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Victoria

The old lady of Bori Bunder (Times of India) has had a long and somewhat easy run in Mumbai. One hundred and sixty five years or so have passed, and there has been no serious challenger to her supremacy.

Now suddenly there is a flurry of activity, at least at the drawing board stage. Firstly, there is the impending launch of the Hindustan Times. This has been on the drawing board for so long that we will have to see an issue of the Mumbai edition to stop ourselves from thinking it's a dream. Still, one thinks they will be a doughty challenger to the incumbent royalty. After all, they have a score to settle with the TOI after all the bitter street fighting in Delhi.

Then, it was the Times that drew first blood with a "special invitation price." It ushered in the concept of predatory pricing and things have never been the same again. Well, that's a game two can play, and one wonders how the Times will react when the boot is on the other foot. I am sure she will not curl up and give in. One can almost hear the knives being sharpened!

As for me, I am looking forward to buy a Times of India issue at Re 1.

Zee Bhaskar

No, this is not a French way of pronouncing The Bhaskar. It refers to the news that Zee TV and Dainik Bhaskar are thinking of a newspaper in Mumbai. Tell me why my readers are not surprised?

You got it right first time! This column spoke about the possibility of Zee entering the print media before Mr Guha joined Zee.

But then, you must be used to this column being ahead of the Times. Sorry, I couldn't resist that bad pun.

And in the midst of all this expected action, what happens to the good old Indian Express? Well, if I knew, I would tell you.

Rajasthan Patrika

The grand dame of Rajasthan is turning fifty.

Old timers tell me there was a time when Rajasthan's Patrika was just that: Rajasthan Patrika.

A gracious time when the Kotharis lorded it over the State from their citadel-like headquarters in Jaipur. They were the masters of all they surveyed. Then Girish Agarwal and his Dainik Bhaskar came along and the impregnable fortress seemed to fall.

Yet, the empire is striking back and Gulab Kothari and his affable, well-educated sons seem to be recovering lost ground.

And now the Rajasthan Patrika is entering its Golden Jubilee.

A big event is apparently planned for early March and it seems the Patrika wants to keep the party going all through this year. Well, happy fifty years!

We'll keep you updated about what's happening on that front.

Percept H

Things really seem to be happening at Percept. The Singh brothers, Harindra (top) and Shailendra (bottom), have certainly come a long way in the last 15 years or so. People with a long memory describe Harindra's rise from a wannabe to the owner of a large and successful communications business as nothing short of spectacular. Starting off with little accounts such as Trendy garments and the like, Harindra has built Percept into a sizeable empire. Many eyebrows were raised when the suave Rajesh Pant, who had earned a name for himself as a professional in Lintas, Citibank and Sony, decided to throw in his lot with Harindra. Now, Rajesh Pant is on his way to set up Percept's operations in West Asia (an area he is familiar with from his Citi days), and Ajay Chandwani, who had a rather abrupt exit from the Lowe fold, takes his place at Percept.

Meanwhile Shailendra is seen as the blue-eyed boy of Subroto Roy. With the deepest pockets in India available to him, Shailendra in really onto a good thing.

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