This is the kind of news which could spark off some wild statements from political formations if it were to happen in a city like Mumbai. But we weren’t really very surprised when we heard that Garden City Bengaluru had such a significant viewing of Sun TV as per BARC data.
First, let’s take a look at the pecking order of non-Hindi/English channels in Karnataka.
Let’s re-look at the table above in the main image, sans the shining sun 🙂 :
Surprised? Well, for those who’ve been to cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru would know the large influence of Gujarati and Tamil in these two cities. The decadal growth in Bengaluru has been much faster compared to the Rest of Karnataka (1L+), as per the Census of India 2011. Bengaluru had 52% share of total 1L+ population of Karnataka in Census 2011, up from 47% in 2001.
The population and growth numbers for the past two decades are as follows:
As per BARC India estimates of TV owning households as on March 2015, Bengaluru has 58% share of the 1L+ population of Karnataka.
As compared to an approximate 3% Tamil-speaking population in Karnataka, around 21% of the total population in Bengaluru speak Tamil. This leads to a significant viewing of Sun TV in Bengaluru.
The viewing details of Sun TV in Bengaluru and the Rest of Karnataka are as follows:
We posed this question to a Bengaluru-based media analyst and he said that while it’s not true that Kannada channels aren’t doing well in the city, it’s just that as a single channel Sun is ahead. If the content improves, one can be sure Kannada programmes will go ahead of Sun.
Star India has announced the launch of its second Kannada general entertainment channel to be called “Suvarna Plus”. Suvarna Plus will go on air from Sunday, July 14.
The idea behind Suvarna Plus is to create content which acts as a stress-buster and the content offering will be movies, comedy fiction shows, reality shows, chat shows, film-based shows and Music. The channel will also offer shows like Campus Connect which target the youth.
Said K Madhavan, MD, Asianet Communications Ltd,” With the launch of Suvarna Plus, we intend to increase our dominance in Kannada GEC market. Karnataka has been a key market for us, we are buoyant and see huge potential in the Kannada television space. Suvarna has been offering wholesome family entertainment to Kannada homes and is the leader in prime time. Suvarna Plus is our new offering which will have a new perspective in terms of entertainment. Both these channels will have distinctive content offering.”
‘Masthi Swalpa Jaasthi’ is the tagline of Suvarna Plus capturing the basic tendency of humans to get ‘A abit more’ in everything as it promises the viewer the ‘something extra’ in terms of entertainment.
Suvarna Plus comes six years after the launch of Suvarna which has women as its core audience. The GEC offers popular shows like Amrutavarshini, Kannadada Kotyadhipathi (the Kannada version of KBC), etc.
Sunfeast Kannadada Kotyadhipathi, the Kannada version of the international game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and its Hindi counterpart Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC), will air the 50th episode of its second season on June 4 at 8 pm with Radhika Pandit as the special celebrity guest.
Puneeth Rajkumar and Radhika Pandit have earlier been seen together in blockbuster movies like Hudugaru. Their on screen magic will now be seen on the biggest game show of Karnataka – Kannadada Kotyadhipathi.
The show has caught the imagination of television viewers, contestants and many aspirants, and has already changed the lives of people who have taken the hot seat opposite its host Puneeth Rajkumar. Today, Kannadada Kotyadhipathi has emerged as a popular forum for many needy individuals of the society that include students, physically challenged people, senior citizens, economically backward people, homeless and philanthropists.
Celebrity guests like Prabhu Deva, Upendra and Malashree have also come forward to donate their earnings from the game show towards various charitable causes.
Anup Chandrashekaran, Business Head of Suvarna Channel, said, “It gives me immense joy and pleasure to see how Kannadada Kotyadhipathi has realized the dreams of so many Kannadigas. I would like to thank Puneeth Rajkumar for anchoring this show and for making it a successful project. I would also like to thank the viewers and the contestants who have made Kotyadhipathi a successful show.”
