Sony Pal, Zindagi: Practice towards a ‘dramatic change’

[JitendraKumar]

Shailja Kejriwal, CEO of Zee TV, was getting tired of watching regular set of daily soaps on Hindi GECs (General Entertainment Channels). It was time for a “dramatic change”. For inspiration, Kejriwal decided to look across the border in search of content that was targeted, timed and “bespoke”. The result — Zee’s brand new channel Zindagi — which has changed the landscape of Indian screens with quality Pakistani content with the likes of Zindagi Gulzar Hai, Aunn Zaara, Maat and Kitni Girhain Baaki Hai.

Switch over to Pal, a new channel from Sony, which is “targeting women aged between 15 and 34.” The channel was launched early this month with an aim to “applaud the entire gamut of emotions of womanhood and celebrate her journey through various moments that define her.” Then there is Investigation Discovery, that offers true stories of crime, dubbed in Hindi. In a few months Epic — which will be India’s first all mythology and history channel — will be launched, including another exclusive entertainment channel from Zee.

Join all the dots and we have a burgeoning list of genre specific channels. The youth-based programming of erstwhile music channels such as MTV and Channel V has paved the way for targeted programming.

Read More | http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/play/target-practice-5/