MxMIndia

Tag: Raj Nayak

  • I&B Minister to be chief guest at second edition of annual awards for excellence in marketing, advertising and media

    Second edition of IAA Leadership Awards on March 1

    By A Correspondent

     

    After a successful debut last year, the India chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA) has announced the second edition of the IAA Leadership Awards. The awards will be presented on March 1, 2014 at the Grand Hyatt in Mumbai. Leading GEC Colors Colors is the presenting partner this year too.

     

    The IAA Leadership Awards will salute the excellence of marketers across 12 industry categories. The awards will be presented by I&B minster Manish Tewari.

     

    Srinivasan Swamy

    Speaking about the second edition of the IAA Leadership Awards, Srinivasan K Swamy, President IAA India and VP-Development, IAA Asia Pacific, and Chairman RK SWAMY BBDO said: “Our process is constantly being fine-tuned to ensure that these awards remain the benchmark for excellence in our industry.”

     

    Commenting on the association, Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors said: “We are excited to continue our association with the IAA Leadership Awards for the second year in a row.  In as much as we see our channel as the medium that connects brands with consumers in an effective manner, these awards connect excellence with corporate leaders in a similarly effective manner”

     

    Raj Nayak

    To ensure the authenticity and credibility of the awards and maintain the highest level of transparency at all stages, IAA had a taskforce which looked at various performance criteria in every category under consideration, like revenue/market share growth, marketing initiatives undertaken, innovative schemes, launches, advertising spends etc to shortlist the nominees.Nielsen was engaged thereafter to have the nominees voted upon by senior marketers to pick the final winner. Ernst & Young will look at the process to satisfy itself of its fairness and will officially tabulate the results.

     

  • Pradyuman Maheshwari lists 13 reasons why 2013 could best be hashtagged #Fail (and also a few reasons why there is hope in 2014)

    Thirteen Reasons why 2013 was a #Fail for the Indian Media

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Okay, so we are all going to down our sorrows tonight… in alcohol, in parties, stuck on the road in traffic, at office, on television watching Kapil Sharma for the nth time or an awards show or some other semi-entertaining stuff. Or just a quiet moment with family and friends.

     

    But before we do that, let’s take one last look at the 2013 and wish we could put some of the downers behind  us. Sadly, they can’t.

     

    Here goes my list of 13…

     

    Tarun Tejpal

    Tehelka founder. Alleged rapist. And as it has emerged, misused his position in recent years to achieve his ends.

     

    Mumbai Photojournalist Gangraped

    The media was at the forefront of the movement against atrocities to women through the year. And then one of our very own was gangraped. On an assignment, in daylight, in Mumbai, a city that prides itself to be safe for women. The lady is fine, but the scars will never go away.

     

    Hindustan Times Paid News

    And we thought that the corporate types running Hindustan Times knew what happens when you devalue a news brand by going in for a Medianet-like paid content service. Agreed there’s a footnote, but it’s in fineprint and the paid-for stories aren’t tagged ‘Paid Content’. Why, just why?

     

    Paid News still rules

    The recent elections saw many instances of paid news around the time of the elections with the EC asking the law ministry to make it an electoral offence. However,  what about the publications publishing the news? Shouldn’t those indulging in the corrupt practice also be suitably penalized, even if means losing the RNI registration/licence.

     

    Minister’s priorities

    Even the most sensible of politicians do bizarre things as I&B ministers. We’ve had one of the earliest ones in independent India banning film songs on Vividh Bharati. One went ballistic against news channels. Another frowned upon ads. Our current minister – Manish Tewari – isn’t bad news, but he could do with a better set of priorities. And not just talk about contradictions and paradoxes in his speeches. Also, not interfere in DD news.

     

    Industry divided

    The various industry associations in media,advertising and entertainment are a divided lot. The officebearers may be good friends otherwise, but their associations are often at loggerheads. And paying the price for all of this is the industry.

     

    Abby has really turned Shabby

    Of the various awards held in the country, the Creative Abby has turned out to be shabbiest. The biggest in the business (Lowe, Ogilvy) have not been participating, there are disputes about scam ads and last year we even had some complaints about a few awardwinning ads being plagiarized. All practitioners need to get together and discuss the future of the Oscars of the creative advertising business.

     

    State of magazine media in question as ABP sells BusinessWorld

    In a sense one should be thankful that it was sold, and not shut like the Indian editions of People, GEO and Marie Claire magazines. But BusinessWorld is an iconic brand and was owned by a large, prosperous media group like Ananda Bazar Patrika. The fact that the group lost interest in the magazine and found they couldn’t make the kind of money out of the publication was a sorry commentary on the state of the magazine media. Thankfully, Annurag Batra bought it on behalf of a group of unnamed investors.

     

    Professionals v/s Families

    There are many large and successful business conglomerates run by professionals, but in the world of media, not many professionals have done too well when the family gets active in the business. Two years back, The Hindu brought in professionals on the editorial and business front. It was a bold decision. But in 2013, both Editor and CEO were booted out. I don’t think any rightminded (or leftminded, given it’s Hindu) editor would ever want to join the paper at the helm after this.

     

    Corporate influence in media

    We all agree that the media must ask the tough questions, often being cynical when there is no need for being one. But that’s what it used to be. In a recent accident, the identities of the owners of a car that hit two others was hushed up by most media. The name of the corporate cropped up, but the news wasn’t investigated  in the same way as any other high profile accident case. Is this the influence of big business on the media? Why is it that media entities not directly owned or managed by big businesses also buckle under pressure? Wake up, guys. There’s no point being in the news media when you are going to crawl even there’s no one asking you to do so.

