Radio City CEO and AROI president Apurva Purohit - Radio is one of the most interactive mediums right now

Be it regulatory, royalty or infrastructure related, the focus of the Association of Radio Operators of India (AROI) is avowedly on issues directly correlated to ensuring the success of the nascent radio industry. In a chat with Aparna Joshi, Radio City CEO Apurva Purohit, president of the AROI national governing board, shares her views on which way the industry is headed.

Excerpts:

Rajeeta Hemwani - Our main aim is to build an interface between artistes and music labels

After testing the waters at varied music labels for 16 long years, Rajeeta Hemwani has started her own innovative venture for aspiring musicians.

Named Monks of Music, the company will be headed by Hemwani, who put in her
papers at Big Music as content head, Artiste and Repertoire, a few days ago.

In an exclusive interview with Radioandmusic.com's Riya V Anandwala, she talks about hernewly setup company, plans ahead and much more...

Excerpts:

Fever's Delhi station head Neeraj Chaturvedi - We would like to own exclusive music rights of compositions by established composers

104 Fever FM has attempted to create a difference in the radio market in Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi and Bangalore with its campaign 'No Bullshit, only music'. In conversation with radioandmusic.com's Anita Iyer, Fever's Delhi station head Neeraj Chaturvedi talks about the company's latest campaign, short term plans and differential content.

Excerpts:

T-Series president - marketing media publishing (TV) Vinod Bhanushali - Indians will buy more music online when rock bands arrive in a big way

T-Series has in its library three of 2007's mega blockbusters - Om Shanti Om, Taare Zameen Par and Jab We Met. The label has also been actively acquiring music from various smaller labels. Vinod Bhanushali, President - Marketing Media Publishing (TV), has been with T-Series for over 15 years now and has seen the company grow from strength to strenght. In a frank and open-ended interview with radioandmusic.com's Aaishwari Chouhan, Bhanushali speaks about issues facing the music industry.

Sugar Mediaz founder director Darrpan Mehta - What's required on radio are interesting capsules that could be built around each station's property

We have all wondered about the voices that infuse life into loving animated characters, sell us products in our drawing rooms and talk to us in their friendly voices on FM radio. These are the invisible voice over artists we hear every day; the unknown faces of the broadcasting industry.

Mauj Telecom CEO Manoj Dawane - Our plan is to get into the Middle East and Africa this year

Manoj Dawane, who's seen the business from the operators' side till last year, shifted from Bharti Airtel to become CEO of People Infocom (Mauj) in mid 2007.

One of India's leading mobile value added services company, Mauj has been jumping from strength to strength in the M Vas space, even as it experiments and innovates in a bid to keep pace with the burgeoning telecom and computing industries.

In a chat with Radioandmusic.com's Aparna Joshi, Dawane shares his insights and vision for the company in the year ahead.

HT Music and Entertainment business head S Keerthivasan - We are focused and targeted on the metros and big cities

In the ebb and flow of the FM industry, stations are bubbling with new concepts and newer formats to remain differentiated. HT Music and Entertainment's Fever FM treaded an untrodden path by introducing 'less talk, more music'. HT Music and Entertainment business head S Keerthivasan in a tete with Nasrin Sultana, elaborates how 'its all about the music' in Fever FM.

Excerpts:

How much money has been invested into the Fever FM radio venture?

My FM national programming head Viplove Gupte - 'Today googling is a terminology which is a part of our lives'

Most cities where My FM is operating are B category cities where Internet penetration is not very high. What prompted My FM to launch its online portal?

Big Music CEO Kulmeet Makkar -We have serious plans to enter into regional languages - Tamil, Telugu, Bengali & Punjabi

Kulmeet Makkar took over as the chief executive officer of Big Music and Home Entertainment, the new division floated by Reliance Entertainment in 2007.

Makkar is responsible for content acquisition and business of not only Indian languages but also the global content in music and home entertainment, with a strong presence in physical and digital space across India and overseas. Makkar, who was music major Saregama for 18 years, was chief executive of Saregama's music business before joining Reliance.

Big FM vice president programming Manav Dhanda - We will not force fit a celebrity into the mould of an RJ

Manav Dhanda, vice president - programming for Big 92.7 FM, has been in media for over ten years.

At Miditech, he piloted shows like 'Fame Gurukul' and 'Deal Ya No Deal', and at Radio Mirchi, was instrumental in the station's rapid advancement as programming head. As a freelancer, Manav has also directed serials such as 'Thodi Si Bewafaii' after assisting well renowned television directors, and working as a freelance writer. A theatre enthusiast, he has been involved in theatre in Delhi as an actor and a stage director.