Revanth-RP join hands to launch new TV channel?

For quite some time, there has been a talk about controversial media personality V Ravi Prakash, the founder-CEO of popular Telugu television news channel TV9, launching a new television channel.

In September, there were reports that Ravi Prakash, who has been playing behind the screen role in running a news website and a couple of channels, was in talks with the Ambani group, heading a chain of prominent television network, to launch a television channel in Telugu.

But the rumours have died down as fast as they surfaced in the media circles. The latest report is that Ravi Prakash has struck a deal with Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president and Malkajgiri MP A Revanth Reddy to launch the new Telugu television news channel.

According to the sources, though Revanth Reddy’s name doesn’t figure anywhere in the new outfit, he will operate the media house through four of his close associates and Ravi Prakash will be its front man.

It is learnt Revanth initially asked Ravi Prakash to be behind the scene, apparently to avoid witch-hunt by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government, but the former TV9 CEO insisted that he wants to stage a comeback on screen and that would fetch a huge mileage for the channel.

“The discussions are in the final stages and in all probability, it might be launched in a month or two,” sources said.

After being unceremoniously shunted out of the Associated Broadcasting Corporation Ltd (ABCL), the promoter of TV9 a few years ago, Ravi Prakash was in the news for waging a legal battle against the new management. 

Later, he was arrested on the charges of forgery and cheating, but was released later. He has since been on bail and the case is still pending.

In June this year, Ravi Prakash lost the battle against the TV9 management before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) which declared that the takeover of the ABCL by the new promoters in August 2018 was completely legal.

The Hyderabad bench of the NCLT found fault with Ravi Prakash for creating troubles for new promoters including Jupalli Jagapathi Rao and other directors.

It also directed that Ravi Prakash and his associate K V N Murthy pay Rs 10 lakh to the defendants as compensation.