Friday, November 13, 2009

Its Sujitha's Wedding..

It was actress Sujitha's wedding in Namma Veetu Kalyanam last week and here is the video of the same..

Husband Vs Wife..

It was a very very interesting topic in Neeya Naana for last 2 weeks and of course this topic cannot be completed in 1 week. The topic was love and affection of husband and wife before Vs after marriage.. most of the couples have been in love before marriage.. So, the debate was going very strong on each side and clearly there was a chit brought were Men's love/affection gets reduced after marriage and when compared during love life it is too much of difference. There was also some comments that men get more responsibilities and that makes his time more busy... this is one of the reason to spend less time with family/wife. I think both the sides were genuene on their side and they were open to speak about their issues. Second week it was with special guest small screen actor Venkat and his wife Nisha. In fact, Nisha also started complaining about Venkat. There were questions raised and the importance of men after marriage in comparison to love life was even embarrasing for women. The pick of team was very opt and there were couples who were married for 20 years and also couples who are married for 3 months.. and ofcourse all of them have had love marriage.. I definitely think this topic will be an eye opener for couples to really think what they miss in their life and what changed them.. and try to get back their lovely life in track..

Something about Alka Ajith..




Alka Ajith is a child singer daughter of Ajith a professional singer and keyboard player.

At the age when infants need lullabies to go to sleep, Alka was already lisping songs to entertain her parents. At 7 years of age, Alka Ajith had already achieved distinctions like singing in 10 languages, 500 plus stage performances, UNESCO gold medal, Rotary International award, etc.

Alka, who debuted on stage at the age of 2½ years, is a hit with the audiences of ‘ganamelas’, where she sings from her repertoire of 3000 songs. Alka has a family tradition of music. Her grandfather was a noted singer. Ajith’s brother Manoj is a guitarist with Yesudas’s troupe. Another uncle of her, Sudhir, is a member of the military orchestra.

Her debut on August 15, 1999 at I.M.A Hall, Thalassery happened at a time when her father left R.R.Orchestra at Bangalore and started Sangeet Sagar at Thalassery. Now young Alka is the star singer in the Sangeet Sagar troupe. Although the troupe has other singers, the 15-song effort of Alka is the key attraction at their programmes.

A fan of noted playback singer K. S. Chitra, Alka has already brought out 6 audio cassettes and has found her name included in the Limca Book of Indian Records.

A debut album of songs rendered by this 10-year-old singer Alka Ajith, titled ‘Chakkaramuthu,’ was released in Kannur on January 30,2008. Alka Ajith, daughter of M.P. Ajith Kumar, drew the attention of music lovers when she started singing at the age of three. Mr. Kumar said that she bagged an international UNESCO award when she was six.

She has sung over 6,000 songs in 11 languages over the last few years. He also said that his daughter could learn by rote songs in any language. She has sung in English, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Urdu, he said.

In the recently released album, Alka Ajith lends her voice to songs written by C. Devaraj, Bharanikkavu Shivakumar and C.H. Rajan. The lyrics were given music by K. Saju Thalassery.

She is currently contesting in Star Vijay's Airtel Super Singer Junior 2009.

- Wikipedia.

Small wonder

When others are planning to have fun this summer, Alka is preparing for her concerts. Alka Ajith is in Standard II, of Holy Family English Medium School, Thalassery. She has not completed seven years. But she has sung more than 5,000 songs, can sing in 11 languages and has given more than 500 stage programmes all over India.

In February, this year, Alka performed for the Guinness Record of `Youngest Musician in Asia', at Muthalakkodam, Thodupuzha. The function was organised by Muthalakkodam Jaycees and World Wonders Web, which is an international miracle performers association.

Alka gave her first public performance when she was two and a half years old. She sang the Hindi super hit "Soldier ... ... Soldier... ". The programme was organised to remember Kargil heroes. When she was four she cut her first audio album, "I love my India". The album had eight patriotic songs. Besides this album, she also has audiocassettes to her credit. Recently she has sung songs in Chinese, French and Arabic. But she likes to sing Malayalam songs best.

Alka, daughter of M.P. Ajith Kumar and K. Sajitha, of Mandala Parambath, Kavumbhagam, Thalassery, comes from a family of musicians. Ajith Kumar is a professional musician and organist. He now runs Alka's Orchestra, `Sangeeth Sagar'. Ajith Kumar is not only Alka's inspiration but her guru too. "We are proud of Alka," says P. Chandran, Principal, Holy Family.

