MUMBAI: It's the season of the Bachchan's and here's adding another one to the fray.
NDTV Profit announced a new show called 'NextGEN' to be hosted by Shweta Nanda, daughter of Amitabh Bachchan, who by her own admission was happy "playing a mother until NDTV Profit came up with this interesting concept".
Starting Tuesday 8:30 pm NextGen, an interview based show will air as part of a 12 episode series. The interview series will focus on guests from diverse fields like art, literature, sports, films, fashion and business.
Speaking to the media on the need for a celebrity based interview show on a business channel NDTV Media CEO Raj Nayak said, "This is a show about Gen X's aspiration, philosophy, ambitions and a vision to success. We, at NDTV, think that Shweta understands this generation best since she is a part of it and will be more comfortable talking to the guests and vice versa.The idea is to also provide programming beyond business and corporate world."
The channel plans to air 12 episodes before it takes a break on the show. "Depending on the audience response we will extend it. NextGen on NDTV Profit is an effort to present diverse views of young Indians across several fields and not just restricting it to the world of business", said NDTV Profit executive editor Shivnath Thukral.
NextGen is sponsored by Life Insurance Corporation of India. Says LIC head of corporate communications Poonam Bodra, "Although we had no specific person in mind as an anchor for the show, Shweta fits the bill perfectly. LIC wanted to be associated with a show that would focus on the youth and their thought processes." Although she declined to comment further on the issue, she did acknowledge that this was part of the initiative to shift the image of LIC from the older generation to being more youth oriented.
Asked if she would ever consider having brother Abhishek and his fiancé Aishwarya Rai on the show as they are both role models for the youth, Shweta said, "They are family so bringing them on the show as guests would be a conflict of interest."