     

    Retrenchment rules

    Staff sackings are not a new story in the media. Some do it with a jhatka, others prefer halal. The best of newsmedia organizations have seen sackings. This writer has been involved with many over the years. The question is how you do it, and how sensitive you can be to the employee’s personal life. We hear of many cases of people opting out of journalism and media companies because of the way employers behave.

     

    Most media schools suck!

    The media wave of the 1990s and 2000s ensured a mad rush for the media and mass communication courses across the country. Everyone wanted to be a Piyush Pandey, Rajdeep Sardesai, Barkha Dutt and now Arnab Goswmi. But the faculty sucks at even the AICTE-approved institutes – mediocre professionals and trainers teach at these places, the curriculum is pathetic, fee cheques and not a rigorous entrance procedure is the only barrier for entry. The result: products of a large number of media schools are below par.

     

    Hold a mirror, News Media!

    What upset one most about the Hindu’s humbling of the Editor and CEO as well as the termination of edition and employee services at Outlook group’s publications was the way in which both were done. Is it the same media that otherwises sermonizes on how the world should behave? Hold a mirror, guys. Mr Ram, did you really need to write that looong letter detailing your misgivings about the editor and CEO? Thankfully, both of them have found jobs, but had it been in another era with no social media, people would’ve doubted their bonafides.  Ditto with the Outlook group, the same magazine company that has Vinod Mehta at its helm…. how could they not have the decency to even speak to employees who got to know about the closure from a tweet?

     

    But there’s hope…

    Indrajit Gupta fights for PR exec

    You don’t hear too often about editors taking up the cause of PR professionals who are subjected to harassment for a negative story in their publication. IG (as Indrajit is called) took up the case and cause for the late Charudatta Deshpande and continues to do so

     

    Arindam Chaudhari thrown out of Mid-Day

    Yes, Mid-Day actually junked his column after it realized that it’s giving the paper a bad name (now Kushan Mitra needs to do the same at Pioneer)

     

    Shashi Sinha cements the industry

    If there’s a Nobel Peace Prize for the Indian media, IPG Interbrands CEO Shashi Sinha should walk away with the awards. Hands down.  He tried his best to cleanse the Creative Abby at Goafest, in fact he did manage that and what happened in the 2013 edition was not really his doing. And now he’s building consensus on television measurement amongst broadcasters and advertisers and media agencies as head of BARC’s technical committee.

     

    Uday Shankar, Punit Goenka, Raj Nayak… entertainment merchants think big

    There’s hope for 2014 as our entertainmentwallahs are truly dreaming big. Uday Shankar is thinking big at Star India, Punit Goenka has planned some 10 new channels for Zee, and Raj Nayak pulled a mega serial in 24 with ease.  And you can’t keep Sony out of things for too long. Three cheers!

     

  • As Season 1 of the international TV mega-series 24's Indian adapt drew to a close on Saturday, the Colors CEO spoke on how the series fared for the channel and whether a second season is being planned

    History will remember ’24’ as a gamechanger in Indian television: Raj Nayak

    As the clock ticked to the closure of Season 1 of ’24’, the social media was buzzing with chatter on how the Colors mega-series saw Anil Kapoor giving one of his best ever performances. There were others who spoke about the international teleseries’ superior production qualities and how the entire cast put up an excellent act. For Colors and its CEO Raj Nayak, the acquisition and airing of 24 was a huge gamble. In a business where just hiring the best talent doesn’t guarantee success, 24 is sure to raise the bar much on fictions on Indian entertainment television. MxMIndia spoke to Mr Nayak on the how Season 1, which concluded on Saturday (December 21) did for his channel. Excerts from an interview:

     

    So how was the ’24’ experience?

    For me, it’s been the best experience in my career. And I would say that because my Board gave me the consent and support to go ahead and do a show of such a magnitude that too a fiction show and experiment with something when everybody was sceptical about it. I think people were sceptical because of two things – one, the cost and, two, the quality would be compared to the international format.

     

    Was it ‘Paisa Vasool’ for the channel?

    Yes, it was Paisa Vasool. I think it was Paisa Vasool because from a strategic point of view, we went with our eyes open. We knew we wouldn’t make money on Season 1, even though we have recovered most of the cost because of the way we monetized it.

     

    From a channel and brand perspective, 24 has done several things for us. First, the buzz it has created for me in two months time is possibly the entire PR, we got for our other shows not just in India but globally. Second, it has brought to a Hindi general entertainment channel viewers who probably never watch us – the South Mumbai crowd, for instance now discuss our ’24’. Third, it has also demonstrated how cleverly you can integrate a product within a show if you think it through and do it well. I think that’s what happened with Tata Motors which went on record that its sales has gone up by 30 percent because of 24. You may or agree or disagree with the ratings, but for me, this is the proof of the pudding. Clearly, what 24 has done is create an impact. And it’s not that it ends here. I will re-run 24 on a daily format. When and where I do it is a different issue…

     

    As a daily?

    Yes, I will strip it to make it a daily. There were many people who missed it on weekends. People would call me often to ask me when the repeat airing was on for a DVD. There is an audience that wants to watch a show like this again and again and again. So if I give it a break and I strip it to a daily format, we will see what it can do again.

     

    Hmmmm.

    Purely from the RoI point of view, I think 24 was a super success.

     

    What about Season 2? Is that on?

    We haven’t finalized anything yet but there is intent. Seeing the success of Season 1, I believe Season 2 will do better…

     

    No dates firmed up?

    No, we haven’t finalized anything yet

     

    Internationally, it’s an annual

    Yeah! That would be idea here as well. As you know, internationally Season 1 didn’t go well, Season 2 picked up big time and I think that’s a trend that will happen here as well.

