MUMBAI: There is no dearth of entertainment in the country of 800 plus channels. Every now and then, new channels and shows are launched to keep the momentum going.
For Zee TV, one of the oldest and leading general entertainment channel (GEC) of the country, launching a number of new shows in a year is nothing new; every channel does so at regular intervals. But what is noteworthy is the fact that the channel has produced top four weekday fiction launches of 2014.
If one takes a look at the opening week averages of all the fiction launches across GECs for the year, it is very clear from the numbers that who ruled the ratings charts. ‘Jamai Raja’ leads the pack with 5488 TVTs, ‘Satrangi Sasural’ that opened in week 49 with 4970 TVTs stands at number two, ‘Bandhan’ with 4366 TVTs and ‘Aur Pyar Ho Gaya’ with 4044 TVTs followed at number three and four, respectively.
If that wasn’t enough, the channel’s other property, ‘Kumkum Bhagya’, according to TAM data provided by the channel, while a four-week average for the pre-wedding period (starting week 21’14 to week 24’14) stood at 3,263 TVTs, the show has seen a 127 per cent increase in viewership.
According to the channel’s business head Pradeep Hejmadi there are two reasons behind this. He explains, “Shows open well when two conditions are served. One, the concept strikes an interesting chord and second, the promotions are well crafted to sound inviting. We have done rigorous work to ensure we fire as desired on both these pre-conditions. Hence, the not-so-surprising, but certainly noteworthy success with our launches.”
With growth as its top priority, the channel hopes to sustain the upward trend in at least some slots. “A careful assortment of variety across shows, clutter-breaking ideas/concepts, consistency in audience targeting have been the three key corner-stones of our successes,” points out Hejmadi.
The channel doesn’t believe in rating itself, but rather leaves it to its audiences (current and prospective). “From the numbers, they clearly seem to rate us well, so we are motivated to up the ante on this further,” he says.
With a strong weekday fiction line up and recently-launched new weekend properties like ‘Maharakshak Aryan’ and ‘Neeli Chhatri Wale’, the channel hopes to continue entertaining its viewers.
“Interesting and inspiring concepts that will set the tone for the category…” is how Hejmadi wants to see 2015.
