MxMIndia

Category: Awards

  • Spikes Sidelights | No random networking

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer
    It was an insightful weekend at the Mandarin Oriental Singapore reviewing some of the best works from across Asia. But before I get to that, let me say that the dinner on the evening before we actually sat together to review the work, helped to get together and know one another, be familiar with the professional backgrounds to set the pace of views and reviews that would be relevant over the next two days.

    Rather than an informal dinner setting I appreciated how Spikes Asia had organized a sit down dinner where each jury was assigned their table to group together with their co-members. So there was no random networking, and no one was left out of the conversation. It was a very
    productive dinner so to speak.

    The next two days we started really early, well yes by Indian Standard Time, it was a 6 a.m. Fortunately I was able to be wide awake for the prospect of reviewing work with people across the Asian region was definitely exciting, plus to have anyone from Crispin Porter + Bogusky to chair the meet was an equally if not more exciting prospect. And Jeff Benjamin, chief creative officer CPB, the jury chair, was someone I did learn from over the last two days. I was humbled of course by the kind of work that rest of Asia is producing. And yes, barring an idea or two, saw how far away we in India are from thinking beyond getting the basic’s right, executing great ideas, and presenting stuff in a manner that can capture the juror’s attention.

    We had some fun during the day of course. There was the jury photo shoot where the jury chair more than we women on the jury was concerned about the effect of blowing wind and his flying hair, and well, when a couple of guys decided that the silence from the next jury room was killing. So a `help me’ note was slipped under the door, a lot of sound effects were created so it would get noticed and we get some reaction, but the note was totally ignored :P.

    Finally the day was over. We finished with champagne by the poolside last evening after we had finally decided on the metals. It was refreshing. Jeff ordered some Singapore Sling shots, to top it, and that was a nice lift to the end of the day.

    Hope to catch up on the some of the sessions today at the Festival, and some of the after dark parties organized by some of the agencies here in Singapore this evening.

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is founder and managing director, BC Web Wise

  • Day 2 of Spikes Asia gets underway

    By A Correspondent

     

    Spikes Asia took off in Singapore yesterday with India dominating the participating countries in the awards event with 612 entries. Celebrating creativity in advertising and communications, the three-day event is the apex congregation of the trade in the region.

    “As the largest awards in Asia Pacific, we are delighted with the continued support of the industry in the region, demonstrated by this incredible growth. Spikes Asia is the place to see the region’s great creative work across all the different disciplines, including the two new categories for this year – Mobile and PR. Winning a much sought-after Spike, provides important recognition, inspiration and motivation for both agencies and clients alike,” said Mr Terry Savage, Co-Chairman of the Spikes Asia. “With a record number of attendees this year, Spikes Asia is set to be a great event, with much to learn and discuss,” he continued.

    During his session, Mr John Wren, President & CEO, Omnicom Group had summed on the must-have’s among the people they hire-high energy, talented and nice. He also dubbed mobile as the core to change in future. He also pointed that Asia is the growth center for marketers and its here that they can achieve the greatest growth.

    Mr Stephen Kim, General Manager, Global Creative Solutions, Microsoft discussed the journey of storytelling and pointed that every brand and every consumer has a story to tell and as marketers, it is important resonate these stories with the consumers.

    There was also a presentation on `Lessons In Creativity And Innovation From The Simpsons’ by Mr Joel Cohen, the Writer and co-executive Producer of The Simpsons. Mr Cohen attributed the success  of the Simpsons to the environment in which it is created and also reminded the importance of connecting with the audience before innovating.

    There are many more sessions that delegates are making a beeline for. These include Creativity & Fear by Todd Sampson, CEO, Leo Burnett Australia, Does Creativity Make Advertising More Effective? by James Hurman, Planning Director, Colenso BBDO and The Gamification Of Marketing by Laurie Coots, Chief Marketing Officer, TBWA\Worldwide among host of others.

    The grand awards event will be held tomorrow evening.