     

    Are your sponsors going to continue with you for Season 2 as well?

    Well, first of all, I would want them to pay double the money because we didn’t know how successful 24 would be (laughs). But, honestly, we also didn’t realize the magnitude of how much value the content would generate and we were very keen on closing the deal because we were going to production then. We have an excellent relationship with Tata motors and from my engagement, they are very happy and I am sure they would want to come in be part of Season 2.

     

    Looking back, would you have done things different to get rated better?

    Yes, we would have done a few things differently. We have realized   and we have analysed what went wrong and what went right and that is something we will ensure that we will fix in next season.

     

    Any one thing that you could tell us?

    Well, while keeping it intellectual and slick and everything, there could be a five percent deviation in terms of dumbing it down without taking away the original content and the storytelling, but just making the television grammar a little more Indian.

     

    Do you think India is ready for slick or as they in Mumbai lingo a chikna show?

    I think India is ready, We know one can’t achieve things overnight. History is often written in retrospective, later in life. This will be one show that will definitely be written about as a gamechanger for Indian television content

     

    Any more international show that you are looking at?

    I am very and I have also heard that all broadcasters are equally keen and in discussions.

     

    We’ve heard Grey’s Anatomy is being done by another GEC…

    From what I learn, they are not doing the original version. They haven’t got the rights for it and are possibly recreating something similar. Shows like Grey’s Anatomy, Boston Legal etc are easily adaptable

     

    So does Comedy Nights come back to being twice a week?

    Yes, Comedy Nights with Kapil will go twice a week again from the first week of January.

     

  • The game is fast-paced and score-based where the player is a third-person, cover-based shooter whose goal is to single-handedly foil terrorist operations organized within Mumbai

    Colors takes ’24’ action to a 3D game

    Mr Raj Nayak CEO COLORS, Mr Ankush Arora SVP Passenger Vehicles Business Unit (Commercial) Tata Motors and Anil Kapoor at the launch of 24 The Game at a Mall in Mumbai

    By Fatema Rajkotwala

     

    Following the mega launch of the Indian version of the espionage drama ’24’ earlier this month, general entertainment channel Colors announced the launch of an interactive mobile game, ‘Safari Storme 24 – The Game’ for an experience of the show on a 3D game format. ’24 – The Game’ was launched last weekend in the presence of a live audience at Mumbai’s Phoenix Market City Mall.

     

    Developed by Gameshastra Solutions, the game aims at offering viewers to experience the real-time action of the show offline. It has been made available for free download in India on iOS and Android platforms and will allow players to live the life of ATU Chief Jai Singh Rathod, portrayed on-screen by Anil Kapoor. The game follows the show’s Season 1 plot where the male protagonist races against time to combat terror and protect the Prime Ministerial candidate from assassination.

     

    Anil Kapoor, actor and co-producer of the show, enthusiastically connected with the crowd at the launch. Speaking about his digital counterpart he said, “As audiences take on my role as ATU Chief Jai Singh Rathod on their mobile phones, players will have to race against time to protect the city against terror attacks. The fast-paced game shares multiple characteristics with the show which will only add to viewers’ overall experience.”

     

    Talking about the USP of the game, Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors said, “This is India’s first-ever 3D game based on a television show. The game is also unique because the various levels and themes of the game will progress as the show progresses. It is an innovation that brings us closer to our audiences.”

     

    The game is fast-paced and score-based where the player is a third-person, cover-based shooter whose goal is to single-handedly foil terrorist operations organized within Mumbai. ’24 – The Game’ allows to audiences to step into the shoes of ATU Chief Jai Singh Rathod and explore his various characteristics over a course of 30 levels. Players will be privy to an arsenal of weapons along with support powers like health packs, additional guns, Harrier Strike and Missile Barrages that can be purchased through redemption of points earned during the game. All players will also be able to compare their standing as they race against time with each other through the Local Leaderboard which will share their score details with other gamers. The quickly accessible and intuitive control schemes allow players to experiment with 4 types of A.I. that come with a variety of actions and behaviours.

     

    Gamification is a great innovative medium and the latest buzz word in the ad world. It breaks through the clutter as it gives brands a unique platform to present to its customers key attributes of the product.

     

    Tata Motors’ SUV brand Safari has partnered with the show for in-film placements. How much of these efforts translate into sales? Speaking to MxMIndia, .Ankush Arora, Senior Vice President, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit (Commercial), Tata Motors said, “The association has been great for our brand Safari, as the first Indian SUV and 24, as the first thriller-drama-action show is a great fit. We feel that the character that the lead protagonist plays perfectly suits the brand too. ”

     

    Talking about future associations and customer initiatives for Safari, he added, “We have a very strong loyal customer base and we are looking at extending that to a digital platform by starting a Safari Owner’s Club. We will be announcing it very soon. Our association with the show will continue and be taken all around the brand.”

     

  • Race for weekend eyeballs gets keener as Colors to launch drama series '24'

    Anil Kapoor’s ’24’ to launch on Colors on Oct 4

    By Nandini Raghavendra

     

    The race for the weekend eyeballs gets keener from October as General Entertainment Channel (GEC) Colors announces the launch of its most ambitious drama series-24. Beginning October 4, the show, an adaptation from the cult American series, will ride on the already popular Bigg Boss (BB) show with a 10 am slot, Friday and Saturday for 12 weeks in 24 episodes.

     

    Raj Nayak

    Both the time slot and days are important, as these are the two days that host, Salman Khan visits the BB show. “You get to see both Salman Khan and Anil Kapoor on the same day!” says Colors CEO, Raj Nayak.

