Earshot 8212; Chanidgarh

Light my fireWhen it comes to the PR department, Sony guys take the cake. We'll tell you why: because they always come up with great innovat...

Light my fire
When it comes to the PR department, Sony guys take the cake. We8217;ll tell you why: because they always come up with great innovative ideas. Like when they were going to telecast Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, they didn8217;t send the regular press release, instead they got some marriage invitation cards printed which said 8220;You8217;re cordially invited to witness the wedding of Salman and Madhuri on Saturday 8211; Venue: Sony Ent TV8221; and along with it they sent a sweet box. When it was Ghayal, they sent tickets for Super Theatre8217; time 8 O8217;clock. Many didn8217;t know that Super Theatre is the Saturday slot on Sony that shows recent blockbusters on TV. Recently, during the launch of their AXN channel, they sent a big match box . And during the press conference they gave away cans of Cease fire fire extinguishers along with the press kits.

Better times
Aneesh Dev who had a run of bad luck with his serial Samjhauta which went off DD before resurfacing on Zee as Aandhi Jazbaaton Ki is back in action. He is now producing a story called Dahak directed by Rajesh Ranashinge who had earlier directed Samjhauta to be telecast in the X-Zone slot on Zee. It stars Arif Zakaria and Sukanya Kulkarni. 8220;I can8217;t say anything about the story but my episodes will give the actual definition of the supernatural,8221; says Dev. He has also shot another pilot episode called Ek Muthi Aasmaan 8212; a family soap with Tushar Dalvi, Vaidehi, Sanjeev Seth, Smita Bansal, Rakesh Bedi amongst others which has been approved for Zee. Also in the pipeline is a sitcom called Abhi Zindagi Ka Le Lo Mazaa to be directed by someone called, Sanjay Gandhi.

Distance makes the heart8230;
Raman Kumar. After the bad times, he is in the news for some good reasons. His much talked about documentary on Assam called Distant Thunder is slated to be telecast on Doordarshan soon. And he has also started work on his film based on post-militant Punjab and if sources are to be believed he has signed on Naseeruddin Shah and Dimple Kapadia for the main lead in his yet untitled film!

Three Cheers
United Television UTV which has produced shows like Shanti, Sea Hawks and the recent Gumraah Zee threw a bash last week to launch its new serial Hip Hip Hurray! Zee. We couldn8217;t stop wondering why the venue for the bash was a bungalow called Roop Leela in Juhu and not a hotel or a restaurant. The party was quite a low key affair and not many scribes turned up though the entire cast and crew was present. The serial has a bunch of newcomers who are also studying in schools and colleges and is directed by a lady called Noopur Asthana. So if you8217;re fed up seeing the same old faces Here you can read Shekhar Suman, Amit Behl, Sachin Khedekar catch up with Hip Hip Hurray! every Wednesday, 8 pm.

Big, small star
Parmeet Sethi who made his mark with serials like Dastaan, Junoon quit television when he bagged films like Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Diljale. Though the films did well looks like it didn8217;t help Sethi in his career. So these days you again see him all over in serials like Jaane Bhi Do Paro, Nehle Pe Dehla both produced by Cinevista and directed by his wife Archana Puran Singh who also stars in them. He was also seen in an episode of their detective serial, Saboot which stars, Anita Kanwar. Small isn8217;t big but it can be beautiful.