Executive Dossier

‘Producers churning out old wine in new bottles’ : Arun Frank

Published

25 years ago

May 5, 2001

The next time you happen to see a star-studded soap on TV, with the story revolving around some high-society family drama, there is a strong possibility the serial will have been directed by Arun Frank – the person who pioneered this concept on satellite TV.

Seven years after Andaz, Arun Frank’s enthusiasm is still evident in that he already has two soaps on B4U – Anupamaa and Rishta Kacche Dhaago Ka and is working on two others – Aanch and Aaj.

But if there is one common thread running through these projects it’s the starcast, the larger than life portrayal, the filmi style and often the art of playing to the galleries.

It was the bigness, the dreaminess associated with cinema that created such a strong attraction towards such canvasses for young Arun Frank. Such was the determination to be a part of this industry that after school Frank left studies and started assisting Sohanlal Kanwar in films like Beimaan, Paapi Pet Ka Sawaal Hai and Paisa Yeh Paisa. From there he moved on to assist Basu Chatterjee and later made a few ad films.

Andaz, one of the most successful weekly soaps on Zee, marked Arun Frank’s debut on TV, and from there, there has been no looking back for him.

But if there is one thing that comes through in conversations is, like his name, his frankness. Frank has no pretensions about creating something classy. He revels in commercial themes and has created a niche not just for himself but for these serials as well. In a way it can be said that Frank has made available on TV what audiences often crave for in commercial Hindi cinema.

Amar caught up with the man in a ‘frank’ t?te-?-t?te.

What brought you to direction?
Well, the creativity aspect involved in filmmaking always attracted me as a schoolboy. At that age, I didn’t specifically know I wanted to be a director, but yes, I wanted to be involved in filmmaking. So after school I assisted Sohanlal Kanwar in direction and gradually realised that that was what I wanted to do in life.

How do you look back to the Andaz days?
Andaz was special for me due to several reasons. It was my first project as director after a very long period of struggle. Secondly, it was a path-breaking and trend-setting serial because, till then TV was a closed medium. With Andaz, so many new things were introduced. We were very clear in our minds that we wanted to create something absolutely larger than life, extremely glamorous, very ‘filmi’ – something people had not seen on TV before. Even technically, we explored a lot of camera movements – something that had not been done previously.

But somehow, thereafter you got stuck in doing similar high society dramas.
Yeah, Andaz was so successful that producers wanted me to do something similar every time. And I didn’t mind it because I liked the bigness, the lavishness associated with these projects. Besides all these serials did well.

It is often seen that in these soaps the story often does not move and the entire focus is on sub plots.
See. After a serial has had a run of six to eight months, a time is bound to come when the story begins to sag. This happens with all soaps. It is then that the channels do their own analysis and survey and often tell us what is likely to click with the viewers. But again the sub plots have to be executed intelligently and woven into the main story.

What are the factors you take into consideration before starting a project?
A rich star cast for one. Ideally one that has not had much exposure on TV. The script and the possibility of shooting at unused locations.

You’ve always worked with popular stars. How much do you depend on your actors?
Well, for me a good star cast is very important because I have always liked doing things on a lavish scale. Having popular names ensures audience interest and this makes my task simpler. Besides, experienced actors know what is expected of them and they deliver on these expectations.

But haven’t any of these big names insisted on doing things his or her way?
See, I always have an open mind and am open to all suggestions. As long as it does not change the context of a scene what an actor does is fine by me.

Tell us about your experience of working with Shabana Azmi.
To be frank, initially I was apprehensive about working with her because she belongs to a totally different medium of cinema and I didn’t know how she would adjust to the ways of TV. But once we started working, my apprehensions were soon allayed. It’s been very enjoyable and enriching working with her.

How do you instruct your actors? Do you act out a scene and advise them to follow suit?
No, no. I’m a poor actor. I just instruct them on the emotions that I want and the movements.