     

    Since it is a new genre, the GEC is hoping to build the show and funnel in viewers riding on the immense draw of both Khan and the show.

     

    Colors has been building both its non-fiction as well as weekend programming.  Pre-Jhalak, the dancing reality show, their non-fiction contributed only about 10 % to their overall ratings while in the last four weeks this percentage has increased to as much as 30%. This has also increased their ratings by at least 25%.

     

    The show which catapulated them to top slot in non-fiction in the last few weeks, was Comedy Nights With Kapil which will now be moved to once a week on a Sunday slot.

     

    Mounted like a film, 24 is an expensive show which has approximately cost Colors, close to Rs 150 crore in rights bought from actor producer Anil Kapoor who acted in the original series and also plays the lead, Jai Singh Rathod in the Indian adaptation. While sponsor revenues are said to have brought in close to Rs 80 crore, they are also looking at raising the 10-second slot to approximately, Rs 3.5-4 lakh keeping in mind the 12 minute ad cap to be implemented from October.

     

    Mr Nayak had said in May that they would be left with no choice but to raise their prices by at least 30%.  Title sponsor Tata Motors feels the show shares the same values of speed, strength and absolute power. “As Anil Kapoor runs against time, the Safari Storme is the perfect vehicle that supports his agility and total control. It made sense to tie up with a show which has all the characteristics of our SUV,” said President PVBU Tata Motors, Ranjit Yadav.

     

    Yet, a lot rides on whether this new genre will work across audiences or not and if so to what extent.  Shooting in real time, split screens, are all new for the Indian audiences.

     

    With a stellar cast like Shabana Azmi, Anupam Kher, Mandira Bedi and Tisca Chopra among others, helmed by director Abhinay Deo and a writing team led by Rensil D’Silva, a lot of production houses are betting on this genre working as it opens a huge library on content to adapt and produce from.  While Mr Nayak is sure this will be a game changer for the entertainment channel, he is also confident of recovering his investment. “With 24, we are introducing the Indian audiences to a new hybrid genre of entertainment that sees an interesting amalgamation of fiction and reality. The never-seen-before action, thrill, suspense, drama and the exhilaration of solving complex cases real-time within a span of 24 hours, should draw in the eyeballs,” said Manisha Sharma, weekend programming head, Colors, who is excited to be the first-ever network to produce and air the local adaptation of the international series outside the United States.

     

    The award-winning American TV series ran for eight seasons and aired its last episode in May 2010. It had unprecedented success across 43 countries in eight languages. Actor producer Anil Kapoor holds the rights of the 192 episodes for a period of four years extendable to another ten, in what his lawyers, Naik and Naik says is definitely one of the highest licensee deals for a fiction-format show on Indian TV. “I couldn’t have asked for a better team of actors than the ones on 24. Everybody is a hero on the show and the precision and technique that each one of them use to portray their individual characters is unique. Their never-say-die attitude and the passion and enthusiasm put in by each one of them makes me want to strive harder and perform better and better,” said Mr Kapoor who plays Jack Bauer and makes his small screen debut with this show.

     

    Equally excited is director Abhinay Deo about the show. “We have shot ’24’ like a feature film. It is more like cinema on television. Creating a body of work such as 24, is a lifetime opportunity where I could use my craft to the fullest. I have attempted to create a visual medley of powerful characters led by Jai Singh Rathod,” said Mr Deo.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2013, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • Presenting sponsor tie-up with the GEC assures Tata Motors visibility beyond the 30-sec commercials

    Tata Motors cars to be integrated in ’24’ as part of sponsorship deal with Colors

    By A Correspondent

     

    If you find only Tata Motors vehicles on the Indian version of ’24’, there’s reason. As part of its association as presenting sponsor, Tata vehicles will be integrated in the the Indian adapatation of the acclaimed American series 24 to be aired on Colors soon.

     

    Commenting on the partnership, Raj Nayak, CEO – Colors said, “Our collaboration with Tata Motors  it takes brand partnerships to another level — beyond the conventional 30-second commercials. For the first time, we have effectively integrated the Tata Motors brands with the narrative of 24. The show is all about Anil Kapoor’s race against time and how he is powered by sturdy Tata Cars and UVs.”

     

    Raj Nayak

    Elaborating on the association,  Ranjit Yadav, President, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors Ltd, said, “With this association, Tata Motors showcases itself as a creative and innovative brand that always places its customers at the core of its existence. This association with 24 offers us an exciting platform to demonstrate the true capability of our dynamic cars, which deliver performance and come with technology rich features.”

     

    Said Anil Kapoor, who essays the role of Jai Singh Rathod, “In the show, I will be driving Tata Motors’ dynamic and exciting vehicles in my adventurous quests across terrains to tackle various security threats. This kind of seamless thinking at every stage of the making of 24 is what enables us to deliver a one-of-a-kind experience to Indian viewers.”

     

    It is learnt that parts of the Indian ’24’ which is being directed by Delhi Belly director and well-known adfilm-maker Abhinay Deo, were reshot after the deal with Tata Motors was inked to enable the integration.

     

  • The idea of getting Ashvini Yardi (who had earned her stars as programming head at Zee) was a great one. But could CEO Rajesh Kamat and she be able to match the maharathis and former Star India CEOs Peter and Sameer?

    Mediaah!: How underdog Colors won the great GEC battle

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Having tracked the journey of both Television 18 and Viacom from their early days (in India in the case of Viacom), there was much desire to see both groups succeed.

     

    But I thought they were being too ambitious to launch a Hindi GEC in 2008. The market was already very crowded and with the whizkids of broadcasting Peter Mukerjea and Sameer Nair also in the fray, the sentiment then was that it was going to be well-nigh impossible for any new channel to be a success.

