Colors to launch historical property 'Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat' on Feb 2

The historical big ticket property will replace 'Bigg Boss - Halla Bol' that goes off air on February 1 in the 9-10 PM slot

Sarmistha Neogy | Mumbai | January 29, 2015

Hindi GEC Colors has announced the launch of one of its biggest weekday fiction properties – 'Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat' – from February 2 that will air Monday to Friday at 9PM. The show delves into the pages of history to highlight Ashoka's life and journey that made him one of the greatest emperors in Indian history. The new historical property replaces 'Bigg Boss - Halla Bol' that will go off air on February 1.

Commenting on the launch of the show, Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors, said, “'Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat' is no doubt one of the biggest shows of 2015. We had been toying with the idea of having something historical for quite some time. We have taken a lot of time to develop and build the show and great attention was given to the casting by the channel and the production team.”

Speaking on whether a one-hour fiction show will be able to hold the attention of viewers, Nayak said, “We at Colors have been trendsetters in everything. This is an experiment which we are doing for the first time. But the way the show has been formatted, we do require an hour every day to tell the story.”

The show, produced by Contiloe Productions, brings together a powerful ensemble cast which includes Siddharth Nigam (Ashoka), Pallavi Subhash (Dharma), Sameer Dharmadhikari (Bindusara), Manoj Joshi (Chanakya), Tej Sapru (Seleucus Nicator), Suzanne Bernert (Helena), Sumit Kaul (Justin), and Ankita Sharma (Noor Khorasan) among others.

Elaborating on the response from the sponsors, Nayak said, “In fiction we don't bother about sponsorships; attention is given to get the ratings right. But for non-fiction it is the other way round; we first get the sponsors on board and then go ahead with the show launch. The ad rates for this show will depend on the timeslot and the ratings of the show. Currently, the rates are running at Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 1.8 lakh per 10-second spot.”

Marketing: There is an interesting marketing activity around the show. The channel has devised an elaborate impact and reach-driven marketing strategy amplifying the thought 'Yeh Woh Raja Hai Jiska Sikka Aaj Bhi Chalta Hai'. A special School Contact Programme will be executed in close to 200 schools in 50 Tier II towns where young students will, in an interactive way, learn about Emperor Ashoka and his life. A first-time innovation with the Mumbai Metro will have tokens resembling coins from Ashoka's Mauryan Empire for duration of one week. The campaign will further engage viewers through platforms such as cable and television, print, DTH, and OOH at multiple touch points.

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