MUMBAI: Apurva Purohit, the soon to be former employee of the Subhash Chandra-promoted Zee Telefilms, is joining the Times Group as head of its television project.

Purohit is currently serving out her notice following her resignation as Zee TV president last month and has her last day at the office on 31 January.

When contacted by indiantelevision.com Purohit said, "The final details would be known when I reach there. But my repsonsibilities would include charting out positioning of the entertainment channel(s), detailing the distribution aspects and other things that go to make a TV channel a reality."

Though Purohit was not ready to spelll out the details, Times sources that as the COO of the TV venture, she would be responsible for more than one channel - one entertainment and one news channel, initially. Purohit, who'll be reporting to Bennet, Coleman & Co. Ltd. executive director Arun Arora, also did not spell out a time frame for the launch of the proposed channel(s).

"Those things would become clear once I join formally," she added. Though Purohit's notice period at Zee Telefilms runs through January till the 31st, industry sources indicated that she's trying to work out a deal whereby Subhash Chandra's company lets go of her before the deadline so that she'd get some time off before she plunges headlong again into the media business, probably, from February.

According to the information available with indiantelevision.com, Times Group managing director Vineet Jain is quite gung ho about the TV project and has reportedly pushed the effort into high gear. Some alliance with a UK-based broadcaster is also being talked about in this regard.

A management graduate from IIM Bangalore, Purohit has been in the advertising and media business for nigh on 17 years. She joined Zee in mid-June 2002 from FCB Ulka's media unit Lodestar where she was media director. Starting with client servicing, Purohit crossed over to media planning in the mid-90s.