Alka entered the Limca Book of World Records in 2003. She has won many awards including Bharatheeya Gourav Puraskar, New Delhi in 2003, Sauparnika Theeram Mini Screen Award in 2004, Thalassery Drishya Kala's A. T. Ummer Award in 2004, International UNESCO Club of Repalle (A.P) award and Gold Medal in 2001 and the Rotary International achievement award and gold medal in 2002.

Most of Alka's concerts are held during holidays and the vacation. Her father composes all her songs. Her next project is an album on pop songs and performances in the Gulf countries and the U.S..

- The Hindu

20 in, 1 out..

Its now left with top 20 contestants to fight for the next round spot in Airtel Super Singer Junior 2. This week was with Rajavin Ramyamana Raagangal and there were nice performances from the contestants. With the end of the show, being a competitive round, there was one elimination being made in the show.. so , now its left with the 20 contestants for the next round. Surprisingly this round Divya did not try to make the eliminated contestant cry.. usually the whole team was doing that. It was close fight for Balasarangan even.. I think it would have been better if he had not participated in this event.. his reputation had reduced a lot and he is not to be blamed much since his voice is breaking and he has no control over it. Alka Ajith was selected as Rin Super Kid this week..

Whats up in the show..

Jensi was available in the show as special guest for first few days and on the final day she replaced Mano in the main judges area.. I thought Vijay tV would have made her to be special guest/judge for the final day even.. thats of no difference to the round. I also wish that more and more special guests come into the show and which will bring lots of opportunities for the kids..

Children's Day 2009 Special

Vijay TV has a special line-up for kids’ on Children’s Day, this Saturday, November 14, 2009. ‘Kids Killadies’ show – a 3 hour non-stop entertainment kicks off at 11am as the juniors from various shows of Vijay TV namely Kalakapovadhu yaaru juniors, Jodi No.1 Juniors and Super Singer Junior

kids’ get together to give away a delightful performance. Non-stop entertainment in singing, dancing and comedy, the juniors would be joined by celebrity guests and would give away a combined performance. Kalakapovadhu yaaru juniors like Vadivel Sachin, Shifana and Arjun would be joined by celebrities like Actors Archana and Pandu. They would be performing to various stand-up comedy acts and mimicry.

The winners of Jodi Junior - Roopika and Gaurav along with Krithika, Abinaya, Rinson and Pranav would give away a splendid dance performance. The seniors who are joining them are Satish and Sivakarthikeyan. The duo together would give away some free styles and mind-blowing performances. On a similar note, Super Singer Junior kids also would be joined by few celebrity guests like Playback singers Pushpavanam Kuppuswamy, Prasanna, Sainthanvi and Divya. Following the three-hour non-stop entertainment, do not miss to watch the Sree Gold Dhall Samayal Samayal special at 2pm. The Children’s Day special would feature Chinni Jeyanth and his family as special guests. His kids along with his friends and wife cook the most delicious and mouth watering pastas and bread rolls. Do not miss to watch the delicacies cooked on Sree Gold Dhall Samayal Samayal at 2pm.

Following the cookery show is ‘Sakalakala Chuttigal’ at 3pm. A show that showcases kids’ with budding talents is Sakalakala Chittigal. Many talented and gifted kids’ from various walks of life would be showcased in this show. Rare talents would be spotted and highlighted. At 4pm watch the super hit kids’ film, ‘My friend Ganesha’ premiering in Tamil. The story revolves around a family of four members. Lord Ganesha becomes the friend of the little boy named Ashu and they together solve various problems of their family.

At 8pm watch Aachi Boys VS Girls Children’s Day Special. The performers would be performing to kids’ theme and both the teams gear themselves to give away some exhilarating performances. Do not miss to watch all the Children’s Day Specials on Vijay TV, this Saturday November 14, 2009 from 11am onwards.

No Elimination !!!

There was no elimination in the first competitive round of Anu Alavum bayam illa season 2. I was eagerly waiting to see the difficulty in the round and who is going to get eliminate first... but to my surprise they had non elimination round. Its really getting bored if the show is not attractive or not interesting. I dont think of same excitement in watching the first season and the anchoring is not really good by Lakshmi Rai. What do you guys think on it ??