  • …but the winners made me believe in advertising and communications once again, writes Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    Spikes Sidelights | Not a spectacular night

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    Finally, the grand evening, the Awards Night for Spikes Asia at the Esplanade Theatre. I must admit the evening was not as spectacular as I thought it would be. It was a laundry list of awards being given out. But the highlights were, as it should rightly be to see the presentations and films for the Gold and Grand Prix winners. That I must say, almost all of them made me believe in advertising and
    communications all over again. It was fascinating to see some awesome craft and design work in particular. They did let the imagination take leaps and bounds.

    It felt very good whenever `India’ won something and whenever any Indian walked up on stage. It felt good to see Samsonite win the Advertiser of the year award and an `Indian’ who was the Asia-Pacific head, Dr Ramesh Tainwala of the Tainwala Group that Samsonite has its joint-venture with, walk up on stage to receive the award.

    A simple man, simply dressed, humble to say he is not used to it, and who said the best of things any agency, in this case JWT, would love to hear, and ensured that the Indian arm Contract got a mention too when he was up there on stage. That speaks volumes about the person, and I guess a reason why Samsonite is such a big success in the region, they got the best partners in India.

    I skipped the party thereafter at a place called `Indo Chine’ I think, hosted by Leo Burnett. Thought I would catch an early nights nap, for we leave the hotel tomorrow morning at 7 a.m for the airport, and that is 4.30 am India time.

    Signing out from Spikes Asia… thank you, it was fun and a great learning opportunity in many ways.

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is founder-managing director, BC Webwise

  • Day 2 at Spikes Asia in Singapore was fun and loads of partying

    Spikes Sidelights | Partying hard at Spikes Asia

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer
    So it was a crazy time partying last evening. I left with Bo Hwang, ECD and VP from HS Ad Seoul, LG’s in-house agency. We had to decide which of the parties to go to! There was Ogilvy and Lowe starting at 7 pm and then a JWT party, one by TBWA and may be one hosted by McCann.

    I wasn’t really aware about the latter two. Anyway we decided to go Ogilvy first because our friend Johan ECD from AKQA suggested we are going to get some food there too. So there we made it by about 8 pm. And what did we find. Right outside the building before we entered we were accosted by a very attractively decked carnival woman, with all shiny blue sexy costume and those large plumes sticking out from her headdress and a very pleasant young man, and painted bus asking us to head to the Street Carnival organized by Lowe!! Ha ha.. so yea they did their best to redirect the crowd from Ogilvy, and I found out later that they were pretty successful. Bo and me decided to head upstairs anyway.

    So the Ogilvy party was happening at a newly opened office… so it was empty unfurnished. There were some 5 women who flocked over to Bo as soon as we entered!! And I was so impressed with BO from then on. Yes, I really liked him till then, and now I found out that he was so popular with women from around the globe.

    We made our way through the fairly packed place at Ogilvy… we got our glass of red wine, no food though J. I think Bo managed to get himself a bite or two. I had to make it right downstairs to grab a smoke. But yes I made friends with Emma Osborne, MD from Aspire Gobal Neworks who down there for a smoke too and holding two red balloons that flew away. And then back up with a cute little girl Jenny Choo from Breakfast Film Seoul. She was going to entertain me I realized , more than I expected much later in the evening.

    So yeah, JJ from Ogilvy One had it organized for us, we were to go in his car for the next two parties and we made it to the Lowe Carnival at the junction of Ann Siang Hill and Club Street. And was that place packed.. the street was overflowing from the likes of Madison Av. Asia . There were 3 pubs that were blocked by Lowe and people with drinks were inside outside everywhere. Jenny was soon garlanded with a scarf of pink feathers… and we got our drinks. We also got some real food and some 5 of us were placed ourselves next to the snack counter and made friends with loads of people there.

    Finally we headed to the JWT party on the rooftop of the building their office was in. Yeah, and this is where Jenny gave that moment to remember. The rooftop has this little shallow pools all over. And Jenny walked straight into one with her plumes and all.. her little black dress and black pointed heels.. and she managed to ensure that her glass of wine did not fall.. it was an awesome sight. I was right next to her.. tried to stop her.. but it was too noisy for her to hear. So yes, then I did help her out of the water apologizing all the time as I was laughing my heart out, and then did not feel guilty
    ‘cause she could not stop laughing too. And yes.. so we laughed for rest of the night we simply could not overcome that scene. JWT party had the best music, I must admit. I couldn’t catch the DJs name. Some fireplay was organized but those are the kind of stuff we find on the beaches of Goa, so nothing spectacular. What was sad though was when the drinks ran out pretty fast and all the bar seemed to have was warm beers.