Kannadada Kotyadhipathi airs on Suvarna Channel at 8 pm from Monday to Thursday.
Kannadada Kotyadhipathi is gearing up for its second avatar on Suvarna, the Kannada General Entertainment Channel from Star Network. The channel plans to launch the show in March of 2013 with the host of its previous year Kannada superstar Puneeth Rajkumar. For the channel, Kotyadhipathi has been a big property which has propelled the channel to be a leader in the prime time category thus giving Udaya (the undisputed leader for long) much to worry.
Post Kotyadhipathi, the channel revamped its prime time offering with new shows. It launched Amrutavarshini at the 9:30 pm slot which Suvarna puts it as the number 1 show of Karnataka with an average TVR of 6.0 (CS4+, Karnataka market). In the 8:00 pm slot it launched Akashadeepa, Chukki at 10:00 pm and Pancharangi Pom Pom at 10.30 pm and all the shows are slot leaders.
Anup Chandrasekharan – Business Head of Suvarna Channel, said, “For this year we had a conscious strategy to strengthen our fiction offering and the response for our newly launched fiction shows has been exceptional. We have firmly established ourselves as a family entertainment channel.”
He elaborated, “In the year 2012, the channel conquered the key genres including Kannadada Kotyadhipathi which is the leading non-fiction show of the year, Amrutavarshini as the leading fiction show of Karnataka and Hudugaru our premier movie was the highest rated movie of the year.”
While the current season of KBC in Hindi has generated a lukewarm response, there has been no such concern for its Kannada counterpart. The channel has witnessed repeat interest from its advertisers.
Anil Narang – Head Marketing & Strategy, Suvarna, commented, “We are very confident about the success of the show. Hindi is a different market and that cannot be compared to Karnataka. Also we are in the second season of the show unlike Hindi which is in its 6th Season. Moreover, we have not made any changes in the telecast schedule like Hindi where they have made it a weekend show.”
Mr Narang said that for Kotyadhipathi, there is big expectation from both audience and advertisers. In fact this year it is learnt that the client is coming with a premium.
“Having been able to prove its success to both the trade and audience, in its second inning the Kotyadhipathi is seeing interest from all brands associated in its first time to come back,” Chandrasekharan added.
The claim is that post Kotyadhipathi, the market share of the brands associated grew. In fact, Â Sunfeast which had limited itself to computer branding is now the title sponsor for season 2.
The show has been the number one show in Karnataka and has generated revenues in excess of Rs 35-40 crore. The plan for this year is to have revenue generated in the vicinity of Rs 40-45 crore.
The numbers shared by Suvarna points that 11.3 million people has consumed the show making it biggest in Karnataka. Chandrasekharan, said, “Kannadada Kotyadhipathi had made Suvarna the No.1 channel in Week day Prime time, this show also led to increase in sampling of Amrutavarshini which we launched immediately after KK at 21:30. KKÂ brought in new viewers not only to Suvarna but also to Kannada General Entertainment. We are very happy with the response for season 1 and the on ground buzz for season 2 is exceptional.”
For this year again the premise will be that the show will continue to change peoples’ lives. The channel will bank on emotional connect just like last year but the change this year will be that each week the focus will be on one district of Karnataka showcasing its rich culture and tradition. The tagline for this season of Kotyadhipathi is “Questions that can change your life”
Here’s a look at Kotyadhipathi Season 1 numbers
On an average has been the No# 1 show of Karnataka since its launch
Has an average TVR of 5.5 (CS 4+, Karnataka Market)
Has a cume reach of 11.3 million people
81% of the Karnataka Television audience has seen the show
Has a slot share of 43%
Maximum weekly avg rating is 7.1 (CS 4+, Karnataka Market)
The auditions this year has seen more than 50 percent increase than the last year for calls for registrations. The show which will run for 20 weeks will see spend close to 4-5 crore on marketing.
