MUMBAI: Celebrities have been making their mark on radio for years now. After having personalities like Leander Paes and Milind Soman, amongst many others, Radio One has now signed Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan for a new on-air property called ‘Youth Stars’. The programme will soon run in the seven cities that Radio One is present in, namely Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Chennai.

‘Youth Stars’ tells radio listeners the stories about young achievers. These names can be from any field including cricket, film, start-ups, art and entertainment. Radio One chief programming officer Anil Machado said, “Hrithik Roshan has a fantastic story of his childhood. He is a son of a star but he has worked hard to achieve what he is today. He was a child star, then entered direction and then acting. He has his own journey and this is a brilliant connect with our concept. Also, his excellent voice acting and ability will add emotion to the stories and give a unique dimension to this unique radio initiative.”

The show will be run on-air for eight weeks during the Breakfast show hour. Machado said, “As soon as the idea was conceptualised, we pitched it to Hrithik and he accepted it without any hesitation.” He further added, “It is important that there is connect between the show and the celebrity, which is crucial for a show.” Apart from on-air promotion, the show is also being promoted online. A new song ‘#YouthStar’ has been created and performed by the Radio One in-house band which includes Radio One MD Vineet Singh Hukmani.

The stories of the youth stars will be made available in text, audio and video content on a special Facebook page. “We will also propel this with an on ground ‘Youth Star Awards’ in each of our seven cities as a part of this initiative,” said Radio One chief marketing officer Shyju Varkey.

“This initiative is one of many that will help Radio One change gears to meet the needs of the future which are hinged on expansion in the FM radio space, coupled with growing opportunities in the digital space. We, have been, are and will be pioneers in the differentiated tribal audience engagement space and this is the core of our strategy that helps us create and maintain a high margin business as we move forward said," Next Radio Ltd (RADIO ONE) MD and CEO Vineet Singh Hukmani.