INX Media’s music channel 9XM has roped in Coca- Cola and Vodafone as platinum sponsors for one year.

9XM has the option of four platinum corporate sponsors, of which two names are still not finalised.

“We have got on board with us Coca-Cola and Vodafone as platinum sponsors. We are in talks with other sponsors as well and will announce those soon,” says INX Media CEO Indrani Mukerjea.

During every on-ground or multimedia activity, a platinum sponsor’s name will be flashed everywhere.

For the platinum sponsors who continue with the music channel in the second year, 9XM has promised “extended benefits” (primarily rate benifits).

INX Media group director of revenue management (advertising sales and new media) Probal Gaanguly told indiantelevisionshows.com, “We have almost 50 advertisers on board for 9XM, including Airtel, Nokia, and others. We are finalising corporate sponsorship, and have so far zeroed in on Coca-Cola and Vodafone, with two more to come soon.”

Since its second month of inception, 9XM has topped ratings in the music channel genre.

9XM still has ad inventory to fill up. “For 9XM, we have 12-minutes every hour for advertisements, which we fill with channel promos in case we are short of ads,” said Mukerjea.

A dream wedding ceases to be a matter of fantasy but an imminent reality with STAR Plus’ new offering Rock N Roll Soniye. And all it takes to hold the ceremonies in true Indian tradition and opulence is great dancing skills coupled with witty answers and watch the best couple tie the knot majestically.

This season, STAR Plus gears up to entertain its viewers with inventive programming with its new offering Rock N Roll Soniye!

On this show, real life couples will entertain viewers with smashing dance performances and compatibility tests that will get them closer to their mega wedding.

Quipped with their spontaneity & humor, viewers can catch these couples in their playful spirit, as celebrity judges asses their performances and put hurdles in their journey to get the cash prize. The celebrity anchor keeps the spirits high with enthralling interactivity.

Marriages are made in heaven and STAR Plus helps you host it with grandeur, magnificence and never seen before opulence. So put on your dancing shoes, practice your filmi jhatkas and dance your way into your dream wedding…

Rock N Roll Soniye, coming soon on STAR Plus…

Chetan Hansraj, Aakashdeep Sehgal, Aamir Ali

Ekta Kapoor’s Mahabharat is all set to unveil the biggest of actors of small screen donning the most talked about characters in the mythological magnum opus. If sources are to be believed, most of the loyal actors of Balaji Telefilms will be featured in the show.

A mythological as big as Mahabharat, is bound to be a big budget project and Ekta is not leaving any stone unturned to make it a mega-success. Ekta’s Mahabharat will be competing with another mythological- Sagar Arts’ Ramayan - on a rival channel. So, to give it the initial push, Ekta wants to rope in all her big and loyal actors. Here’s the introductory blueprint of the larger-than-life epic.

Our source from the industry says, “The process of approaching actors is a well thought out one. Hiten Tejwani whose character Karan in Kyunki… is similar to that of Karn in the epic. Aman Verma is chosen to essay the role of Yudhishthir. Chetan Hansraj for his good physique, height and baritone voice will be playing Bheem.

Ram Kapoor, Sakshi Tanwar, Shabbir Ahluwalia

For Arjun’s role, Ekta has approached Shabbir Ahluwalia, because of his growing popularity. While Ram Kapoor is approached to play Dhritarashtra, the blind king and father of the Kauravs, who would be better than Akashdeep Sehgal to portray the menacing Duryodhan! Naman Shaw will be essaying the role of Abhimanyu.”

A well-placed source from the production house says, “Sakshi Tanwar, who’s been portraying the iconic character of Parvati Bhabi, has been approached for the role of Kunti. Ekta’s blue-eyed girl Anita will get into the robes of Draupadi. However, Gauri is also considered for the role of Draupadi. It is yet to be seen who wins the race.”

If all goes well, all the actors of Balaji will be featured in Mahabharat. However, the hunt for the most important characters of Lord Krishna and Bhishm Pitamah, is still on.

Gauri Pradhan, Aman Verma, Anita Hassanandani

Taking further steps into its constant endeavor in providing viewers meaningful and easy-to-understand insights into the business world that impacts their lives, India’s leading business channel, NDTV Profit, today announced a lineup of special shows on the upcoming Union Budget 2008-09. The shows will include previews, reviews, and expert opinions on the budget and its impact on all sections of our society.

After Naginn (Zee), Sahara One is soon coming up with a similar show called Neeli Aankhen. Rubina Sasihuddin Khan will be debuting as the icchadhari nagin and Deelip Thadeshwar will be paired opposite her.

“Shyam Ramsay had called me for an audition and he found his nagin for the show. I’m pretty excited and an loving my work,” says Rubina.

Elaborating on her character she explains, “Vaishali is a simple, pretty looking girl who has got a vardaan of becoming a human being. Neeli Aankhen is a story of Vaishali and her avatar as a human. It portrays her journey and the difficulties she faces.”

What’s the USP of this show? “I think the suspense, drama and romance is the USP of the show. Even the graphics and animation will bring in lots of accolades,” she adds further.

