Sameer Ganapathy, channel head, UTV Action, wants to ensure that the channel is present ?wherever there is a reference to ?action?.? Besides showcasing action movies on the channel dubbed in Hindi, it has already partnered with many on-ground events?rock-climbing in malls, free styling tournaments across cities and special screenings of action titles. This month?the channel was launched in January?it tied up with comic book giant Marvel Comics in India. The association with Marvel is expected to enhance brand awareness of the channel among consumers of action comics. Targeted at the Hindi-speaking market and males (over 15 years of age), Ganapathy says the channel is almost twice the size of the English movie genre. Though GRPs (gross rating points) at 43 are low (the top Hindi general entertainment channel usually has a GRP of 300 plus), Ganapathy tells FE the channel has a 29% reach and time spent by a viewer on an average is 41 minutes

a week. Excerpts:

There is a glut of movies on television. What made you launch UTV Action?

The top ten movies watched on television are usually action movies. It?s the top genre consumed by movie viewers. But in India, you get to watch Hollywood action only on English movie channels, and that leaves a large movie viewing audience out. So, we decided to launch UTV Action to fill the gap. We wanted to bring the best of

Hollywood action to Hindi-speaking homes.

So it?s action movies dubbed in Hindi?

Yes, we show the best of Hollywood movies dubbed in Hindi. We are targeting the Hindi-speaking audience and are already reaching out to 35 million homes.

But will that be enough to ensure viewers stick on to the channel?

We are backing it up with massive outdoor campaigns, on-ground activities?we want to create an experience of action on the channel and that extends to associations outside television as well. The style of dubbing is different, more friendly and we have a distribution and marketing strategy in place. Already, we are noticing that time spent on the channel in a week is 41-45 minutes.

Tell us about your association with Marvel Comics.

Well, Marvel Comics has a popular line-up of superhero properties like Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Iron Man,

The Xmen, Wolverine, The Hulk and many more. We will be showcasing these properties on our channel.

But to begin the alliance with Marvel Comics, we will promote Ghost Rider, an action superhero title in the May edition. Alongside, the comics every month will highlight the biggest property, which is the movie of the month, on their back cover. We will also promote the upcoming issue?s story every month on the channel.

Is Bollywood out of your channel?

No, we showcase the best of Bollywood action too and the best ?action? events on ground.

Will you all also associate with sport?

Yes, from July-August, there are a fair amount of activities planned, both on-air and on-ground and many of it is around sport. Also, work on a reality show is in progress, but we can?t divulge details just yet.

What has been the response from advertisers?

Our viewership is 65% male and 35% female. The response from advertisers has been good, we have 125 advertisers on board who now have a ready target audience to tap.

Just a year ago, carriage fees were too high. Have costs come down?

UTV has a bouquet of channels and that makes a difference. Also, there has been a fair amount of optimisation. The onset of digitalisation will rationalise prices further.

What are some of the targets you have set?

We want the channel to be the ultimate destination for action. We have a four-five step plan and will execute it from quarter to quarter.