MUMBAI: Hyderabad‘s chaala hot radio station Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM makes a starry beginning to the New year with Actor Ram ? the latest Tollywood sensation.Ram was at the Radio Mirchi studios to promote his latest movie ‘Maska‘ with the Bollywood damsel Hansika Motwani, which is slated as the big release this Sankranti.

Ram was in Mirchi studios to interact with his fans and to share his experience of working in the movie, about Hansika Motwani, his upcoming projects, his wish lists of actors, directors and ofcourse girls etc?. Maska is yet another youthful entertainer in lines with Ready (Ram‘s previous blockbuster) produced by MS Raju ? the most successful Tollywood producer in the recent times. Known for the picturesque & colorful picturisation of songs in all MS Raju films, Maska too is set to entertain the audience with the utmost visual treat.

A unique on-air contest was held on Radio Mirchi based on MS Raju‘s fixation to picturesque song sequences, where in the listeners had to make guesses on the song sequence starting from Ram‘s dress code to song picturisation for the song "Gunde godarila. However, few on-air tips and help were provided to the listeners with sound bytes from Ram. The ones who got close to the concept were given a life time chance to meet the hero.

After delivering a super-duper hit in 2008 with his movie ? Ready, Ram is set make yet another impact with his next release. Speaking on the occasion, Ram said, "Radio Mirchi is an absolute mix of good will & entertainment, the last time I was associated with Radio Mirchi as a good will ambassador for an initiative on Children‘s Day and this time I am here to interact with my fans. Thanks to Radio Mirchi for having given me the opportunity to be part of its programming"

MUMBAI: Audi, the German luxury car manufacturer announced today its sales figures for the calendar year 2008. Audi India‘s vehicle sales volume countrywide grew by 201 percent to 1,050 cars as compared to 349 units in 2007. In spite of the adverse market situation the last quarter has been impressive for Audi India as sales grew by 229 percent to 273 units as compared to 83 units in 2007. The month of December saw an increase of 145 percent to 76 cars as compared to 31 cars in December 2007.

"The year 2008 has been an exciting time for Audi India as we not only have achieved but exceeded our projected targets despite the overall slowdown in the automobile market. Having tripled our dealership network as compared to the previous year we are confident that we will take the brand even further to another level in 2009. Believing in the core brand value ‘Vorsprung durch Technik‘ Audi looks forward to become the most successful premium brand in India in the coming years," said Benoit Tiers, Managing Director Audi India.

In 2008 Audi launched the new Audi A4 and the super sports car Audi R8 in India. The Audi A4 recorded impressive sales in the last quarter and the
Audi R8 was sold out for 2008 even before the official launch.

As a manufacturer of progressive, sophisticated and technically perfect luxury cars, Audi‘s aura of glamour and lifestyle was associated with several high profile events in India in 2008 which included sponsoring of the leading fashion event of the year, Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week, the IIFA awards, Zubin Mehta‘s Concerts and many more. The unveiling of the spectacular sports car Audi R8 in Delhi in November 2008 was as much a style statement as it was a launch of a high performance super sports car.

The Audi model range in India comprising the new Audi A4, the Audi A6, the Audi A8, the Audi Q7, the Audi TT and Audi R8 is available at present at twelve dealerships across the country: in Delhi, Gurgaon, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Ludhiana, Chennai, Kochi and Kolkata.

MUMBAI: As per viewership data released by TAM, Discovery Channel‘s popular series MAN VS. WILD recorded a 1.14 %TVR in week 50, surpassing all its earlier records in the year. (Source: TAM TG: CS Males, 15-34, SEC AB, 6 metros, Tuesday, 9 pm). The episode was watched by an astonishing 1.7 million viewers across India.

Running successfully through the year, Man vs Wild has emerged as the No. 1 series for Discovery Channel and scores ahead of all movies released by English movie channels including HBO and Star Movies. In the year, it recorded higher viewership than Hollywood blockbusters like Casino Royale, Ghost Rider, Terminator and Rambo, cementing the growing trend of Indian viewers preferring an alternate to movies.

Man vs Wild airs on Discovery Channel every Tuesday at 9 pm as part of the Ultimate Discovery programmme line-up. A testament to its popularity, in the last 13-weeks, the series was watched by 32 million viewers across the country. During this period, Discovery Channel recorded 32% relative market share on Tuesdays at 9 pm, more than twice the share of English movie channels including Star Movies and HBO. In the same period (Tuesdays 9 pm), Discovery Channel widened the gap with all English news channels: 538% higher than NDTV 24X7; 823% higher than CNBC. (Source: TAM, TG : CS4+ , All India , Wk 40-52 , 9PM).

In the thrilling series Man vs Wild host Bear Grylls shows viewers how to survive the toughest environments on the planet by putting himself in the position of a stranded tourist and strives to survive the harsh unrelenting conditions. He parachutes into rainforests, abseils into deserts and lakes and onto the highest, most inhospitable peaks across the world. Once there he finds his way back to civilization, demonstrating local survival techniques and biting into gut-wrenching eats along the way.

