MTV planning to launch new daily soap

Music channel MTV is planning to launch another daily soap after its first daily soap ‘Kitni Mast Hai Jindagi’ went off air. Although the programme delivered good TVRs in the first months, the viewership dropped subsequently.

One major culprit was the storyline, which, after a point of time, moved away from the youth. Cyrus Oshidar, senior vice-president, creative and content, MTV Networks India, says, “We have learnt from our mistakes. We will keep those in mind while working on the new soap.”

He adds, “We will initiate talks with a few production houses in the next 10 days, and then decide on a concept.”

“The story of the new daily soap will be more relevant for the youth, and will be probably based on the page 3 culture,” Oshidar hinted.

MTV, meanwhile, has also forged a strategic tie-up with the Sony Entertainment Television’s new reality show, ‘Fame Gurukul’. As part of a tie-up with SET, MTV will host a show ‘Fame Gurukul @ MTV’, which will an extension of ‘Fame Gurukul’.

Here’s how the tie-up works: Just after the show gets over on Sony at 8:30 pm, viewers will be asked to “catch more action on MTV”. Thus, viewers will be led to MTV where VJ Sophia will interview the knocked-out contestants of the day. Captured in 15 and 30-minute capsules, the show will air for 13 weeks, four days a week and will reveal the juiciest of tit-bits, the inside rivalries, candid confessions and never-seen footage from the main show.

Vikram Raizada, vice president, marketing, MTV Networks India, says, “This is a first of its kind deal that has happened in India. Generally, the same programme is repeated across different channels of one network. In this case, the footage for the two channels will be entirely different.”

Another reality show on MTV, Roadies III, is currently under production, and will be on air very soon. But this time around, MTV is producing the show itself, and has taken off the contract from Miditech.

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