Zee Aflam joins hands with Yash Raj Films

Press release

Published August 15th, 2011 - 06:04 GMT

MBKD First Look

Zee Aflam, the first 24-hour Pan Arab Bollywood film channel dedicated to Arabic audiences, has joined hands with Yash Raj Films, India’s premier film studio, for the world premiere of Mere Brother Ki Dulhan, a romantic comedy starring Imran Khan, Katrina Kaif and Pakistani Pop sensation and actor Ali Zafar, in Abu Dhabi, UAE on Sept. 7, 2011.

The red carpet event will be held in Vox Cinemas at Marina Mall Abu Dhabi, and attended by Imran Khan , Katrina Kaif, Ali Zafar, and the film’s director Ali Abbas Zafar. As Media Partner of the event, Zee Aflam is currently airing special promotions to provide an opportunity for Arab audiences to attend the event and interact with the stars. The making of the film will also be telecast on Zee Aflam.

Tamer Al Sherbini, Head of Marketing, Zee Aflam, said: “Our partnership with Yash Raj Films, for the world premiere of Mere Brother Ki Dulhan in the UAE highlights our commitment to bring the true Bollywood experience to the local Arabic audiences – our primary viewers.”

He added: “Bollywood films have amazing fan-following among Arabs, and Zee Aflam has emerged as the first-stop for Arab family audiences to watch their favourite movies. The world premiere underlines our association with leading industry banners to telecast new Bollywood films, which are conveniently presented for the local audience with subtitles or dubbed into Arabic.

Nelson D'Souza, Head of Operations, Middle East & North Africa, Yash Raj Films, said: “Over the years, Yash Raj Films has brought some of the Biggest Bollywood Blockbusters to the Arab world with star-studded premieres. Mere Brother Ki Dulhan follows the success of our earlier release Band Baaja Barat, and is a quintessential Yash Raj Films Family Entertainer. We are delighted with our Association with Our Airline Partners Etihad Airways, The National Airline of the UAE who are our Partners for The Abu dhabi & London Premieres, Hilton Hotel Abu Dhabi Our Hospitality Partners , Print and Media Partners Khaleej Times, Ahlan Masala , Radio Spice and we are Looking forward to reaching out to a larger Arabic Audience through our partnership with Zee Aflam.

Background Information

Zee Aflam

Zee Aflam is the first Pan-Arab free-to-air movie channel dedicated to Bollywood movies, packaged in Arabic. Predominantly catering for the Arabic audience, the channel is available on Nilesat.

Zee Aflam has a unique 24-hour film programming showcasing different genres of Bollywood including romance, comedy, action and drama – from the latest blockbusters to timeless classics.

Apart from Arabic sub-titles, selected movies in Zee Aflam are dubbed in Arabic to perfection further enhancing the appeal of the channel to the region’s audience.

The channel’s bouquet of movies including several fresh titles, with the movies selected and customized in line with the cultural sensitivities of the region and packaged in a two-hour format.

Zee Aflam has a woman band featuring movies by Bollywood’s leading actresses; a dedicated segment on Amitabh Bachchan, the Indian legend and a favourite of Arab audiences; and several other specials.

The channel is part of Zee Network, the largest producer and aggregator of Hindi programming in the world, with more than 100,000 hours of original material in its library. Zee has 500 million viewers in over 185 countries globally.