By A Correspondent
Viacom18 announced the launch of its Tamil general entertainment channel Colors Tamil. The channel will be available from February 19 in High and Standard Definition (HD and SD) with 22 hours of original content every week. At launch, the channel will be available in all leading cable networks catering to an estimated 11mn homes in rest of Tamil Nadu through Tamil Nadu Arasu Corporation, and 3.5 mn homes in Greater Chennai through SCV, TCCL among others. Furthermore the channel will be available on all DTH platforms – Sun Direct, Tata Sky, Airtel, DishTv & Videocon D2h – reaching out to around 5.5mn households. Significantly, the channel will also be available on Viacom18’s digital platform, Voot.
Speaking at the launch, Sudhanshu Vats, Group CEO – Viacom18 said, “After spreading our wings across seven languages, Colors is entering the lucrative, fast-growing and discerning Tamil entertainment market – in line with our stated strategy to drive regional growth aggressively. Our proven ability to break the clutter and disrupt the status quo will help us tell endearing stories to over 20Mn TV households in the state and a large global audience in the coming months and years.”
Added Ravish Kumar, Head, Regional Entertainment – Viacom18: “Tamil Nadu, the country’s 6th most populous state (per Census 2011) is among the bigger television content consuming markets, with a per capita daily viewership of ~3 hours which is more than that of the hindi speaking markets (~2.5 hours). With an estimated base of 1150 advertisers, Tamil Nadu is one of the more lucrative broadcast entertainment markets in India. Our biggest drive is to deliver new and never before seen content to the Tamil audience. We have invested big in conceptualizing programs that are inspiring, innovative, experimental and technically sound. With 22 hours of original content at launch, we are more than confident of Colors Tamil becoming a blockbuster hit here.”
Said Anup Chandrasekharan, Business Head – Colors Tamil said, “Idhu Namma Oru Coloru … the Colors of our land. Our tagline encapsulates our vision of COLORS Tamil. It is a platform that aims to entertain, enrich and engage individuals across the length and breadth of the state. Our study of the existing broadcast entertainment market suggests that there is a need gap between what the audience wants to watch and the kind of content that is available to them. Therefore our focus on content that is differentiated, thought provoking and socially conscious. Colors Tamil is a promise of optimism, celebration and hope!”
The channel will offer a range of fiction and non-fiction programs spanning from family drama, reality TV, comedy to fantasy, informed Ravish Kumar. As part of its fiction lineup, Colors Tamil has three shows that portray strong women protagonists. The flagship show of the channel that the channel heads hope will create the right buzz at launch will reality show ‘Enge Veetu Maapilai’. It will feature the hunt for the ideal match for the channel’s Brand Ambassador and Kollywood superstar Arya. Spanning over 40 episodes, the show will air the search for the right match for the superstar. And then there’s ‘Colors Super Kids’, a kind talent show for children, offering them a platform to showcase their talents without competing against each other.