Pushkara to launch TV infotainment channel

The video wall in the channel is said to be a first in south India. TWITTER/PUSHKARA MALLIKARJUNaIAH

Pushkara Mallikarjunaiah, producer of Kannada blockbusters like ‘Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu’, ‘Kirik Party’ and ‘Avane Srimannarayana’ is all set to launch a TV news channel.

He began thinking seriously about diversifying into news when Covid-19 brought the film industry to a standstill last year.

“This idea has been with me ever since I started my journey in films five years ago. I have always wanted to contribute to society through a TV channel,” he tells Showtime.

With more than 10 Kannada news channels already in the fray, competition is not going to be easy. His channel aims to be different by not focusing on the 24/7 news cycle. “We are calling it an infotainment channel. I don’t believe in presenting news 24/7. That format is required only when there is a bomb blast or a change in government. We will dedicate eight hours to news and the rest of the time to educational shows on topics like the stock market and agriculture,” he says.

Pushkara strives for technical finesse in his films. His channel is also going to be state-of-the-art, he says.

“If you have to catch people’s attention, you have to be outstanding visually. Today, you see studios using green mat for their backgrounds. We will have a video wall, something that’s new to South India. The 10x24 ft video wall will have 1.5 megapixels. We are using Zero Density, a European software yet to be tried by any channel in India,” he says.

Television viewership has risen in the pandemic and a survey helped his team understand consumer tastes. “It is shocking but true that 90 per cent of people are into consuming negative news,” he notes. “But some stay away from sensationalism.”

He hopes to cater to the 10 per cent who crave fact-based news. So we aren’t running behind star anchors. I know it’s a niche market but once it gets established, the channel can do wonders,” says Pushkara.

The 40-year-old producer, who runs the production house Pushkar Films, met 200-300 farmers last year and realised how they were yet to adopt advanced farming methods.

“About 70 per cent of the country is dependent on agriculture. If we have to develop as a country, every farmer must be a businessman. I want to map the supply chain between farmers and consumers,” he says.

The launch date and channel name are yet to be revealed. The channel will be in Kannada.