     

    I was sure the Network 18 team wouldn’t get it right. They had had success with CNN-IBN but entertainment wasn’t like news. Good content doesn’t necessarily maketh a GEC.

     

    The idea of getting Ashvini Yardi (who had earned her stars as programming head at Zee) was a great one. But could CEO Rajesh Kamat and she be able to match the maharathis and former Star India CEOs Peter and Sameer?

     

    I think what changed my outlook to the channel’s launch was the news that Akshay Kumar was signed to do a Fear Factor. The folks meant business and Akshay was then the reigning king of Bollywood. Plus the team was young, friendlier (than the others) and indulged us in the media.

     

    A week before the launch, most of us had wanted Colors to succeed. Even advertisers and media agencies longed for a worthy alternative to the existing slew of channels. And after the ratings for the first two weeks came in, we were sure the channel was a winner.

     

    Even then there were naysayers telling us that the magic would fade away. Regrettably for them, it didn’t. Soon Colors dethroned Star Plus as the numero uno Hindi GEC.

     

    I remember writing then that it was complacency that had seen Star Plus go down, a comment that didn’t work very well with some people internally and of course the biggies in the business. But a year-odd later, when I spoke to Star India CEO Uday Shankar, he admitted that the channel getting complacent. I asked him just to let people know that my earlier statement was based on some digging in, and not speculation.

     

    **

     

    My first major interaction with Rajesh Kamat happened only when I had this interview on the first anniversary of the channel in Impact magazine. It was an extra-long 6000-word interview. Rajesh had then told me how it helped being an underdog. “It made us focus on our own efforts. Also what happens is when you’ re an underdog, you push yourself to give 200%.” He mentioned how he learnt several tricks of the trade from Sameer Nair, and knowing that the former Star India CEO would’ve tracked the rise and rise of the channels, we invited him to do an appraisal for this fifth anniv package.  The Impact interview isn’t on the Net, but I found a Word version on my Gmail archives. Inbox me if you want a copy.

     

    ***

     

    In many ways, the launch of Colors also marks a little over five years I have spent in the M&E media. I can’t claim the same kind of success that the channel has achieved, but, yes, the ability and desire to try and do stuff that has not been done before is there.

     

    Here’s to many, many more colourful years for Raj Nayak and Team Colors (and the folks at Network/TV 18, Viacom and Viacom 18)!

     

  • YC Deveshwar, Sam Balsara and Piyush Pandey were amongst winners at the inaugural awards

    IAA awards media & marketing honchos at leadership awards

    Srinivasan K Swamy with I&B Minister Manish Tewari

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    ITC CEO YC Deveshwar, Madison World CEO Sam Balsara and Ogilvy & Mather CEO Piyush Pandey were amongst the award-winners at the first ever International Advertising Association (IAA) Leadership Awards held in Mumbai on Saturday. Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari was chief guest of the evening.

     

    The International Advertising Association is the world’s only globally-focused integrated advertising trade association with membership representing Advertisers. Agencies and the Media. Well-known research firm The Nielsen Company and consulting firm Ernst & Young were associated with the event that was organised and sponsored by the Colors general entertainment channel.

     

    Popular television artist Mini Mathur emceed the evening as the fraternity was welcomed by IAA’s India chapter president Srinivasan K Swamy and Colors CEO Raj Nayak. In his address, the I&B minister asked the industry to mull over pressing issues like ad duration in channels, effective viewership measurement, adding that the government will not institute any regulations without consulting the industry.

    Award Categoy Awardee
    Marketer of the Year: Travel & Hospitality  Manish Kalra, Make My  trip
    Marketer of the Year: Banking  Sujit Ganguli, ICICI Bank
    Marketer of the Year: Insurance  Rita Bhattacharya, LIC
    Marketer of the Year: Media & Entertainment  Gayatri Yadav, Star India
    Marketer of the Year: Household Products  Amit Syngle, Asian Paints
    Marketer of the Year: FMCG – Personal Care  Arun Srinivas, HUL
    Marketer of the Year: FMCG – Food & Beverages  Chandramouli Venkatesan, Cadbury Kraft India
    Marketer of the Year: FMCG – Consumer Durables  Rahul Saighal, Samsung Appliances
    Marketer of the Year : Auto Two Wheeler Anil Dua, Hero Motocorp
    Marketer of the Year: Auto Commercial vehicles  UT Ramprasad , Tata Motors
    Marketer of the Year: Auto Passenger Vehicles  Mr. Mayank Pareek, Maruti Suzuki
    Marketer of the Year: Telecom Products  Anuradha Aggarwal, Vodafone
    Media Agency Head of the Year  Sam Balsara, Madison World
    Creative Agency Head of the Year  Piyush Pandey for Ogilvy & Mather India
    Best CEO  Y C Deveshwar, ITC
    News Anchor of the year  Rajdeep Sardesai, CNN-IBN
    Editor of the year  Jaideep Bose, The Times of India
    Mediaperson of the year  Shobhana Bhartia, HT Media
    Brand Endorser of the year – Female  Katrina Kaif
    Brand Endorser of the year – Male  Salman Khan
    IAA Hall of Fame  Pradeep Guha

     

    Also amongst the winners was Bollywood actor Salman Khan who made his first ever appearance at an awards function with IAA Leadership Awards. The actor known to have bagged maximum endorsements and is on a high with brands queuing to sign him, bagged the award for the Brand Endorser of the Year – Male. Katrina Kaif was awarded Brand Endorser of the Year – Female. Mr Pradeep Guha, former IAA president who has been CEO, Zee Entertainment and President, Bennett Coleman and Company Ltd was admitted to the IAA’s Hall of Fame with the lifetime achievement award.