While KBC may have not done much for other regional channels but surely it has helped Suvarna. Their smart and consistent programming strategy has helped the channel continue the rise in numbers post KBC thus able to sustain the high wave. Udaya TV which has been traditionally leader has seen much change in in numbers especially during KBC period. With KBC 2, Suvarna hopes to further consolidate its position and if the focus on programming continues especially because of Star Network’s strength the numbers will become more consistent and Suvarna can be ahead of Udaya TV. But content is the key to this success.
Expert Talk
Karthik Lakshminarayan
Karthik Lakshminarayan, COO, Crest- Madison Media
Suvarna is the leading channel in Karnataka and is propelled by KBC alone. The channel did well in terms of numbers during the time of KBC (see data).
Their programming strategy is sound as of date and if executed well should see them emerge as clear leaders. The channel has taken the step in trying different things and this approach of being different while being risky is a sign of a leader and it should help differentiate them from the others.
Anilkumar Sathiraju
Anilkumar Sathiraju, AVP and Head South, DDB Mudra Group
Suvarna has been doing well over the last few months. Yes KBC has done the trick for them, not only that, few serials are also doing quite well. Among female audiences for one of our brands, Suvarna ranks at No.2 which is good. With better programming am sure Suvarna will reach the number one position.
Star Network’s Kannada general entertainment channel Suvarna will telecast its first Parivaar awards on September 29 and 30 at 6 pm.
The event will feature performances by power star Puneeth Rajkumar with veteran stars like Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, Lakshmi, Hema Choudri and Ambika, as well as Suvarna stars.
Channel business head Anup Chandrashekharan said, “For the past few years our audiences have enjoyed these artists in their individual shows; this event will showcase the combine talent of the Suvarna family and I hope all our viewers will enjoy it.”
Star Network’s Kannada general entertainment channel Suvarna has announced the first edition of its Parivaar Awards, exclusively for shows that air on Suvarna. The title sponsor is Sunfeast.
The on-ground event will be held on September 15.
Sunfeast Suvarna Parivaar Awards has 33 different categories highlighting not just individual characters but relationships within the Suvarna family. Some of the award categories include Best Hiriya Sadasya, Best Appa (Father), Best Amma (Mother), Best Magalu (Daughter), Best Child Artist, Best Hosa Sadasya (New Member), etc.
For non-fiction shows the Sunfeast Suvarna Parivaar awards has categories like the Best Anchor, Best Reality Show, etc.
Awards in the Favourites category are based on audience votes, to collect which a can has gone across the state covering cities and major towns.
Channel business head Anup Chandrashekharan said, “Sunfeast Suvarna Parivaar Awards will felicitate the entire family of Suvarna, comprising Fiction and Non-Fiction, who have contributed to the channel’s success. The characters of our shows have become immensely popular among the television viewers and this is an opportunity for us to celebrate relationships. All the artists are working hard to put up a great show and I am sure our viewers will enjoy it.”
Star Network’s Kannada General Entertainment channel Suvarna has launched three mega fiction shows Akashadeepa, Keladi Chennamma and Bhagyavantharu. All the three shows will go on air from July 30.
On the launch, Anup Chandrashekaran, Business Head of Suvarna Channel said: “This is for the first time in the Kannada general entertainment that an established channel like ours has launched three mega fiction shows on the same day. These shows are very different from each other and I am sure that our viewers are going to enjoy them. All three shows appeal to the mass audiences and cater to the entire family”.
Akashadeepa, Keladi Channamma and Bhagyavantharu are additions to the many popular shows offered by Suvarna Channel. Akashadeepa will go on air at 8pm followed by Keladi Chennamma at 8:30pm and Bhagyavantharu at 9pm, thus revamping the entire primetime slot.
Star Network’s Kannada General Entertainment Channel Suvarna has announced the launch of their new weekend comedy show Tirupathi Tirumala Venkatesha directed by Master Anand, who has earlier directed the comedy shows Paduvaralli Padegalu and SSLC Nanmakkalu for Suvarna.
