(DALLAS, Texas) – June 12, 2009 – Zee TV has launched two new explosive television shows, both celebrating love in difficult circumstances. In keeping with Zee’s dynamic approach to constantly offering viewers fresh stories featuring engaging topical themes, Zee has launched a plethora of new shows in the last few of months, such as Choti Bhahu, Agale Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo, Ghar Ghar Mein, and Dance India Dance to name a few. Meanwhile, viewers enjoyed the exciting conclusions of programs like Saat Phere and Dulhaan. These two new shows, Pavitra Rishta and Aapki Antara, are already climbing the ratings charts in India every day.

Pavitra Rishta follows the life of an uneducated, but hard-working girl from a middle class Mahrashtrian family who falls in love with a garage owner with his own secrets, against her mother’s wishes. The show focuses on the strong emotional bond that every daughter shares with her mother, as Pavitra’s mother struggles with finding the best suitor for her only daughter. This compelling saga explores the complicated mother-daughter relationship and a mother's search for the best match for her precious daughter in both love and life.

In Aapki Antara, the main character is a 5-year old, autistic, illegitimate child who is thrust into a new family, with the father she never knew, when her mother suddenly passes away. Even under these unfortunate circumstances, Aapki allows viewers to see the world – a place often filled with violence, deception and discrimination - through the innocent and excited eyes of a child. Both shows focus on the complex joys and difficulties in parent-child relationships; complexities that transcend cultures from India to the U.S.

“Both of our new series follow life’s storyline – from hardship and struggle to the ultimate search for happiness,” said Subroto Bhattacharya, Territory Head, Americas for Zee TV USA. “When it comes to love and relationships, nothing is easy and people are often forced to overcome extraordinary circumstances to maintain relationships with those they love the most. We hope to capture that real emotion in Pavitra Rishta and Aapki Antara.”

The lead cast members of Pavitra Rishta include Ankita Lokhande, Savita Prabhune, Ajay Rohia and Swati Anand. Ankita Lokhande, who will be playing the show’s protagonist, was last seen as the lead in Baali Umar Ko Salaam (NDTV Imagine).

Actors, Savita Prabhune and Swati Anand, have previously starred in the Balaji shows Kusum and Kasamh Se respectively. In Aapki Antara, Prabhleen Sandhu and Darshan play the Antara’s parents, while noted actor Sujata Kumar plays the little girl's grandmother.

Aap Ki Antara airs on Zee TV USA Mondays through Fridays at 9 pm ET, while Pavitra Rishta airs Sunday through Wednesday at 9.30 pm ET.

Zee – the name that has become synonymous with entertainment has been a dominant player in broadcasting content for more than 17 years in the national and international space. Since Zee is an Indian channel enriched with values and cultures that appeals not only to Indians but to all Indian language understanding South Asians across the globe it was an ideal fit to cater to the South Asian Diaspora abroad and reach out to them.

With many firsts already associated with its name, Zee also became the first to pioneer in the international space and refurbish its flagship channel to reach out to the South Asian Diaspora worldwide.

International operations began in July 1998 for USA. And since then there has been no looking back. The team built Zee into a strong household name amongst the South Asian Diaspora in the entire Americas territory. Reaching out to more than 2 million viewers it has been an undisputed leader in the market for 10 years.

Not only did the channel grow and create a strong foot hold in the market, it also became responsible for evolving the needs of the market from aspiration for just Hindi content to aspiration for content across genre and languages. Consequently the team launched channels that cater to a wide spectrum of needs both in terms of language and genres. Channels like Zee Cinema (bollywood movie channel), Zee Gujarati (Gujarati general entertainment channel), Alpha Punjabi (Punjabi general entertainment channel), and Zee Sports (sports channel) were launched in the US market.

After successfully launching these channels, Zee TV USA has ventured into producing content locally to reach deeper into the South Asian Diaspora and make them feel closer to their roots. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa came into being 12 years ago and Indian television history has no other program parallel to this. Last year (2008), for the first time ever SRGMP has been produced in an international market (USA) for the international market to reach out to the South Asian Diaspora and take another colossal step in moving closer to them. This continues with other initiatives like Zee Carnival and many more in the pipeline. All these initiative have truly made and continue to make Zee the undisputed leader in South Asian entertainment.