     

    Marketers from across 12 categories were among the awardwinners as also were Editor of the Year (Jaideep Bose) and News Anchor of the Year (Rajdeep Sardesai). Shobhana Bhartia, chairperson of  HT Media, was awarded the Mediaperson of the Year award. The table above has the list of winners.

  • The inaugural awards for media, ad and marketing professionals tomorrow is to be followed by a star-studded Colors party

    IAA Leadership Awards: Stage set for big night for Indian media & marketing

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    All roads will lead to the Grand Hyatt tomorrow. Situated in what’s the new centre of Mumbai, the hotel will play host to the first ever awards for the country’s marketing, advertising and media fraternity. Organised by the India chapter of the International Advertising Association, there are 19 categories, nominees for most of which have been announced.

     

    Manish Tewari

    I&B Minister Manish Tewari is the Chief Guest and he will give away the awards. Colors is the sponsor of the awards. The awards presentation will be followed by a party celebrating four years of the channel.

     

    Although the organizers haven’t revealed too much about the entertainment acts during the show or who is going to emcee the evening, what we do know is that some of the biggest stars in Bollywood and television will be in attendance. As of course all the people who matter in the media, advertising and marketing fraternity.

     

    IAA’s commitment to the cause:

    Srinivasan K Swamy

    Over the years, the IAA has indeed been spearheading activities towards the environment and sustainability. Said IAA President Srinivasan Swamy: “The IAA in India has always organized marquee events. Events that are not just big, but also meaningful. Many will remember the Lighting a Billion Lives campaign we created and ran to create awareness and raise money to install solar lamps in dark villages all over India as a part of Dr Rajendra Pachauri’s project. Many have been a part of the Olive Crown Awards for we launched two years ago. These remain India’s only awards for excellence in communicating sustainability.

     

    We have recently launched a large gender sensitization program which consists of a seminar to create awareness about gender nuances amongst content creators and a national communication campaign on the evils of eve-teasing  and we will roll it out soon. We see it as our duty to ourselves and to the women in our country. I believe all these initiatives endorse IAA¹s commitment to the communications industry and to society in general.

     

    In a similar vein, IAA Leadership Awards is a major initiative. These awards salute the most distinguished from the marketing, media and advertising functions… the silent warriors, who had made their companies and brands rich and famous.

     

    This is the first year of the IAA Leadership Awards and I am extremely pleased with the overwhelming response we have received from the industry. There may have been some categories we may have missed out this time due to time constraints like Digital, Radio etc and hopefully we will include it in Year 2.

     

    I must add that we found in Colors a great partner to not only finance this important initiative but to put their entire organizational weight behind marshaling the event and sweating out the million details. We are very grateful to Raj Nayak and his tireless team.

     

    Raj Nayak

    Said Raj Nayak on the eve of the event, “This is an award that the India chapter of the IAA had always wanted to do. The idea was seeded  almost a year-and-a-half ago when Kaushik Roy was the President, and Sunder the vice-president. The IAA board has been fully behind this initiative and the only thing that stood in the way was the resource to make this a reality. We at Colors saw this as a great opportunity for us to engage with our all the stakeholders of our industry and use this platform to bring the entire industry under one roof. Besides senior  professionals from advertising, marketing and media, the evening will be followed by a Colors party wherein we will also have the film and TV fraternity rubbing shoulders with the corporate world.”

     

    So is it a one-off sponsorship or a longer commitment? “We have a long term association with the IAA for this initiative and we plan to dovetail the Colors party along with it to make it an annual event,” said Mr Nayak, adding that his only regret is that “after these awards I may become a little unpopular as given the capacity constraint of the venue we had to limit our invitations and have had to say no to so many requests.”

     

    The organizers also point out the “wholehearted” support they’ve received from the fraternity. Apart from ads and mailers from trade sites such as MxMIndia, the print, television and outdoor media has also helped promote the event. “Honestly, the support we have got from or friends in media, whether it is TV, print or trade websites, the response has been fantastic. I am truly grateful to all of them,” said Mr Nayak.

     

    Meanwhile, the IAA has released nominees for another 5 categories of Leadership Awards

     

    The International Advertising Association (IAA) India chapter has announced the nominees for another five categories for the first edition of the IAA Leadership Awards. The nominees have been shortlisted on account of their outstanding contribution to the fields of Marketing, Advertising and Media.

     

    Besides the below, IAA has also constituted special six categories for Editor of the year, News Anchor of the year, Mediaperson of the year, the Brand Endorser of the year (Male and Female) and the IAA Hall of Fame.

     

    Nominees announced for five more categories: 

    The following are the list of nominees revealed today across five categories to win the IAA Leadership Awards:

     

     

  • Colors has bought the broadcast rights for an Indian version of popular American action thriller television series '24' from actor Anil Kapoor in a deal pegged at around Rs 150 crore

    Colors buys rights of ’24’ for Rs 150 cr

    By Nandini Raghavendra

     

    Colors has bought the broadcast rights for an Indian version of popular American action thriller television series ’24’ from actor Anil Kapoor in a deal pegged at around Rs 150 crore. Mr Kapoor, who has also acted in the American version of the serial, had acquired the rights of the same from Fox TV more than a year ago.

     

    His production house Anil Kapoor Films will produce the Indian version, where the Indian actor will also play the protagonist, Jack Bauer. This will be Mr Kapoor’s first on Indian television after three decades in Bollywood that included superhit films such as Mr India, Tezaab, Saaheb, Meri Jung, Ram Lakhan and Parinda.