    Johan, Bo, Jenny and me decided to head back to the hotel, tried to find out if the Post Office bar on the way was open, but we could order just one last drink so we headed straight back to Axis Bar at
    the Mandarin Oriental where we all stayed.

    That was the end to last evening or early morning hours of today. Now heading for the Awards Night and the After Party… . J

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is founder-managing director, BC Webwise

  • CreativeLand Asia leads the pack with a Grand Prix as Indian agencies win 34 metals at the Asia-Pacific festival

    Indian agencies bag 34 metals at Spikes Asia

     

    By A Correspondent

    If the Cannes Lions is the Olympics, Spikes Asia is the Asian Games. Competition is stiff, but heck there is no North and South America and no Europe.

    But this is no attempt to undermine the rep of Spikes Asia, the annual congregation of ad, marcom and marketing professionals in Singapore. At the three-day event which concluded last evening with much merrymaking in Singapore, Indian advertising boys and girls came back with 34 metals.

     

     

     

    It may be remembered that the score at Cannes Lions this year was 24 metals, but then not everyone at the Lions goes in for a Spikes.

     

     

    So, here’s the agency-wise tally:

     

     

    Agency

    GP

    G

    S

    B

    Total
    BBDO India

    1

    1

    6

    8
    Beehive

    1

    1
    Contract

    1

    1
    Creativeland Asia

    1

    1

    2
    JWT

    1

    3

    4
    Leo Burnett

    1

    1
    McCann

    1

    1
    Mediacom

    1

    1

    2
    Mindshare

    1

    1
    Mudra

    2

    6

    8
    Ogilvy

    1

    1

    2
    Taproot

    1

    1
    TBWA

    1

    1

    2


     

     


    In the metal types, here’s how it appears:

     

     

    Tally
    Grand Prix

    1
    Gold

    3
    Silver

    9
    Bronze

    21
    Total

    41

     

    Note, Indian entrants came back empty-handed in PR, Mobile and Outdoor.

    In the special awards category, Mudra Communications, Mumbai gets the third place as the Agency of the Year. O&M Malaysia gets first and DDB Group Singapore scores the second place. The big one definitely is for Raj Kurup’s CreativeLand Asia which is the Independent Agency of the Year, an award which celebrates the spirit of entrepreneurship. Samsonite won the Advertiser of the Year. In the category for Network of the Year, which is awarded to the Network which gets highest scores for entries across categories include DDB, BBDO and JWT in that order. India drew a blank in the Media Agency of the Year Category. Last year, Mediacom was runner-up.

    The Spikes Awards has been around for around a quarter of a century and the Spikes Asia Advertising Festival is a collaboration between the International Festival of Creativity, organisers of Cannes Lions, Dubai Lynx and Eurobest, and Haymarket, publishers of CampaignIndia. According to the organisers, Spikes Asia provides “the region’s growing creative and advertising industry with a platform to network and exchange ideas, bringing together some of the finest creative thinkers from across the region and around the world”.

    The Awards, judged by leading international and regional creatives including many from India, recognise top creative work in the categories of Film, Film Craft, Print, Print & Poster Craft, Outdoor, Radio, Digital, Integrated, Direct, Sales Promotion, Media, Design, Mobile and PR.

  • Ogilvy & Cadbury were Client & Agency of the Year respectively @ Effies 2011. Vodafone & JWT were runner-up. Taproot bagged Grand Effie for Pepsi

    Cadbury & O&M top Effies 2011 honours

     

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    On an exhilarating race day, at a place where horses would be galloping and competing their way for a finish to the top, yesterday it was the turn of the advertising fraternity to trot the turf and vie for their prized silverware. Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Mumbai was host to Effies 2011, the only awards show of its kind that recognizes effective advertising by creative agencies.

