainment Television
Sony Entertainment Television (SET) India, India’s No. 2 general entertainment television channel, is backed by Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI). Its channels include Sony Entertainment Television, MAX, SAB TV, AXN and ANIMAX.
Launched in October 1995, Sony Entertainment Television is a Hindi general entertainment channel, focused at providing quality and innovative entertainment to viewers across India. Over the years, the channel has created significant marquee properties through an impressive line up of programs ranging from the light hearted to the supernatural, exploring various genres complimented by an explosive mix of glamorous events and Bollywood blockbusters. Known for its innovative concepts and exciting formats, Sony Entertainment Television has been providing strong platforms for over 700 brands to reach over 38 million households in India. In addition, Sony Entertainment Television is also available in US, UK, Africa, Middle East, Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Sony Entertainment Television is a part the network of channels distributed by TheOneAlliance – a joint venture between SET India Pvt. Ltd. and Discovery Communications India. Other channels in TheOneAlliance network include MAX, Discovery, Discovery Travel & Living, SAB TV, MTV, Animal Planet, AXN, ANIMAX, NDTV 24X7, NDTV India, NDTV Profit, NICK and Ten Sports.
You can download our releases from http://www.setindia.com/press.htm. For further information on Sony Entertainment Television, please log onto http://www.setindia.com
For further information contact:
Shilpa Gupta / Mallika Sinha
Phone: 011-5249 2100
E-mail: shilpa@ipan.com / mallika.sinha@ipan.com
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: 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.
