GECs
Garnier Fructis Jodi No 1 climbing up the ratings charts
The black and white round of GARNIER FRUCTIS JODI NO.1 really did a number for Vijay TV with their chart-busting ratings performance. The studio performance on 28 October fetched Star TV’s regional channel a whopping 13 TVRs (CS ABC 15+F; 2000-2130 hrs, Oct 28th; Chennai; Source: TAM), rocketing it to the one of the most favored shows on Tamil television. Vijay TV is known to provide differentiated content has yet again showed its supremacy in executing format shows with GARNIER FRUCTIS JODI NO.1.
What was quite remarkable about the numbers is that the ratings have climbed steadily over the weeks as the competition becomes stiffer. The channels shares read 14.9, 20.3, 20.8, 26.9 in TN for week 40 41, 42 & 43 respectively. (CS ABC 15+F; 2000 hrs – 2100 hrs; Saturday)
The competition’s shares for the above TG and time band read 1.4; 2.8; 12; 4.9 on Jaya TV; while Raj TV clocked 1.7, 0.3, 0.2, 1.3 in Tamilnadu.
Ravinath Menon, General Manager Vijay TV remarked, “The fever has just started. The show is hugely popular across the state, a clear indication of the changing preferences in TV viewing. We anticipate a substantial increase in share on the wild card episode and the finals.
He further said, “Jodi No.1 is a clear driver. It also helped us to drive viewer attention to other weekend formats like Alive Koffee with Anu and Hutch Kallaka Ppvadhu Yaaru -2 while functioning as a launch pad for the four new shows we launched last week in prime time. The fact that Vijay is now available in Singapore and Japan and the plans for Malaysia and Middle East make us work harder to provide international quality content to the discerning Tamil viewer.
The property round episode that concluded on Nov 4th saw the 4th couple being eliminated (Chetan and Devadharshini), so that leaves us with 2 real and 2 reel life couples (Vijay Adiraj & Rachna; Raghav & Preetha; Pooja & Prem; Deepak & Tharika) Two of these 4 couples will reach the finals and all other eliminated couples will come back in the wild card round and one among them will gain entry to the finals. Viewers will have to decide which couple from the wild card round will go to the final by voting for them through Reliance Mobile, 7827, indya.com and BSNL platforms respectively.
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.