MUMBAI: Mayan civilization may have ended some 1600 years ago, but this mysterious empire seems to be making a come-back‘. Star Movies unfolds the adventure of Apocalypto on January 09, 2009 at 11.05 pm.

Filmed in Veracruz, Mexico, the movie depicts the ancient Mayan life and also connotes to the Mayan Civilization. Directed by award winning director Mel Gibson, the Star cast also includes Rudy Youngblood, Dalia Hernandez, Jonathan Brewer and Morris Birdyellowhead along with the local indigenous Mayan actors.

A heart stopping mythic action -adventure set against the turbulent end times of the once great Mayan Civilization, where a peaceful tribe is viciously attacked by the warriors who seek slaves and human beings for sacrifice for their gods. The male patragonist, Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) hides his pregnant wife Seven (Dalia Hernandez) and his son in a deep hole near their tribe. And is captured while fighting for his people and his civilization.

Through a twist of fate and spurred by the power of his love for his woman and his family, will Jaguar Paw make a desperate break to return home and save his way of life.?

Seize all the action and thrill of Apocalypto on January 09, 2009 at 11.05 pm, exclusively only on Star Movies.

MUMBAI: The verdict is out and hell is just around the corner for the 20 selected Roadies! Post the nerve-wracking auditions, the biggest surprise is coming up on the very 1st journey episode of MTV Hero Honda Roadies: Hell Down Under, this Saturday, January 10 at 7 pm! The 20 chosen Roadies will meet the action king of Bollywood - Akshay Kumar, as he gives them their first task, a commando obstacle race! Akshay Kumar takes the Roadies through a ‘Chandni Chowk to China‘ experience, as he introduces a new tougher terrain & unthinkable tasks that puts the real back into reality!

Watch out for the 1st episode as Raghu makes a surprise entry, and with him comes the first shocking twist of the season! The Roadies are divided & are made to do a task decided by the khiladiyon ka khiladi - Akshay Kumar! What happens to them next? Have they already lost their chance to go ‘down under‘? Find out this Saturday at 7pm only on MTV!

Says Ashish Patil, GM MTV India and Sr. Vice President Creative & Content "If you thought last year was twisted, season 6 of MTV Hero Honda Roadies Hell Down Under will make it look like a children‘s film. Watch Akshay unleash hell in an explosive start to what promises to be the biggest season of Roadies till date!"

This season the stakes are higher as the prize money has been doubled from 5 lakhs to 10 lakhs. The Roadies will flag off their journey from New Delhi and will travel further down to Udaipur, Ahmedabad and Silvassa. The show gets more grueling as it goes international & the group lands in Adelaide, Australia. From there, the journey continues to Broken Hill, Gold Coast and Coffs Harbour to name a few. For the 20 chosen ones this year, MTV Roadies Hell Down Under is going to be a once-in-lifetime experience & a dream-come-true for most.

MUMBAI: Ten Sports, the most watched sports channel in the Sub-continent, will be the home to live action from the first big tournament semi-final of 2009 ? the Carling Cup.

The semi-finals, which features defending English Premier League champions Manchester United and popular Tottenham Hotspur, will be played on January 6 and 7, with the live telecast in India scheduled for 1:30 am IST on Wednesday, January 7, and 1:15 am on Thursday, January 8. The first semi-final features Tottenham and Burnley, while the second will see United take on another Championship side, Derby County.

Burnley will have to claim the scalp of their third Premier League opponents if they are to reach the final. Owen Coyle?s side have already knocked Fulham, Chelsea and Arsenal out of the competition and must now travel to White Hart Lane to face Spurs in the first leg, with the second leg to be played in the week starting January 19.

In the other semi-final Derby County, who eliminated Stoke with a last-minute penalty from Nathan Ellington in the last round, will have to complete some giant-killing of their own against United if they are to reach the final.

Manchester United progressed through to the last four courtesy of a 5-3 success over Blackburn with Carlos Tevez turning on the style with four goals.

The final takes place at Wembley on Sunday, 1 March.

Burnley stole all the headlines beating Arsenal 2-0 to make it to the semis. Claret?s keeper Brian Jensen was hailed the hero for Burnley as he put in a superb performance to prevent Arsenal?s young guns from progressing, saving from Bendtner, Vela and Merida amongst others. Also exceptional on that day was Kevin McDonald, the young midfielder who only joined the Clarets in the summer from Dundee. He netted both goals on the night to take his tally to just three for the season, and he admitted after the game that they were the best goals of his career so far.

The Carling Cup, officially known as the Football League Cup, is an English football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis, but unlike the FA Cup, where 731 teams entered in 2007-08, only 92 clubs can enter ? the 20 clubs of the FA Premier League, and the 72 clubs of The Football League, which organises the competition. The winners qualify for the UEFA Europa League if they have not qualified for European competition in some other way.