Zee Talkies to don a new look

Celebrating its fourth anniversary, Zee Talkies is looking at a revamp, with a new tagline and on-air look, as well as fresh content

Zee Talkies, the Marathi movie channel, is preparing for a makeover as it celebrates its fourth anniversary.

As part of the makeover, the channel will sport a new tagline with a refreshed on-air look. The movie channel is also set to introduce new time-bands with popular and contemporary content.

Talking to afaqs!, Nikhil Sane, business head, Zee Talkies, says, "When we launched the channel in 2007, the Marathi movie industry, in particular, was not doing too well. From then to now, the movie business has picked up, with a large number of Marathi movies doing well in multiplexes. The industry today has big stars -- the likes of Sachin Pilgaonkar, Mahesh Manjrekar and Makrand Deshpande. There was a clear need to adopt this new wave of Marathi cinema."

The new look of the channel is an attempt to reflect and capture the expanding canvas of the Marathi film industry, which has begun portraying diverse subjects.

Sane shares that while Zee Talkies' journey began with "us"; now, it will be all about "you". From its previous tagline 'Maharashtracha Mahacinema', which meant 'Our Cinema, Big Cinema'; the channel's new tagline is 'Aapla Talkies Zee Talkies' meaning 'My Talkies, Zee Talkies'.

The refreshed on-air look of the channel is being supported with the introduction of new slots. Sane points out that copying the success template of its mother brand, Zee Cinema (the Hindi movie channel), Zee Talkies will also have its own big-bang movie band, titled 'Superstar Shanivaar'.

With the introduction of this slot, Sane informs, the channel is making an attempt to create a new viewing experience for the movie viewers. This new band will feature movies of Marathi superstars, such as Ashok Saraf and Siddharth Jadhav every Saturday night. For movies aired in this slot, the featured actor would also share movie information and anecdotes on-air.

As part of another slot, Talkies Premier, the channel will exclusively air the latest Marathi blockbusters. Sane shares that over the last year, Zee Talkies has acquired as many as 100 new movie titles. At present, the channel boasts of more than 500 titles in its library.

Zee Talkies would also bring in a movie host on the lines of a radio jockey. In the afternoon band, the movie host would share news from the world of Marathi cinema with the audience. Other new slots to be launched soon include Wajle Ki Baara and Apsara Aali.

To promote its fresh look and revamped content, Zee Talkies has planned an eight-week marketing campaign. For this, the channel has roped in popular faces of Marathi cinema, who would urge viewers to enjoy the new look and content on Zee Talkies.