METRO FOCUS
Having repositioned itself with a new brand identity, Sony is set to woo metro viewers at late primetime with two Ekta Kapoor shows
If GRPs are a macro-indicator of a channel's health then the share price of a listed production house indicates its performance and bottomline. From GRP point of view, Sony has done well in the past four months whereas Balaji Telefilms is not enjoying the kind of re-rating or premium it did a few years ago in the equity market. Both the channel and the production house are caught in a volatile GE ocean and struggling to navigate their way to the harbour. While Sony has seen its best days without Balaji and vice- versa, after the recent slump in their respective fortunes both are looking at regaining their past glories. Television Czarina, Ekta Kapoor wants to prove that the current low in her vertical growth graph from a small producer to a highly-successful media company is just an aberration. On the other hand, Sony needs channel drivers to climb its way up among the top GE players. Having shared a love-hate relationship earlier, Sony and Ekta have joined hands for a new alliance that starts with two late prime-time shows.
The GEC business has shifted from metros to non-metros and small towns, particularly at early and peak prime-time (8 to 10 pm). But Sony which has repositioned itself with a new brand identity, is playing the GEC game little differently. While the top three players are largely focussed on non-metros through most of their prime-times, Sony's programming moves from non-metros at early prime- time to metros at prime-time. While the channel is not yet focussed at pre-prime time and is still struggling to find its feet at early prime time, it however, has a better presence in metros at peak prime-time. Ekta's two dailies which are pitched at the metro audience, are aimed at strengthening Sony's position in the 10 to 11 pm slot.
According to Manjit Singh, CEO, Multi Screen Media that owns Sony, Ekta approached them with five ideas and they picked up two - Baytaab Dil Kee Tamanna Hai and Pyaar Ka Bandhan. "Ekta is a master storyteller. She has delivered several successful shows and we are confident that her two shows will recreate the past magic for us," he adds. Baytaab Dil... is a story of three sisters who are forced to leave their small-town home to come to Mumbai, where a rude shock awaits them. Kanchan, the elder sister, tries to adjust to the situations that confront her. But Shamoli, the middle one, is the rebel who decides to fight all odds to fulfill her dream, even if she has to go against the norms. Obviously, Shamoli is the driver of the show which is inspired by the underbelly of Mumbai.
Ekta denies that the show is inspired by a recent rape incident in which a Bollywood actor was accused of raping his maid. Instead, she says it is inspired by the clash of ideologies theme and is based in the under- belly of Mumbai where the story takes its wings. "For Shamoli life is all about achieving…the means don't matter to her. It is a kind of modern-day Deewaar set in the slums of Mumbai," she elaborates. Obviously the show is a hard-hitting drama of urban harsh reality of living on the edge, flesh trade, the conflict between haves and have-nots and ruthless ambition. Apparently Ekta is very keen on making headlines with the show and has told the channel that she is very keen on making a Slumdog Millionaire kind of programme.
On the other hand, Pyaar Ka Bandhan is a typical commercial potboiler of the Balaji genre. The show is an emotional story of four siblings, given away by their sick mother to an orphanage for adoption, with a hope of giving them a good future and a promise to reunite after 15 years. But their lives take diverse turns as they are adopted by different families and are separated from each other. "This is my home turf and it's going to be a retro journey for me, real but highly emotional. I have done shows on relationships, romance, brothers and sisters. But this one has more colour and style. This is a Hindu (read Hindi) heartland show," elaborates Ekta.
Like the two shows that are as different as Mumbai from any non-metro or small town, Ekta also seems to be caught in the clash of the market demand and her expertise of making a certain kind of show. She repeatedly calls the Hindi belt as 'Hindu' belt. Slip of tongue? Apparently yes. But she seems to be confused about living in the past of her 'K' shows and adapting to a changing market that's harping on 'social' issue-based shows. She admits that it's difficult for any creative mind to come up with ideas and concepts that will connect with mass viewers. Talking about stepping out of the 'K' brand, Ekta says the brand was getting repetitive and hence needed to be refreshed to keep pace with changing reality.
That's indeed a challenge for any content provider as well as broadcaster. If you are in the business of mass entertainment you can't be selective about your audience and markets. As Jalaluddin Rumi said, "Load the ship and set out. No one knows for certain whether the vessel will sink or reach the harbour. Cautious people say, 'I'll do nothing until I can be sure.' Merchants know better. If you do nothing, you lose. Don't be one of those merchants who won't risk the ocean." That's the philosophical thought of a great Sufi thinker. But the message is quite clear.
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