Initially it was announced that Vandana is eliminated from the show since her performance was the poorest amongst all but suddenly Neelima asked we dont want elimination this week.. immediately Lakshmi Rai said Okay.. we will not have elimination.. I donno whats their plan.. to make the show interesting or to drag the show. Lakshmi Rai's Tamizh pronounciation is also not great and does not give good impression. I think if this is the way Anu alavum bayam illai carries.. it will soon be eliminated from the Vijay TV shows..

Rajavin Ramyamana Raagangal..

It was meastro Ilayaraja's pleasant melody songs round in Airtel Super Singer Junior 2 this week. I think this round was perfect for most of the contestants... they were able to exhibit their talent really well. The show was very interesting and the performances too..

Whos in the show..

This week's show had the top 21 contestants performing..then with the permanent family judges Mano, Chitra and Shuba. Divya continued to host the show...Nikhil and Ajeesh were the trainers for the contestants.. I think Vijay TV can invite Ravi, Renu even to this training sessions. They are equally good.

Ilayaraja had given lots and lots of great melody songs and this episode I think the contestants will choose songs in the late 1970s and early 1980s which were super duper hits. I liked most of the performances of the contestants in this round.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Ministry signals cheaper digital TV option

The decision to bring HITS has been taken with the consumers’ interests in mind since it will enable quality TV transmission at an affordable price. Consumers will soon get a cheaper option of watching digital television with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting proposing to charge zero annual licence fee from Headend In The Sky (HITS) service providers. The Ministry has sent its final guidelines to the Union Cabinet for ratification.

HITS involves delivery of digital television signals directly to cable operators via satellite. Cable operators then pass on the digital channels to consumers, using cable lines. Compared to existing digital broadcasting platforms such as DTH and Conditional Access System, HITS has the advantage of spreading digitalisation throughout the country at one go because of the country-wide footprint of satellites. “No annual fee is prescribed as such, services need to be incentivised to bring down the cost of digitisation of cable services and to ensure financial viability of HITS operators and enable them to compete with DTH,” said a Ministry source.

DTH players unhappy

DTH players are, however, not too happy with the move as they have to pay 10 per cent of their annual revenues to the Government as licence fee. “HITS services are being seen as a competition to the DTH services, then how can there be difference in Government levies. If the objective is to provide affordability then DTH operators should also be allowed to provide these services without payment of the licence fee,” said one of the DTH players. They also said that introduction of HITS will add to the capacity crunch on satellite transponders which could stall their plans to introduce high definition TV. Senior officials in TRAI said that the decision to bring HITS has been taken with the consumers’ interests in mind since it will enable quality TV transmission at an affordable price. “With the operationalisation of HITS, the competition between DTH and digital cable network will work for the ultimate benefit of the consumer,” TRAI officials said.

The guidelines finalised by the I and B Ministry is in line with the recommendations of the TRAI whereby HITS operators will have to obtain a licence from the Government by paying an entry fee of Rs 10 crore. The companies will need to have a minimum net worth of Rs 10 crore for applying for a licence. Uplinking will be allowed in both C-Band and Ku-Band only from India. The Ministry has permitted HITS players to have up to 74 per cent foreign direct investment.

Courtesy - Business Line

TV viewers may soon have wider choice of channels

Wider choice of digital channels and better service at affordable prices could soon be a reality with headend-in-the-sky (HITS) policy likely to come up before the Union Cabinet on Thursday. To be implemented on a voluntary basis, HITS will provide digital mode of delivery of content and will enable distribution of multiple channels via satellite after aggregating them on ground from different satellites in an addressable format.

The policy -- that has been under consideration for over a year now -- is likely to bring down costs of conversion from analog to digital format from Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 1,200 crore according to government estimates. As per estimates by broadcast regulator TRAI, the cost of conversion of about 6,000 existing analog cable headends from one-way analog cable network to one-way digital cable network works out to Rs 15,000 crore. Among the advantages of the system are deeper penetration of the cable market into rural areas where it has been absent because of unviability. The government hopes that this will reduce the cost of set-top boxes and further consolidation of the cable market and attract funding by improving the return on investments.

The government has been keen to ensure that the policy does not mean additional financial burden on the subscriber. "The ministry is keen that it should not entail extra cost on the subscriber and is in talks with various representatives to ensure that," a source said. The ministry has already proposed a rationalisation of duty on digital set-top boxes to bring down costs further. HITS will benefit subscribers with a wider choice of digital channels, better picture quality and value added services at affordable prices. HITS will provide greater channel capacity from the present capacity of channels placed in prime and non-prime band.

