GECs
Zee TV Middle East’s Parwaaz takes off with record ratings in UAE
MUMBAI: Zee TV Middle East’s Parwaaz (meaning ‘to take flight’), the first ever Hindi fiction series produced completely in the UAE in the last decade, got an opening rating of 12.52 amongst all South Asians in UAE, the highest registered by any shows across any channels in 2014. Parwaaz airs at a very competitive time band (Every Sat 2130hrs to 2230hrs) where other Hindi GECs air high profile shows like Big Boss (Colors), Everest (Star Plus) and CID (Sony). Despite stiff competition, Parwaaz managed to top the charts on the back of a UAE-based storyline that expats living away from their home could relate to.
Parwaaz is the story of 2 young men – Adarsh from India and Sikandar from Pakistan, whose lives intersect in Dubai in the early 90’s when they come here for their dream jobs. However, fate plays a cruel hand when they find that they have been duped by their employment agent back home. Their story of struggle, grit and friendship spans over 20 years – from their humble beginnings of doing odd jobs for survival, to the heights of their success, and the trials and tribulations along the way. Their story spanning 2 decades is being showcased in a series of 13 one-hour episodes.
Pakistani actor Noman Habib who was last seen in the lead role of Pakistani movie Main Hoon Shahid Afridi plays Sikander while Devansa Vasan who has been seen in many cameo roles in Hindi series in India plays Adarsh. The two lead actresses are Priyal Gor from India (last seen in Ram Milaye Jodi on Zee TV) and Suzain Fatima who has acted in many dramas in Pakistan. In another first in Hindi serials, an Emirati, Adel Farooq too was part of the star cast as Alam, the negative lead. Adel also sung the title-track for Parwaaz. The music played a key role in the promotion and has been played by FM stations in the UAE. 4 versions of the title track was recorded, the OST and lounge version sung by Adel Farooq, the sufi version sung by a local talent Ejaz Ahmed and the lounge version by Krishna Beura.
GECs
ZEEL overhauls sales structure to chase growth across TV and digital platforms
New structure sharpens digital push as viewing habits fragment fast
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. is reshuffling its sales playbook as it looks to keep pace with a fast-changing media landscape, where audiences are scattered, screens are multiplying and advertisers are following the data.
According to media reports, the rejig is anchored in the company’s push to build a more integrated, data-led monetisation engine, one that can straddle both traditional television and fast-growing digital platforms with equal ease.
At the heart of the move is a reworked sales architecture designed to deliver cross-platform solutions. With connected TV gaining ground and digital consumption surging, ZEEL is aligning its teams to move quicker, think broader and sell smarter.
The restructuring is being led by chief operating officer, advertisement revenue, Sandeep Mehrotra, at a time when the company says it is seeing tremendous growth. The idea is simple: match the right talent to the right opportunity in a market that is anything but static.
As part of the overhaul, several long-serving executives have been elevated to chief sales officer roles across regions and content clusters. Sanjoy Chatterjee will head the east market, while Gunjarav Nayak takes charge of the west along with high-margin verticals such as hmg, brand works, intellectual properties and digital sales. Rajnish Gupta will oversee bengaluru and chennai markets alongside the kannada and tamil clusters.
In other key moves, Divjyot Dhanda will lead hyderabad and kochi markets and manage zee tv, zee keralam and the telugu cluster. Roshan Vasu Kotian will supervise a diverse portfolio including Zee Marathi, &tv, Zee Punjabi, Zee Anmol, Big Magic and Zee Biskope.
The company is also strengthening its bench, appointing national sales heads across retail, regional clusters, digital and brand solutions. Ankur Kapila’s appointment to lead digital sales signals a sharper push into a segment that continues to outpace traditional formats.
Behind the scenes, dedicated strategy and operations roles have been carved out for both linear and digital businesses. Nitin Shetty, Rajkiran Shrivastav and Priya Nambiar will take on key responsibilities to ensure the new structure runs with precision.
The broader aim is clear. ZEEL wants a bigger slice of advertising budgets that are steadily drifting towards digital and connected TV ecosystems. By integrating its offerings, the company hopes to deepen client relationships while unlocking new revenue streams.
The new structure takes effect immediately, with Mehrotra continuing to report to chief executive officer Punit Goenka and steer the company’s advertising revenue strategy. Senior executive Laxmi Shetty will support the transition, with her revised role expected to be announced soon.
In a market where content is everywhere but attention is scarce, ZEEL’s latest move is less about rearranging the org chart and more about staying in the game.