     

    Having finished as the agency with the highest number of shortlists, Ogilvy & Mather didn’t disappoint as it swooped a bagful of awards – 19 metals in all – leading it to be pronounced the Effie Agency of the Year for 2011. With a tally of 195 points – 7 Golds, 6 Silvers and 6 Bronzes, Ogilvy thumped its nearest rival JWT by almost thrice the number of metals, a milestone that has been a regular affair at the awards. JWT came a distant second with 65 points – 3 Golds, 1 Silver, 2 Bronzes, while DDB Mudra and Lowe Lintas were tied for the third spot with 45 points each.

     

    The icing on the cake for O&M was when its coveted client Cadbury was declared the Effie Client of the Year. With 4 Golds and 2 Silvers, Cadbury edged out Vodafone India – an Ogilvy client as well – which occupied the second spot with 2 Golds, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze. HUL came third with a single Gold and 4 Bronzes.

     

    Flagging off the awards ceremony, Shashi Sinha, President of the Bombay Ad Club welcomed the gathering by stating that it had been a stellar an experience for the organising committee and the judges who managed to sieve and rummage through a bundle of noteworthy entries. Apart from the big number of entries and new additions the event managed to attract, Sinha said that the awards was different from the others, as it was run on international guidelines and was importantly, controversy-free.

     

    Lavishing praises on the event, Chairperson – Effie Committee and fellow-member, Ajay Kakar began by citing an anecdote. “During my early days as an executive in an ad agency, I used to often hear marketers say that half the money I spent on advertising is wasted and the trouble is, which half was wasted was not known. But with the instituting of the Effies, that perception has changed. In fact, it is the only awards show where both the client and the ad agency walk together to collect the awards.”

     

    According to Kakar, it was truly a remarkable experience for the organising committee this year as there were more categories – 12 in all, which saw around 300 entries and the 80 judges had the arduous task of shortlisting the best.

     

    Winning stance

    Elated with another super showing, Abhijit Avasthi, NCD, Ogilvy India remarked: “We are absolutely thrilled, given that Effies is a culmination of the year’s efforts and that it is the right balance between creativity and effectiveness in the marketplace. What’s more reassuring and satisfying is that the wins are across a lot of categories and clients.”

     

    When asked to comment on his client bagging the Client of the Year award Avasthi said: “Though we are happy that Cadbury has bagged the Client of the Year award, we have been supported phenomenally well by our other clients too.”

     

    Not disheartened by the performance of his agency, Colvyn Harris, CEO, JWT India, which came in second, said: “Every year, around this time, we review the works that we do for our clients and given our standing at the Effies this year, we hope to start 2012 with a brand new team so as to compete closely with the No 1.”

     

    On Effies being a great creative platform for agencies, Colvyn said: “I think Effies is a great platform for one to showcase their work, because finally, creativity may be everything but this is as important, if not more important, from a client’s point of view. If you are not successful in the marketplace, then nothing else matters. So my ambition is obviously to do well at the Effies and back that up with a good creative showing as well.”

     

    It was a night of thrilling proportions for Agnello Dias and Santosh Padhi from Taproot India as they bagged the envious Grand Effie award. Sharing his initial reaction on the win, Agnello Dias, co-founder, Taproot India said: “It keeps getting better. When I won for Lead India, I thought this is it; I won’t get another Grand Effie. Then Teach India happened and this year I won a Grand Effie again. So it keeps getting better. It’s even more satisfying that we are doing it outside of a large network agency and we are doing it on our own.” On the hopes for next year, Aggie said that he aimed to continue the feat with Airtel and maybe also Pepsi.

     

    Enumerating on their win, Santosh Padhi, co-founder of Taproot India said: “We had sent four entries, of which three were shortlisted, while two bagged awards. So I guess it was a pretty good showing. Considering the size of our agency – we have around 30 people, versus other big agencies that have 3,000 people, or more. Competing with them and coming fifth is an outstanding achievement for us. This shows that it is not numbers that matter but the power of an idea that is important.”

