Kamalum Kadhalum – a grand musical night on Vijay TV!

As part of the festivities of “Rin Ulaganayagan Kamal 50″ celebrating Kamal Haasan’s 50 years in cinema; Vijay TV proudly presents “Rin – Kamalum Kadhalum”.! Kamal Haasan, the eternal lover boy of Tamil cinema, has many songs that have been based on the theme of LOVE which have been chartbusters! Rin Kamalum Kadhalum is a night dedicated to the evergreen love songs featured on none other than Kamal Haasan.! This grand musical night features none other than the two great music legends S.P. Balasubramaniyam and Chithra LIVE in concert. Joining them were popular playback singers like Karthik, Sriram Parthasarathy, Haricharan, Harini, Sai Madhumitha and Sainthavi.

The event featured some of most popular evergreen Kamal Haasan’s hits like ‘Andhi mazhai’, ‘Nee partha parvai’, ‘Valai osai’ and many more,. The audience lost themselves to the feeling of love as the legendary singer SPB began with “Sippi irukudu muthum irukkudu” from one of the Kamal Haasan’s biggest hits, “Varumaiyin niram sivappu”. S.P. Balasubramaniyam, the man who has sung to most of Kamal Haasan’s songs, is a true legend. It was indeed a treat to see all the budding talents share the centre stage with him singing to songs like, “Valai osai”, “Nee partha”, “Ninaithale inikkum”, “Unnavida”, “Nila kaadiyudhu”, “Andhi Mazhai”, “Poongatru puthithanadhu”., and many more.

A special unplugged segment would also feature all the singers in a medley stringing together some of Kamal’s melodious numbers..! As a special treat to Kamal Haasan’s thousands of fans, songs from his movies in other Indian languages were also performed. So don’t forget to tune into Rin – Kamalum Kadhalum on September 20, 2009 at 11am only on Vijay TV.

Courtesy - Chennai365

NDTV Hindu gains share, ropes in 15 advertisers

NDTV Hindu, the Chennai-centric English news channel, has managed to rope in 15 advertisers including Aircel, Idea and Hindustan Unilever within four months of its launch. The channel, which was launched on 16 May this year as a JV between NDTV and The Hindu, has garnered an average market share of 10.1 per cent in the Chennai city, according to NDTV Hindu MD and CEO Rajiv Lulla. The channel was launched after a three-month research. "We realised that in Chennai, there is big appetite for local news and lack of alternatives. There are lots of regional news channels, but no English channel. So we have got the first mover advantage,” says Lulla.

Among other brands that have joined the channel are Univercell, Adani power, Star health insurance, BPCL, Pothy’s, RMKV, World vision, Nippon Paint, Suryadev, Nathella, Lalit Jewellery, and Sharon plywood. The JV between the two groups works on multiple platforms. Apart from investments that both the parties have made, the two partners also work together on the editorial content. The channel airs a special show in weekends named Business Line.

On the marketing front, the channel partners with Hindu's on-ground events.

NDTV Hindu has also joined forces with three FM channels and one out-of-home (OOH) media company for promotional events. “We have understood that these partnerships will help in symbiotic growth. There is no competition and both can co-exist,” avers Lulla. As per current ratings, the channel has 16.3 per cent market share in the non-news/features segment. The channel airs specials on the Tamil film industry, shopping destinations, latest trends, food joints etc. NDTV Hindu claims that its show Unlocking Lives tops the list of top 100 shows in the English news market in Chennai.

- Indiantelevision

Semifinals..

It is the semifinals in Anu alavum bayam illai show this week.. the show has top 3 contestants Santhoshi, Tarika and VJ Pooja fighting to win the game. With the 3 ppl still waiting for the winner.. it is the Semifinals this week in the show. The show looks to have task with Fire, Water, Rats and many more.. Everytime the show has a task.. its been with any of the 5 elements of the earth and this week's semifinals has 2 of them even. Also, there would be a task with fire and looks like Pooja had got hurt..We will have to wait and see on this.

