MUMBAI: As the sun rose on Wednesday morning, Mumbai?s No. 1 Radio station, Radio Mirchi premiered the music of ?Kites? with Hrithik and Rajesh Roshan on the breakfast show with RJ Jeeturaaj. The Mirchi studio wore a completely different look for the special occasion. The entire studio was decked with colourful kites of various sizes, each with a message for the country?s hottest star.

Hrithik made the morning special for thousands of Mumbaikars, when he greeted them with a special hello and interacted with them on air. Duggu, as he is fondly called, revealed how he reminded Chacha Rajesh of a beautiful tune he had composed which finally is part of Kites now. ?When chacha sang ?Zindagi do pal ki?, Anurag, dad and me just fell in love with the song, it was so apt for the situation, we just had to have it? said Hrithik. ?Zindagi do pal ki?, is one of Hrithik?s favourite numbers from the film.

Kites, produced by Rakesh Roshan and directed by Anurag Basu, is one of the most awaited films of the year with its heady mix of romance, passion and adventure. The music composed by veteran Rajesh Roshan aptly captures the mood of the film, thus poised to be another gem from the music director.

Kites also stars International star Barbara Mori and Kanagana Ranaut in lead roles.

To catch the beautiful ?Zindagi do pal ki? and other songs from the film ?Kites?, tune into Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM!

MUMBAI: ?What‘s On India?, India‘s premier TV Guidance & Electronic Program Guide (EPG) Company today announced the appointment of Hanmer MS&L as its partner for Public Relations as well as for Digital Communication. Launched as a full-fledged TV channel late last year, What?s On India is committed to guiding Indian TV viewers in their personalized search for television content.

As part of the agreement, Hanmer MS&L will offer strategic consultation to enhance and build awareness of the concept of television viewing guidance and take brand What?s On India across the country. The direction would be to get viewers used to this popular concept and help them make the right choices while watching TV especially during unplanned viewing sessions.

Commenting on the appointment, Mr. Atul Phadnis, Founder and CEO, What‘s On India said, ?The WHAT?S ON INDIA channel is rapidly making its way to millions of TV screens across the country. While we have launched the channel in major markets through some of the largest operators, our goal is to continue to increase the channel?s coverage as well as educate consumers on the TV Guidance model. Hanmer MS&L have the ideas, experience and reach that we require and we are confident that their strategic use of digital media and effective communication will help us achieve our goals.?

Confirming the development, Mr. Jaideep Shergill, COO, Hanmer MS&L India. said, ?What?s On India is an idea whose time has come and we are thrilled to be part of it. Television viewing guidance is very popular in the west and with the growing number of channels in India, this idea comes as an effective and timely solution. What?s On India is not a conventional channel. Being the ?first and only? in India, this is a fantastic opportunity for us to strengthen the brand across the country.?

The What‘s On India channel is India?s first TV Guidance channel that helps viewers in their viewing choices. Research has shown that 70 percent of all TV sessions in India are ?unplanned? meaning viewers have switched on their TV sets without knowing what to watch. The What?s On India channel recommends, highlights, showcases and informs viewers of the best shows on TV across various interest areas.

MUMBAI: Aamir Khan had a fun time with the winners of 3 Idiots Mobile Contest at the screening of his movie at Fun Cinemas, Andheri on 18th March 2010. Jump Games had held a contest around the 3Idiots mobile content across operators. 12 winners from across the country were present in Mumbai for a screening of the film and a meet & greet with Aamir as part of the gratification.

In the game, all the characters of the film come alive in a set of 3 mini games - Love Phool, Rancho Run and C.I.T. (Complete Idiot‘s Test) which featured a good mix of Arcade, Racing and Quiz based genres. In addition to the game, users could also download non - gaming content like All Izz Well ringtones in 11 regional languages, behind the scene videos, animations and wallpapers.

Just after the screening of the movie, Aamir Khan, spent quality time with the contest winners from across the country. He spent close to one and a half hour talking, discussing and answering questions put forth by his fans. Topics varied from his role in 3Idiots, real life association with Rancho‘s life, his career moves and decisions, fitness tips, games related to movies being a huge hit with the audience etc. He also solved the Rubik‘s cube in front of the audience in slightly over a minute which was commendable.