This is an episodic fiction comedy and the story revolves around a family which runs a small business of home-made products.
The show will go on air from July 7 and will be aired on weekends at 10pm.
Anup Chandrashekaran, Business Head of Suvarna said: “Suvarna has been setting new benchmarks with every new show and Tirupathi Tirumala Venkatesha is yet another offering from us which will stand out as a high quality product. We, at Suvarna, are bullish about the comedy genre as it appeals to the entire family and resonates across age groups. I hope our viewers like this show.”
Anil Narang, Head of Marketing & Strategy, Suvarna Channel said: “This show will further strengthen our weekend offering. We have seen in the past that viewers like light hearted comedy shows which act as a stress buster. We are confident that viewers will enjoy this hilarious comedy show.”
Tirupathi Tirumala Venkatesha is one more addition to the many popular shows of Suvarna such as Krishna Rukmini, Preetiyinda, Amruthavarshini, Pancharangi Pom Pom, Chukki, Cheluvi and Pallavi Anupallavi.
If one were to go by the first week numbers of Kannadada Kotyadhipathi or KBC in Kannada which debut on Suvarna Channel then surely the show has made an impression. Launched on March 12, the show has opened with a TVR of 7.32 (Source – TAM, CS 4+ Years) in the Karnataka Market. The average TVR for the show in its first week is 7.66 (Wk 11) which is better than the latest version of Kaun Banega Crorepati which opened at 5.24 TVR in top 3 metros (Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata) and 4.5 TVR (Source :TAM) in its first week in the HSM market. The show Kannadada Kotyadhipathi in its initial week also became the No.1 show in Karnataka.
In fact its counterpart, Neengalum Vellalam Oru Kodi which made its debut on Star Vijay managed a TVR of 5.58 on its opening day and since then has been on a decline with average TVR from Feb 27 to March 1 being 4.69, 3.69 (March 5-8) and 3.36 (Feb 12-March 15).
Puneeth Rajkumar who comes from the first family of Kannada cinema is hosting Kannadada Kotyadhipathi whereas Suriya is hosting Neengalum Vellalam Oru Kodi.
Anup Chandrasekharan, Business Head Suvarna Channel commented, “We are very happy with the initial response of Kannadada Kotyadhipathi, we have got a lot of positive feedback about the show from our viewers. This show is also made us the leader in week day prime time. We hope we are able to sustain the initial ratings.”
On its comparison with Hindi KBC he added, “It is not correct to compare the two shows in terms of ratings as they belong to different markets, KBC is analyzed in the Hindi Speaking Markets (HSM) & Kotyadhipathi is analyzed in the Karnataka Market.”
In the past, KBC was aired in Bhojpuri on Mahuaa TV as Ke Bani Crorepati with Shatrughan Sinha as its host and in Bengali as Ke Hobey Banglar Kotipoti hosted by Sourav Ganguly on Mahuaa Bangla. Both the shows did not garner much in terms of numbers. Bangla KBC averaged TVR of 2.29 (period June 6 to August 12, 2011), the Bhojpuri version saw an average TVR of just 0.45 (period June 6 to August 12, 2011). (Data source TAM).
So it remains to be seen if KBC in Kannada will do the magic and retain its high ratings in the weeks to come.
Source: TAM Peoplemeter System
TG: CS 4+ yrs
Market: Karnataka
Period: Wk 11: Mar 11 to 17, 2012
Source: TAM Peoplemeter System
TG: CS 4+ yrs
Market: Tamil Nadu
Period: Wk 9 to 11: Feb 26 to Mar 17, 2012
Star Network’s Kannada General Entertainment channel Suvarna announces the launch of their new fiction show “Amrutavarshiniâ€
The show is about an innocent, docile girl from a poor family who has few expectations in life; she is content with the simple things that her family life has to offer. How her life changes when she gets married into a rich family is the story forward.
The show will go on air from March 19, Monday to Friday 9.30 PM.
