Relatable & aspirational shows spearhead Zee's content: Deepak Rajadhyaksha

Zee TV is attempting to bring the classic mythological love story between sage Vishwamitra and Menaka in a contemporary setting in its upcoming show, ‘Piyaa Albela’. The show will replace ‘Jamai Raja’. 

Produced by Rajshri Productions, spearheaded by film-maker Sooraj R Barjatya, ‘Piyaa Albela’ premieres at 8.30 pm on Monday, March 6, 2017 and will air every Monday to Friday on Zee TV. The show features Marathi actor Akshay Mhatre as the male lead Naren, while Sheen Das makes her debut as the leading lady Pooja with the show. The show is set in Dehradun and Rishikesh. 

Deepak Rajadhyaksha, Deputy Business Head, Zee TV, commented, “Our content at the 8.30 pm slot, over the last couple of years, has been a game-changer for the industry. ‘Jamai Raja’, which now draws to close, broke stereotypes and placed the spotlight firmly on the male protagonist in an otherwise female-oriented domain. The show not only set a strong differentiator, but met with an overwhelming response and has had a glorious run of over two years. Replacing the show is ‘Piyaa Albela’, where we partner with Sooraj ji to introduce audiences to yet another unique male protagonist, one unlike any other you have seen on television so far.” 

Speaking further on the new show, Rajadhyaksha said, “The story is a contemporary love story, where two contrasting souls – one deeply spiritual and the other worldly and practical – are brought together by way of a contract and with an agenda to fulfill. The chemistry that unfolds gradually between the two makes for a very compelling narrative that we hope our audiences will appreciate.” 

Adgully caught up with Deepak Rajadhyaksha to know more about the marketing plans around ‘Piyaa Albela’, Zee TV’s content strategy for 2017, expanding the prime time band and more. Excerpts: 

On marketing plans for ‘Piyaa Albela’
“This show is definitely a strategic call. We are going all out in terms of our marketing campaign. We have set up a painting of this show at the Kala Ghoda Festival 2017. As in the case of film releases, we will be doing the promotion campaigns for ‘Piyaa Albela’ in a phased manner. 

On creating a connect through digital media
Since the story of ‘Piyaa Albela’ connects with every youth and their struggles, we intend to reach out to them through various media, and with digital being a platform that the youth has great access to, we will be doing a lot of initiatives on digital media. 

On Zee TV’s content strategy for 2017
There is only one strategy in terms of content – more likeable, loveable and relatable shows and characters will be seen on Zee in the coming future. We have already launched two shows in 2017 – ‘Mahek’ and ‘Woh Apna Sa’, and ‘Piyaa Albela’ will be the third launch this year. If you look at the characters, the shows, the plots, the concepts and the storytelling pattern, there is as much experimentation in them as there is a relatability factor that has been addressed very clearly. Thus, more and more relatable and aspirational shows will be seen on Zee TV. 

On shift in the content strategy
There is no shift. In fact, wherever we missed these elements in our content, the viewers rejected us. But when they are finding out that we are coming back with these elements, they are coming back. So it is very evident that ‘Mahek’ is being liked and so is ‘Who Apna Sa’ in just two weeks. And I am sure that ‘Piyaa Albela’, which is a huge experimentation for us but at the same time aspirational and tells the story of today’s youth, will be well-received too by the viewers. 

On segregating the time bands
We start our prime time at 6.30 pm and now we also have shows in the 10 pm time band. In the coming months we will introduce many more new shows. 

It all depends on the viewers available in different slots to watch television. Different viewers are available at different time slots, so the programming of each slot is different on any channel. On Zee TV, the content gets changed at every time slot and that is a conscious decision. We understand the availability of viewers in different markets and accordingly design our content. 

On the strategy for weekend shows
In terms of our weekend shows, we are launching ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs’ on February 25, 2017. The theme of the show will be “Let’s go back to our schools”. We have requested teachers of the contestants to be a part of this show in any way that they can contribute. Students learn more from their teachers than parents while they are in school. There is a huge impact that teachers have – be it a school teacher or music teachers. “Aadat se shararati, singing ke maharati” is our thought for ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs’. And throughout the show we will continue with this concept.