     

    Joseph George, CEO, Lowe Lintas, which tied for the third spot, said: “I think we could have done much better because Effies are the only awards that we seriously participate in. Actually, we were a bit disappointed with the shortlist itself considering we had sent more than 20 entries. But no worries, we will try harder and do better next year. What is important is that the No 1 tag is never to be taken for granted and the same goes for No 2 and 3. So we hope to be back next year, bigger and stronger.”

     

    The other commendable awards for the night included Marico Uncommon Sense Award that was bagged by O&M for Vodafone’s ‘Blackberry for Everyone’ and Brand Equity Bravery Award that was bagged by BBDO India for Gillette Mach3 Turbo – Shavesutra.

     

    Tally:

     

    Effie Client tally:

  • In the Regional Round of Employer Branding Awards for West, GroupM won five of the 10 awards in the Organisational Category

    GroupM HR Team frontrunners for 6th Regional Employer Branding Awards

    By A Correspondent

     

    Adding to an already exhilarating show on the awards front in 2011, GroupM also emerged as the frontrunner in the western regional round of Employer Branding Awards held at Indira Group of Institutes last week.

     

    The team talent from GroupM walked away with a total of five awards, making them the favourites for the finals to be staged in February 2012.

     

    The Employer Branding Institute is an organization that recognizes the best practices in HR employer branding and work of outstanding professionals who are contributing to talent development, management and innovations.

     

    Every year a Top Employer Brand list is released and in the run-up to the World HRD Congress, regional rounds are held in every metro city before the final National Round in Mumbai.

     

    In the Regional Round for West, GroupM won five of the 10 awards in the Organisational Category.

     

    Commenting on the wins, Gaurav Hirey, Human Resource Head, GroupM – South Asia, said: “The consistency at which we have been winning awards clearly reflects GroupM’s commitment to our people. We are now closer to our objective of being not just the best place to work, but the place where the best work.”

     

    The five awards that the agency bagged included Award for Talent Management, Award for HR strategy in line with Business, Award for Innovation Retention Strategy, Award for Excellence in Training, and Award for Innovation in Career Development.

  • The Awards also dedicated a special segment to the legends of Indian cinema marking the beginning of '100 years of Indian Cinema' celebrations.

    A night filled with stars and entertainment at the7th Apsara awards

    By A Correspondent

     

    The 7th Chevrolet Apsara Awards 2012 powered by Venus Soap saw a glittering, star-studded event held at Mumbai’s plush Yashraj Studios. The Film & Television Producers Guild of India and Wizcraft International Entertainment announced the much awaited winners for the finest talents in film and television for 2011. The 7th Chevrolet Apsara Awards 2012 ceremony saw the who’s who of the industry.

     

    Ranbir Kapoor, on winning the Best Actor Award for Rockstar, said: “This is my 3rd Apsara Award and actually, I don’t feel humbled because I worked really hard for this role, so I’m very happy that I got the award for it. I express my deepest gratitude to the Guild for giving me this honour; it is very special to me.”

     

    Commenting on the ceremony, Mr. Sumit Sawhney, VP Marketing, Sales & Service, General Motors India said: “Chevrolet Apsara Awards is an endeavour to honour excellence in cinema and television by the stalwarts of the industry itself. This is our third straight year of association with the Chevrolet Apsara awards, a partnership that has really given us a wide reach acrossIndia. It is one of many initiatives that has served to increase the awareness and purchase consideration of Chevrolet vehicles inIndia.”

     

    Mr. Rahul Gyanchandani, Director, RSPL Ltd said: “We take pride in associating with Apsara Award which is the official award event of Television and Film Producer’s Guild and is an important event for the industry. We are proud to be associated with this award and feel that our brand, Venus Coconut Soap, would definitely reap rich dividends out of this association. We hope this partnership to continue for many years to come.”

     

    Speaking on the list of celebrity performers, Sabbas Joseph, Director, Wizcraft Entertainment International Ltd. said: “We have always been pleased to partner with the Guild for the Chevrolet Apsara Awards and strive every year to recognize talent in the Indian entertainment industry. The 7th edition of the Awards was a grand success and the night was one of winners.”

     

    Speaking about Colors’ association with Apsara Film and Television Producers Guild Awards TM, Mr. Raj Nayak, CEO – Colors, said: “Colors has been associated with the Apsara Awards for two years now. It is a perfect platform for Bollywood and Television stars to come together and celebrate the excellence that they have put forth through their efforts during the course of the past year.”