Anup Chandrashekaran, Business Head, Suvarna Channel says “All our shows are unique and have a different treatment. We at Suvarna ensure that every fiction show has a strong story plot and an engaging screenplay. This show is unique as this showcases the mother in law – daughter in law relationship with a new lens. The making of this show is exceptional and the story will undoubtedly appeal to the viewers tastes. This show is ideal for the 9:30 pm slot as this will be the immediate program after “Kannadada Kotyadhipathi†which is the biggest show on Kannada Televisionâ€
The show is produced by the production house RG Media Stuff which has also produced one of the most successful shows of Kannada General Entertainment “Krishna Rukmini†for Suvarna.
Ravi Garani of RG Media Stuff says, “We have ensured that the production values of the show are not compromised, and the look and feel is of national standard. I am thankful to the Suvarna team for giving me this opportunity to do this show.â€
Anil Narang, Head of Marketing & Strategy, Suvarna Channel says “This show will enhance the fiction offering of our channel. The story line will relate well to our core audience. We have ensured that the artists chosen to play the key roles in the show are the best fit to the character values they portray.”
Kannadada Kotyadhipathi goes on air tonight (on March 12) on Suvarna, and the team behind it has pulled out all the stops to make it a success. The channel has closed on its sponsors which are a mix of both national and local advertisers. The presenting sponsor for the show is Santoor and it is powered by Pepsodent. The telecom partner is Airtel while the banking partner is Vijaya Bank. The associate sponsors for KBC include Confident Group, Bhima Jewellers, Sunfeast, Muthoot Fin Corp, Mentos, Tata Motors. Big FM is the radio partner and Suvarna News is the news partner. It is learnt that in terms of revenues the channel is getting a premium on this property; the average spot rate for this show is three times more than that of a regular show.
It is seen as the biggest property in Kannada and the channel has been promoting the show heavily on its own platform. Besides, there is a complete 360-degree marketing plan to promote the show across ATL and BTL activities. During the launch phase, there was print advertising in all key publications of the state. Radio activity included radio spots and RJ mentions. In OOH, 100 hoardings are up in the state promoting the show and 10000 posters across the state. There was also a mobile canter activity conducting events across 15 towns of the state is on for one month. Bus shelters across key areas of Bangalore were taken besides branding in high-traffic key retail outlets of the state. 10 kiosks in high traffic areas are planned across Bangalore city plus a mobile application with which key info of the show like schedule, pics, videos and a quiz game will be live for Android phones. In the online space, there has been engagement via Facebook and videos on YouTube.
For the sustenance activity, the plan is to continue with print advertising in key publications. Radio activity with radio spots and RJ mentions will continue besides the hoardings and mobile application and online activity. Anup Chandrashekaran, the channel’s Business Head, said, “This is the biggest show on Kannada Television and we expect that this show will break all previous records in terms of performance & revenues. The look and feel of the show and the production values are of international standards.”
“Kannadada Kotyadhipathi is yet another show that stands for wholesome family entertainment. We at Suvarna are happy that Puneeth Rajkumar, the face of the Kannada film industry, is doing this path-breaking show for us. The format of the show is unique as this gives the common people an opportunity to use their knowledge and change their lives. Big Synergy, the production house which produced the Hindi version of KBC, is also doing this version. They are a team of experts and I am happy to be associated with them,” added Mr Chandrashekaran.
He also said other shows are planned to be launched around KBC. He said, “We have lined up an array of fiction shows to come up in the next few weeks. The first show to be on air would be “Amrutavarshini” this show is about a naive girl from a middle-class family who gets married into a rich family. The show looks at the mother-in-law – daughter-in-law relationship through a new lens. We are also working on a few other fiction shows which fall in line with our channel philosophy of offering differentiated content.”
Kannadada Kotyadhipati (KK), or Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) in Kannada, is all set to make its debut on Suvarna, the Star Network’s Kannada general entertainment channel. The show, which will debut in the end of February and will run from Monday to Thursday, is being touted as the biggest format show in Karnataka.
