To mark the last episode, a coffee table book titled Amitabh Ka Khazana was released.

After over 300 episodes on air, nearly 3000 contestants, over 500 people on the hotseat, a more than 60,000 studio audience, over 90 million phone calls, and more than Rs 260 million given away as prize money, Kaun Banega Crorepati, the show that resurrected a channel and a fading Bollywood superstar, signed off today. With a promise that it would be back.

KBC, the show that Star licenced from Celador‘s Who wants To be a Millionaire and launched in June 2000, not only raised Star to the No. 1 position but also gave actor Amitabh Bachchan a fresh lease on superstardom.

Said Sameer Nair, executive V-P, content & communication, Star Network: "We‘ve enjoyed every moment of the show, shooting with Amitabh Bachchan, guests stars, interacting with audiences, and basking in the unprecedented success of the show. Every, such show needs a small break and now it‘s time for Kaun Banega Crorepati too. Come, July-August, and watch out? we‘ll be back with Amitabh Bachchan and a big, brighter and bigger show."

Whether Bachchan will be back in the hot seat if and when the show returns only time will tell; but the Big B did, during the course of the show, leave that particular issue open ended.

And as the guest on the grand finale show, Star Plus brought back Harshvardhan Nawathe, KBC‘s first ‘crorepati‘ (10 millionaire?).

From next week (16 January), Cinevista‘s Sanjivani, a hospital drama with actor Mohnish Behl in the lead, goes on air. And Star‘s rivals can get set for a channel stakes battle with a far more level playing field - without the Big B‘s shadow hanging over the proceedings.

Leo Burnett India MD Arvind Sharma

Global recession and changing brand management techniques have contributed to the setting up of a Brand Belief System by Leo Burnett India. The new concept is intended to get more consumers by converting them into brand loyalists by winning their belief in the product.

The Brand Belief System envisages putting the consumer at the center of a campaign, rather than treating him as the end target of an ad, says Sharma. "The only way brands can get consumers to stay tuned in to brands‘ commercial messages is by making a believer out of them", says national director, brand planning, Rajeev Sharma. Quoting global studies, Asia Pacific Regional Planning director John Woodward says a five per cent increase in consumer retention can result in a 25 per cent increase in profits and often even a 100 per cent growth rate.