     

    On stage, the director duo Farah Khan and Karan Johar were the masters of ceremony. They entertained the audience with their wit and humor and camaraderie.

     

    Highlights of the evening were the enthralling performances by the stars themselves. The most exciting act was the soon-to-be-wed Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D’Souza enacting their love story. Along with many other spell-binding performances and other stars joining in the baarat, this was truly a prelude to their wedding celebrations.

     

    King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan set the stage ablaze as he grooved to the tunes of his latest movie Don 2. Svelte Kareena Kapoor put up a sizzling performance as she danced to some of the most popular South Indian hit songs like Nakka Mukka, Ringa Ringa and the recently popularized Kolaveri Di.

     

    The 7th Chevrolet Apsara Awards also dedicated a special segment to the legends of Indian cinema and their glorious years in Bollywood. This act marked the beginning of ‘100 years of Indian Cinema’ celebrations.

     

    A special act designed by Shiamak Davar and his troupe paid tribute to iconic stars like Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu, Shashi Kapoor, Dr. Vyjanthimala Bali, Waheeda Rehman, Asha Parekh, Manoj Kumar, Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Vinod Khanna, Zeenat Aman, Rajesh Khanna, Hema Malini to name a few. Shahrukh Khan hosted the segment and spoke to the legends about the centenary celebrations.

     

    Amisha Patel mesmerized the audiences with a scintillating performance on hit item numbers ‘Chikni Chameli’, ‘Ooh La La’ and ‘Madhubala’. ‘Band Baaja Baarat’ star Anushka Sharma shook a leg with popular TV stars – Nandish Sandhu of Uttran, Sushant Singh of Pavitra Rishta and Shabbir Ahluwalia, winner of ‘Khatron ke Khiladi 3’ to three different styles of dance including Lezim, Hip-Hop and Bollywood.

     

    Of course, in the midst of all this entertainment, the envelopes were opened to reveal the winners for 2012 who accepted their Award amidst excitement and fervour, as the air was filled with thunderous applause and cheers.

     

    Watch the magic of the 7th Chevrolet Apsara Awards 2012 exclusively on Colors.

     

  • The Film & Television Producers Guild of India & Wizcraft International Entertainment announce Award Nominees for the Best Film Talents

    The biggest films of 2011 vie for Chevrolet Apsara Awards 2012

    By A  Correspondent

     

    The biggest film and television award function in Bollywood, Chevrolet Apsara Awards 2012, by the Film & Television Producers Guild of India and Wizcraft International Entertainment, will take place on January 25 at the Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai. The nominees for the best talents in Hindi film & television for 2012 were announced on Thursday.

     

    Nominees and winners are meticulously chosen by the members of the Film & Television Producers Guild of India, making it the official Award for the Film and Television industry.

     

    This year the Guild will also flag-off the’100 years of Indian Cinema’ celebrations, showcasing a special tribute dedicated to the legends of Indian cinema and their glorious years in Bollywood with a medley of hit songs from the yesteryears.

     

    Indian cinema had an exciting year in 2011 and saw a wide range of multi-genre films like No One Killed Jessica, Rockstar, Singham, The Dirty Picture and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, all of which are up for the Best Film Apsara.

     

    Counting the total tally, Rockstar has received the maximum number of nominations closely followed by Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.

     

    Priyanka Chopra (7 Khoon Maaf), Katrina Kaif (Mere Brother Ki Dulhan), Rani Mukerji (No One Killed Jessica), Mahie Gill (Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster), Kangna Ranaut (Tanu Weds Manu), Vidya Balan (The Dirty Picture) will be competing for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

     

    Salman Khan (Bodyguard), Shah Rukh Khan (Don 2), Emraan Hashmi (Murder 2), Ranbir Kapoor (Rockstar), Ajay Devgn (Singham) have been nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

     

    Shreya Ghoshal has been nominated for her sensational tracks Teri Meri (Bodyguard) and Saibo (Shor in the City) while Sunidhi Chauhan has been nominated for her foot tapping hits Te Amo (Dum Maaro Dum) and Aa Zara (Murder 2) for Best Singer – Female.

