TELE BUZZ

NEW LOOK FOR SPORTSLINE
Sahara Sportsline, the daily 8 am sports news on DD Metro, is getting a sporty new look. With rising TRPs, sackfuls of mail from all the four metros and interested sponsors, producer Aushim Khetarpal can afford to experiment with the design and the content. Aushim promises to make his show more engrossing with weekly interviews with celebs and federation heads, more statistics and live visuals. With the World Cup Football, Wimbeldon and cricket tests round the corner, there’ll be a lot of action for Sportsline crew.

BENEFIT FOR SANDHU
He is a much-loved name in the annals of Indian cricket. Remember that brilliant 71 he made in Pakistan against the venomous pace of Imran Khan and Sarfaraz Nawaz? Balwinder Singh Sandhu not only prevented a complete batting collapse that time but also had one of the safest pair of hands in the business and also spearheaded the Indian bowling attack. After stepping out of the action, Sandhu has used his years of experience and expertise to train young talents. Many of them have found a place in Mumbai’s squad and sometimes even the Indian team. The Sultan of Swing is a worthy recepient of a benefit match between India XI and World XI which is being organised at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on June 2. The mega spectacle benefit is being organised by UTV-Unirapport in association with Micro Sport (a joint venture between PFH Entertainment Ltd. and Image Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.). The event is being coordinated by Dereyk Talker of KCT.

GHAZALS ARE THE ATTRACTION
Shiv Kumar has just wrapped up a Bawli, a Muslim social starring Manoj Dutt, Savita Sharma and a number of Delhi stage actors. Shiv Kumar has co-produced the tele film with SL Abrol and Shahid Waheed Khan and directed it himself. This one hour long film has two ghazals which have been penned for the first time by noted lyricists, Nazar Kanpuri and Mohd. Ali Mauj.

BUDGET SPECIALS NOW
After Election Specials we will now have a spate of Budget Specials on STAR Plus and the STAR News Channel which climaxes with a live coverage of the budget session starting at 4.5 pm on June 1 and continuing till almost midnight. As soon as the Finance Minister concludes his speech, Pronnoy Roy and India’s leading psephologist, TN Ninan on STAR News will analyse the budget with inputs from economists, tax excise experts and the like. Officials from the Finance Ministry will also join the duo for a q-and-a session. There will also be updates from the stock exchange. STAR Plus will tune into the budget special between 7.30 and 8 pm and then again between 9.30 and 10 pm.MUKESH KHANNA UP IN ARMS

India’s super hero, Shaktimaan is a worried man. Manufacturers of gutka and supari have borrowed his brand name to unashamedly push their products and make them more attractive to kids with special gifts and prizes. Mukesh Khanna who is very upset for his young fans has decided to register Shaktimaan as a brand name with the government’s authorisation and file a case against all these unscrupulous manufacturers who in their interest to increase their profits don’t spare a thought for the kiddos’ interest.