The last decade has witnessed the cable television boom in India. It has also spawned a generation of Toonagers that grown up on quality cartoon channels. For the Toonagers of our time, the mother of all cartoon channels, Disney, is here in India.

But with competition being what it is up to the channel's Managing Director, Rajat Jain, to capture the mind-space of the Toonager. It's not easy, but Jain, an industry veteran, isn't flinching, He has plans, among them to screen two films every day, and beam 400 episodes of local production in the first year, making Disney's new channel the biggest localized commitment outside the U.S

The other chief executive who has his task cut out is Air-India C.M.D. Vasudevan Thulasidas. Here's a bureaucrat with a vision that is rare in the public sector. Thulasidas is out to bring the corporate touch to his high-profile job, increase the airline's market-share, and its global network, and, thereby, improve profitability. He has big plans to restore the lost glory of the Maharajah, and  already, over the last one year, he has brought about significant changes. The airline has managed to wipe off its accumulated losses during his leadership.

On a more leisurely note, INDIA EMPIRE was hosted by Tourism Malaysia in Malaysia. Kualal Lumpur, referred to as the Washington of the East, is quite an admirable blend of the Orient and the Occident. When you have the best of both worlds, absolutely nothing, including top quality entertainment, hospitality, luxury,  freeways and food, is ever in short supply.

Joining us to write a special column this issue is acclaimed film critic and producer Pratibha Advani. She has chosen to take a close look at all films related to patriotism over nearly five decades.



Happy reading.


 

Best Regards

Sayantan Chakravarty
Editor