Indian network 92.7 Big FM is all set to launch a new show featuring renowned actor Manav Gohil for its listeners in Gujarat.

The show, titled 'Morning Cha with Manav Gohil' will be on air from February 6 and will be launched in Baroda, Surat, Rajkot and Ahmedabad.

It will air from 7 AM to 9 AM from Monday to Friday with retro music and trivia and a light hearted theme.

Gohil , a familiar name in Indian households, hails from Surendranagar, Gujarat.

Commenting on the launch of the new show, a spokesperson of the channel said:  “The show aims to celebrate morning time which is usually spent with family adding fun, entertainment and warm tonality.”

Speaking on his association with the show,  Manav Gohil said: “I have spent more than a decade in the entertainment industry, wherein I have had the opportunity to explore various mediums and facets of this exciting space. I am excited to explore a new territory – radio, which is the largest platform when it comes to sheer reach.”

Indian network Radio City has launched on 95 FM in Kolhapur, its 11^th station in the western state of Maharashtra.

Its existing stations in the state include Pune, Ahmednagar, Solapur, Sangli, Nanded, Jalgaon, Akola, Nagpur and Nashik.

The station was launched by Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan who introduced its presenters and shows to the listeners.

Popular Marathi actress Sai Tamhankar took the listeners on a city tour as a part of the launch. 

A grand rally was organized from the famous temple of Goddess Mahalaxmi in the city to the Radio City studio.

Tamhankar participated in the rally along with the RJs of the FM channel accompanied by a band of artists playing Kolhapuri music.

Commenting on the launch, Abraham Thomas, CEO, Music Broadcast Limited said:  Kolhapur being one of the fastest growing cities of Maharashtra, we are all geared up to redefine radio entertainment post carving our footprint in metropolitan and Tier 2 cities.”

Outreach, an Indian social organization, will organise a three-day ‘Radio Fair’ on the occasion of the World Radio Day (WRD) in Bhubaneswar, the capital of the state of Odisha between February 12 and 14.

The fair, in its third edition, has been praised by UNESCO and described as an example for radio activists at international level.

This year, the fair will feature various international and national radio stations, RJs and listeners.

1500 vintage radio sets and gramophone records will also be exhibited at the event.

Operators from Kolkata will show the use and techniques of Ham radio and radio enthusiasts from West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Bihar will share their experience on shortwave listening.

Akhil Mittal will get a lifetime achievement award for his contribution to radio at the Outreach National Radio Award 2016.

Yunus Khan , presenter of Vividh Bharti Mumbai’s ‘Jijnasa’, will be presented with the ‘Popular Radio Programme of the Year’ award.

Anu Kapoor, who hosts a popular weekday retro show on Bog FM will get the ‘Popular Radio Presenter of the Year’ award.

Community radio of Uttar Pradesh ‘Salaam Namaste’ will get the ‘Community Radio Station of the Year’ award.

For the best use of radio in public service UNICEF has been nominated for an award.

A new internet radio channel www.radiobhubaneswar.com will be launched at the fair. It will focus on live broadcasting of different programmes held in Bhubaneswar.

Famous radio drama ‘Prema Chadhei’ will also be staged on the occasion.

“Radio listeners from many parts of country are coming to visit the fair as the fair is getting popular. But due to demonetisation and election there are lack of sponsors this time. So its more difficult to organise such an expensive event,” said convener of Outreach International Radio Fair Subrat Kumar Pati.

Indian network 92.7 Big FM has launched a new show with a storytelling format called 'Lamhe with Mantra'.

The fiction-based show, which is presented by actor and RJ Mantra, was launched on February 14.

The two-hour show will air mpnday to Friday, from 9 pm across all of the network’s Hindi speaking markets.

According to the station, the show brings out romantic moments of one's life which become memorable and entertaining stories.

It is structured in a narrative and active radio drama format, based on a particular theme of romance for each day.

The narrator and the male lead of the story will be played by RJ Mantra, whereas the female lead is performed by various voice-artists.

A spokesperson from Big FM said: "We have experimented with various formats, and set benchmarks in the past. With this show, we aim to form a special connect with its listeners through heartwarming stories to which they can relate to."

RJ Mantra said: "Radio has always been my first love, as it has given me so much in life. I was missing being on air and through my new show I am living both my passions together - radio and theatre, with dramatic play readings and storytelling on radio."