     

    Raj Nayak

    Raj Nayak, chief executive officer of Colors, said this will be a game changer for the entertainment channel from Viacom 18. “So far, content was an area limited financially, which this series will change with its scale, production standards, indoor and large outdoor shoots,” he said.

     

    Mr Nayak is confident of recovering his investment with brand tie-in opportunities as well as advertising, but is willing to wait. “We may do a first look of this series like a movie,” he said.

     

    The award-winning American TV series ran for eight seasons and aired its last episode in May 2010. It had unprecedented success across 43 countries in eight languages.

     

    India is the first country outside of the US to get rights to adapt the espionage thriller. “We hope this will pave the way for many more local versions of this brilliant series in other international territories,” Fox International Television president Marion Edwards said in an email reply.

     

    Unwilling to reveal the deal size, Ameet Naik of Naik & Naik, the lawyers for Anil Kapoor Films, said that Mr Kapoor holds the rights of the 192 episodes for a period of four years extendable to another ten, and this is definitely one of the highest licensee deals for a fiction-format show on Indian TV. Mr Kapoor said the producers of the US show, will be coming and overseeing in the early stages.

     

    “We have put together a dedicated team comprising of director Abhinay Deo (Delhi Belly fame) and writer Rensil D’ Silva who will be writing the Indian adaptation along with Colors, programming team led by Manisha Sharma,” said Mr Kapoor of the show that catapulted him to international fame with his role of Omar Hassan in Season 8 of the international series.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2012, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

     

  • After declaring that Bigg Boss is family-friendly this season, Colors has taken the show a step closer to its audiences by flagging off the Bigg Boss Tour, an initiative which will give fans the experience of being close to the stars via a paid tour

    Bigg Boss goes ‘alag’ with tours of ‘house’

    Manoj Gursahani of Bollywood Tourism and Deepak Dhar with Raj Nayak

    By A Correspondent

     

    The intention was made clear at the start when the channel pronounced that Bigg Boss would be slightly different in its avatar through the ‘Alag Chhe’. tagline. After getting it to be a show that can be watched by all in the family, Colors has taken a new step in getting the show a step closer with its audiences by flagging off the Bigg Boss Tour. The initiative would give fans an extraordinary experience of being close to the stars via a paid tour.

     

    Beginning October 19, 2012, Bigg Boss fans will get to unravel all the live action direct from the house, experience the reality and magnitude of the production and the complex set-up besides other attractions associated with the format. As part of the opportunity, Colors has introduced special buses that are designed to simulate the Bigg Boss experience and give fans the ultimate ride from Mumbai to the Bigg Boss house at Lonavala. The project is managed by Bollywood Tourism for Colors and has been introduced keeping in mind the need to satiate the curiosity around Bigg Boss.

     

    The paid tour will be operational every day of the week, except for Thursday till the season ends. The attractions will include a ‘House Tour’ via a secret passage and a look through a special viewing gallery that would allow one access to live action in the house; Hall of Fame, a spot where visitors can relive moments from their favourite seasons and have a look at iconic memorabilia of the most popular housemates; Control Room, the centre of all production activity and a view of the numerous cameras capturing every move; Confession Room, a room for viewers to get a chance to play Bigg Boss housemate and lastly a view of Salman’s Chalet, a place where the host unwinds during the shoot. The Friday tours will be a highlight as the visitors will get an opportunity to view the shoot of the eviction episode by host Salman Khan.

     

    When asked about the novelty factor behind the idea and the need for such an initiative at this juncture, Colors CEO Raj Nayak said, “We decided to do such a thing with a show like Bigg Boss because the format allows us to do something like that. It’s one of the biggest and most expensive reality shows in this country today. Also it is one of the shows which has a cult following and is talked about a lot.”

     

    And that’s not the only explanation. Mr Nayak added, “There is this whole feeling of the show being scripted, so we felt that there is an opportunity where we can bring viewers closer to the channel and that they came and witness for themselves that it is a non-scripted reality show. That’s what led us to get talking with our partner Endemol on the idea, which they readily latched on to. This was followed by the roping in of an experienced team that caters to tourism around Bollywood in Bollywood Toursim. So the three of us came together and recreated this new experience and we think it will fly.”

     

    While the new initiative could be looked as an alternative for the channel to recover the huge costs involved around the show, that is not what its precise aim is. Asserted Mr Nayak, “We are not doing it for revenue at all. In fact I do not know whether we will make money at all out of this and I won’t be surprised if we even lose money. But that is not we are concerned about; we decided that if we cover our expenses great otherwise we will subsidise it. But going by the response I think we will be able to cover our expenses.” According to Nayak, the whole idea behind this venture is to give the viewers an opportunity to come and connect with the show at a reasonable price.

     

    When asked how big a challenge it was in putting together an activity as big as the tour, Deepak Dhar, MD, Endemol India said, “The way the show has been designed it is one human observatory that’s running 24×7. To plug and play into the Bigg Boss psyche was not a challenge; it was an interesting idea that we lapped up. All the three of us then got together to see how we could work this across seamlessly to the extent that the format can allow and what it cannot allow.”

     

    In fact the idea has already attracted the attention of Endemol’s other international teams who have taken note of the activity and are looking at the possibility of emulating it across other properties as well. Asserted Mr Dhar, “It’s just the start now; let’s see how it gets picked up later. There’s already a bookmark on how this can work as of now. But all said and done it’s an innovative thought, an idea that can be replicated to other properties as well.”

