NEW DELHI: NDTV is launching a new series to go behind the silver screen and see the life of the stars.

Hosted by actor Raveena Tandon, ?Issi Ka Naam Zindagi? will reveal the true individual behind a celebrity.

The 13-episode series will commence on NDTV India on 25 February at 10 pm. The programme will also be telecast on NDTV?s flagship channel NDTV 24x7? as ?It?s My Life? every Sunday at 10 pm from 26 February.

The talk show features the country?s most loved and well-known celebrities and traces inspiring journeys of celebrities and revisits some of the most unforgettable experiences of their lives. Stars, with their family members, friends, mentors, and co-workers, will share some of the most memorable and significant incidents and anecdotes on air, as they walk down the memory lane.

Talking about the show and her experiences, celebrity host Tandon said, ?This show is a tribute to the individual behind a celebrity. The main aim of the show is to explore their lives beyond films and what we see onscreen that will reveal the real person behind the star."

NEW DELHI: ?Foodistan?, the culinary battle between Indian and Pakistani chefs which commenced telecast on NDTV Good Times on 23 January, is to be telecast in Pakistan from 11 February.

While it is being telecast from Mondays to Wednesdays at 9.30 pm by NDTV Good Times, it will be telecast on Geo TV in Pakistan on Saturdays and Sundays at 7 pm (Pakistan Time). The programme is in English and a smattering of Hindi and Urdu.

NDTV Lifestyle CEO Smeeta Chakrabarti had earlier told indiantelevision.com that the channel had partnered with Geo Channel of Pakistan to get some shots from that country.

This Indo-Pak battle for culinary supremacy is featuring 16 professional chefs in 26 episodes, and their food preparations are being judged by a three-member jury comprising HT Media Editorial Director Vir Sanghvi who has won the Food Critic Award from the Indian Culinary Foundation; celebrity British chef Merrilees Parker, and Sonya Jehanis who is a Bollywood actress of Pakistan and French descent.

All the chefs ? eight each from India and Pakistan ? are already known for their work in various hotels in India and Pakistan. The series is presented by the well-known Aly Khan with Ira Dubey.

Talking about the tie-up with Geo TV, NDTV Lifestyle Vice President - Development Atul Seth said, ?Geo TV is the largest and most respected network in Pakistan hence we decided to partner with them for Foodistan. Very soon the show will be available for the viewers in Pakistan as well. NDTV Good Times? association with Geo TV has been great so far; right now it?s only about them showcasing our content but eventually we might look at a bigger partnership.?

Geo TV President Imran Aslam added, ?Both the countries, India and Pakistan have taste buds that have been nourished over the centuries, we share a common passion for the aroma, the exquisite texture, the palette of colours and the distinctive flavours of the dishes that adorn our dastarkhawn. From the humble street-side dhabas to the resplendent tables of the courts, our food, is always magical. Foodistan will allow half forgotten fragrances to waft across our borders as chefs from India and Pakistan cook up a storm. No matter how many chefs there are on the show, this is one broth, one bhujia, one curry that cannot be spoilt. We, in Pakistan and Geo TV are looking forward to a mouth watering menu which will be a feast for the eyes. Zor ka tarka pyar se!?

NEW DELHI: Eminent television journalist and Broadcast Editors Association Secretary General Pankaj Pachauri, who has been associated with the NDTV for almost 15 years and is now its managing editor, has been appointed Communications Advisor in the Prime Minister?s Office.

Pachauri, who will report to the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, will advise on communicating the Government?s programmes, policies and achievements to the media and the public at large, particularly using the electronic, print and new and social media.

A print and broadcast journalist with nearly three decades of editorial experience in print and electronic media, Pachauri, 49, has worked across three continents. He has worked in Delhi, London, Boston and Hong Kong for leading news organisations such as NDTV, BBC (UK), Public Radio International (US), India Today (India and UK), The Sunday Observer and The Patriot.

He has worked for seven years in print media, six years in radio, and 16 years in television broadcasting in Hindi and English.

Pachauri started as a trainee reporter with the Patriot newspaper and soon moved to set up the Delhi edition of The Sunday Observer weekly as a correspondent. He then worked with India Today, as a senior correspondent to report on national politics. He joined the Observer group as its South East Asia correspondent based at Hong Kong. During the Gulf War he reported from the Philippines and Hong Kong on the impact of the war on Asian economies. In 1991 he shifted from print to electronic journalism.

During the 1991 general elections in India, he reported from Lucknow for the NDTV-Doordarshan special election programmes.

Later he moved to London as a producer for the BBC World Service. After broadcasting for BBC?s Hindi radio service, he joined the English newsroom and World Sevice television as a producer and reporter. While in London, he was also contributing editor for India Today?s UK Edition. From BBC?s London headquarters, he became a producer for BBC?s award-winning news and current affairs programme, The World, for global audiences. He was based in Boston at WGBH radio, part of the US Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). He returned to India in 1997 as BBC-PBS?s India correspondent reporting for The World programme (broadcast globally) and later joined NDTV.

Since 1997 he has worked with NDTV. He is currently managing editor of NDTV India (Special Projects). He hosts many programmes in NDTV, including well known Hum Log and Money Mantra in NDTV India and NDTV Profit.

Early in his career he reported extensively on the aftermath of 1984 communal riots in Delhi. At the peak of the Ayodhya dispute, his reports exposed the divisive forces behind the Babri Masjid campaign. He has reported on each election in India since 1984 to date. He has also reported on every US Presidential since 1988.

His espousal of free, secular and progressive journalism as a reporter, TV anchor and editor based in South-East Asia, Europe, the United States and India has won him several national and international journalism awards.