Radio Madhuban 90.4 FM, a community radio station dedicated to the development of tribal community in Mount Abu area of the state of Rajasthan in India, organised a radio awareness event for the students of USB College to mark World Radio Day on February 13.

Focusing on the theme ‘Radio is You’, the students participated in interactive sessions with the station's presenters.

Over 200 students and staff participated in the event.

They presented skits to show how radio can bring awareness on social issues like child marriage, sanitation, and give information about different government schemes in the villages.

Radio Madhuban team with the help of local community composed a song titled “Hamara Radio Hamari Awaz”(Our Radio, Our Voice)  and a drama “Chintu aur Mintu” which were broadcast on air. Listeners shared their radio memories and life changing experiences with station RJs through a special phone in program.

RJ Vinod of Radio Madhuban also shared his experience of how radio has changed his life.

Ajay Singh Bhati, Director, USB College appreciated the efforts of Radio Madhuban in bringing awareness in local community.

Station Head, Radio Madhuban, Yashwant Patil said radio is a good medium of education, information and entertainment and everyone should listen to radio. 

The whole studio was filled with the colors of happiness and experiences.  

Indian network 92.7 Big FM, has launched a late evening show titled Sudhu Dujoney in Kolkata, the capital of the state of Bengal.

Hosted by RJ Chaitali, the show airs Monday to Sunday from 9 pm to 12 am.

According to the station, the show will address issues related to love and relationships, providing an emotional space for listeners to share their stories, worries and queries associated with love.

It airs surreal and cross culture love stories shared by listeners, which are narrated and reinterpreted from different angles.

RJ Chaitali through also imparts relationship counselling accompanied by Bengali and Hindi romantic retro music.

A spokesperson from Big FM said: “Through this show we not only aim to entertain listeners, but also provide them emotional support with relationship counseling. We look forward to get a good response from listeners and connect with them emotionally through this show.”

Indian network 93.5 Red FM wrapped up its ‘Riders Music Festival’ in Delhi on Monday.

The two-day long event began with bike rallies from different locations in the city towards the festival venue, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium

A first of its kind biking cum music festival, it featured performances by more than 16 popular artists.

These included Lucky Ali, Hari and Sukhmani, Kutle Khan, Monophonik, Voctronica, The Local Train and Amit Trivedi.

Popular stand-up comedians Kanan Gill and Kenny Sebastian also performed at the event.

The festival will now move to other parts of the country and the next location will be announced soon.

Speaking at the event, Nisha Narayan, COO, Red FM said: “This was the first time we did an event like this and the response has been phenomenal. The music was carefully curated keeping the theme in mind and was a perfect blend of rock and electronic. With a footfall of 15,000, over 20 brand associations and 16+ artists; Riders Music Festival has been a huge success and will soon move to other cities as well.”

Entry submissions to India’s annual Excellence in Radio Awards (ERA) 2017 to recognise and reward outstanding content and creativity in the industry will close in one week.

The awards started in 2006 and celebrate the very best of Indian radio, honouring outstanding programming, on-air personalities, marketing & promotions and creativity within the industry.

They will be held this year along with the annual one-day India Radio Forum.

This year’s categories include Programming, Talent, Marketing & Promotions and Advertising. The panel of judges will include reputed radio, advertising, television and creative professionals.

Last year, Red FM topped the winners list with 11 awards, followed by Big FM which grabbed eight metals and Radio Mirchi was third with six metals.

The last date for submitting entries is March 2.

For details, visit www.indiaradioforum.com

Indian network Big FM has announced the first edition of its on-air radio film awards- 'Hit Thhe Hit Rahenge'(Once a hit, always a hit).

The property aims at commemorating the golden era of Indian cinema by acknowledging evergreen films and iconic stars.

Award categories include Best Music Director, Best Song, Best Comedian, Best Villain, Best Heroine, Best playback singer Female, Best Film Director, Best Playback Singer Male, Best Film and Best Hero 

Listeners from nine of the network’s stations can nominate, vote, select and recognize their all time favourite movies and performers, by voting through sms, whatsapp and social media platforms.

The initiative is spread across five weeks starting February 20.

Two award categories will be announced every Monday and Tuesday, giving listeners 10 options to choose from and vote throughout the week.

Winners across these two categories will be announced every Saturday.

A spokesperson from 92.7 BIG FM said: "The awards are a tribute to the iconic films and characters that have left indelible impressions in the hearts of a Bollywood crazy nation." 

Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL), which operates Radio Mirchi, has acquired 21 new licenses in the 2^nd batch of Phase-3 FM auctions held in India.

The auctions, held by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry between October 26 and December 14 last year, sold 66 radio channels for $30 million in 48 cities while 200 channels in 44 cities found no takers.

In the first batch of the FM Phase III radio auctions ministry had put up 135 channels for auction, and at closure of the e-Auction in September 2015, 97 channels had been sold provisionally in 56 cities.

The total value of bids made by ENIL is $7.68 million (INR 513 million).

With these new frequencies, which are expected to become operational by the end of Financial year 2018, Radio Mirchi’s brand presence will increase from 43 to 64 cities in the country.
The new cities are Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Mehsana, Bharuch and Palanpur in Gujarat, Akola and Amravati in Maharashtra, Tiruchirapalli and Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh, Warangal in Telengana, Durg/Bhilai and Raigarh in Chhatisgarh, Hubli/Dharwad and Mysuru in Karnataka, Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, Asansol and Siliguri in West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry.
 

Indian network Big FM has announced ‘Big City Pride Awards’- a property that identifies people, places or businesses that make a city proud.

The activity will take place across Chandigarh, Jammu, Srinagar, Shimla, Amritsar, Chennai, Ranchi, Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Surat, Jodhpur, Kota, Agra, Kanpur along with Kolkata and Bangalore.

The awards will cover a wide variety of categories unique to a particular city - from its best eateries and restaurants, to sought-after real estate properties and developers, to popular mall spaces, to qualitative educational institutions and noteworthy personalities.

Top four nominees will be shortlisted solely based on public voting, while the winners will be selected based on 70 percent public and 30 percent jury voting.

The winners will be announced every month from March onwards till the end of the yea

In addition to public voting through SMS, RJs will go on-ground in their respective cities to provide the listeners an opportunity to cast their votes for the nominees through Vox-pops.

The winner of the first category will be announced in the first two weeks and the second title will be announced during the following week. 

Listeners whose choice matches with that of the jury will win a trophy and a certificate from the station.

A spokesperson from Big FM said: “Every city has certain inherent characteristics that make them unique, forming the pride of its populace. Through these awards, we want to underline that a city’s pride is Big FM’s pride too.”

Indian network 92.7 Big FM has introduced a segment titled ‘Ladies First’ across all its shows to commemorate International Women’s Day.

It applauds women who manage multiple roles at home and at work and still strike a balance in life.

The segment will air from March to March 8 on all of its 45 stations in the country.

The breakfast shows will feature stories of inspiring female characters of Bollywood.

Retro Bollywood show ‘Suhaana Safar with Annu Kapoor’ will share some lesser known facts about impactful women of Indian cinema.

The afternoon show will tell stories of simplistic yet stunning beauties of Bollywood and a tribute will be paid to women of glamour and substance in the evening show.

Night show will share stories of modern women and their relationship with their father.

All shows will feature songs by renowned female singers of all times.

A spokesperson from Big FM said: “We are celebrating womanhood with a theme that our listeners will relate to, either themselves or through that one woman in their life.”

Indian network 92.7 Big FM has come up with special programming to mark the Hindu festival of Holi in the country.

Holi is also known as the ‘festival of colours’ and signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, end of winter, and for many a festive day to play and laugh.

Big FM is airing two dedicated segments as a part of its theme ‘Hansi Ke Gubbare’ (Balloons of Laughter) to mark the festival on March 12 and 13 across its Hindi speaking markets.

An on-air ‘Hasya Kavi Sammelan’ featuring poetic humour will air from 4pm on March 12.

It will be hosted by renowned comedian, writer and television personality Shailesh Lodha as the special host for.

It will also feature poets such as Ved Prakash Ved, Pawan Dixit, Sharif Bhartiand Rana Tabassum.

‘BIG Party Mix’, featuring holi tracks interspersed with celebrity wishes, will air between 10 am and 2 pm on March 13.

Indian network Red FM has roped in Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan to support its ‘Bajao for a Cause’ (Play for a cause) campaign for the education of the children of commercial sex workers.

The campaign takes up an initiative of social significance and raises awareness and funds to help the cause every year.

The campaign, which was launched on-air on March 8 will continue till March 31.

Khan met and spent time with the children of commercial sex workers last week.

He spoke to them about school, plans for their future and entertained them with stories and even sang his popular song ‘lungi dance’ for them.