     

    Mohit Chauhan for Saada Haq and Naadaan Parindey (Rockstar), Akon & Vishal Ravjiani for Chammak Challo (Ra. One), Rahat Fateh Ali Khan for Teri Meri (Bodyguard) and Mohammed Irfaan for Phir Mohabbat (Murder 2) will be competing for the Best Singer – Male category.

     

    In the Technical Category, films like Ra,One, No One Killed Jessica, 7 Khoon Maaf and Tanu Weds Manu have received the highest number of nominations.

     

    The popular TV show ‘Bade Achhe Lagte Hai’ has garnered the highest number of nominations for the Apsara Awards 2012 including Best Drama Series, Best Director – Fiction, Best Actress & Actor in Drama Series, Best Writer & Best Ensemble Cast in the Television Category.

     

    Other nominations are Comedy Circus Ka Naya Daur, Guinness World Records – Ab India Todega, Jhalak Dikhla Ja – Season 4, Just Dance and Kaun Banega Crorepati for Best Non-fiction Series.

     

    Ramesh Sippy, President – Film & Television Producers Guild of India said: “There are so many films in contention for the awards this year; it is fascinating in terms of the diverse kind of movies that were made. The growth has been remarkable. We have witnessed some awe inspiring work; the jury is sure going to have a tough time. Indian television has also seen a plethora of soaps and reality series doing very well which we are excited about.”

     

    Wiz Sabbas Joseph, Director, Wizcraft International Entertainment Ltd said: “We are honoured and we take great pride in partnering with the Guild to present The Chevrolet Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Awards. Like always the Awards will be packed with glamour, great performances, suspense and excitement…it’s going to be a riot.”

     

    Established by the Film and Television Producers Guild of India, the Chevrolet Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Awards were initiated to honour exceptional talent and breed new potential within the film and television fraternity. Having garnered great popularity and success since the first awards in 2004, the Chevrolet Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Awards, powered by Micromax, have acknowledged talent, perseverance, innovation and pure artistry.

     

    In the last five years they have gained enormous momentum, receiving a large response from the Film & Television circles, reflected in the growing volume of entries received, year after year.

     

  • Shahrukh Khan wins The Most Profitable Actor (Overseas), Kareena Kapoor is The Most Profitable Actress

    Salman Khan is ETC Most Profitable Actor (India)

    By A Correspondent

     

    The second ETC Bollywood Business Awards commemorated the dream merchants who minted highest amount of monies for Bollywood in 2011. The awards will be telecast on ETC76 on January 9, 2012 at 8:30pm.

     

    Of the approximate 120 films released in 2011, five films (Ready, Bodyguard, Singham, RA.One and Don2) saw domestic box office collections of more than Rs100 crore each; while some more, most notably The Dirty Picture (Rs80 cr), Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Rs92 cr) and Rockstar (Rs67 cr) came close.

     

    Last year also included quite a few hits and successes that raked in the moolah. Bollywood collected a total of Rs1740 crore from the Indian box office (BO). If one adds the revenue garnered from overseas and satellite rights and the revenue goes up to Rs2590 crore.

     

    With movies which earned Rs200 crore plus at the domestic BO under her belt, Kareena Kapoor emerged as the unquestionable money spinner female actor in 2011. On being presented the ETC Most Profitable Actress Award, Kareena Kapoor said that a commercially successful movie is evidence to the fact that viewers loved watching your movie. “Receiving an award wherein you are being judged considering the economic quotient as a cornerstone for mapping the success gives you a sense of pride. I’ve always maintained that commercial success is as important as the critical success of a movie. I appreciate the initiative, ETC Bollywood Business Awards, which recognizes the awardees by evaluating BO performance. I thank my viewers, people who I have worked with and ETC for appreciating my work,” she added.

     

    While Salman Khan won the ETC Most Profitable Actor (India) Award, the King of Bollywood, Shahrukh Khan won the ETC Most Profitable Actor (Overseas) Award.

