'Antariksh' to replace 'Pyaar Ke Do..'

STAR Plus is winding up its Rajshri reincarnation production 'Pyaar Ke Do Naam – Ek Radha Ek Shyaam' in October. The channel will be replacing the show with a kids focussed space show called 'Antariksh -Ek Amar Katha'.

The show launches in India on 2nd October and will be aired Monday to Thursday in the 20:00 band. 'Antariksh' will be shown in the UK sometime in November.

Deepak Segal, EVP, Content and Communication, STAR Entertainment, informed that even as the core TG of the show would be the 4-18 age group, it would be addressing the entire family. He said, "It is a high energy, high emotion show. The story line is on the lines of Ramayana, of good versus evil, and we see it pulling all members of the family."

When asked about the outgoing show, Segal said, "Pyaar Ke Do Naam…" was always designed as finite show and wasn't meant to have a storyline that could be pulled on. It is doing its job for the channel. The 20:00 slot has become a lot more competitive than it was, which perhaps is the case with almost all time bands. Nonetheless, our duty is to keep offering the variations to the audience. We don't want to leave any group unaddressed and hence, you will see these kinds of initiatives."

The channel has seen some very high numbers with its earlier kids programmes like 'Son Pari' on the slot. Segal pointed here that the expertise of STAR Plus in handling the domain was further seen when its shows like 'Karishma Ka Karishma', 'Hatim' and 'Khichdi' were acquired by channels like Disney and Pogo.

On the expectations from the show, Segal doesn't want to quote a figure, but said, "As is said, the slot is competitive but that doesn't mean that you work with low targets. That said, we expect the show to click with kids and families and create a loyal base for itself in the process."

'Antariksh' is based on the age-old concept of war between good and evil, but the battles will take place in a galaxy far away in outer space. This show has been produced by Ashim Samanta and Jyotin Goel from Wild Fire Entertainment. 'Antariksh' will also utilise computer generated graphics created by Jyoti Sagar.