Patrika Group makes key appointments for its multi-media platform, Catch

Shoma Chaudhury, Bharat Bhushan and Vinny Ganju will head the upcoming digital venture.

Patrika Group is all set to launch its new multi-media digital platform, Catch, which will deliver original and high quality news-on-the-run to its readers. The platform will combine traditional journalism with the innovation and responsiveness offered by internet as a medium.

It will present insights on everyday events, policies and ground realities that remain unchallenged. Going beyond what meets the eye, Catch News will seek to understand, explain and present opinions on issues with a strong focus on public interest.

Senior journalist and political commentator Shoma Chaudhury will join the new venture as editor-in-chief. Formerly, managing editor of Tehelka, a weekly Indian news magazine, she will now be responsible for the entire gamut of news and related content on the news portal. Speaking about this association, Chaudhury says, "Catch will be about substance in short pills. In an age of niche sites, it will celebrate the mix. It is a big creative challenge to do substantive journalism in an age of speed news. How do you tell stories in a way that doesn't dumb it down, yet keeps the impatient reader with you? The internet has massive potential, it can be worked at different rhythms -- that is what makes the project so exciting. I am happy it is part of the Rajasthan Patrika Group, which is respected for its principled journalism."

Bharat Bhushan, founder-editor of Mail Today, has also joined the project as editor. Expressing his thought about the same, he comments, "This is the medium of the future. I was keen to work with a new medium, where not only my experience as a journalist-editor would be useful, but I would also have the excitement of learning something new."

Vinny Ganju brings to Catch ten years of experience as part of the digital media landscape across major verticals like news and media, jobs, matrimony, real estate, and education. Ganju will be responsible for operations and business development at Catch News. On his appointment as chief operating officer, he says, "With Catch News, we are going to redefine how journalism is perceived in today's cacophonic news environment. We don't intend to just broadcast content, but trigger new conversations by challenging settled notions at a time when most media is dominated by sensationalism and run by affiliations."

Patrika Group operates in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat and Karnataka. It has also ventured into radio, outdoor, short-code and events, and claims to have a reach of more than 12,455,000 readers.