MUMBAI: Close on the heels of inking a JV with Viacom Inc., TV18 Group has now forayed into entertainment events. The new division is called E18, which will be housed under Network18.

E18 will be headed by Farhad K Wadia as CEO.

Wadia has 24 years of experience in entertainment, events and marketing promotions. He has also run an event management company abd sound recording facility in Mumbai called Power Production, as the founder CEO. Prior to that he has also worked with Channel 4 Radio and TV Networks UAE and Ajman TV as the general manager of the network, heading their events, sales and marketing. In his last assignment, he was working with Hindustan Times in New Delhi as vice president – events and marketing.

E18 will be active in the live entertainment space by leveraging the various media brands owned and managed by TV 18 Group. E18 will be conceptualizing and staging large format events such as concerts by international artistes, Bollywood shows, award nights in India and around the region. The division will also conceptualize and execute large format business conferences, conclaves and seminars.

Commenting on Wadia’s appointment, TV18 managing director Raghav Bahl says, “Farhad brings a glittering track record and passion to this newly launched initiative of the TV18 Group. Farhad’s mandate would be to synergise with the existing properties of the Group, while running E18 as an independent profit centre. Farhad’s appointment is entirely in keeping with the Group’s philosophy of inducting fully-empowered CEOs to launch and scale up new businesses within the media space.”