General Discussion No.54 - Page 81

MUMBAI: Buoyed by the impetus it got from The Kapil Sharma Show', Hindi GEC Sony Entertainment Television (SET) will be enhancing its programming hours by launching new fiction and non-fiction shows in the next few months until December.

The channel, which has strengthened its non-fiction line-up with a kids dance reality show called Super Dancer', will be reviving its talent-oriented non-fiction shows like Indian Idol', Kaun Banega Crorepati' and Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'.

First up in the non-fiction line-up is Super Dancer', which is launching on 10 September. The 27-episode show will be followed by Indian Idol', which last aired on the channel in 2012. The channel had spun off Indian Idol Junior', which has been airing on the channel since 2013. The channel will bring Indian Idol Junior' at a later date.

After Indian Idol', the channel will launch KBC', which will be followed by Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'. Both the shows will be coming back on the channel after a gap of one year.

Talking about the channel's non-fiction programming strategy, SET business head Danish Khan said, "Sony was always a platform for talent like dancing, singing, knowledge (KBC') and variety (Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'). So we want to get all the talent shows. We have launched Super Dancer'. Then we will have Indian Idol', KBC' and finally Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'."

SET's weekend grid will thus comprise a talent reality show, The Kapil Sharma Show', CID' and Crime Patrol'. "We want to have variety in the weekends. We have comedy, thriller and crime, and then we will have talent reality shows. We will have four genres every week in the weekend," Khan added.

SET senior creative director Ashish Golwalkar said that the The Kapil Sharma Show' will continue uninterrupted unless the stand-up comedian has film commitments to fulfil. "TKSS will continue till he takes a break to fulfil his film commitments," he said.

Golwalkar said that the channel would also revive Comedy Circus' and '10 Ka Dum'.

In the fiction space, the channel will be launching three new shows to complement the four shows it has launched in the last six months.

"We are in the process of building our weekday programming. Between October and December, we will have three launches. We will have a full full-fledged weekday by December," Khan stated.

It will be launching a romantic thriller titled Beyhad' and historical drama Bajirao', which will trace the Maratha Peshwa's journey from his childhood.

While SET's primetime opens at 8 pm, the channel is looking to open 7 and 7.30 pm slots. "Our primetime opens at 8 pm, but we will open 7 and 7.30 very soon. We will add original programming. We should have 32 hours of programming by December," he informed.

The channel's weekday programming stands on four shows. Its weekday primetime begins at 8 pm with Sankatmochan Mahabali Hanumaan'. At 8.30 pm is romantic drama Ek Rishta Sajhedari Ka', followed by a light-hearted drama Bade Bhaiyya Ki Dulhaniya'. The 9.30 and 10 pm slots are filled by Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi' and Ek Duje Ke Vaaste'. Crime Patrol' takes over the 10.30 pm slot from Monday to Thursday.

Khan said that the channel would stick to shows that match its DNA. It would not chase supernatural genre, which has been gaining a lot of traction these days.

"There are kinds of shows that Sony is known for. It is known for Bade Achche Lagte Hai', Parvarish', Kuch Toh Log Kahenge', Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi' and Heena'. I think this is the DNA of Sony. Most of the shows we are launching are in that DNA," he noted.

The channel has also stopped airing or premiering movies. Sony Max, Sony Pictures Networks India's movie channel, is premiering movies owned by the channel.

"We are not showing any movies on SET. All the premieres are on Sony Max. Our movie channels are doing extremely well. SET is about habitual watching, about its marquee shows; it's about habit-building fiction shows," he stated.

While CID', Crime Patrol' and Mahabali Hanuman' continue to do well for the channel, Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi' and Sajedaari' are also showing good numbers. The Kapil Sharma Show' has brought a lot of new viewers to the channel.

"We are in the process of rebuilding SET, and it has been quite a good journey so far. SET has seen good growth week after week. Our focus is on weekday for the next three to six months. We will have a robust weekday to add to our extremely robust weekend," Khan concluded.