Okay, lets take a specific case. Navneet Nishan in Andaz who played the vamp to the hilt. What were your instructions to her?
I just asked her to go wild and berserk. I told her to forget what is right or wrong, what is logical or illogical, just portray something absolutely alien, unseen on TV, so far. Initially she found it difficult to convince herself about the character but eventually it came through very well.

Has the budget of the producer ever imposed constraints on your creativity?
Always. In fact from time to time I get calls from producers asking me to take over the direction of their ongoing projects. When I ask them why their director has quit, invariably it is because he has overshot the budget. So, it’s a problem I’ve got used to.

What do you feel of the trend of daily soaps? Hasn’t it created a monopolistic situation wherein a few big production houses are dominating the prime time slots?
See, everything on TV is a passing phase and sooner than later it has to wear out. But yes, at present it has created a monopolistic situation wherein a lot of producers who don’t have the resources to produce a daily are not left with any time slot. But things are not that good for producers who are producing dailies either. I know of channels who have approved up to 16 dailies. But do you think they have that many time slots? Ultimately, four to five dailies will get to be on air, the rest will be nowhere.

With yesteryears superstar Rajesh Khanna and cast on the sets of the pilot of a yet untitled series.

Today, would you direct a daily soap yourself?
At present, I already have three offers to direct dailies but I’m sceptical. Ideally, I wouldn’t mind directing a daily soap if we can have a storyline ready for 200 to 250 episodes before starting work and a bank of 100 ready episodes before the telecast begins.

Most of your projects are with Zee. Any specific reasons for this?
No, its sheer coincidence that most of my projects have been with Zee. It’s just that they got approved fairly easily. But now, I’m working with B4U and am also negotiating a forthcoming project with Sony and Sahara.

How different is the quality of production-thematically and technically vis-a vis the Andaz days?
Technically, its much improved now. There is more polishing to the end product because of the channel wars. But thematically there has hardly been any difference. Producers keep churning out old wine in new bottles.

What has been the happiest moment in your career?
The telecast of the first episode of Andaz. It was a dream come true.

Who are your favourite actors on TV?
Kanwaljeet, Kiran Kumar, Farida Jalal, Kartikarani Devi and Bhagyashree.

And your favourite director?
At one point of time it used to be Ramesh Sippy. Now it’s the duo of Abbas Mastan. They’ve proved that they can do a good job out of any plot.

Sudesh Beri (left) on the sets of Andaz

Any project which is close to your heart and which you would like to do in future?
I would love to make an action serial. Again the first of its kind on TV.

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Executive Dossier

Game on, fame on as Good Game hunts India’s first global gaming star

New reality show puts Rs 1 crore prize and global spotlight on India’s gaming talent.

Published

5 months ago

January 27, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Game faces on, pressure high India’s gaming ambitions are levelling up. Good Game, billed as the world’s first as-live global gaming reality show, has officially launched in India with a bold mission: to crown the country’s first Global Gaming Superstar.

Blending esports with mainstream entertainment, the show brings together competitive gaming, creativity and on-camera performance in a format that tests more than just joystick skills. Contestants will be judged on gameplay, screen presence and their ability to perform under pressure, reflecting how gaming has evolved from pastime to profession and pop culture currency.

Fronting the show are three high-profile ambassadors: actor and entrepreneur Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Indian cricket star Rishabh Pant, and gaming creator Ujjwal Chaurasia. The winner will take home Rs 1 crore ($100,000) among the largest prize pools for any Indian reality show along with the chance to represent India on a global stage.

Backed by a planned annual investment of up to Rs 100 crore, Good Game is also courting brand partners, promising a minimum reach of 500 million among India’s core youth audience. The creators position the show as a bridge between entertainment and interactive culture, offering long-format content, community engagement and commercial scale.