Speaking to the station, Shahrukh Khan said: “Thank you for having me on your show and your cause which is wonderful, it is really nice that you are getting all these children and through your cause you are educating them also.”

“Focusing on the schooling of children born to commercial sex workers it is a significant step towards basic education, as well as, social welfare. For these kids, it’s all about dignity, acceptability and opportunity,” said Nisha Narayanan, COO, Red FM.

Indian network Radio City 91.1 FM held the grand finale of the fourth edition of its ‘Freedom Awards’ to celebrate indie music.

The event, which was held in Mumbai on Wednesday, saw established and new indie musicians walk away with top honours. 

The awards were categorized into the 'Jury Choice' and 'People Choice' awards.

The 'Jury Choice Award' across each category was judged by a power packed jury comprising of Bobin James, Atul Churamani, Luke Kenny, Nandini Srikar, Yotam Agam, Munbir Chawla, Vijay Basrur, Naveen Deshpande and Amit Gurbaxani.

Neeraj Arya's Kabir café walked away as the Best Folk Fusion Artist - Jury Choice while Carnage Inc was awarded the Best Metal Artist – Popular Choice.

Shadow and Light bagged the Best Pop Artist – Jury Choice, and Midival Punditz + Papon + Malini Awasthi were awarded Indie-Collaboration Jury Choice.

Rachna Kanwar, COO Digital – Jagran Group, said: "Radio City Freedom Awards (RCFA) is more than just an award function. It accomplishes the need for acknowledgement in the independent music space which is the space where true revolution is really happening. There is immense talent all across the country that is waiting to be heard and we are happy to take their music to millions of listeners through our theme - Sounds of the Soil.  This year we have made a conscious effort to reach out to as many artists as possible, in order to make sure that everyone gets a platform to showcase their creativity".

Here is the full list of winners: 

Popular Choice

Best Hip Hop Artist: Emiway

Best Pop Artist: Sanket Sane & Rimi Nique

Best Rock Artist: Oorka

Best Folk Fusion Artist: Jano Nyekha

Best Metal Artist: Carnage Inc

Best ElectronicaArtist: Mojo Jojo

Jury Choice

Best Hip Hop Artist: Divine feat. Naezy

Best Pop Artist: Shadow and Light

Best Folk Fusion Artist: Neeraj Arya's Kabir Cafe

Best Metal Artist: Demonstealer

Best Electronica Artist: Donn Bhat

Best Rock Artist:  The F16s

Best Young Indie Artist: The F16s

Indie-Collaboration: Midival Punditz + Papon + Malini Awasthi

Best Video: The Ska Vengers

Best Album Art: As We Keep Searching

Indie-Genius: Person Of the Year: Uddipan Sarmah

India’s Jagran Prakashan promoted Music Broadcast Ltd (MBL) has announced the  rebranding of its eight Radio Mantra stations as Radio City – the company’s larger brand.

While Radio Mantra operates in Bareilly, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Karnal, Hisar, Ranchi and Jalandhar, Radio City operates in 31 markets.

Jagran Group merged Radio Mantra with MBL in 2014 after acquiring a majority stake in Radio City.

MBL has also been opening new stations on the frequencies obtained under the first batch of Phase 3 of radio privatization auction, in which it had acquired 11 frequencies in cities like Patna, Kanpur and Kolhapur. It also operates an online web radio portal PlanetRadiocity.com.

Earlier this month, MBL launched its initial public offering (IPO) in a bid to raise up to $61.73 million (Rs 4 billion) in primary capital. The issue was subscribed 39.3 times and the shares closed 12 percent higher on their stock market debut.

This rebranding will further strengthen Radio City's brand presence and expand its reach to a much larger set of audience.

The programming of all newly branded stations will revolve around Radio City's philosophy of Rag Rag Mein Daude City which celebrates the pride and spirit of the city, amplifying their national presence with hyperlocal comprehension of markets and listeners.

The brand has built various national properties such as Love Guru, Babbar Sher, Radio City Freedom Awards, Radio City Super Singer, Gig City to name a few which will now play out in the 8 additional markets of Mantra as well.

Abraham Thomas, CEO, Radio City 91.1FM said: "The synergies of both the brands Radio Mantra and Radio City will allow room for further innovation in terms of greater reach and listenership leading to a more meaningful brand and consumer connections.”

Indian network Red FM’s Mumbai breakfast host Malishka Mendosa, popularly known as RJ Malishka, has been named as one of Impact's 50 Most Influential Women in Media, Marketing and Advertising 2017 in India.  

