Factual
‘Summer Getaways with Google’ with travel junkie Neha Dixit on NDTV Good Times
MUMBAI: NDTV Good Times brings a special episode, Summer Getaways with Google with travel junkie Neha Dixit. So, what is your idea of an ideal summer getaway, a relaxing spa session or an easy breezy game of golf, parking yourself on a comfortable couch with a remote – or a favourite movie and popcorn to munch on? Or is it like Neha Dixit’s, getting up and getting out there. Going someplace you have never been before, trying a cuisine you have never tasted before and creating memories that you haven’t before.
Neha Dixit will drive to the beautiful, clean and green city of Chandigarh and mesmerizing mountains of Kasauli. For audiences who are looking to explore the weekend getaway, Neha will share some great travel hacks that can ease out their weekend trip to these places.
The excitement has just begun, all you have to do is sit back, relax and watch the show to make your own Travel Bucket List, a little longer. The show discovers the ultimate to-do list for travel lovers as Neha will explore the weekend destination.
DUBLIN: Ireland is betting big on reality television. In a move that has Hollywood scouts scrambling for their passports, Dublin has unveiled Europe’s first tax credit dedicated solely to unscripted programming—think The Traitors rather than Game of Thrones.
The scheme offers producers a juicy 20 per cent rebate on qualifying expenditure, capped at €15 million ($17.5 million) per project. It’s a cultural credit with strings attached: programmes must pass a test proving they genuinely promote Irish and European culture. No word yet on whether Love Island derivatives need apply.
Ireland tánaiste and minister for finance Simon Harris says the incentive will cement Ireland’s reputation as a “centre of excellence” for audiovisual production. His colleague, minister for culture, communications and sport Patrick O’Donovan, insists Ireland has “the talent, creativity and production expertise to lead” in unscripted television. Bold claims for a nation that has spent decades exporting scripted drama.
The timing is canny. Unscripted production costs have soared globally, making Ireland’s existing infrastructure—and now its tax breaks—increasingly attractive. Fox Entertainment Studios already churns out shows like Beat Shazam and The Floor from Irish studios. Whether these American productions will pass the cultural test remains to be seen.
Producers must secure an interim cultural certificate before filming begins, allowing them to claim credits during production rather than waiting until wrap. A final certificate follows completion. The European Commission has blessed the scheme through December 2028.
Minimum thresholds apply: productions must cost at least €250,000, with eligible expenditure above €125,000. Only one season per project can claim relief in any 12-month period, though producers can juggle multiple projects.
Britain, take note. The UK industry has clamoured for similar support for 18 months, but Westminster has dithered. India’s ministry of information and broadcasting pay heed. Its incentive scheme for co-productions excludes unscripted television. To what end, no one knows! Ireland, meanwhile, is already rolling out the red carpet—or should that be green?
The message from Dublin is clear: when it comes to backing reality TV, Ireland isn’t messing about. Lights, camera, tax action.
