| MUMBAI:
As milestones go, 10 years is a major one in the life of a company. And if you've
been integral to its evolution from its start-up infancy as I was through seven-and-a-half
of those years as its content head, then it has an added significance, both personal
and professional.  When
Anil asked me to pen a few lines on my time at Indian Television Dot Com as it
completes 10 years in the business, and its journey through what was in the beginning
a "very few-man" operation to the present, where it is a well established
media and entertainment brand, two things come most immediately to mind. And this
I believe essentially defined what indiantelevision.com was all about.
First
was the core content philosophy that was hardwired into its DNA. Content was always
our strength and our editorial benchmarks were aligned with the best in class
globally. I can't claim we always achieved it but we certainly made a heck of
an effort to live up to the standards that we'd set for ourselves. Which is why
I can say with conviction that in our space, there was no entity in this market
that could hold a candle to what we delivered on a consistent basis on the editorial
front. At indiantelevision.com, content was truly king. Secondly,
whatever we did and achieved, much of which was pioneering as far as the media
and entertainment sector was concerned, was done without fanfare or the blowing
of trumpets. What needed doing got done. And everyone from the CEO down the ranks
rolled up their sleeves to ensure that we always underpromised and overdelivered.
As I look back, I wonder how we managed to do some of the things we did with the
resources we had at our disposal. Though I'm not one who sets any store by astrology,
I must admit that the Taurean traits under which Anil's stars are aligned had
its imprimatur in how he managed to pass it down and across the organisation. It's
important to register here that whatever may have been the core philosophy we
stood by and the vision and drive that Anil brought to the enterprise, we were
able to translate all of this into a tangible story worth recounting 10 years
down the line because of the incredibly passionate and committed team that worked
together to make it all possible. I won't take names but it was Team Indiantelevision
- those who are still there and those who moved on to make their mark elsewhere
- who've written the indiantelevision.com story. Evolutionary
Signposts -
Indian Telly Awards - Launched in September 2000 (but became a reality in Jul
2001 after Anil managed to get the four GECs at that time to sponsor them) and
THE key on ground property of the group. All credit to Anil for taking the plunge
despite some scepticism from yours truly that it was too early in the company's
life cycle to do it as the industry was just the coming out of the debilitating
downside of the dotcom bust. -
Tellychakkar.com - Launched in February 2005, the groups' first and till date
only foray into the BtoC space. It's taken a while but is now well established
in the television entertainment space. -
Animationxpress.com - Launched in 2004, the India-focused news portal for Animation,
VFX and Gaming, and the leader in its segment by a long mile. -
RadioandMusic.com
- Launched in August 2007, the website is a B2B business vortal servicing the
radio and music industry, also a leader in its segment. -
The Indian News Television Summit 2007 and the News Television (NT) Awards 2007
- Launched in July 2007. -
In the 07-08 fiscal, Indiantelevision.com's first serious foray into the print
arena with a series of special publications. As
the group looks ahead to the next decade of its existence, I take this opportunity
to wish Anil and Team Indiantelevision all success for the future.
* The
author is former Editorial Director of Indiantelevision.com and currently runs
sportzpower.com. | 
