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Tag: Naagin 2

  • The new show will be a tale of love and revenge portrayed against the backdrop of magic and mysticism

    ‘Chandrakanta’ to replace ‘Naagin 2’ on Colors

    Starting June 24, Chandrakanta will replace Naagin 2 on Colors

     

    General entertainment channel Colors has announced that Chandrakanta will replace Naagin 2 wef June 24. The show will air on Saturdays and Sundays at 8pm, and will also be produced by Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms. Chandrakanta  showcases a power struggle between two rival Aiyaar kingdoms, Vijaygarh and Suryagarh, and is laden with myths, legends and magic.

     

    Commenting on the launch of the show, Raj Nayak, COO – Viacom 18 said:  “For two back-to-back seasons Naagin has enjoyed the status of being a favourite of the viewers. It’s their confidence in our content that has allowed us to explore this genre further. The recent success of costume dramas and fantasy offerings not only on television but also in films is a testimony that our viewers have evolved, and is willing to explore different narratives. We are thrilled to collaborate with Ekta Kapoor’s creative intellect yet again to showcase a unique rendition of a story which, though has been narrated before, leaves a lot of scope for creating a cohesive viewing experience.”

     

    Speaking about the new fiction offering, Manisha Sharma, Programming Head – Colors said, “As a channel, we are committed to bringing viewers a variety of entertainment – be it Naagin, now Chandrakanta or the upcoming Mahakaali that makes for edgy yet pacier story telling as compared to the daily fiction dramas. The success of Naagin tells us that viewers still have a huge appetite for this genre and with Chandrakanta, we are scaling up every aspect of the show and making it as spectacular and thrilling as ever. True to the ethos of the channel that offers differentiated content, be it weekdays or on the weekend – we hope that this enchanting story will be enjoyed by the audiences as much as Naagin was.”

     

    Said  Kapoor in a statement: “Chandrakanta is a very special show for us and it has very big shoes to fill. That said, we were filled with excitement over the prospect of creating this show. The plot is gritty, complex, passionate and is laced with top class VFX which will transport the viewers into alternate reality. We hope that Naagin’s ardent viewers and voracious fantasy-fiction aficionados enjoy watching Chandrakanta and support this mammoth venture.”

     

    To promote Chandrakanta an integrated 360-degree marketing campaign will be unveiled.

     

  • Shailesh Kapoor's much-read view on the gamechanging shows of the year kicks off our Lookback 2016 series

    Top 5 “Gamechangers” on Hindi GECs in 2016

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    This Top 5 yearender piece has been a regular feature on this column since 2013. (Links to previous articles: 2015, 2014, 2013). However, there has been one important change since 2015. The word “gamechanger” seemed too liberal to use for the 2015 list, and needed the quotation marks around it to qualify the liberal usage. I had secretly hoped at that time that this qualifier won’t be required at the end of 2016. But no such luck.

     

    It has been a fairly uninspiring year on the content front, and hence game-changers continues to be a liberal word to use. That being qualified, here’s the list of the five Hindi GEC shows that stood out this year, for the impact they managed to have on the category:

    5.  Diya Aur Baati Hum

    The Star Plus show features in this list for one specific reason – Star Plus’ bold move to end the show this year. Diya Aur Baati Hum wrapped up on September 10, after a five-year run that saw a glorious period of at least three years. Like many other shows, the channel could have dragged this one for another 2-3 years, even more. It would have understandably been a tough call to take. But wisdom prevailed. Colors’ Balika Vadhu also ended this year, after an eight-year run. Hope there’s a trend being set here, slowly but surely.

     

    4.  Kumkum Bhagya

    Kumkum Bhagya finished two years in April (though it seems like it has been on-air for ages). Through the year, the show single-handedly kept Zee TV afloat, even as the channel struggled to retain its No. 3 spot in the second half of the year. There’s a certain storytelling style that Balaji Telefilms has mastered, and Kumkum Bhagya’s consistent performance is yet another outcome of that.

     

    3. Naagin & Naagin 2

    Naagin had topped this list at the end of 2015. The first season ended on a high in June, and the second season has worked equally well since its October launch. Treated like a true sequel, with characters and story being taken forward 25 years from where the first season ended, Naagin 2 continued to rely upon the tropes that worked for the first season – dramatic storytelling, glamorous cast, deft special effects (at least by Indian television standards) and most importantly, a sense of urgency and pace that’s unmatched in the category by far.

     

    2. Shakti

    This post-IPL launch on Colors had one of the more intriguing campaigns in recent times, playing on a “sach” that would eventually be revealed several weeks later. With a eunuch (kinnar) as its lead protagonist, Shakti managed to create differentiation with social relevance. That, combined with smart storytelling that made the most of every dramatic moment, ensured that Shakti quickly rose to the top of the GEC fiction charts, in turn helping Colors usurp Star Plus at the No. 1 position, especially with Naagin also on-air.

     

    Will Shakti have an extended run over 2017-18? Only time will tell. But in a year of lacklustre weekday fiction launches, Shakti stood out as a genuine exception.

    1. The Kapil Sharma Show

    He had ruled the weekends for more than two years before parting ways with Colors. Yet, when he made a comeback with The Kapil Sharma Show on Sony in April this year, there was much scepticism about how the show would fare. There would be format fatigue after all, and Comedy Nights With Kapil didn’t exactly end on a high on Colors.

     

    But those fears, as it turned out, were unfounded. The Kapil Sharma Show grew from strength to strength during the year, acquiring the same cult status, if not even higher, that the predecessor show on Colors enjoyed. That Kapil Sharma did not have a feature film distraction during this year helped. As did the superbly conceived and performed character of Dr Mashoor Gulati.

     

    The Kapil Sharma Show took Sony to the No. 3 spot by the last quarter of the year. And unless Sharma messes it up with another feature film roadblock, 2017 is set to be a big year for this show.