ZEE5’s Broken News, Mithya and other shows celebrated at JIFF Awards 2023

Press Release

• 09-01-2023

~ZEE5 Chief Content Officer Nimisha Pandey, actor Sonali Bendre and the show’s director Vinay Waikul in Jaipur to receive the award and participate in panel discussions at JIFF 2023 

~ Mithya bags a Special Jury Mention while other ZEE5 shows Saas Bahu Achar Pvt Ltd, Rangbaaz – Darr ki Raajneeti, Vilangu shine bright at the festival ~

Mumbai, January 7, 2023: ZEE5, India’s largest home-grown video streaming platform and multilingual storyteller for millions of entertainment seekers, today won major accolades at the prestigious Jaipur International Film Festival Awards 2023. ‘ZEE5 Originals’ shows dominated the iconic event with multiple award wins. These awards were presented at a ceremony held in Jaipur on January 6, 2023.

The Sonali Bendre-starrer newsroom drama ‘The Broken News’, which has emerged as the most-viewed ZEE5 Originals show, was felicitated under the Best Web Series category. This riveting adaptation of the British series – ‘Press’ successfully depicted the nuances of media houses, while reflecting upon some current societal realities and ideological differences in India through a strong, contemporary and compelling narrative. ZEE5 Chief Content Officer Nimisha Pandey, actor Sonali Bendre and the show’s director Vinay Waikul were in Jaipur today to receive the award and participated in panel discussions at JIFF 2023.

Starring Huma Qureshi, the psychological thriller ‘Mithya’ which has attained the biggest opening for an Original series on ZEE5 as well as garnered all-round critical acclaim, was awarded with the Special Jury Mention – Web Series Award.

Mr. Manish Kalra, Chief Business Officer, ZEE5 India said, “This is a great start to 2023 with ZEE5 being recognized at the globally acclaimed Jaipur International Film Festival. It encourages our efforts to explore and expand our slate with meaningful stories that resonates with the audiences. As the largest homegrown OTT player, ZEE5 envisions to cater to every audience as per their preferences, invest in industry talent and partner with the best storytellers across regions and languages. We are thankful to the jury, our partners, and the audiences for their love and support in our endeavour to make ZEE5 a platform of choice for multilingual entertainment seekers.”

Talking about award wins and revamping content design strategy, Ms. Nimisha Pandey, Chief Content Officer – Hindi Originals, ZEE5 said, “We are delighted to begin 2023 on a high note, with multiple award wins at the prestigious Jaipur International Film Festival. This is a result of our consistent efforts towards bringing forth India’s cultural essence through extraordinary stories, working with the most prolific storytellers and actors, and constantly developing our content offering with variedness to keep up with changing trends. Staying true to ZEE5’s ideology, we have constantly supported our creator community’s vision, laying special impetus on authenticity, breaking through the conventional norms of storytelling. As we enter 2023, our strong line-up of shows and movies in Hindi as well as other regional languages is a testament to our commitment of continuing to entertain viewers from across the globe, taking ZEE5’s popularity beyond the barriers of language, culture and geography.”

Other ZEE5 Originals that shone bright at the awards show included the series - Saas Bahu Achaar Pvt. Ltd, Vilangu and Rangbaaz – Darr Ki Rajneeti. Produced by TVF, Saas Bahu Achaar Pvt Ltd received rave reviews for its heart-warming storyline about a woman struggling to set up her pickle business to earn a living. Featuring actors Yamini Das, Amruta Subhash, Manu Bisht and Anjana Sukhani in pivotal roles, the drama beautifully portrays the bittersweet relationship between the characters. The women-centric show also introduces a uniquely new-dimension to the saas-bahu dynamic.

In its 3rd season, crime dramas – Rangbaaz (Darr Ki Raajneeti) offered audiences a sensitive portrayal of crime and violence in the Hindi heartland. The stellar performances by Vineet Kumar Singh, Prashant Narayanan, Geetanjali Kulkarni amongst other members of the star cast kept the audiences engaged.

The crime-thriller series – Vilangu has become a cultural phenomenon across Tamil audiences. Among the key factors contributing to the murder mystery’s success was the ample space dedicated to showcase the cultural ethos of the region and the people's beliefs, as part of the narrative.

As an industry pioneer, ZEE5 has been experimental in its content design approach throughout 2022, from introducing India’s first adaptation of Korean drama show – Flower of Evil, with the launch of Duranga, to following a multi-pronged approach in creator collaborations. Taking major strides in India’s OTT ecosystem, ZEE5 has not only on-boarded well-established content creators, but is also nurturing young talent by providing them a platform to showcase their stories.

In recent years, ZEE5 has been making consistent investments in expanding its ‘Originals’ content slate across languages. With an array of impactful stories that cater to multiple consumer cohorts, ZEE5 has been successful in offering its audiences a diverse and compelling slate featuring titles such as Sunflower, State of Siege: Temple Attack, Break Point, Bob Biswas, Broken News and Kaun Banegi Shikharwati, amongst many others. In a bid to consolidate its position as the most-preferred digital content platform, ZEE5 has built a strong line-up of Hindi originals across the spectrum for 2023, with shows like Mithya, Abhay 3, Rangbaaz 3 and many more. ZEE5 is one of the first national OTT players to announce an exclusive, specially curated slate for its Tamil, Telugu and Bangla audiences, in a major push towards strengthening its hyperlocal brand positioning for region-specific as well as global audiences across 190+ countries.

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