The aim was to raise money for Magic Bus, a Mumbai-based charity.

One of Magic Bus‘ loyal supporters bid ?14,000 for the package. The IPL tickets were thus the top auction lot of the night, raising ?7,000 more than any other lot. Other lots included holidays in Florida, France and Udaipur as well as paintings by Indian artists and a diamond necklace and earring set.

A Magic Bus spokesman said, ?Lalit Modi very kindly offered us four tickets to the Indian Premier League Final for 2009 to help MAGIC BUS raise money at the Gala. The tickets to the Grand IPL Finale on 24 May 2009 included a personal invitation from the chairman and commissioner of the IPL for the Winning Bidder and three friends to some five star treatment with first class seats in the Chairman?s Box. (these seats are not available to the general public) and an opportunity to meet the players.

" The tickets also included stay for the winning bidder in the same Five Star Hotel as the Teams and tickets to both the Gala Closing dinner on 23 May 2009 and the IPL Final after party on 24 May 2009.?

Gala chair The Honorable Nisha Paul says, ?It is very fitting that a sporting prize has raised money for a sport for development charity. The IPL tickets were an incredible prize and were much appreciated -- they helped us to raise money for children living in poverty that need it the most.?

MUMBAI: The moment is finally here! In a matter of days, B-schools and management aspirants will have the most definitive yardstick to compare B-schools in India. India‘s leading business news channel CNBC-TV18, along with leading management portal MBAUniverse.com and global research agency TNS, is ready to announce the CNBC-TV18 ‘A List of B-Schools‘ on Saturday, November 8, 2008. CNBC-TV18‘s "A List of B-Schools" (‘A of B‘) is India‘s definitive guide and most comprehensive search ever for excellence in management education.

Bedrocked on a robust dual methodology and accessing all stakeholders, including students, prospects, alumni, corporate recruiters, headhunters and management intelligentsia, CNBC-TV18‘s "A List of B-Schools" reflects both popular opinion and rigorous performance indicators in its construct. To achieve a balanced perspective through an encompassing methodology, the "A of B" was bifurcated into 2 parallel research exercises. One part of the initiative was a PERCEPTION STUDY addressed to over 7500 students, alumni, recruiters and headhunters who were asked about their preferences in management education. The second aspect was a DATA BASED STUDY basis quantifiable data & category relevant performance indicators, as provided by over 60 participating b-schools. The ‘A of B Ranking‘ has drawn wide support from B-schools, Recruiters, MBA-students, Alumni and MBA-aspirants.

With participation of 70 premier B-schools, including the IIM‘s and over 7500 stakeholders, CNBC-TV18‘S "A LIST OF B-SCHOOLS" is one of India‘s largest and most comprehensive B-School ranking exercise ever.

The B-school Ranking will be unveiled during the second episode of the CNBC-TV18 special series on the rankings, aptly named, the "A list of B Schools". The series is power packed with insights on key trends in management and views from business leaders, field experts, star MBA students and campus life and the rankings episode will be aired at 1.30 pm and 7 pm on November 8. The series will be followed by a special "A LIST OF B-SCHOOLS" handbook published and distributed across the leading bookstores in the country including chains such as Landmark, Crossword etc. Advance orders are currently on for the same. For advance orders: SMS AB to 52622 Or log onto www.moneycontrol.com/bestsellers

To accomplish this mammoth research exercise, research teams were sent out to close to 100 B-schools across the country to conduct a data-intensive survey seeking responses and validations from B-schools on over 20 parameters. Alongside, as part of the study, an online perception survey was also carried out where students, recruiters and alumni voted for their preferences in management education. The survey was hosted by MBAUniverse.com.

MUMBAI: 9XM, the most-watched music channel in India and the world‘s biggest Bollywood music channel from India‘s INX Network, turned one year old this month.

In a market where the youth population outstrips the entire population of the USA and Japan combined, 9XM hit Indian television sets in October last year with nothing in the way of mass media marketing and promotion. With its non-stop uncut Bollywood hits format, animated self-deprecating channel hosts, and an irreverent attitude - encapsulated in the brand slogan "Haq Se" (in English this can be translated as "It‘s my right") - the channel shot to number one within three weeks of its launch. It has since completely dominated the music and youth centric genre and today commands a 41% share of audience, leaving MTV and a raft of domestic channels in its wake.

"The 9XM brand has become part of the youth culture in India organically by giving young people a platform to express themselves", says Indrani Mukerjea, Founder & CEO - INX Media. "Our launch strategy was to let young people discover the channel for themselves and identify with the brand. It rapidly took on a life of its own when young people began to interact with the channel via SMS messaging and discuss the brand within their own peer groups and online communities. What we are witnessing now," says Mukerjea, "is that same phenomenon in other countries such as the United Kingdom as our distribution network expands, taking the universal appeal of Bollywood song and dance to new markets around the world."

Anthony Pettifer, Group Director Brand and Communications - INX Media, adds, "For advertisers 9XM is an excellent fit with the youth market for brands such as Coca-Cola and Vodafone which benefit not only from the viewer numbers but also from the unique characteristics of the channel and its presentation style. This," says Pettifer "is often done by integrating advertisers‘ messages and visual icons with the animated content in a natural, unforced way, where the advertiser‘s brand is positively associated with the viewer‘s affinity for 9XM."

One year on, 9XM reaches more than 56 million viewers each week in India alone, and its audience is still growing. The channel is available to more than 8 million subscribers on the BskyB platform in the United Kingdom, where it is also carried on the BBC/ITV satellite joint venture, freesat, making it possible for a huge British audience to experience the best of Bollywood music at any time they want. 9XM also reaches a large footprint covering Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and Australasia, and in the pipeline are distribution plans which include the United States and other European countries.

