Republic TV goes on air; Vikas Khanchandani charts out channel plans

After months of generating huge anticipation and interest, Arnab Goswami’s English news channel, Republic TV, has finally gone on air today (May 6, 2017) at 10 am. The broadcast commenced with Goswami’s address where he reiterated his brand of journalism that raises questions on various issues and encourages debates among the public. “You are Republic. We are your voice,” he emphasised and added that “A Republic will not bow down,” setting the tone of the channel. 

A day ahead of the launch on May 5, Goswami took to Twitter to announce, “This is Arnab. I’m live on Republic TV from 10 am on Super Saturday. I can’t wait to speak directly to you again! Join me on #May6WithArnab.” 

Adgully spoke to Vikas Khanchandani, CEO, Republic TV, at the channel’s office in Mumbai on the eve of the big launch, where we were witness to all the hectic preparations, newsroom madness, nervous excitement and tremendous enthusiasm among the staff. Here are the excerpts from the conversation… 

What will be the underline channel promise that Republic TV will work on?
We are currently feeding off Arnab’s popularity. For now, Republic TV is leaning on Arnab as a brand, but we will eventually start to stand for what Republic TV stands for over a period of time. The channel currently embodies the format of journalism that Arnab follows and the organisation will also have the same culture. Republic TV is equal to debate and Arnab is synonymous with debate. Although other channels have tried to own up that space, they haven’t been successful. Additionally, we will build other interesting formats to get in more audience other than Arnab’s fans and followers. We have built up the evening prime time in an interesting way and most importantly, we have been able to build a connection with India’s youth. Republic TV’s ability to interact with decision makers and the youth is a big added advantage. 

How does the channel plan on breaking through the clutter?
Our content will. Our pursuit of the story will. Our style of journalism will. A bunch of hungry, unsatiated young journalists will. Being ahead of the curve in terms of how nimble we are and how we have out-thought the market will. 

You've only used digital hiring (LinkedIn). How has it worked out?
We have used LinkedIn in a very effective manner. A large number of people showed interest in working with Republic TV. I still get around 100 messages each day from people who want to work with us. We feel extremely happy and blessed for the support that we have received from the people. Very rarely does a brand get this kind of enthusiasm and love from the people – whether it is from the corporate community, platform owners, viewers or advertisers. We couldn’t have asked for more. 

What would be Republic TV’s marketing and promotional strategy?
To promote the channel launch, Republic TV has used outdoor, television and print extensively. We have also used social media largely. Since Republic TV is a content brand, the ability of any content that we do and the conversation around it is huge. That has been the natural driver for most conversations, but apart from that we have done amplifications. The outdoor campaigns are visible across 80 cities in India with around 700 units and all the metros have really high visibility. We have made sure that all the consumer markets – including Southern and Eastern markets – have requisite visibility. We have regional channel support from Star and other entertainment channels and some English channels as well. Republic TV’s digital partner, Hotstar, is carrying ads in the IPL campaigns that they are doing. 

What about the channel sponsors?
We have eight official founding sponsors so far – Vivo, Reliance Jio, Renault, Hike, Ola, Star, Yes Bank and Microsoft. We will continue to make further announcements when the sponsors are ready as they want to announce it at the right time and the right place. 

How has the advertiser Interest been for the channel?
The advertisers have shown great interest in buying the slots. The strategic sponsorships on Arnab’s prime time show have been sold out completely. We have seen great reception from the advertisers. 

Who has designed the channel packaging for Republic TV?
A large part of the channel packaging work has been done by our in-house team. We have also worked with some international partners, but the major credit goes to our in-house team. 

How many shows will Arnab have?
On weekdays, Arnab will do a flagship Debate show at 9 pm and 10 pm slots, but for the next two months, he will extend the Prime Time Debate from Monday to Saturday. He will also do a weekend show on Sunday, which will be a slightly reflective debate. Additionally, Arnab will also have an interview show, which will air over the weekend. 

Arnab has changed the way people perceive journalism today. How do you see the future of journalism in India?
The future of journalism is very bright in India because this nation gives everyone a democratic platform, which allows complete freedom to do whatever we want to. We are a privileged lot in that sense, compared to other counterparts in Asia where journalists have very limited space to voice their opinion. But with Republic TV, the platform is soon going to be much more vibrant and robust for journalists to speak out. We will always stand for that and will be the voice of the people of India. We want to make sure that they get an opportunity to address the larger issues on our platform and make sure that we provide them the platform to do that.