Auditions are now open to Indian citizens aged 18 and above, inviting amateur and professional gamers, creators and performers alike. Shortlisted candidates will be called for in-person auditions in Mumbai on 14 and 15 February, and in Delhi on 28 February and 1 March 2026.

With big money, big names and even bigger ambition, Good Game signals a shift in how India views gaming not just as play, but as performance, profession and prime-time spectacle.

Digital

SpotDraft hires new CMO and CFO to fuel global push for its AI contract platform

Alon Waks and Amit Sharma join as SpotDraft accelerates growth across key markets

Published

6 months ago

December 3, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

INDIA: SpotDraft has strengthened its senior ranks as it gears up for faster global expansion, naming Alon Waks as chief marketing officer and Amit Sharma as chief financial officer. The appointments follow the firm’s $54 million Series B round earlier this year and mark a push to scale across the Americas, EMEA and India.

The AI-powered contract-lifecycle-management platform has posted 100 per cent year-on-year growth in customer acquisition, counting Apollo.io, IPSY, Mixpanel, Oyster and Panasonic among its global clients. The firm processes more than one million contracts annually, with volumes up 173 per cent and nearly 50,000 monthly active users.

Waks, a veteran of Kustomer, Bizzabo, CreatorIQ, LivePerson and ZoomInfo, will steer global marketing and category positioning as legal teams adopt AI-driven tools. Sharma, who has led finance across scaling tech firms since 2016, will guide financial strategy, investor relations and market expansion.

Both hires aim to sharpen SpotDraft’s bid for a larger slice of the fast-growing legal-tech market, expected to exceed $63 billion by 2032. Co-founder and chief executive Shashank Bijapur said the company is focused on scaling go-to-market operations in the Americas, deepening leadership in EMEA, and accelerating AI capabilities for general counsels and legal-operations leaders.

Clients report shorter deal cycles and better alignment between legal and business teams. “What used to take weeks now happens in days,” said Abnormal Security senior legal operations manager Susan Koenig. DeepL head of legal operations André Barrow, said SpotDraft has helped reframe legal “from a cost centre to a generator of revenue”.

Executive Dossier

Outdoor Ads Get Smarter as LOC8 Shifts OOH from Visibility to Attention

AI, dwell time and real-world vision are rewriting the rules of what outdoor ads can do.

Published

7 months ago

November 28, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Out-of-home ads were once the wallflowers of marketing seen by everyone, noticed by few. But in an age where attention has become the world’s most fought-over currency, even billboards are getting a brain upgrade. Enter LOC8, OSMO’s AI-powered attention engine, quietly reshaping the old OOH playbook by measuring not just who could have looked at an ad, but who actually did. The shift is subtle but seismic: impressions are out, impact is in and data, not gut instinct, is calling the shots.

In a landscape where marketers question every rupee spent outdoors, LOC8 is turning lampposts, flyovers and traffic islands into precision-mapped attention laboratories. By crunching dwell time, visibility zones, perceptual size and real-world obstructions, the platform is dragging OOH into a future where creativity meets computer vision and where the best ideas aren’t just eye-catching, but eye-measured. From automotive facelifts to FMCG novelty and real estate trust-building, the message is clear, outdoor has stopped shouting and started listening. Indian Television Dot Com explores more about it in an Interview interview with OSMO co-founder Nipun Arora.

On how OSMO is shifting outdoor advertising from a visibility-led medium to an attention-led one through LOC8.

Traditional OOH has long been measured by visibility and impressions i.e how many people could see an ad. OSMO, through its proprietary AI platform LOC8, is shifting that narrative more towards likelihood of being noticed. Using computer vision and machine learning, LOC8 analyzes real-world video data to measure visibility zones, obstructions, dwell time and perceptual size; bringing precision to how attention is quantified outdoors. It moves the focus from mere impressions to quality of impressions, making OOH a data-verified, attention-led medium comparable to digital in accountability.

On how marketers can use LOC8’s dwell-time, visibility and perception insights to craft more effective, emotionally resonant OOH campaigns.

