News Broadcasting
Watch out for Hyderabads animation booth at Mipcom
other states may do well to borrow a leaf from the Andhra Pradesh government, which is partly sponsoring the participation of Hyderabad’s animation industry at this year’s Mipcom.
More specifically, the AP government is funding the stand fees for two Hyderabad-based companies – Green Gold Animation and Discreet Art.
“The government is partly funding our participation at the event. And this goes up to 50 per cent of the total stand fee. It can go up beyond 50 per cent depending on the response we get,” informs Green Gold Animation vice president -business development Govinda Talluri.
Creator of the popular animated character, Chhota Bheem, Green Gold Animation, has been participating in Mipcom since 2007. “Though we didn’t go in 2011-2012, this year, since the Andhra Pradesh government decided to support the companies based in Hyderabad for events like Mipcom, we, along with Discreet Arts and 20 (approximately) people from the AVCGI association will represent AP at Mipcom this year,” adds Talluri.
We will be targeting European and South American countries at Mipcom, says Green Gold Animation vice president -business development Talluri
AVCGI or Animation, VFX, Comic & Gaming Industry of AP is a recently formed association by the animation industry in Hyderabad with the aim of garnering support from the AP government for its proper functioning.
Apart from Chhota Bheem, which is Green Gold’s biggest property, it will also take other animated characters Mighty Raju and Arjun to Mipcom. “We plan to come up with a theatrical for Mighty Raju by next year and so, will use Mipcom to create a buzz about the movie. Also Arjun, a show that we have created for Disney, will form part of our offering to buyers,” says Talluri.
For all these years, Green Gold catered to Indian and South East Asian markets and recently sold its content to USA and Canada. The major is now aiming at European countries like France, Germany, Spain and South America. “This is not an exhaustive list, we want to reach out to as many markets as possible,” adds Talluri.
Enthused by the government’s support, Green Gold aims to present its library of 8,500 minutes of original content to a global audience. “Also, with our 174-episode Chhota Bheem being sold to eight countries, we would definitely want to expand our reach and get noticed,” says Talluri.
With the largest content sale market cum conference just 15 days away, the company is busy scheduling meetings with buyers. “Though a few meetings have already been fixed, we are also pitching in for more buyers,” he says. The company will primarily target television as the preferred platform. “Once we are there, getting to other platforms will not be difficult,” he rounds off.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
