MUMBAI: Colors is launching a new mythological show titled ?Jai Jag Janani Maa Durga? on 17 December.

The new show will be replacing its fiction property ?Kairi Rishta Khatta Meetha? which will go off air to open up the 7 pm slot.

?Jai Jag Janani Maa Durga? will showcase Durga?s different avatars in various stages of her life. It will compete with Star Plus? ?Saathiya Saath Nibhana? and Zee TV?s Afsar Bitiya.

The new offering from Colors? bouquet is being produced by Sagar Pictures, the makers of epic shows like Ramayan, Alif Laila and Shri Krishna.

For the record, Colors had earlier aired mythological show ?Jai Shri Krishna? in July 2008 which ran till September 2009.

MUMBAI: Star Plus has experimented with different kind of formats with shows like Sach Ka Saamna, Aap Ki Kachehri, Veera, Satyamev Jayate, Laakhon Mein Ek and Kaali?Ek Agnipariksha.

The channel is now launching a new show titled ?Kaali-Ek Punar Avtaar? on 3 December. Produced by Shakuntalam Telefilms, the new show is another crime based serial of the channel after similar sounding ?Kaali?Ek Agnipariksha? and ?Arjun?.

While ?Kaali?Ek Agnipariksha? was aimed at increasing social awareness about the growing number of cases of sexual crimes against women, ?Kaali- Ek Punar Avatar? is based on the Nitish Katara murder case, where one will see how a mother fights and struggles to get justice for her son.

?Kaali- Ek Punar Avatar? will air from Monday to Friday at 8 pm and is replacing ?Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon? which is going off-air.

The show will compete with slot leader ?Balika Vadhu? (Colors), ?Anaamika? (Sony Entertainment Television) and ?Rab Se Sohna Isshq? (Zee TV).

For the record ?Kaali?Ek Agnipariksha? had aired from 13 September 2010 - 18 March 2011.

MUMBAI: Ashish Golwalkar, who had quit Zee TV as non-fiction head in August this year, has joined Star Plus to head the non-fiction content of the channel.

Golwalkar has replaced Vaibhav Modi who had quit Star Plus in September this year. He will report to Star Plus general manager Nachiket Pantvaidya.

Golwalkar had a stint of 12 years at Zee TV before joining Star Plus.

He was credited for shows like Dance India Dance.

MUMBAI: Star Plus is launching a new show titled ‘Veera‘ that will narrate a story about a brother-sister bond.

Starting 29 October, the new show will air from Monday to Friday at 10.30 pm.

‘Veera‘ is replacing Star Plus‘ long-running show ‘Pratigya‘ which is going off-air this week. The new show will compete with the leader of the slot Sony Entertainment Television‘s (Set) Bade Achhe Lagte Hain, Zee TV‘s ‘Punarvivaha‘ and Colors‘ Parichay.

Star Plus GM Nachiket Pantvaidya said, "Veera is a story of complex human relationships narrated through a loving brother Ranvijay, who becomes a motherly-figure for his sister. ‘Veera‘ is a heartfelt story of a brother and sister bond that will give viewers hope and will highlight the importance of nurturing old bonds with their siblings. The relationship between siblings is unique and has a special place in our lives."

Produced by Beyond Dreams, the show is being directed by Waseem Sabeer.

According to the channel, Ranvijay and Veera‘s (lead characters) story is set to provide a ray of hope to all its viewers who often found themselves tangled in their complex daily life which is replete with strained relationships, rocky marriages, troubles family ties, routine pressures and hollow and materialistic existence.

‘Veera‘ will fill an important void that is created by existential battles to survive "extremely busy" and "stressful" lives. The show will sensitively reinstate one‘s faith in family ties that now suffer from monotonous and hectic lifestyles, the channel said.

MUMBAI: Star Plus is extending the telecast of its leading fiction shows ?Diya Aur Baati Hum? and ?Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai? to Saturdays as part of its ploy to combat against non fiction properties on other Hindi general entertainment channels.

The shows, which air at 9 pm and 9.30 pm respectively, will compete on Saturdays against Colors upcoming show Bigg Boss-6, Zee TV‘s ?Sa Re Ga Ma? and Sony Entertainment Television‘s ?Kaun Banega Crorepati-6?.

Star Plus is not looking at reality programming to contend against these shows and is banking on daily soaps that are slot leaders during weekdays.

"India is a single TV household. Star Plus is extending its fiction programmes to Saturdays. Bigg Boss is coming with a different format this time but Star Plus is taking two very strong properties to Saturdays. KBC and Sa Re Ga Ma are also there. It will be interesting to observe how audience fragmentation takes place," a media agency executive said on condition of anonymity.

The shows will be replacing ?Teri Meri Love Stories? which will end on 7 October. The show, which launched on 11 August and narrates love stories from urban India, has averaged around 1 TVR.

In the past too, channels have aired ?mahaepisodes? (mega-episode) of their fiction shows during weekend to attract eyeballs. Star Plus had once increased the airing-time of its popular show ?Bidaai? from 30 minutes to one hour. The show was a leader in the genre for quite some time and worked well for the channel. It was produced by Director?s Kut, the producers of ?Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai?.

Talking about the extension of the airing of ?Yeh Rishta?? to six days a week, producer Rajan Shahi said: ?Extra content is needed by the channels at times. We have done that in the past with shows like ?Bidaai?, ?Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai? and ?Kuch To Log Kahenge? (Sony). It is the channel?s call; they must be having some strategy in mind.?