The list is an endeavour to acknowledge the achievements of women who have not just made significant contributions in the media domain and broken through the proverbial glass ceiling, but have also played a crucial role in changing the way the industry is perceived today.

Her show, “Morning No. 1”, has gained popularity over the years and established her as someone who can speak on almost anything with honesty and ease, managing to make her point while simultaneously being entertaining.

Commenting on being one of the Influential Women in the industry Malishka said: "Thank you to the lovely, encouraging people in my life who always tell me to focus on the goal and on what's right and not on what others think. There's a long way to go and this is an important, lovely milestone."

Nisha Narayanan, COO, Red FM said: "Red FM in Mumbai has been home for Malishka for the past 11 years. Without doubt, Mumbai and Malishka have been synonymous; at least as far as mornings are concerned. She is influential to a fault and contagious with her energy.”

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan also congratulated Malishka on her achievement in a testimonial to Impact magazine, saying: "Malishka brought new life into a budding FM industry and became its game-changer. I've heard her unapologetically holding authority's accountable, irreverently interviewing people and chatting with her listeners for over 10 years now. Her unfailing energy, her flair for the medium and her connect with the common man/listener is remarkable.  She is entertaining, warm, witty and full of ideas, on and off radio too. Whether it's TV, or chat shows, theatre or a Cause she has championed, I've seen her take on everything with tremendous passion. She is inspiring and has made a genuine difference in the way FM radio is listened to and loved. Her voice and work impacts and influences millions of people each day and I hope she continues to use it beautifully as always. My favourite part about her however, is that she is an incorrigible flirt."

Indian network Big FM’s RJ Miruthula has been recognised as the ‘Best Female RJ of the Year 2016’ by Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan.

She hosts the popular weekday show ‘Ulley Veliye’ from 11 am to 2 pm and ‘Timepass’ on Sundays from 12 noon to 2 pm.

'Ulley Veliye' is an interactive game show, while 'Timepass' is dedicated to foodies who they talk about Chennai's favorite joints and places to visit. 

A spokesperson from Big FM said: "RJ Miruthala has done justice to both our shows with her happy go lucky nature and soothing voice. We are proud of her achievements."

Speaking on the achievement, RJ Miruthula said: "Being felicitated with such a huge honor is extremely humbling, and a very important moment in my career as an RJ. This is indeed a proud moment for me and I would like to thank all my listeners for their unconditional love and support."

Indian network Big FM has launched the test signals of 14 new frequencies it acquired during Phase II of FM auctions in the country.

With the acquisition of these new frequencies, the network will have a total of 59 stations now, including seven ‘A’ category towns, four ‘A+’ category towns and 12 ‘B’ category towns.

In Maharashtra, there will be an addition of five new stations – Pune, Nagpur, Kolhapur, Aurangabad and Ahmednagar, bringing it to a total of eight stations in the state.

The network will also enjoy complete coverage in UP, Bihar and Jharkhand, with the additions of Lucknow, Patna, Varanasi, Gorakhpur and Muzaffarpur, bringing the total to 13 stations in the region.

With the addition of four frequencies in Northeast India in Agartala, Itanagar, Shillong and Aizwal, it will also have the largest presence in the border region along with its existing stations in Jammu, Srinagar and Guwahati.

Tarun Katial, Chief Executive Officer, Reliance Broadcast Network Limited, said: “This is a major step in expanding our presence in all our focus markets to ensure that we continue to grow and deepen our market penetration.”

Indian network 93.5 Red FM has announced fresh advertising tariffs for new stations within the growing network along with a revision in airtime rates for existing frequencies.

The annual review of advertising tariffs at RED FM has resulted in a rate hike of 15 to 20 percent.

According to the network, the hike is based on a careful strategy that is founded upon the growth of the brand as well as the spread of the network.

While the incline is noticeable in metros, the moderate upward correction in small and medium cities is mostly an output of the network’s evolution.

“The ultimate goal to make radio a feasible and flexible medium of advertising has not fallen out of focus”, said Nisha Narayanan, COO, Red FM.

As a part of the content and revenue leadership strategy for FY17-18, the network has set its eyes on two specific goals - becoming a well-differentiated, formidable competitor to existing players in the market, and strengthening its presence in newer cities with decisive speed.

Red FM will soon launch in Amritsar, Chandigarh, Surat and Patna and will be transmitting to 56 cities by August 2017.