LOC8 helps brands understand how people truly experience outdoor media how long they look, from what distance, and under what conditions. By quantifying dwell time, visibility duration, and perceptual size; marketers can plan campaigns that align with real human viewing behavior. This empowers creative and strategy teams to design emotionally resonant storytelling where messaging, visual hierarchy and placement are optimized for how people actually notice and process OOH creatives.

About what LOC8 has revealed through campaigns like Renault Triber and Namaste India on how categories such as auto, FMCG and real estate use attention metrics to drive outcomes.

Each category uses attention data differently but all share one common goal: to convert outdoor visibility into measurable engagement.

• Automotive | Renault Triber

For the new Renault Triber facelift, bold creative met data-led planning through LOC8. By analyzing on-ground video data, LOC8 measured real audience attention across placements factoring in visibility zones, obstructions, traffic speed and perceptual size. This enabled Renault to identify corridors that delivered maximum reach, saliency and engagement, optimizing media efficiency and ROI.

• FMCG | Namaste India

In OOH, innovation is the hook and assets are the bait. But bait often hides the hook. With Loc8’s attention metrics, we ensured the bait wasn’t a hurdle, rather it became the perfect stage for innovation to deliver its full impact! The insight proved that creative novelty, when validated by attention data, drives deeper engagement and measurable brand lift.

• Real Estate

For luxury and real estate campaigns targeting HNI/UHNI audiences, attention patterns differ especially between front and rear passengers, who are often the core audience segment for premium sites. LOC8’s ability to distinguish rear vs. front visibility plays a critical role here. It helps identify sites that offer longer viewing windows and stronger perceptual dominance from the rear seat where decision-makers are most likely seated making it a key differentiator for premium and trust-led categories. Together, these insights prove that auto optimizes for impact, FMCG for recall, and real estate for trust visibility showing how attention metrics adapt to category goals while ensuring measurable outcomes.

On how attention analytics will shape the future of brand storytelling and media planning as OOH becomes more digitised and data-driven.

As outdoor digitizes, attention analytics will inform not just where to advertise but how stories are told in public spaces. This evolution transforms OOH from a static broadcast channel into a dynamic attention ecosystem, where creativity is optimized through evidence-based insight.

On how LOC8’s data-led framework helps marketers quantify OOH impact and make outdoor a more accountable, ROI-driven medium.

LOC8 bridges the gap between intuition and evidence. By quantifying metrics like visibility duration, attention opportunity index, and visual saliency rank, it allows brands to benchmark site performance and justify investment. This data-led approach brings transparency, comparability and ROI measurement to a medium historically driven by perception.

On how OSMO ensures AI and computer vision enhance creativity rather than reduce it to numbers.

OSMO believes that technology should enhance creativity, not overshadow it. LOC8’s attention models reveal what naturally draws the human eye helping creative teams refine design cues, contrast, and visual hierarchy for greater impact. By merging art and science, LOC8 empowers creativity with intelligence.

About the creative best practices and design cues LOC8 has uncovered regarding what truly captures consumer attention outdoors.

LOC8’s visual cognition analysis has surfaced clear patterns across campaigns:

• High contrast and minimal messaging outperform cluttered designs.

• Motion cues draw significantly longer dwell times.

• The first two seconds are critical, creatives must establish focus instantly.

• Contextual alignment between the creative and its environment increases attention by over 30%.

These learnings offer a scientific foundation for creative effectiveness helping brands design OOH that’s visually magnetic and emotionally memorable.

On how attention metrics will integrate into omnichannel planning where OOH, digital and social work together for unified brand impact.

Attention can become the unifying KPI across OOH, digital and social to creates seamless storytelling continuity, where outdoor triggers digital engagement. The future of omnichannel planning lies in attention-led integration ensuring that campaigns don’t just reach audiences everywhere but truly capture and hold their focus.