With Arthi being eliminated from the show last week this week even there wil be one contestant out from the show. This will make the final 2 to compete in the finals and either of them will emerge as winner. All the 3 contestants has good physic and they can jump, run and do everything and looks to be flexible.

Pa.Vijay, Uma Padmanabhan test their lyrics skill..

Last 2 weeks it was Manickam Vinayagam and Srilekha Parthasarathy trying their best out in the Paatu Paadava show.. and I sad part was I didnt see the show last week and I donno what had happened. This week's promotional video is out and the first episode is also over sometime back.. the show has lyricist Pa.Vijay joining the show to try out his best. Also, it would be Uma Padmanabhan joining the show after Pa.Vijay gets eliminated from the show. We have seen Uma Padmanabhan singing in realty shows.. and this time I think she will have a good run here. Pa.Vijay should not have any issues with this kind of program I think ;)

Top 25 to compete..

With the time pass week got over its back to business for the Airtel SUper Singer Junior 2. From next week it will be the competitive rounds in front of the main judges. The top 25 contestants who have been selected to this level will be competing for the next round slots. I think, this is definitely going to be a good fight between the contestants and there are quite a number of talents available. With the hosting of the show, DD will not be there for the rest of this season and it will be Divya to take away from her. She had a good training week ;) but we wil have to wait and see how she will carry on.

It was not so interesting week in the show I felt.. I was not keen to see the show continuously and was switching the channels quite frequently. But, after looking at the main level judges I am interested in the show now ;). The sets of the show is amazing.. they have made it better than the Airtel Super Singer 2008 event. The show is getting bigger even with the prize money. Lets see how the 25 compete from next week and its the time starts for Vijay TV to have elimination and recalls ;)

Something with Superstar

This week, watch another interesting story in Nadanthathu enna... Hosted by Gopinath with investigative journalist Rajnarayanan, the four-part one-hour series is about the mysterious ‘Baba’ caves located in the Himalayas, that are regularly visited by Superstar Rajnikanth. The ‘Nadandhathu Enna’ crew visits the Himalayas to find out more on the ‘Baba’ caves. Hari, a close friend of Rajnikanth, joins the team and leads them to the caves. Watch out for the same..

Arthi Eliminated

It was Aarthi whos eliminated from the Anu alavum bayam illai show last week. The show is getting interesting as the level goes up and I think this show had got lot of viewers even. It was really difficult for Arthi to compete with the other contestants who are continuously getting best performer award every week. I think it was a very good run by Arthi given her physic and she had performed really well to be in the top 4 in competition.

Water Challenge again..

It was the challenge in water again but it was unlike the previous water game which was non-competitive round ;). There was a glass box which contains water and water can be filled in it even. So, the first task was to enter into the tank from top upside down. There will be a small box screwed all 4 sides in the bottom of the tank and upon opening the box there will be a stone( i dont remember exactly this).. Contestant got to enter upside down (ofcourse tied with the rope) and unscrew the box with spanner and take up the material. Water will be already available in the tank and water will also be filled continuosly from the top.

Next task was to stand in the tank with some water. Legs will be tied with a chain and locked. There would be 3 keys in the bottom of tank which the contestants got to search with their hands only. When they find it they will have to open by having their head immersed in water. AFter opening the 2 locks, there will be another lock on top of the tank which also should be opened. This task also has water coming into the tank regularly.

Now having Arthi eliminated from the show, it is with Santhoshi, VJ Pooja and Tarika competing for the next level in the competition..lets see how it goes..

Star Vijay and Star One go mobile

Star India has announced the availability of its Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) Star One and Tamil GEC Star Vijay on mobile TV platform. Star has joined forces with Apalya Technologies to stream the satellite channels on consumer’s mobile across all major operators and regions. Initially, Star will launch the service with video-on-demand (VoD) content.

Says Star India SVP for new media and IT Gurtej Singh Sandhu, “Extending these channels on the mobile platform, was the obvious step towards building a community and get stickiness to our channels across. We wanted to create a medium for users to interact with the channel/brand.” With the launche of this service, consumers can enjoy shows like Sarabhai V/s Sarabhai, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge from Star One and Grand Master and Koffee with Anu on Star Vijay while they are on the move.

