Debashine Thangevelo
LAST week, Zee World made its debut on the DStv platform.
Aside from the vast array of content on offer – movies, TV series, soaps, cooking shows, kids’ programming – it is also dubbed into English for the South African market.
On offering Zee World on the DStv platform instead of the traditional Indian Bouquet package, Harish Goyal, the CEO of ZEE TV South Africa, says: “Zee World was brought into existence after extensive research which revealed that there is huge demand for this content among mainstream African viewers. Over the past three years, extensive research has been conducted in South Africa and Africa to understand viewer preferences. The findings have revealed that viewers in Africa have a strong cultural connection with India. This has led to the creation of Zee World, a channel that has been created with unique programming customisation and content that is dubbed in English locally by South Africans.”
With Glow TV catering to the same market, it has become a direct rival of Zee World.
But Goyal is confident that the channel’s content sets it apart: “The channel’s programming is female-centric. There are many similarities between the Indo-African culture and tradition. We are taking this initiative to introduce drama series which depict family values due to its resonance within our viewers. Zee World kicks off with Bollywood movies, series and will bring in other variety programs like food shows, talent shows, kids’ shows.”
Expanding on some of the flagship content, he offers: “We have our award- winning series Laali, Saloni, The Promise and Married Again. There are blockbuster movies like Don 2, Heroine, Aitraaz and more. The storylines have a strong emotional connection.
As for sustaining the appeal of Zee World, he says: “Content research is an ongoing part of programming and every effort will be made to ensure viewer preferences are taken into account to keep the channel’s entertainment values in line with our viewer expectations.”
Zee World is on DStv channel 166.