The winners were extremely excited and happy to have spent so much time with their favorite actor. One of the contest winner‘s Mr. Raghuvendra Pratap Singh from Varanasi exclaimed, "I have been a fan of Aamir Khan for long. The 3 Idiots Mobile Contest developed by Jump Games gave me the opportunity to meet him in person. I am very happy and glad that I participated in the contest."

On this occasion Salil Bhargava, CEO of Jump Games, commented, "We at Jump Games are proud to be associated with one of the most successful Bollywood films of all time. The 3 Idiots mobile contest has been a phenomenal success and gave us an opportunity to reach out to the widest possible audience across India and for users to be up-close and personal with a star like Aamir Khan"
 

MUMBAI: The hunt for India?s best young brain came to an end as 13 year old Arshad Muhammed from Kochi was announced the ?Aviva Young Scholar Nat Geo Junior?.

In its third edition, National Geographic Channel?s nationwide school engagement programme, Aviva Young Scholar Nat Geo Junior Hunt saw over 4,00,000 children participating from over 400 schools across 14 cities in India.

As part of the gratification, the winner will host the Nat Geo Junior shows on the channel for three-months this year. The winner along with the other three national finalists and twenty city level finalists has also been awarded scholarship for higher studies by Aviva.

Aviva Young Scholar Nat Geo Junior Hunt is NGC?s endeavour to extend its children?s block on-ground, to provide a platform for kids, where they get to showcase their talent through a fun-filled and learning experience.

The broadcaster has tied up with British Council to design a module for grooming and selecting the finalists. All four finalists reached the finale after a host of rounds designed to assess their creativity, adaptability and abilities based on the multiple intelligence theory. These scientifically designed rounds included aptitude tests, games, puzzles, debates, thinking out of the box challenges; obstacle course and an outdoor adventure camp at Sithlakhet, Uttaranchal. All four finalists went through extensive grooming sessions with the British Council and the winner was selected by their experienced trainers.

NGC senior VP content and communication Rajesh Sheshadri says, ?Through this innovative school engagement programme, our endeavour is to stimulate the intellect of our young, curious audiences to re-think and learn more about the world they live in, while enjoying the complete experience. We are extremely thankful to our partners Aviva India and the British Council for supporting the initiative?.

Aviva Life Insurance India director ? marketing Vishal Gupta says, ?At Aviva, we have a special focus on children and we continuously work towards securing their future, whether through insurance products or opportunities to help them realize their true potential. We are pleased to have partnered with National Geographic Channel for the third edition of ?Aviva Young Scholar Nat Geo Junior Hunt? - a fantastic platform for young kids to showcase their talent and get an opportunity to win Aviva Scholarships. My heartiest congratulations to the winner and the other finalists, who I am sure, will motivate more kids from across the country to participate in the next season.?

British Council director, Young Audiences and Future Leaders Programme / Customer Experience Mike Welch opined, ?We?re again delighted to be involved with this programme. It may sound like bit of a clich? but nonetheless it?s true when I say that we have been impressed by the calibre of people entering this competition. It bodes well for India, and indeed the global community, that there are so many bright and engaged youngsters out there displaying so much potential!?

MUMBAI: City based college National Institute of Industrial Engineering (Nitie) from Mumbai beat out the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad to win the Lessons in Marketing Excellence initiative organised by CNBC TV18 and HUL. The initiative which took place over several months gave the opportunity to B Schools to deal with real world issues.

The final challenge was to create a campaign for Unique Identification (UID) that is being spearheaded by Nandan Nilekhani of the Unique Identification Authority of India. Each Indian under the initiative will have a unique number and the two teams had to create a marketing campaign that would reach out to every Indian. Nitie noted that a community based social marketing imitative was the way forward. The thing to bear in mind is that different age groups have their limitations. Adults for instance do not like thumb impressions. So behavioral changing communication is key. Kids can be targeted using posters, stickers and cartoon strips.

