Mumbai, February 20th, 2009:  Cricket fervour is gaining momentum... Starting Saturday 28th February, 2009, Imagine and Red Chillies Idiot Box extend their partnership with a brand new reality dance show Knights and Angels!  Stock up your chants and cheers as Imagine’s Knights & Angels comes alive on television screens every Saturday for 6 six weeks at 10.00 p.m only on NDTV Imagine. This much-awaited reality dance show will trace the hunt for 6 spirited and talented girls to lead the Cheer Squad of the Kolkata Knight Riders. Adding his final stamp of authority, is Judge Sourav Ganguly the inimitable icon of Indian cricket

Knights & Angels is the first ever-televised reality dance competition searching for dancing talent to be cheerleaders for Kolkata Knight Riders.  After an extensive audition conducted across key metros in India, the 24 shortlisted girls will be groomed and trained by the biggest names in the Indian entertainment industry. The 6 finalists will have to possess qualities like Energy, Style, Chutzpah, Poise, Personality, Attitude, Grace, Rhythm, and Fire within themselves to make it to the Kolkata Knight Riders cheerleading squad. King Khan’s girls will be mentored by ace choreographer ‘Shiamak Davar’ and will be taken through their paces by the revolving guest judges, which will see some of the biggest and prettiest faces in Bollywood!  The first episode will be co-judged by the young, new talent Anushka Sharma, who shot to fame with her role in Rab Ne Bane Di Jodi.  This 6-week extravaganza will be hosted by the very wacky and much sought after young actor, Purab Kohli. 

Says Shahrukh Khan, “Cricket is a perfect blend of hard work and entertainment.  We are very excited about the whole challenge of finding the best cheerleading squad for our knights.  These girls will become a key part in our quest for victory this season.  The competition is tough and the boys will need all the support they can get on-field.   All the girls have the right attitude, energy and enthusiasm. “
Sourav Ganguly adds, “I have never been a judge before. It’s equally exciting and nerve-wracking for me and I’m really looking forward to a whole new experience.  Shahrukh and Juhi have promised to guide me and I assure my Knights that we will find those ‘Angels’ that will cheer us to victory.”

Kick-starting this entertainment extravaganza, Shailja Kejriwal, EVP Content, NDTV Imagine said, “Take King Khan’s Knights… add supremely talented dancers and  pretty faces… mix in some great music and dance moves… add a generous dose of our iconic judge and his beautiful co-judges and top it off with our exuberant host… and what you get is 6 weekends of pure entertainment. The fun has just begun… ”

Says mentor Shiamak Davar, “These girls have a tough task ahead of them.  Cheerleading is very demanding and it takes a special kind of skill to be able to motivate your team and also an audience of thousands from start to finish.  I’m excited to team up with Saurav, Red Chillies Idiot Box and NDTV Imagine in this ‘imaginative’ quest for those select angels who will cheer the knights to victory!”

NDTV Imagine’s Knights & Angels will be a 6-episode series that will telecast at 10.00 p.m every Saturday, starting 28th February, 2009. Each episode will be filled with fun, dance, music, glamour and full on entertainment, seeing these enthusiastic dancers from all over India competing against each other to make it to the final 6.
 

About NDTV Imagine

NDTV Imagine is the ‘entertainment initiative of the NDTV Networks PLC, the NDTV-NBCU joint venture in India’.   Spearheaded by Sameer Nair, the company has made strategic forays into key businesses in the media and entertainment space. Ace director and producer, Karan Johar is a creative consultant and brand ambassador of this initiative. The company currently operates the Hindi General Entertainment channel, NDTV Imagine; the World Cinema movement, NDTV Lumière (which includes theatrical releases, home video, internet and television), Imagine Showbiz, a dedicated Bollywood Entertainment channel and Imagine Film Co., a film production studio that has numerous movie projects across regions and languages, in varying stages of development and production.
NDTV Imagine has also been working closely with NBCU to bring world-class entertainment to Indian audiences with channels like Sci-Fi, 13th Street, the Universal Channel and also the revamped Hallmark Channel.  The company has done extensive work with regard to the launch, distribution and monetization of premium international channels in India. 

About NDTV

NDTV Ltd, founded in 1988, is India's largest news and infotainment network. It is home to the country's best and brightest reporters, anchors, camerapersons and producers; 23 offices and studios across the country host India's most modern and sophisticated production, newsgathering and archiving facilities. NDTV has an unmatched track record of successfully launching three news channels in India and two abroad: NDTV 24x7 is a clear leader in the English news segment, NDTV Profit, a 24-hour business plus channel, is India's number one business news channel, NDTV India is amongst the country's leading Hindi news channels, and NDTV MetroNation is fast emerging as one of the most watched city specific channels. It is credited with pioneering several broadcasting and programming initiatives in Indian television and has expanded into one of the nation's biggest broadcasting houses by growing beyond news broadcasting and venturing into non news verticals.

NDTV Networks, a subsidiary of NDTV was incorporated to seize opportunities in areas 'beyond news'- entertainment, lifestyle, media technology and outsourcing. NDTV Good Times is the leading channel in the lifestyle space. NDTV Astro Awani in Indonesia became the leading news channel within three months of its launch. As an organization, NDTV is committed to one cause: to use its extensive expertise, technology and reach to create unparalleled coverage of the latest in domestic and international news, sports and entertainment for viewers at home and around the world. For more information visit www.ndtv.com

About Kolkata Knight Riders

Kolkata Knight Riders is a unique collaboration between the business of entertainment and the business of sport, it is one of eight teams participating in the Indian Premier League and was created in 2008 as a joint venture between Shahrukh Khan, Jai Mehta and Juhi Chawla. With IPL 2008 being a thrilling first season Kolkata Knight Riders brand far exceeded expectations and established themselves as the “people’s team”. Kolkata Knight Riders is focused on the upcoming season and has many plans in place for both the team and the fans.