Adds Apalya Technologies VP sales and marketing Sathyajith Divakaran, “Bringing Star One and Star Vijay on the mimobi.tv platform will appeal to a lot of audiences both at the regional and national levels. Apalya Technologies mimobi.tv platform is available across all leading operators in India, with a primary focus of enabling best possible video viewing experience on 2.5g /EDGE /3G/ CDMA.”

Dish TV, Indiatimes.com to offer Vas services on mobile

Dish TV, the direct-to-home (DTH) arm of Essel Group, has announced a tie up with Indiatimes.com, Times Group's internet venture, to provide mobile value added services (Vas) on TV. 'Mobile Active' enables consumers to preview the mobile services on TV and download content on to their mobile handsets. The content may include ringtones, wallpapers, text alerts and contests.Says Dish TV COO Salil Kapoor, "Mobile Active is our latest initiative to drive convergence in the entertainment and communication space. Our main focus is on empowering our young customers and giving them an easy user interface to download mobile Vas products." "Our mobile Vas division has witnessed rapid expansion since past one year with the launch of services like 58888 IVR portal, Active Deals, etc. With this tie up we at Indiatimes 58888, will be able to enhance our customer touch points and maximize revenue opportunities," says Times Internet Limited CEO Rishi Khiani. Earlier, Dish TV had launched interactive Life services, wherein Dish TV customers can search for jobs, seek their life partner and plan their dream vacation by a click on their TV remote.

Whats up with SS Jr

This week in SS junior it will be just a time pass week..lol... there is been a very hype in introducing the main level judges and looks like main level judges will be introduced only next week. This week the show has the contestants performing in front of yesteryears top Super Singers.. and the kids are being given a nick name after their performances. There are also guest performances by these top Super Singers of 2006, 2008 and Junior 1.

Whos in SS Jr this week ?

There are no judges in this week's episode and the show is hosted by DD and Divya together. It seems from next week DD wont be available to anchor the show and it will be Divya doing it alone. Airtel Super Singers of previous season are in the show.. Ravi, Ajeesh, Renu, Aruna, Prasanna, Nikhil Mathew, Krishnamoorthy and others are in the show with some performances and commenting on the contestants' performances also.

Patta Peyar

All the kids are given a patta peyar after their performances.. the top Airtel Super Singers of earlier seasons decide these names and give them a certificate and flowers.

Divya to host SS

Playback singer Divya (of Dhimthanaka Thilana" in Villu) will be hosting the Airtel Super Singer Junior 2 show from next week. She is been introduced in the show this week and she is alongside with Divyadarshini anchoring this week's episode. From next week we wont have DD hosting the show and it will be only Divya to do the honours. With the initial feel, DD has been speaking much and Divya had not spoken out.. but from next week we will get to know about her. I am not sure why DD is been replaced in here after she is doing a good job.

Kamalum Kadhalum

Vijay TV honours Kamal Haasan with a musical concert

Vijay TV presents Kamalum Kadhalum, a music concert featuring S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chithra, Madhu Balakrishnan, S. P. Charan, Karthik, Haricharan, Suchithra, Saindhavi and Harini. The night is in honour of Kamal Haasan completing 50 years on the silver screen. Five of Kamal’s favourite numbers in different languages and a medley of his hits will be performed.

Top heroines will share their experiences of working with the legend. The Hindu, Kumudam and Dinamalar are media partners. The event was held at Hindustan College of Arts and Science on September 4.

Personal video recorder pays well for Tata Sky

Vikram Kaushik, chief executive officer and managing director, Tata Sky, counts among his favourite recorded programmes US President Barack Obama's first address to the nation, Sachin Tendulkar hit his 44th one-day century, breaking Brian Lara's record along the way. What has made these possible for Kaushik is his Personal Video Recorder (PVR), which his company brought into the market a year ago branding it Tata Sky+. "According to a study by NDS in America, it is the third most indispensable household item, after the washing machine and the microwave oven," he said. His Direct-to-Home (DTH) consumer base has crossed four million in just three years. He added that the numbers are not really the measure of success; rather it is the fact that Tata Sky's average revenue per user is 60 per cent higher than that of its competitors.

