E18 launched its flagship event Independence Rock on the 20^th of October at Hard Rock Café in Mumbai.  This year Independence Rock has teamed up with MTV India and is being presented by MTS Red Energy.

The Press Conference Launch was attended by Special Guest, Imran Khan, Bollywood celebrity and youth icon, Gary Lawyer, Rock Musician, Amitesh Rao, Brand & Marketing, MTS India, Farhad Wadia, founder of IRock and CEO, E18 and Aditya Swamy, EVP, MTV India.

After 25 years of bringing the best in Rock Music to audiences in India, E18 is taking IRock (as it is fondly called) to the next level. For the first time, IRock is going to go LIVE on MTV & VH1 Simultaneously from 5 cities – Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata & Pune – on the 27^th of November.

The format of the event has been tweaked to incorporate more music, more fans and more rock!
Bands will register their entries on http://www.mtsredenergy.com/irock/ where they will submit 1 original song, a short bio and a band photograph. All this information will be reviewed and judged by an esteemed panel of judges appointed by E18. 8 bands will be chosen as qualifiers in each of the 5 cities. These bands will compete over a period of 2 days at the end of which, 1 winner will be decided. The audition rounds will be held at the Hard Rock Café in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore and The Park Hotel in Kolkata. The five regional winners will then be brought to Mumbai to compete at the All India National Final on November 26^th, 2011 at Chitrakoot Grounds, Andheri.

There will also be a special Wildcard Entry slot which can be won by any of the bands that register. All they would have to do is create a social medium via the registration website (Facebook/Twitter handle) and promote it as much as possible. The activity on these pages, which is being labeled “Red Energy” will be calculated based on their social/digital activity, the number of interactions they have on these mediums, and most importantly, the number of fans they can gather. Of the top 10 bands with the most “red energy”, 1 band will be chosen as the Wildcard. This band will get that unique opportunity to circumvent all the auditions and secure a place in the final.

The winner of the All-India Competition will be crowned the winner after the competition and will then go on to head-line the LIVE concert in Mumbai on the following day. The 27^th of November will be a day to remember in Indian Rock history – there will be concerts held in all 5 cities between 5pm and 10pm which will be broadcast live. The regional bands that do not win, will still win a spot as the opening act at the concerts in their respective cities. Each opening act will be followed by 4 of the best professional bands in those cities.

The schedule is as follows:

• Kolkata Auditions                                  -     November 7th & 8th, 2011
• Mumbai & Pune Auditions                 –     November 9th & 10th, 2011
• New Delhi & Bangalore Auditions    -    November 16th & 17th, 2011
• All India Final                                          -    November 26th, 2011
• Grand Finale Simulcast                       –    November 27th, 2011

Independence Rock has been the platform where the country’s leading bands have made their debut. It is a landmark event which every aspiring musician dreams of being a part of – on or off stage. Every band that has ever played at I-Rock has gone on record to say that it was the best experience, with the most enthusiastic crowd on the most exhilarating stage.

Independence Rock has now become a household name with accolades from various forms of media receiving extensive coverage every year from several news publications, online magazines and blogs.

Speaking of the 26^th year of IRock, Farhad Wadia, CEO, E18, said, “E18 is extremely happy to partner with MTS & their Red Energy initiative for Independence Rock XXVI as both initiatives target the Youth of India and through MTS’s massive user base we hope to reach out to even more people this year and make them experience the Best Live Music Festival in India as we create Broadcast & Music History by going out LIVE on MTV and VH-1 this year for the first time ever from 5 cities simultaneously!”

Speaking about the event, Imran Khan, Bollywood Star and Youth Icon said, ” I am excited to be a part of the 26th edition of MTV Independence Rock brought alive by MTS Red Energy. It is a platform which has introduced some of the most famous rock bands to India. I’ve always been a big fan of rock music, and I have great memories of attending I Rock over the years. I’m hoping to see some great new bands along with old favorites.”

According to Amitesh Rao, Director – Brand & Media, MTS India, said “Our association with Independence rock is part of MTS Red Energy, which is a platform designed to offer talented and digitally active young people a great way to leverage their online status to get real world benefits. In this case, MTS Red Energy offers talented bands a shot at winning a wildcard entry into the finals of Independence Rock, based on their online activity and engagement with rock music fans.”

Ferzad Palia, Head VH1 said: “Vh1 India has partnered with iRock since its launch 7 years ago… We’re proud to take this partnership to the next level with LIVE simulcasts & other exciting stuff we’re doing with the new Rock talent… Vh1 will take this talent to the next level!”

Aditya Swamy, EVP & Business Head, MTV India said “I grew up going to I Rock and now to be a part of it is unbelievable…  MTV will now take this iconic property LIVE for the first time and showcase the music not just from Bombay but from the other 4 cities as well… So a historic property makes history once again”

Photos from the Event:

Lafarge India

Event Profile: Farewell Dinner Event for Retiring Board of Directors

Venue: Grand Ballroom, Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai

Date: 17^th August 2011

Lafarge India held this dinner in honour of their 3 Board Directors who retired from their posts. The event was a felicitation evening planned by the in-house team at Lafarge and executed by the Corporate Team at E18. The dinner was hosted at the Grand Ballroom at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Colaba, Mumbai on the 17^th of August 2011.
The three directors – Mr. Deepak Parekh, Mr. V. Narayanan & Mr. Thakur were bid farewell at this dinner and commemorated for the years of service to the company. Of the three directors, Mr. Deepak Parekh is to continue as a Board Director at Lafarge Global.

