BENGALURU: Hindi movies such as Vidroh Lets Fight Back, Policewala Gunda 2, Dangerous Khiladi 3, and Dil Hi To Hai (Jackie Shroff) helped push up free-to-air (FTA) Hindi movie channel B4U Kadak to fifth rank in Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms in week 33 of 2019 from sixth place in the previous week. The four movies were among the top 5 Hindi movies programmes in the combined urban and rural Hindi speaking markets – HSM (U+R) as well as in rural HSM – HSM (R) per BARC’s weekly lists of top 5 Hindi movies programmes in HSM (U+R) and HSM (R).  Week 33 of 2019 (Saturday, 10 August 2019 to Friday, 16 August 2019) is the week or period under review.

Two other Hindi movies channels, Zee Cinema and Sony Max, both pay TV, thrust their way into the same list at eighth and tenth ranks respectively during the same week. Movies beamed on both these two pay Hindi movies channels had higher viewership in urban HSM or HSM (U) based on their presence in BARC’s weekly list of top 5 Hindi movies programmes in HSM (U) only. Two major Hindi GECs – Colors and Sony Entertainment Television which exited the BARC across genres list on all platforms, however had the solace of retaining their presence in BARC’s weekly list of to 10 pay channels across genres with improvement in their respective ranks in week 33 of 2019 vis-à-vis week 32. BARC’s weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms had three Hindi movies channels in the week as compared to only one in the previous week.

Four Hindi GECs, three Hindi movies, two Tamil and one Telugu channel comprised BARC’s weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms. From the network’s perspective, there were three channels from Star India, two channels each from Sony Pictures Network India (SPN) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd and one channel each from B4U, Enterr 10 Television and the Sun TV Network. Hence there were more regional languages – especially Telugu and Tamil, and Hindi movies combined than there were Hindi GECs in BARC's weekly lists of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms during the period under review.

In the case of BARC’s weekly list of top 10 pay channels across genres, like in week 32 of 2019, there were five Hindi GECs, two each of Hindi movies and Tamil channels and one Telugu channel in week 33. The channels were the same in week 33 as in week 32 with some shuffling in ranks. From the network’s perspective, there were three channels each from SPN and Star India, two channels from Zeel and one channel each from the Sun TV Network and Viacom18. In BARC’s weekly list of top 10 pay channels across genre in week 33 of 2019 were occupied by a Tamil (Sun TV) and Telugu (Star Maa) like in week 32. A Hindi GEC in the form of Star India’s flagship Hindi GEC Star Plus was at third rank in this BARC list in week 33. As mentioned above, the eight pay channels in BARC's weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms were also present in BARC’s weekly list of top 10 pay channels across genres, along with Zee Cinema and Sony Max in week 33 of 2019.

This article’s focus hereon will be on ‘all platforms’ – BARC publishes three across genres weekly lists – on all platforms, on pay platforms and on free platforms. There were eight pay channels and two FTA channels in BARC’s weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms in week 33 of 2019, same as in week 32.

Sun TV Network's flagship Tamil GEC Sun TV reclaimed first rank in BARC’s weekly list of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms in week 33 of 2019 with 902.564 million weekly impressions as compared to second rank and 870.981 million weekly impressions in week 32.

At second rank in week 33 of 2019 was Enterr 10 Television’s FTA Hindi GEC Dangal with 827.063 million weekly impressions as compared to first rank and 872.724 million weekly impressions the previous week.

Star India’s Telugu GEC Star Maa retained its third rank in week 33 of 2019 with 761.055 million weekly impressions as compared to 767.337 million wekly impressions in week 32.

Star India’s flagship pay Hindi GEC Star Plus also retained its fourth place in week 33 of 2019 with 751.106 million weekly impressions as compared to 719.127 million weekly impressions in week 32.

As mentioned above, B4U’s FTA Hindi Movies channel B4U Kadak climbed to fifth rank in week 33 of 2019 with 683.075 million weekly impressions as compared to sixth rank and 651.413 million weekly impressions.  

SPN’s pay Hindi GEC Sony Sab climbed up a place to sixth rank in week 33 of 2019 with 632.959 million weekly impressions as compared to seventh rank and 621.116 million weekly impressions in week 32.

Zeel’s flagship Hindi GEC Zee TV dropped two place in week 33 of 2019 to seventh rank with 614.306 million weekly impressions as compared to 678.991 million weekly impressions.

Zeel’s pay Hindi movies channel Zee Cinema found a place in BARC’s weekly lists of top 10 channels across genres on all platforms with 602.894 million weekly impressions in week 33 of 2019.

Star India’s flagship Tamil GEC Star Vijay climbed a place to ninth rank with 529.953 million weekly impressions in week 33 of 2019 as compared to tenth rank and 522.129 million weekly impressions in week 32.

SPN’s Hindi movies channel Sony Max also entered BARC’s weekly list top 10 channels across genres on all platforms at tenth rank with 523.074 million weekly impressions.