(6 February 2009 6:00 pm)

MUMBAI/BANGALURU: It is hoping to make Tamil Nadu's denizens smile at least if not laugh. Leading south Indian television network, the Maran-owned Sun is gearing up to unfurl a Tamil comedy channel from 8 February. Called Aditya, the free to air channel will be available across cable and direct-to-home (DTH) platforms.

Headed by Joley Vasanth, the channel will have a programming mix of fiction, reality, movies and movie-based content (comedy clips etc).

A senior Sun Network executive, on condition of anonymity, told Indiantelevision.com, "As part of our programming lineup, apart from usual fiction, reality and standup comedies, we will also have live events and games on the channel. We will also leverage the Network's library of films for the movie based content. However, our aim will be to bring a smile on our audiences' faces."

Sun Network already has a comedy channel Comedy Thirai which operates only for its DTH platform Sun Direct. This channel will be available across all platforms.

At present, Sun Network runs and operates more then twenty channels in four South Indian languages and forty three FM radio stations under the brand name of SFM.