Courtesy - Times of India

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Ardent fan praises Super Star Rajinikanth

Vijay TV's Kamal 50 has turned out to be a super hit show among the fans of the Universal Hero and also Superstar Rajinikanth. The show was a tribute to Padmashri Kamal Hasan for having successfully completed 50 years in Indian cinema. Vijay TV, in its own exclusive way, launched a spate of events that ran for nearly six weeks. This event, the first of its kind for any star, was carried out in different phases and telecast on Vijay TV recently.

One of our Galatta visitors Mr. Ram, after having watched the show on Vijay TV, has sent us his views on Kamal Haasan, Rajinikanth and Vijay TV. He has praised Super Star Rajinikanth for having been a true friend to Kamal by being there at his side always. Here is his mail praising the one and only Super Star.

Dear Editor,

I watched Kamal Hasan’s 50th year Mega event via YouTube. We all know about Rajnikanth and his humanity. However, during Rajni's speech, I was completely taken aback and was shedding tears. There will none in the world who can speak high words about another co-star whom the media and fans considers a competitor. It is quite obvious now that Rajni’s feat can never be achieved by anyone else. An actor is also a human being but it is only Rajni who can maintain being the super star, a good human and leading by example. Even in past generation, I do not recall any actor who has this charisma and good heart. I was speechless after hearing Rajni’s talk. In fact, Kamal who normally does not praise co-artists above him, mentioned that Rajni need not have to so humble and underplay himself.

Let me tell this... Never in the Indian filmdom can any one beat Rajni in any way... Almost everyone is distant second compared to him. He is just awesome! And surely there are not enough words to appreciate Rajni, the real human being.

Ram

Thank you Mr. Ram for letting us know your thoughts! Keep visiting Galatta!

- Galatta

Monday, November 9, 2009

I&B to expedite clearance process for TV channels

In a bid to expedite the clearances for downlinking and uplinking permission of private satellite television channels, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry has commenced a process of monthly meetings to hear complaints or answer queries relating to such issues. The meeting would be held on the fifth of every month with the Director in charge of Broadcasting, Supriya Sahu, between 11 am and 12 noon to entertain any difficulty experienced by applicants in getting the clearance. "The applicants can use this opportunity to submit any relevant information/documents pertaining to their applications or uplinking/downlinking guidelines as also clarify any issues," according to a note circulated by the Ministry. "This initiative should facilitate the completion of documentation and response to queries that may require answers by the applicants and also obviate the need and practice of unnecessary visits to the Ministry by applicants."

The meetings are part of the process of an "absolutely transparent process" of granting permission as required under these Guidelines. The process of granting permission includes mandatory clearances from Ministries/Departments like Finance (Department of Revenue), Department of Space, Home Affairs, etc. The step was taken after the Ministry learnt that certain individuals claiming to be experts were offering consultancy for getting permission for Uplinking and Downlinking of channels. Senior Ministry sources told indiantelevision.com ‘categorically’ that the Ministry did not recognize any such consultants and they had no role in getting permission from the Ministry which had "a transparent set of rules and procedures and they are scrupulously followed."

-Indiantelevision

Sunday, November 8, 2009

What is TRP and how is it computed?

What is TRP and how is it computed?

A television programme or a commercial sent over the air, on a cable system, or direct from a satellite is available for viewing by millions of viewers. How does one know how many of those millions are actually viewing a particular programme? Unlike a newspaper or a magazine, where the publisher can count how many copies are sold, there is no direct way to know exactly how many people are watching any given programme. Hence, indirect measuring techniques based on the statistical sampling theory, called Television Audience Measurement (TAM), are used.

Technically speaking, TAM is a specialised branch of media research, dedicated to quantifying and qualifying detailed TV audience information. In India, TAM is commonly referred to as TRP or TV Ratings Points. Generally, when used for the broadcast medium, a rating point equals 1% of the given
population group.

Why do we need these ratings?
With the hundreds of crores of rupees spent annually on TV programmes and commercials, reliable TV audience information is required to evaluate and maximise the effectiveness of this investment. This has led to the ever-increasing desire by broadcasters, advertisers and advertising agencies to have accurate, consistent and detailed information about TV audiences. These ratings, if reliable and valid, become `common currency' for the market's commercial airtime. Media planners and buyers evaluate the alternative programmes offered to best achieve their advertising goals, broadcasters evaluate programmes or a station’s popularity and how much to charge advertisers for commercials during a programme or on a given
channel. In those cases where the channels are funded wholly or partly by public licence, they provide accountability.