     

    “Now I can safely say ‘har mulk ki public mujhe dhoondti hai’”, quipped the ‘Don’, on receiving the ETC Most Profitable Actor (Overseas) Award. On receiving the ETC Best Marketed Movie of the year Award and ETC Highest Single Day Collection Award, both for RA.One, Mr Khan said: “RA.One, Bollywood’s most expensive movie, was my dream project. It feels great that my long cherished dream has been applauded by the viewers and moreover acknowledged by ETC Bollywood Business Awards; which gives its verdict only on the basis of BO collections. These two awards are a reply to all the naysayers who tried to discredit my film. Allah has been very kind to me and helped me to entertain my audiences and it is quite literally my audience’s love that has fetched me these awards.”

     

    Speaking about this unique initiative, Anurag Bedi, Business Head, ETC, said: “We started ETC Bollywood Business Awards last year, after having identified the need to evaluate Bollywood on the basis of commerce. From the first look of a film to interacting with actors, directors, producers, marketers, musicians to bringing out BO reports -with every film we undertake a journey as intense as the filmmakers. This initiative is our way recognizing the various people and entities, associated with a film, which are equally as important as people visible on-screen.”

     

    And it is precisely for this reason that ETC Bollywood Business Awards have increased the number of categories from 13 in 2010 to 18 in 2011. Innovative categories include Most Popular Trailer, BO Surprise Hit of the Year, and Excellence in International Distribution.

     

    The success of 2011 augured well for Bollywood and the biggest winner was the Indian viewer. “This has been a fine year for Bollywood with five films earning upwards of Rs100 cr each and quite a number of hits and successes. This initiative is a recognition of Bollywood’s achievements and I hope our industry enjoys continued success in 2012,” summed up Komal Nahta, host, ETC Bollywood Business.

     

  • Mr Sarkar was honoured at Powerbrands Hall of Fame Awards function inLondon

    Abhijit Sarkar conferred with ‘Most Iconic Communication Leader of the Year’ award

    By A Correspondent

     

    Abhijit Sarkar, Head – Corporate Communications, Sahara India Pariwar has been conferred with ‘Most Iconic Communication Leader of the Year’ award at Powerbrands Hall of Fame Awards function in London.

     

    The Powerbrands Corporate Leaders and Corporate Icon Awards honours leaders who have carved a niche for themselves with their remarkable strategies that have channelised growth and been instrumental in taking their organization ahead.

     

    The award was jointly presented to Mr Sarkar by Sir Robert Worcester and Professor Arindam Chaudhari in a gala ceremony attended by Lords and members of Parliament from theUK, business tycoons and celebrities.

     

  • Bachchan won the Best Actor in Social role for Aarakshan, a first of its kind and another award for being a complete performer

    Big B tweets about his BIG Star wins

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sunday night saw the entire entertainment industry heading to Bhavan’s College grounds in Mumbai to usher the first awards of the New Year with the 2nd Big Star Entertainment Awards.

     

    A constellation of stars stepped out in their finery to cheer, applaud and appreciate some of the most memorable and remarkable performers of the year.

     

    The biggest and brightest of them all, Amitabh Bachchan came, saw and won two awards.

     

    After he left the venue….he tweeted about the newest singer from south, Dhanush, who sang live from the audience, a Kolaveri Di number but words to suit the occasion: T 594 -‘And … when complete Entertainer announced, Dhanush sings live

     

    from audience, a Kolaveri Di number but words to suit the occasion !!’

     

    Big B was also praise for the actor’s impromptu lyrics: T 594 -Dhanush words were ‘Why this Kolaveri, Kolaveri, Kolaveri ..B, .. big B … TRP .. brilliant absolutely ..!! So lovable and so good !’

     

    Bachchan won the Best Actor in Social role for Aarakshan in a new category, first of its kind, in any awards so far and another award for being a complete performer.

    He humbly and graciously accepted the award as can be seen when he tweeted: T 594 ‘…. 2 awards .. best Actor in social role for ‘Aarakshan’ and the second for the Complete Entertainer of year .. I am blessed ..!!’

     

    But this is not all, Big B has also promised his fans: ‘…some rather glorious pictures of the 2 events tonight – the BigStar Awards and the Sunday fans .. but will take a while to post.’