A year ago, Tata Sky launched the PVR at Rs 10,000. Price not withstanding, Kaushik said they have logged in over 50,000 users who are as he says "hooked". He added that price was not the hurdle, as users always find budgets to suit what they consider useful. "A user needs to be re-assured that a new product is useful, has value and has great technology. So advertising does not work as much as demos and actual use works. So the challenge now is to sell the concept further and explain what the recorder can actually do like record live TV and pause and rewind live TV and that it is not a DVD player," says Kaushik. In a bid to push sales on the first anniversary of the PVR, Tata Sky has slashed prices by 50 per cent on the PVR. In less than ten days, 4,000 new users have come on board, of which a substantial number are going in for the second PVR. The target is to convert 8-10 per cent of their current subscriber base in a year to Tata Sky+.

Meanwhile, Kaushik also explains that Tata Sky will never take its eyes off average revenue per user (ARPU) in a bid to get more subscribers. "The DTH market is not a volume game-it's about getting higher ARPUs (average revenue per user), which in turn helps to cover the subscriber acquisition costs as fast as possible." said Kaushik. This explains the company's strategy to focus more on Tata Sky+, while continuing to add subscribers for its base service, which is also at a premium over services of other players. It has recently slashed the price of Tata Sky + by Rs 4,000 from Rs 8,999 to Rs 4,999.

- Televisionpoint

I&B considers adult content on TV

The Information and Broadcasting Ministry is planning to implement ‘watershed hours’ for adult content and a parental lock system for television. The proposal for introducing a parental lock system and watershed hours came up during I&B Minister Ambika Soni's recent meetings with representatives of Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) and News Broadcasters Association (NBA), the PTI said, quoting top sources in the ministry. Soni is reportedly keen that these norms should be implemented in India as they are followed globally.

The issue has been raised time and again by the broadcasters, but a general consensus has not yet formed between them and the government. As the two parties are fine tuning the content code, it will still take some time. "With a majority of Indian families still being single television set owners having elderly members, the minister is of the view that such provisions would help make television viewing a pleasant experience for them," a senior ministry official told PTI. The broadcasters have been suggested by the ministry that under the system, parents would be able to lock certain channels, which they think should not be viewed by children belonging to a certain age group. The minister has suggested broadcasters to introduce watershed hours for adult programmes, where adult content could be shown between 11 pm and 4 am on television.

-Indiantelevision

Pandiarajan in Thamizh Pechu Engal Muchu Chuttigal

It was ‘Thirai Suttru’ in Aachi's Thamizh Pechu Engal Muchu Chuttigal.. the kids spoke on topics such as ‘Love in cinema’, ‘Politics in cinema’, ‘Culture in cinema’ and ‘Friendship in cinema’. They have to quote relevant examples from Tamil films. Their oratorical skills will be evaluated by Parveen Sultana and Subaveerapandiayn, the judges of the show. Director-actor Pandiyarajan and S. S. Chandran were present in the show as the special guests.

Ravi Menon ends his innings at STAR

Ravi Menon, executive vice-president and general manager, STAR One, has called it a day at the company. Currently serving the notice period, he will exit by end of next week, sources say. Menon has spent almost 10 years at STAR, overseeing various channels. One of his primary responsibilities was overseeing the launch of STAR One. In 1996, he worked as a freelancer with STAR Movies and STAR Plus. Subsequently, he has worked as executive producer for Kaun Banega Crorepati, handled operations at Vijay TV as general manager and also looked after programming for STAR Plus and STAR One. Menon also did a two-year stint at Sony, between 2002 and 2004, as on-air department head. He joined STAR again in 2004 for the launch of STAR One.

Courtesy: afaqs!

Kanthaswamy thaan Toppu - Kanthasamy Special

Kanthasamy Special