How is viewership measured?
There are many ways to measure the audiences. One is through random telephone calls (if teledensity is satisfactory). Another is by using TV diaries, booklets in which samples of viewers record their television viewing during a measurement week. However, with the increasing numbers of channels, multiple broadcasting platforms and increased numbers of TV sets and remote controls per family, electronic gadgets called people meters are used to measure audiences. The people meter, about the size of a paperback book, is placed on each TV set in the sample home. The box has buttons, and lights are assigned to each person who lives in the household (with additional buttons for guests). Each meter is capable of accurately monitoring every second, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, what is being viewed on each TV set and by whom. The meter stores this data. The data is then periodically transmitted by means of the family's telephone line, or a dedicated cellular telephone line to a central computer for analysis. In actual practice, all the three methods are used in combination, for increasing the
accuracy and for crosschecking.

The world's first people meter was installed in 1976 in 500 homes in Italy by LCM Graman, an Italian market research company. Today, AC Nielsen, AGB Group and Gallup are the three leading TAM agencies. Most of the television markets in the world have a single TAM rating. However, India till recently had two - one called TAM done by AC Nielsen and other INTAM reported by ORG-MARG. However by the end of this year, TAM and INTAM will be merged to form a consolidated industry standard.

How reliable are TRP ratings?
As with any sampling, TRP ratings could be inaccurate due to sampling errors like inadequate coverage of the TV owning population. In India, for example, TAM ratings are based on people meters installed in only 16 top cities in nine states. Also, the panel households exclude lower middle and top income bracket households, which are keen watchers of niche English channels. Then the whole system is based on the list of metered households being confidential so that their viewing habit is not unduly influenced.

Courtesy - TelevisionPoint

Prasanna's first song..

I got to read this post in Indya.com forum and copied it here..

Subject - My first song in James Vasanthan's Kavalar Kudiyiruppu

Dear Forum Members,

The long wait is over.Airtel Super Singer 2008 has given a breakthrough in my life.
Yesterday my first song in movies got released at four frames.
Movie Name : Kavalar Kudiyiruppu
Music Director : James Vasanthan

Its a nice peppy number by me and other two singers called Bharanai (sadaga Paravaigal)and sunandan.Six new singers got introduced in this movie

I just wanted to share the happiness with u all (as usual)

Thanks to James Sir, Judges,Super Singer Crew,Vijay TV and above all our forum Members for your great support thorough out the show and thereafter.
Almost all the top contestants of ASS 2008 have sung in some or other movies., i am also anxiously awaiting for their release.

Looking forward to your continued support and wishes for the sucess of the song and movie

With Love
Prasanna

Way to go guys... Keep rocking..

Sangeetha Sangamam 2009

Vijay TV’s music fest is started this year..

The music season has arrived in the city and so has the musical festivities on Vijay TV. The channel brings fresh talent to the fore in the music festival ‘Sangeetha Sangamam 2009.’ It will be held from November 9 to 13, 6 p.m., at Vani Mahal, T. Nagar. Smitha Madhav opens the music festival on November 9. Then Abhishek Raghuraman will sing on ‘Panchanadai’ - the five different rhythmic patterns.

November 10 opens with a Carnatic mandolin performance by Balaji. This will be followed by a concert by Sikkil Gurucharan and Mansi Prasad. On November 11, Gayathri will present the theme ‘Rudram.’ Next will be a keyboard performance by Master Sathyanarayanan. Subhiksha’s performance on November 12 is on the theme ‘Ramarasam’. Then, Prasanna Venkatraman will perform ‘Kandan Karunai.’On November 13, Sruthi Sagar’s flute performance will kickstart the evening’s programme. This will be followed by a performance by Sisters Keerthana and Karthika. On each day, between the two performances, a Carnatic legend will be remembered and his/her work appreciated. Tickets for the shows are available on a first-cum-first-served basis at Vijay TV, No. 15 Jagannathan Road, Nungambakkam, on November 7 and 8, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Aadhavan Kondattam, 8-11-2009

Aadhavan Kondattam with Suriya and Nayanthara
8th November, 2009

 
koffee with anu super singer jodi no 1 anu alavum bayam illai celebrating kamal's 50 vijay tv vanga pesalam kallikaattu pallkoodam maharani vijay awards vpl en peyar meenakshi yuvan vijay tv anchors kings of comedy