For women the message would be that a UID would empower them. They would no longer just be influencers. To reach tribals the students advocated tying up with NGOs and health workers. Slum communication needs to involve the municipal corporations and a top down approach. It is also key to track word of mouth in general to dispel any rumours. The overarching theme of the campaign would be Mera Pehchaan Mera Vimaan. This time won on the basis of several parameters including clarity of thought and measurability of solution.

The judges were Hindustan Unilever executive firector, HPC Opal Vittal, HUL executive director, foods Shrijeet Mishra, . Rama Bijapurkar, an Author and thought leader on Market Strategy and Consumer Issues in India, Ad filmmaker turned director of Paa and Cheeni Kum, R. Balki and CNBC Awaaz editor Sanjay Pugalia.

The theme of the campaign that IIM Ahmedabad proposed was Pehchaan Ek Fayda Anekh. They noted that in rural areas child benefit is high on the list of parents? priorities. This could be used to push UID. In urban areas one could do several things like celebrity campaigns, celebrity UID days. They also advocated an Each One Preach One initiative. This would involve having a rich person talk to somebody who is poor like a rickshaw driver and inform him of UID and its benefits. Interestingly the team also said that of they just had Rs. 100 to spend they would start with pamphlets.

Nilekhani expressed his appreciation of the effort that went in by both the teams. ?We can use these suggestions. The UID will allow for better delivery of services and cerate equal opportunities.? Another expert noted that there was a disconnect between the campaigns presented and the actual reality of those living below the poverty line. Ad filmmaker Prahlad Kakkar felt that the programmes need to be more proactive. Television and posters may be enough to reach those who are below the poverty line which is around 240 million. Sam Balsara noted the enormity of the task that lies before Nilekhani. Many people are media dark. ?It will be a task to reach people not exposed to media. Also the brand name is a key communication point. So UID needs to be re-branded as another name.? It was also suggested that mobile phones could be used as a marketing tool. So one cannot buy a mobile phone or a Sim card unless one has UID.

MUMBAI: STAR Pravah, the popular Marathi General Entertainment channel from STAR Entertainment Media Pvt Ltd, takes yet another leap in creating regional television history with ?Slumdog Crorepati?. Scheduled to be telecast on March 28, 2 pm on STAR Pravah, Slumdog Crorepati will be an exclusive and first opportunity for all the Marathi Television viewers to watch the most celebrated Oscar wining movie,-?Slumdog Millionaire? in their own language. This will be the film?s World Marathi Television Premiere.

Speaking about Slumdog Crorepati, Atul Ketkar, Programming Head, Star Pravah said, ?It is our constant endeavor to provide the best of entertainment to our viewers. Based in Mumbai, Slumdog Crorepati is an edge of the seat and wholesome entertainment experience for the entire family. And we felt a need to let our audiences experience this riveting tale, which has won hearts & critical acclaim world over, in their own language. We hope our audiences would welcome & enjoy this cinematic excellence recognized all over the world.?

While STAR Pravah Home Theatre has been entertaining audiences every Sunday with back to back entertaining movies, the viewers can look forward to this special Oscar winning offering in Marathi-Slumdog Crorepati on March 28, 2010. The movie bagged 3 Oscars and made India Proud with the historical Oscar & Grammy wins of musical maestro AR Rahman and Resul Pookutty. Directed by the famous Danny Boyle, the movie is about an 18 year old orphan ? Jamal Malik - from the slums of Mumbai and the biggest day of his life where he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on ?Kaun Banega Crorepati??. He is however arrested on suspicion of cheating and then unfolds the story of his life and the mission to win the game show and his lady love back.

Shot extensively in Mumbai & various parts of India, the film involved contribution from a large number of Indian crew. It also starred a host of talented Indian actors like Anil Kapoor, Mahesh Manjrekar, Irfan Khan, Freida Pinto, Saurabh Shukla and the affable Ayush Khedekar (youngest Jamal) and Tanvi Lonkar (Young Latika) amongst many others. All these shot to international fame and recognition with their stellar performances.

So tune in to STAR Pravah and experience the magic of ?Slumdog Millionaire? in Marathi, for the first time ever, on March 28, 2 pm and enjoy the movie with your friends and family.