The evening started with a pulsating performance by Sitar Funk – ace sitar maestro, Niladri Kumar’s ensemble. After the entertainment display, the felicitation ceremony commenced which had the 3 board directors come up and receive mementos. The evening concluded with cocktails and an exquisite dinner for all the guests.

E18 was the official event management company handling the entire event from set production, event technicals and artist management.

E18 executed a series of activations for TVS Tyres across 3 zones in India -  Chennai, Surat and Patna over a period of 25 days each between August and September 2011. The objective of this mini-market storming campaign was to “create a buzz” in the marketplace about the TVS brand. E18 built up a focused communication platform to ensure 360 degree coverage across all media making the TVS brand stand out in the eyes of retailers and customers alike.

During the activities, the range of offers was provided to potential customers, e.g., ‘Buy a TVS Tyre and get a Sling Bag Free’. The activation areas were set up to showcase the brand in the best possible way and build up brand equity. Arches, danglers and posters were put up to attract customers and leaflets were distributed to introduce them to the activity. Other promotions included local cable advertisements and OOH Media hoardings put up at prime locations in each city and an average of 20 spots on prime radio stations to amplify the activity.

The entire activation period was broken up into phases starting with branding of various outlets, canters and radio promos, followed by the distribution of freebies to potential customers. The activation series was concluded with a 3 day Auto Camp which was attended by approximately 350 autos.
E18 was in charge of executing and managing the event series in each city from concept brand building to production and execution. The client was more than satisfied with the results. TVS and E18 are going to extend this activation series in other cities like Aurangabad in the next month.

The IBN7 Guru Shishya Awards

Date: 9^th August 2011

Venue: Taj Palace, New Delhi

Televised Date: 20^th August at 8 p.m. on IBN7

The 1^st edition of the IBN7 Guru Shishya Awards was hosted at the Taj Palace in New Delhi on the 9^th of August keeping the Guru-Shishya bond in mind. Traditionally, knowledge has always been passed on from generation-to-generation from the Guru to his or her Shishya. Stemming from this rich Indian tradition, the IBN7 Guru Shishya Awards commemorated the unconditional relationship between the two. The glittering ceremony was a felicitation of this everlasting bond; a first of its kind initiative held to award the Guru-Shishya duo highlighting the achievements of the Shishya that has made their Guru proud.

The IBN7 Guru-Shishya Awards followed a unique process of selection with Network18’s distinguished editorial board at its core. The Network18 editorial board comprised of Mr. Raghav Bahl, the Founder & Editor of Network18, Mr. Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief of CNN-IBN, IBN7 and IBN Lokmat, Ashutosh, Managing Editor of IBN7 and Nikhil Wagle, Editor of IBN Lokmat. The board first selected a list of illustrious Guru-Shishya duos for their remarkable achievements in their respective fields. After careful deliberation they finalized the winners keeping in mind their contribution in their respective fields as well as the society at large.

The event was graced by the presence of Honorable Cabinet Minister of Human Resource Development, Communication & IT, Mr. Kapil Sibal who felicitated the winning duos in nine categories. The categories ranged from Sports, Education and Public Service to Theater, Arts & Music. A Special Life-Time Achievement Award was presented to Desh Prem Azad & Kapil Dev for the magnificent bowler he became under the guidance of his mentor.

The awards function was a huge success with praise received from all the attendees and winners. This unique initiative highlighted and rewarded the deserving twosome rather than just the front-runner which is what made it so special.

CNN-IBN Real Heroes Awards

Date: 17^th August 2011

Venue: Hotel Trident, Mumbai

Televised Date: 27^th August at 8 p.m. on CNN-IBN

This year, the Real Heroes Awards, in partnership with Reliance Industries Limited, a path breaking editorial initiative from CNN IBN, was hosted at the Trident Hotel in Mumbai on the 17^th of August 2011. The award ceremony was piloted by Mr. Rajdeep Sardesai, the Editor-in-Chief of CNN-IBN, IBN7 and IBN Lokmat. The awards recognized and acknowledged ordinary Indians who are making a difference to people’s lives. This year, in his 4^th edition, 24 unknown and unsung heroes were felicitated. The efforts of these 24 Real Heroes from across the country have redefined humanity by dedicating their life towards the betterment of society. The categories of the awards were Women’s Empowerment, Education and Children, the Youth, Social Welfare, Health & Disability, the Environment and Sports. These exceptional individuals who have worked tirelessly for the betterment of society with unwavering determination and courage were felicitated with a trophy and a cash prize of INR 5 Lacs each.

The awards followed a stringent selection process where each potential winner was deliberated over by the IBN18 editorial board.

The awards were attended by several high profile personalities and Bollywood celebrities. The Chief Guests included Mr. Mukesh Ambani & Mrs. Neeta Ambani, Bollywood Directors, Mr. Yash Chopra and Mr. Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Ms. Asha Bhosle, Karisma Kapur, Sports icon Mr. Anil Kumble & our very own Mumbai Police Commissioner, Arup Patnaik.

E18 was responsible for on ground execution. The events ran beautifully with much appreciation at the end from the organizers and guests alike.

Click Here to visit EventFaqs who covered both event properties.