Star India launches new shows for regional channels

Star Entertainment Media, the wholly-owned company of Star India Pvt. Ltd., which manages regional channels like Vijay TV, Star Jalsha and Star Pravah, is betting high on consolidating its market position by introducing new shows.

Tamil general entertainment channel (GEC) Vijay TV has lined up three reality shows for Friday and Saturday and two fiction shows for weekdays. Bengali GEC of the group, Star Jalsha, is launching two shows. And Marathi GEC Star Pravah is coming up with three fiction shows.

Vijay TV is launching two new reality shows, UniverCell - Paatu Paadavaa and Tata Docomo - Anu Alavum Bayamillai, for the prime time weekend slot. Apart from these, the GEC launched the second season of Aachi - Boys vs Girls, the gender-based dance competition on July 17, which is aired every Friday and Saturday at 8 pm.

Paatu Paadavaa is similar to Bol Baby Bol. However, in this show, instead of common people, popular singers of the Tamil music industry, such as Krrish, Prasanna, Ranjith, Prashanthini and Naresh Iyer, will participate. The show will be launched on July 24 at 10 pm, and will be telecast on Fridays and Saturdays.

Tata Docomo Anu Alavum Bayamillai, which is similar to Fear Factor, will be launched in the last week of July. In this show, eight celebrities face their fears. This 26-episode show will be aired on Fridays and Saturdays at 9 pm. This show will replace Koffee with Anu, a talk show on the channel.

For the weekday programming, Vijay TV recently launched two fiction shows - Anbe Vaa, a love story and Rojakoottam, a story of five friends who stay in the same locality. The channel also has two family dramas in the pipeline.

Another regional channel of the Star bouquet, Star Jalsha, is launching two new shows - Ogo Bodhu Sundari and Dancing Stars. Ogo Bodhu Sundari, which will go on air on July 27, has been made by the team behind Bou Kotha Kao, the bestseller on the Bengali GEC. This daily show will be aired at 9 pm from Monday to Friday and will replace Neer Bhanga Jhor, another fiction show on the channel. Gaurav Banerjee, vice-president, programming, Star Entertainment Media, says, "As a channel, we have made a conscious decision to stay away from being intriguing and indulging in kitchen politics. Rather, we aim to bring human values and warmth through our shows." Dancing Stars will be launched in August. This dance reality show will have eight dancers competing to win a role in a film directed by Jishu, an acclaimed Bengali director. This show will replace Swayamwar, a matchmaking show. Apart from this, the channel will also air Star Jalsha Entertainment Awards on Sunday, July 26.

Star Pravah, the Marathi GEC, is all set to launch fiction shows. Man Udhan Variyche is an attempt by the channel to launch an iconic Marathi love story. Aired from Monday to Saturday, this is the first time the channel is trying its hand at a story around a love triangle. The theme of this show is how youngsters treat love. Banerjee shares that apart from this show, most of the other shows on Star Pravah are family dramas. This love story is replacing Ase Kaghalda, which was launched in November. Apart from this, the seven-month-old channel has two more daily fiction shows in the pipeline.