Kahaani camps ki

All eyes might be on their starry moves but the actors really are bit players in this game. This is a fight for supremacy between the four camps of the industry: Star, Sony, Zee and Balaji Telefilms.

And they are in very filmi company. Cliques and groupings have long been part of how Bollywood works. There were the Chopras Yash Chopra and co., the Bachchans, the SRK group 8212; the camp of the future 8212; the other Chopras Vidhu Vinod Chopra and the Factory Ram Gopal Varma. That camps are now calling the shots in TV is, well, all about the money. According to a report by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and PricewaterhouseCoopers, the television industry was worth Rs 19,120 crore in 2006.

Unlike in Bollywood, channels, not actors, have the wherewithal to call the shots in the day-to-day working of the industry. 8220;Though there are no official turnover figures for Star Plus and Sony they are not listed companies but between the two of them and Zee TV, they generated revenue above Rs 3000 crore in the last calendar year,8221; says media analyst Girish Swar.

If channels are the big players, Ekta Kapoor8217;s Balaji Telefilms is no minnow. Its latest market capitalisation is Rs 870 crore with a net sales

figure of Rs 280 crore for the 2006 financial year, says Swar.

But more than its financial worth, it is the maniacal hold it has on its actors that makes Balaji the perfect player in the camp war. From all accounts, Ekta, the woman who brought kitchen politics to drawing rooms, runs a pretty tight ship. Balaji uses exclusive contracts to keep actors in its fold and rewards loyalists like Ronit Roy, Hiten Tejwani and Shweta Tiwari but heaven help the actor who falls foul of her. 8220;Deserters8221; like Amarr Upadhayay and Rajeev Khandelwal have found that out the hard way. It helps that Balaji has the backing of a powerful channel like Star. In fact, some industry watchers speak of three camps not four 8212; 90 per cent of Balaji8217;s content is, after all, s howcased on Star. That apart, Balaji8217;s influence on the industry is unmistakable. 8220;It8217;s the only production house whose actors can afford to work without a channel contract and be assured of work even if he is not aligned to any of the three channel camps of Star, Sony and Zee TV,8221; reasons actor Manish Goyal.

Needless to say, Indian television space was never this crowded. In the Doordarshan era, the mandarins of Mandi House ran the show with the studied somnolence of a pious baa. Then came satellite TV and the end of innocence. In the initial years, there was room for players other than DD. 8220;There were two major players in the Indian sky, DD and Zee TV. There were no camps as there wasn8217;t the need for any,8221; says host and anchor Archana Puran Singh, who started her career with Kya Scene Hai on Zee TV. The entry of Sony and Star changed all that.

Over the last few years, as the industry grew exponentially, camps turned fierce and unapologetic about marking their turf and consolidating their assets 8212; in this case, actors and producers. Television actors might not command anywhere near the clout as Bollywood big names but they push up TRPs and define the worth and power of a camp. Mona Singh8217;s recent renewed exclusivity contract with Sony may be the beginning of securing her loyalty Sony8217;s creative head Sandiip Sikcand calls her the channel8217;s brand ambassador. 8220;If you are a high profile star on one channel, the other channel won8217;t touch you. It8217;s understood that I will automatically decline an offer from another channel to me and that8217;s why something big rarely comes from another channel,8221; says Goyal, who after doing five shows on Star Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kasautii Zindagi Kay, Sara Akash, Bhabhi8230; has been branded a Star camp loyalist.

And if the actors make up the brand equity of each channel, they need to be seen everywhere. And to ensure that, producers are willing to pull as many strings as possible. It is common practice, for example, for channels to push for their brood at award shows. Shashi Ranjan, whose Indian Television Awards ITA has been telecast on most satellite channels like Star Plus, Sony and Zee TV in its six years of existence, says, 8220;It8217;s not unusual for the channel to insist on a greater inclusion of its channel faces in the show. 8221;

And every time a star is born, the channel makes sure that his or her recall value has a ripple effect on other productions. So, actors are used for cross promotions, asked to make guest appearances in channel events and paraded in award shows telecast on the channel. The season one finalists of Indian Idol, Abhijit Sawant and Amit Sana, were made to appear on every other show and event on Sony a month after they shot into fame. 8220;We also pay 20 per cent of our earnings from other performances and shows to the channel in the contract period,8221; informs Indian Idol 2 winner Sandeep Acharya.

Sony has promptly cashed in on the buzz around two of its Bigg Boss actors, Rakhi Sawant and Amit Sadh, in shows like Comedy Ka Badshah and Durgesh Nandinii respectively. The Star-Balaji combo last week had a two-day three-hour-long combined episode of Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kyunkii Saas Bhi Kabhie Bahu Thi and Kayamath, involving a cast of 100 plus actors from the three shows. The show of strength was well timed: on the days Zee TV launched its answer to Kyunkii, Teen Bahuraniyan. 8220;Having our own loyal actors helps in planning such mammoth events at short notice,8221; says Nivedita Basu, deputy creative head of Balaji Telefilms. 8220;One may call it the power of the camp, but we expect exclusivity from our actors,8221; adds Basu.

Reality-sellers

Stars in the stable: Rajeev Khandelwal joins Mona Singh, Mandira Bedi, Archana Puran Singh, creative head Sandiip Sikcand top and Abhijit Sawant to power this channel

Big coup: Smriti 8216;Tulsi8217; Iraani8217;s decision to make her daily debut on Sony; wooing Balaji-Star combo8217;s most popular star couple Rajeev Khandelwal and Aamna Sharif. Sony8217;s production partnership in Sanjay Leela Bhansali8217;s Sanwariya had the reclusive director surfacing as a judge in Jhalak Dikhh Laja; Arshad Warsi has unofficially committed to host all seasons of Bigg Boss

USP: Two of the biggest reality show successes in recent times 8211; Indian Idol and Bigg Boss
What it8217;s worth: Around 1.6 billion Rs 6,800 cr

Star power

Stars in the stable: Smriti Z Iraani is still Star8217;s best-known face. The Balaji gang, J.D. Majethia, Siddharth Basu and creative head Shailaja Kejriwal are the other movers of Indian TV8217;s leading channel

Big coup: Shah Rukh Khan on Kaun Banega Crorepati.
USP: Has half of the top TRP-earning soaps
What it8217;s worth: Around 3.75 billion Rs 16,200cr

The K Company

Stars in the stable: Akashdeep Saigal, prima donna Ekta Kapoor8217;s find, is a key member of the Balaji camp, along with Hiten Tejwani,shy;Ram Kapoor, Ronit Roy top Sakshi Tanwar, Shweta Tiwari, Shabeer Ahluwalia, Eijaz Khan, Vikas Sethi, Akashdeep Saigal, Anita Hassanandani, Pulkit Samrat and Sanjeeda Sheikh

Big coup: Getting fellow TV producer and Sony favourite Aruna Irani to act in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki; roping in Rupa Ganguli for a daily soap in Mumbai.

USP: Mother of all TV production houses; a dream launchpad for every newcomer.
What it8217;s worth: Around 0.193 billion Rs 820cr