Fearless fun

The title befits the age group it targets. Launching the ‘bindass’ brand, Zarina Mehta, co-founder of UTV (United Television) and chief executive officer of bindass calls it the "fun, frank and fearless brand that values freedom in all its forms.” With a planned investment of Rs 270 crore, bindass will provide entertainment on television, the Internet and the mobile. Its target is the age group 15-34 years which form a large percentage of TV viewers in India.

Zarina Mehta: entertainment on the mobile, web and TV

Bindass takes off with an all-Hindi entertainment channel for the masses, presenting an action series with an Indian heroine, comedy show, satire, etc, avoiding stereotyped soaps. Also planned are movies dubbed in Hindi. "It is a channel for those who are proud to speak in Hindi,” Business India, August 12, 2007 quotes Mehta. "UTV has been repeatedly re-engineering its business model to be at the top of the value chain in each of our businesses,” states UTV chairman Ron­nie Screwvala. The integrated media powerhouse is into the creation of television content, production and distribution of films, post-production, animation, etc. The new brand is a joint venture between UTV and Malaysia-based media company Astro Measat.

The websites of bindass will have mobile links where users can download content into their mobile phones. "There is tremendous potential in both mediums, mobile as well as Internet platforms. However, unlike mobile content, people are not yet used to paying for content on the web and that will take some time to change,” Mehta told the magazine. Also planned are bindass cafes where one can sip, surf, game or buy bindass merchandise.