The Hindu Business Line : <i>Hum saath saath hain </i>

The Indian television industry has witnessed a dramatic change in the past decade, what with many new channels — in the entertainment and news space — being launched in recent years. As a result, there has been an increase in the number of software production companies in the country that provide content for these channels. Some of these channels — especially in the news space — and software companies are run by couples; well known among them are Radhika and Prannoy Roy; Ritu Dhawan and Rajat Sharma; Uma Gajapati Raju and Romesh Sharma; Anuradha Prasad and Rajiv Shukla; and Anita Kaul Basu and Siddhartha Basu.

The news space

Prannoy Roy and Radhika set up NDTV as a software company that produced The World This Week for Doordarshan. Over the years, the couple ploughed back their earnings into the organisation, and expanded their business to become a major player in the electronic media space. The Star News deal was a turning point for the company, where it provided news content for the foreign television network. While Roy anchored some of the key programmes, Radhika looked after the production. They eventually decided to launch their own channels — NDTV 24X7 and NDTV India (in Hindi) — in April 2003. NDTV had on its staff-list some of the most well-known faces of Indian electronic journalism. But the channel suffered a setback recently when Rajdeep Sardesai, one of its popular anchors, left the organisation to start his own channel, CNN-IBN, in collaboration with CNN.

Rajat Sharma was the anchor of Aap Ki Adalat on Zee TV (which later became Janata Ki Adalat when he moved out of Zee to Star network), and he also headed the channel's news wing. When he moved out of the channel, he took with him Ritu Dhawan whom he married in 1997. The couple, along with a dedicated team, produced Aaj Ki Baat on Doordarshan. They eventually started producing programmes for other channels as well.

Rajat Sharma launched India TV on May 20, 2004. The channel gained popularity with its sting operations which exposed the casting couch phenomenon and other wrongdoings involving some film personalities and religious leaders. Sharma has surely come a long way since his stint as a trainee journalist with Mumbai-based fortnightly, Onlooker (now defunct), in the 1980s.

Ritu Dhawan is actively involved in India TV's programming and looks after the company's administration with her husband. "India TV is not just a news channel but a movement in Indian journalism that would change the complexion of Indian journalism," says her husband, who is also the channel's Chairman.

Rajdeep Sardesai and Sagrika Ghosh are the latest to start a news channel of their own. Sardesai is the head of CNN-IBN and Sagrika is the Features Editor. The channel was launched on December 17, 2005, and is currently available in a few cities only. However, it is expected to be available throughout the country by end-January, 2006.

The content providers

Rajiv Shukla, a member of the Rajya Sabha, and Anuradha Prasad, well-known socialites in the Capital, started BAG Films in 1993 with just a handful of programmes. "Today, we are doing programmes for channels such as Star News, Star Plus, Sony and Doordarshan," says Anuradha.

"We work as a team. I look after the management operations, whereas Rajiv contributes in making major decisions having a long-term bearing on the company's prospects."

BAG Films produces news-related programmes as well as television serials. The company's turnover for 2004-05 was Rs 37 crore, while profit before tax stood at Rs 5.47 crore.

Romesh Sharma and Uma Gajapati Raju started a production house — Moving Pictures Company (India) Pvt. Ltd — on June 1, 1989 with a series of sports videos for ITC Ltd. By 1994, the company became a full-fledged content provider with its own Betacam editing suites and camera units.

"My wife is the company's Vice-Chairperson, and Director - Marketing and Business Development. I look after the overseas contacts; my main concern is the film's technical aspects. I am also the company's producer and director. We are a Rs 1.5 crore company and have different responsibilities to perform," says Romesh Sharma.

The company has produced travel-oriented short films, and has also been running a current affairs programme, India This Week, for Doordarshan since 1993, with over 300 episodes to its credit. Subah Savere, on Doordarshan — produced by its subsidiary, TVAM (India) Pvt Ltd — is also a popular show.

Romesh Sharma has produced a 10-part series titled, 25 Incredible Years. The film's first part — Two Assassinations and an Accident — won the Best National Film Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival in 2002. His latest production, Jihad - The Sword of Islam, is a 52-minute film for international distribution. He has also produced a 10-part series, Making Of A Nation.

He is currently producing a feature documentary, The Murder Of Daniel Pearl. However, he feels that there is a tremendous scope for animation films in India. Both Romesh and Uma are regulars at Delhi's party circuit.

Siddhartha Basu and Anita Kaul Basu run Synergy Communications, which was floated in 1996. Basu, an accomplished quizmaster, has been hosting Mastermind India on BBC since August 2001. "We are not after money. We have not raised money from the market. We owe nothing to anyone. Siddhartha looks after the company's creative side, while I look after the production, public relations and marketing. He is not a person who would sit on a chair and pass orders but one who likes to get involved in the project," says Anita.

Talking about their mega project Kaun Banega Crorepati, Anita says that right from the word go, they informed Star Plus that they would not get involved financially but would handle the project for a fee. "We were tentative while hiring the Big B, of course. But he swung it around and turned the programme into one of the greatest hits," she adds.

She admits that the couple likes to keep out of the limelight. "Of course, you cannot get away all the time but our effort is to restrict party appearances to a basic minimum."

Basu adds, "It's a medium that is exciting. I am not saying this because my company is operating in this segment, but because I genuinely feel that the medium offers you the chance to do a lot of work and vent your creative energy. However, I would also like to add in the same breath that the Indian TV industry is a nascent one and is going through an evolutionary phase."

Their company is doing financially well enough to keep them going and that's what matters.

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