For the channel, the show will play a pivotal role and people behind Suvarna are hoping that the numbers delivered would do the magic of upstaging the leader Udaya TV. Interestingly, what was unthinkable three years ago can be seen as achievable now, going by the way Suvarna is placed today.
Anup Chandrashekaran
As Anup Chandrashekaran, Business Head for Suvarna explained, “In an IMRB tracking, the perception that came about Suvarna was that we deliver fresh ideas and differentiated content and are seen as a young vibrant channel.”
To reach this level has not been easy, it has taken a strategic shift in the channel’s programming to get newer audience into its fold. This was done by introducing format shows which, according to the channel, is nothing less than social experimentation because of the content of the shows.
“Of late, only 60 per cent of our GRPs come from fiction. While the format shows ensure that we get newer audience to experience Suvarna, we flank these shows with good fiction that resonates with audience. Ours is a holistic family entertainment channel that includes fiction, non-fiction and movies, and shows what Kannada GEC stands for. We have a healthy mix in terms of SEC demarcation. We have reworked our fiction where we got young protagonists and stories that resonate with the Kannada audience. Our production value is of superior quality and there is a freshness to what appears on Suvarna. This change also shows in our numbers,” added Mr Chandrashekaran.
Despite the fall in Kannada GE (KGE), Suvarna has grown by 5 per cent in Q4’11 and by 24 per cent in Q3′ 2011. Also Suvarna contributed 48 per cent of KGE’s growth in Q3’11. (TG :CS 4+, Karnataka market. Data updated till wk 53’11). Also Suvarna was the leading prime time channel inBangaloremarket and beat Udaya TV (CS 4+, Wk day19:00-24:00. Wk 41 – 53’2011).
Even in weekday prime time in Karnataka market, the difference is of 50-60 GRPs and that’s where Suvarna hopes that Kannadada Kotyadhipati will play a major role.
Considering that KBC has been a successful show in Hindi, especially in 2011, Suvarna is hoping the same magic will work in Kannada.
The channel has roped in Kannada film star Puneet Rajkumar as the show’s host, and is aggressively marketing the show.
Talking about the marketing plans, Anil Narang, Head-Marketing and Strategy, Suvarna said, “We have planned to reach out to Karnataka markets in 3 phases. The first is the audition phase and the communication is on how you can register for the show. The response has been better than what we expected and got representation from entire Karnataka. We also have a Facebook page to reach out to new audiences.”
Mr Narang added, “In the second phase, we will be launching 100 hoardings across Karnataka to ensure visibility. We also have mobile vans that will cover 13 districts and will have a mock KBC set where people can play KBC with a host who will wear a Puneet Rajkumar mask. The third will be the sustenance phase, once the show gets on air, to maintain that the audience.”
There will be also be print, cinema and TV advertising. The advertising revolves around the idea that ‘knowledge is the key quotient and with basic common knowledge one can win a crore’. The estimated budget could run into Rs10 crore.
Suvarna is also planning to launch a historical soap along with KK.
Star India has announced the launch of its second Kannada general entertainment channel to be called “Suvarna Plus”. Suvarna Plus will go on air from Sunday, July 14.
Kannadada Kotyadhipathi is gearing up for its second avatar on Suvarna, the Kannada General Entertainment Channel from Star Network. The channel plans to launch the show in March of 2013 with the host of its previous year Kannada superstar Puneeth Rajkumar. For the channel, Kotyadhipathi has been a big property which has propelled the channel to be a leader in the prime time category thus giving Udaya (the undisputed leader for long) much to worry.
By A Correspondent
Star Network’s Kannada General Entertainment Channel Suvarna has announced the launch of their new weekend comedy show Tirupathi Tirumala Venkatesha directed by Master Anand, who has earlier directed the comedy shows Paduvaralli Padegalu and SSLC Nanmakkalu for Suvarna.
