New Bollywood channel hinges on true blue 'masala' entertainers

Mumbai : Zee Bollywood, a new channel, aims to cater to fans of 'masala' Bollywood movies, which are marked by larger than life expressions and deadly dialogues, say officials.

To be launched by Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) on August 31, the channel is out to fill a need gap.

Prathyusha Agarwal, Chief Marketing Officer, ZEEL, said in a statement: "Specifically, in the Hindi movie segment we understand the viewer as someone whose mind seeks different kinds of cinema, while his heart continues to yearn for masala Bollywood! Hence, we came up with the idea of Zee Bollywood... an antidote to dubs and new age realistic movies."

Some of the titles that will be showcased are "Chennai Express", "Jab wet Met", "Phir Hera Pheri", "Houseful", "Welcome", "Agneepath", "Josh", "Lagaan", "Judaai" and "Raja Hindustani".

According to the officials, the platform is a tribute to the Bollywood movies that excite the common man.

Ruchir Tiwari, Business Head, Zee Hindi Movies Cluster, said the channel will showcase such films which have a "blend of raw emotions, intense drama, powerful action and soulful music delivered in a grand, glamorous scale".

"However, with the shift in focus to new age or realistic movies in recent times, this charm is slowly getting lost. Audience of Hindi movies increasingly yearns for this genre of movies which is a strong need gap," Tiwari said.