Vikas Varma, Head, Music Entertainment Channels - INX Media, says, "In all, the channel can reach around 65 million viewers each week in more than 20 countries. SMS traffic to the channel is around 25,000 messages each day, and views of our animated VJ‘s video clips on community sites such as YouTube are in the tens of thousands. As Bollywood films become even more popular around the world, 9XM is well-positioned to become the window through which young people in other countries are introduced to the music and dance that is so integral to the fabric of modern Indian films, and which transcend language and cultural barriers to be appreciated by anyone, anywhere."

Bollywood films rank second only to Hollywood in the United States, doing more business there than films from any other country - and the same is true of Australia and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom Bollywood movies regularly enter the top ten listing, and in countries such as Germany, Bollywood films are often dubbed in German and shown regularly on TV.

As 9XM enters its second year of dominance in India and embarks on a broader mission to reach youth markets in other countries, its winning formula of back-to-back uncut Bollywood hits and no video jockeys to interrupt their flow is poised to continue filling a void in the music and entertainment television space.

"9XM has created a distinctive new space in music and entertainment that targets the needs and attitudes of youth, and not just the demographics", says Varma. "Thanks to its entertaining and innovative format and content we are entering our second year not only as the leading music and entertainment channel in India, but also as the World‘s biggest Bollywood music channel", he concludes.

MUMBAI: This Friday, move the time machine backwards and step into the most talked about part of Indian history - ?Partition?. Star Movies presents Friday Night Premiere Partition at 11.20pm on November 07 2008. The star cast includes the versatile Jimi Mistry, Kristin Kreuk, Neve Campbell and Irrfan Khan.

The movie is directed by Vic Sarin who grew up in Kashmir during the actual partition and exhibits the experience with his eye. The British withdrawal from India in 1947 sparked religious tension between the India?s Hindu and Muslim populations. Hoping to leave the ravages of the war behind, Gian Singh (Mistry) resigns from the British Indian Army. But he is soon drawn into the conflict after he saves Naseem (Kreuk), a 17-year-old Muslim girl, from a massacre. Despite all the social pressures, Gian finds himself falling in love with the vulnerable girl.

In this epic tale, lovers fight the odds to survive in a world surrounded by hate. So don?t miss to switch on your television screen as Partition makes its premiere on Indian screen only on Star Movies.

Filled with the best of entertainment, this blockbuster is a movie your whole family can enjoy. Catch the Partition on Friday, November 07th, at 11.20pm, exclusively on Star Movies.

MUMBAI: Blender, India‘s coolest music magazine today launched its first Indian cover with Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra adorning the November 2008 issue. The magazine‘s 7th edition was its HOT ISSUE and it finds Priyanka topping THE BLENDER HOT LIST 2008. It might be remembered that Maxim, Blender‘s sister publication, also featured Priyanka on the cover of its launch edition, 3 years ago.

Speaking on the occasion, Editor, Blender India, Sam Lal said,‘ The USP of Blender‘s take on Priyanka is that it showcases the musical side of the actress, something, which no other magazine has explored. She was the most unique yet unanimous choice for the cover.

Farhan Akhtar certainly seems to agree. In an interview with Blender, the director actor said, "On the sets of Don, I and Priyanka were constantly singing old Don Songs. Only, she was more in tune than I was. She should definitely sing more." Her co-star in many films, Bobby Deol echoed similar sentiments. "We acted in Andaz for the first time and I was pleasantly surprised to hear her humming. She was sitting on the side waiting for her lunch and suddenly she started singing. Soon the crew formed a circle around her and she was regaling an audience."

What makes the Hot List truly special is that everyone from AR Rahman, to Vishal-Shekhar, Salim-Sulaiman, Kailash Kher, Hard Kaur and a host of other stars have declared themselves to be very proud to be a part of Blender‘s yearly round-up.

MUMBAI: This week‘s episode of Chak De - Shehar Di Kudiyan Te Galli De Gunde ensures a lot of masti between the hosts and the judges. Rapid fire was the theme for the Friday episode, host Manoj Tiwari and Roshini Chopra played the word association game with the contestants and judges. Raveena Tandon was given the word ‘Playboy‘ to which she had to associate a name and she immediately replied ‘Salim‘ to which he sportingly said, not me but Akshay Kumar is the real playboy and true Khiladi and left the lady at a loss of words.

The highlight of the show was the Halloween which was the special theme for the Saturday episode. A competition was held between the Sardar of ‘Chudels‘ [Roshni Chopra] vs. the Sardar of ‘Bhoots‘ [Manoj Tiwari] along with their respective teams. To find out who scared whom and what was the scenario like on the show do not forget to tune in to Chak De - Shehar Di Kudiyan Te Galli De Gunde this Friday - Saturday and watch the unexpected answers of the Rapid Fire round and the sizzling performances of participants on the ‘Ghost‘ theme

Chak De - Shehar Di Kudiyan Te Galli De Gunde provides spirited entertainment with a youthful zing, pitting girls from the metros against boys from non-metros, in a hunt for the complete performer. The star studded judges include Raveena Tandon, music director duo - Salim-Sulaiman and ace chorographer Sandip Soparrkar. Produced by Sai Baba Telefilms, this dance-and-music extravaganza airs every Friday and Saturday at 9 pm on 9X,

So watch out for the dhamakay daar performances and the surprise elimination only on Dabur Vatika Chak De - Shehar Di Kudiyan Te Galli De Gunde powered by Zipouch. Tune-in every Friday and Saturday at 9 pm only on 9X.