MUMBAI: So what if it’s currently yo-yoing among the bottom three as far as TAM ratings go? Sony Entertainment Television is leaving no stone unturned to regain lost ground.
Earlier this week, the GEC has launched a new show titled Desh Ki Beti Nandini with another one, Bhoot Aya, preparing to air every Sunday, at 11:00 pm, starting 13 October.
Desh Ki Beti..., produced by Rashmi Telefilms, traces the journey of a typical Indian woman from the confines of her home to the limelight of politics and is a comment on how every Indian woman is a delicate mix of softness and strength.
In sharp contrast, the upcoming Bhoot Aya, produced by Akashdeep Sabir and Sheeba’s Cinetek Telefilms, explores the dark forces through real-life, spine-chilling encounters of ordinary people.
Speaking about the marketing campaign for Desh Ki Beti... , SET senior vice president, head - marketing Seth says: “Nandini’s rise to, the promise of the show is that one day, she is going to run the country and that is something we have showcased in all our communications. Whether it was in music, promos or it’s been the visual imagery in print or outdoor. It shows the journey and definitely gives that hope and umeed to say that an empowered, confident and intelligent woman has no feelings.”
We will dominate that slot through the power of our idea and our concept, says a confident Gaurav Seth
Seth adds that in a bid to get people to understand the concept, the channel asked them the question: “Do you believe, ek ladki joh ghar chala sakti hai.. desh bhi chala sakti hai?”
As regards the non-fiction show, Seth says: “Firstly, we have tied up with the Indian paranormal society, which in a sense we refer to as ghost hunters. They go out and validate whether it is a fraud or for real. We are marketing it in a very interesting manner using this scary super-natural spooky zone to promote it. We have press ads which are going to show on the day of launch.”
Independent experts have been roped in who will relate how these things happen to the audience and the channel is confident the show is going to really scare people. It has even created five to six television spots for the purpose of promoting the show.
This apart, Sony’s official page, which boasted around 460,399 likes at the time of writing this article, will be used to promote the new shows. Asked why no exclusive pages have been devoted to the programs, Seth reasons: “We have stopped creating individual character pages. We are pushing Nandini as a show and concept across all social media.”
What about competition considering Desh Ki Beti will air at 9:00 pm? “It all lies in the concept. There’s always going to be competition at any given slot across multiple channels. And I don’t think competition is something we are really worried about. We will dominate that slot through the power of our idea and power of our concept,” Seth shoots back confidently.
With one of Sony’s best and longest running crime shows, Crime Petrol, having been cut down to accommodate Bhoot Aya, isn’t the channel worried about viewership? “We are just making a three-day thing to a two-day thing. There won’t be a problem in that. We want to introduce some novelty and some differentiation,” quips Seth.
Meanwhile, asked if the new shows will help Sony reclaim its number three position or higher, a media planner says: “We cannot be wrong in saying that, Sony has been very experimentative in nature. I see some positive vibes from Nandini, the storyline and concept is relevant in today’s time. As far as Bhoot Aya is concerned, the concept is not something unusual. Already there are shows like this; people want to see something different. I don’t know what different the channel plans to show viewers, but this non-fiction piece will definitely fail viewership.”
