Kazakh net weds Star TV drama

Sapna Babul Ka…Bidaai (Farewell to the Bride)

Kazakhstan’s Channel 31 has become the latest network to air a Star TV drama that has already sold across Eastern Europe.

Sapna Babul Ka…Bidaai (Farewell to the Bride) follows the unusual lives of two sisters and explores how society reacts to their different skin tones.

The show is sold globally by Intellecta Srl, Star’s partner in Europe, Russia and CIS, which specialises in Indian dramas.

The series airs on weekdays from 21.00 to 23.00 and has become a ratings hit for the Kazakh network, where local viewers are becoming increasingly interested in Indian drama.

Bagdat Kodzhakhmetov, CEO of Channel 31, said the show would become “an effective and successful continuation of our melodramatic series on primetime” and is “creating a new, powerful on-air trend.”

The series has already been sold to channels in Romania, Macedonia, Georgia, Lithuania and Bulgaria, while earlier this year Russia’s UTV became the first national channel in the country to air an Indian TV drama with Iss Pyar Ko Kya Naam Doom.