How did you prepare for the role? “To be frank I have not done any homework. I got the brief and started to work on it.”

Rubina who has done a film and even walked the ramp for Sunsilk is not intimidated with the camera. “Facing cameras is nothing new for me. I was not at all nervous on the first day of my shoot. Earlier I have done a Telagu film as the lead and after that I received this offer from Sahara One,” she utters.

Neeli Aankhen is the story of Vaishali, an icchadhari nagin who after being blessed comes to earth and has to face negative forces. Eventually she falls in love with Rahul (Deelip Thadeshwar). Rahul is the son of Rajan Oberoi, one of the richest industrialists in the city. He is unaware of the fact that the girl he wants to marry is an Icchadhari Nagin….a woman who can turn into a snake at her will.

If wishes were snakes, TRPs would scale new heights.

ESPN Star Sports, Asia’s leading sports broadcaster, will telecast live all the 15 One Day Internationals from the forthcoming Commonwealth Bank Series. India, Australia and Sri Lanka will fight it out down under in this tournament which gets underway on February 03, 2007. In the league stage, the three countries will play 4 matches respectively against each other. The top 2 will qualify for the best of the three finals. The sports broadcaster will also telecast live the only T20 match to be played between Australia and India on February 01, 2008.Catch all the action live on Star Sports KFC T-20 match and Tri – Nation Commonwealth Bank Series.

India`s largest Direct to Home (DTH) service provider, Dish TV India, an Essel Group company, reported a loss of Rs 1,164.37 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2007. The total revenue for the quarter stood at Rs 1,125.04 million.

Dish TV India is a satellite based DTH television service provider. Promoted by Essel Group - the parent company of Zee Network, Dish TV aims to be an entertainment provider and harbinger of the new age media in India. In a short span it has grown to a registered subscriber base of 2.6 million, growing at the rate of approximately one million subscribers per annum. It offers on its platform 180 national and international channels, with digital quality sound and picture. Dish TV has a vast distribution network of about 500 distributors and 35,000 dealers that spans the entire country. Dish TV uses world-class technology and equipments manufactured by best suppliers in the world.

Shares of the company declined Rs 1.65, or 2.4%, to trade at Rs 67.1. The total volume of shares traded was 583,939 at the BSE. (12.09 p.m., Friday)

Sab TV has come up with a new show called Bhaago KK Aaya, a comedy like the other shows on Sab. Kiku Sharda who essayed the role of KK, the boss in his last serial Sab Ka Bheja Fry will once again be seen as a boss.
Anooj Kapoor, business head Sab TV, says, “With Bheja Fry the character KK became very popular. It is very rare to see a particular comedy character garner so much of popularity. So after receiving positive feedback we decided to bring him back. It would be a half hour show and a tribute to KK. The producer of the show is Abhimanyu Singh of Contiloe and it is directed by Raju Palsekar.” Kiku Sharda will play KK who is the owner of a newspaper. It is a sitcom about the achievements of KK and his staff and their everyday struggle, their sorrows, pain, relief and joy.
The weekly show begins 29th of January and will be aired every Tuesday at 8.00 p.m

Kreeda Games ties up with NDTV Imagine’s show Nachle Ve with Saroj Khan, for its online dancing game Dance Mela, which will be the official gaming partner for Nachle Ve.  NDTV Imagine will be the official TV partner for the game.

Saroj Khan’s avatar will now teach gamers how to dance online in Dance Mela.

The highlight of this tie-up will be a weekly Nachle Ve with Saroj Khan ‘Dance Mela‘ tournament, which will be held within the game, and the winner’s dancing video will be aired on the show every week.

The game will also include exclusive accessories like clothes, jewellery and others specially created around the show, which will be available for gamers to buy and dress up their on-line avatars.

Kreeda Games CEO Quentin Staes-Polet said, “Saroj Khan is a respected Bollywood choreographer and teacher. We will introduce a specially created avatar for her in our online dancing game Dance Mela.”

NDTV Imagine EVP (business operations and ancillary revenues) Gaurav Gandhi said, “Online gaming is on rapid growth in the country, and the synergy of a strong on-air property like Nachle Ve with Saroj Khan with a strong gaming partner such as Dance Mela, will surely be great fit for both the game and the show.”

Vijay TV is all set to launch the fourth season of its hit comedy show Kalakkapovadhu Yaaru every Friday at 10 pm starting 25 January.

Kalakkapovadhu Yaaru has seen three successful seasons, introducing talented performers in the field of comedy and humour.

For the fourth season, the channel claims that over 1,000 participants took part in the auditions held in Chennai, Madurai, Coimbatore, Trichy and Tanjore districts, out of which 60 were selected. These participants will make their first appearance in Vodafone Kalakkapovadhu Yaaru 4 - Kalakal Aarambam this Friday.

The fourth innings of this show has a cash prize of Rs 500,000 for the comedy king who wins the Kalakkapovadhu Yaaru 4 title. The winner will also get a chance to host one of the popular shows on Vijay TV along with a chance to act in a feature film. This season will have a bouquet of talented performers who will prove their mettle in mimicry, stand-up and variety.