     

    While the channel is hopeful of attracting huge ratings in the first week, what it is also excited about is the huge response that Bigg Boss is receiving from the advertisers. Affirmed Mr Nayak, “The advertisers have taken to our show very well. We have got five sponsors on board as of now. Vodafone has backed us again; we never had ‘powered by’ in the past seasons but this time we have Samsung who has come by in that slot. Coming next week, we will have two more sponsors on board so for me it’s a success even before the show is on air. As for the investments, we are spending much more this year so we would want to recover that proportionately.”

     

  • Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors on how Season 6 of Bigg Boss will offer clean, wholesome family entertainment without shedding the voyeurism

    Jaldi 5 with Raj Nayak: No sex, no violence, no Pakistani in Bigg Boss 6…

    Raj Nayak

    Okay, we’ve cheated. We went out to ask just five questions, but ended up with several interjections, so the Jaldi 5 is a rapidfire 10. Or thereabouts.

    Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors is one of the best minds in the broadcast business.  MxMIndia caught up with him soon after a presser with actor and Bigg Boss host Salman Khan and Endemol India CEO, Deepak Dhar. Mr Nayak was candid when he admitted to MxMIndia that the show was a dampener last year. Guess for the honesty in answering some tricky questions, Mr Nayak deserves to win this critical round.

     

    01. A ‘paarivaarik’ Bigg Boss? Why junk the USP of catering to the voyeuristic Indian?

    Over the last few seasons, we Bigg Boss became very predictable. Even participants who’ve previous Bigg Boss shows think they need to behave in the same way. Tasks in the house have been very predictive. While the vouyerism is the soul of the show, it has also alienated a lot of audiences. We believe that it is a cult programme, no doubt about it. It is one of the biggest programmes for Colors. Among all the reality shows that we do, it is the most expensive show. There are 59-62 cameras at work. It is an amazing experience.

     

    Over the last six months whatever we have done on Colors, we have done differently. We scaled up Jhalak Dikhla Jaa. We did not make it just a dance show, but dance and humour. A show like Bigg Boss has a huge cult following. Then we have Salman Khan whose popularity transcends from 7- to 70-yr-olds, he appeals to everybody. Whether it is classes or masses, he is a superstar. Not to leverage his brand appeal would be stupid. This was the thought process then. We thought, let’s convert the show, flip it on and do it on a positive note. Some of the things we have learnt – what we can do, what we can’t do. So we have tinkered with the format a little bit.

     

    So no voyeurism, no sex and violence?

    The voyeurism will be there. That cannot go. It is the soul of the show. The casting will ensure that all houseguest are achievers. There will be no negativity. Earlier we had people who were newsmakers but they always had something negative. But this year, not one person who goes into the house will be negative. Even if there is voyeurism, there will be a lot of fun element in the show. Even voyuerism will be in acceptable norms.

     

    And clearly no sex and violence. We want the whole family to watch the show. One can have a good show without having sex or without having violence. Jhalak Dhikla Jaa is good example. That will give you a good indicator of the slotting.

     

    But someone like Sanath Jaisurya didn’t do very well?

    Yes but what it did was to bring out the wow factor of the show.

     

    Any Pakistani?

    No, we won’t. We think there is enough talent in this country at this moment and the casting team thought they have enough people they can cast from within the country at this moment.

     

    02. What are your expectations from ratings? Last year was a dampener and the bar has been rasied much now…

    Yes, last year was a dampener. There is no doubt about it. But the way we are looking it is that we want Bigg Boss 6 to be the most successful season that Bigg Boss has ever had. We have dissected the show from the first to the last frame and you will very many new elements this time. We genuinely believe that it has the potential to become blockbuster. As for the bar, it will always keep raising. You can’t keep looking at the scoreboard because it is different matches and genres. Within the genres, ground and match that we are in, we are sure that we will put on a bloody good show.

     

    Sur-Kshetra didn’t do well in ratings last week?

    Yes, last week setting the foundation. We hadn’t have Ashaji then.  The show actually started this week. Last week, the show was setting foundation of how the auditions happened in Pakistan and India. I am a firm believer that the show will pick up with every passing week.

     

    03. Sony pushed KBC to the weekend slot. How will Bigg Boss affect your fiction slot?

    We shifted Khatron ka Khiladi to weekend. We did Jhalak Dhiklaa Ja on weekend. We don’t have a fixed policy. But we felt Bigg Boss is a big show, it is bloody expensive show. And if you have to amortize the cost, you have to run it seven days a week.

     

    04. Who are your sponsors? Are reality shows value for money?

    We are in discussion with sponsors.

     

    Vodafone?

    With Vodafone as well and many other players

     

    The ticket price has gone up substantially this year because we are scaling up the show in many different ways. Hopefully, we will have enough sponsors to achieve our targeted figure.

     

    See, value for money means different things to different people. But let me put it this way: most reality shows do not make money. While there may be exceptions to the rule,  on a reality show, you normally recover about 70 percent of your investment. There may be some reality shows on which you make 100 percent. But you need to have reality shows for the intangible value they bring to the brand, and to the channel.

     

    Last year, in-show placements had become a little too much?

    Exactly. Those are the things which we have taken into account. One of the things is that not only Bigg Boss, but also other shows like Jhalak Dhikla Jaa and India’s Got Talent we are very conscious that at the end of the day we have to give value to our advertisers but I think we can do it far more creatively, we can be subtle about it which probably will give more credibility and give more bang for the buck.

     

    05. What next? The Yuvraj Singh show?

    If all goes well, we should have it either at the end of October or first week of November.

     

    We are looking at one or two more show formats.

     

    Reality or fiction?

    Can be either. But we are looking at some more interesting stuff. It may be big or small. You must have noticed that in last six months, we keep reinventing, experimenting with new things. Like Manmohan Singh said, ‘We are not afraid to take risks and we have courage to do so.’