In a move to modernise(?) Ananada Vikatan, a Tamil weekly of repute, which was considered once a rare amalgam of popular taste and literary excellence has decide to do away with its famous ‘Vikatan Thatha’ Logo and the name Vikatan!
It is some years since Ananada Vikatan has become pulp, with rarely a good piece .
Well,SS.Vasan must be turning in his grave,
Though SS Vasan got the initial investment for Ananda Vikatan with money won in a race, though he also ran a soft porn magazine(people will refuse to recollect this, though), he did yeoman service to Tamil Literary field by publishing Classic Short Stories, under the heading ‘Muthiraikkathaikal’
Great writers like Jayakanthan, A Gyanpeeth award winner became famous, for which Vikatan could take credit for.
But changing times, changing values, money..is more important!
Story:
For decades, the figure of a frail, bespectacled, laughing man has graced the cover of ‘Ananda Vikatan’, one of south India‘s oldest publications. In the mind of the average Tamil reader, it was a symbol synonymous with a weekly diet of politics, entertainment and social analysis. The old man stood out in a world of regional publishing strewn with innumerable titles and mastheads. Today, the 87-year-old Vikatan group, which owns more than half a dozen magazines, has decided to drop the mascot and its brand name ‘Vikatan’ from its latest offering.
“For the first time we have dropped our mascot and downplayed the Vikatan name when we launch our new weekly ‘Time Pass’ on October 6,” B Srinivasan, CEO of Vikatan said.
The idea of dropping the brand name and mascot was to insure both from the new launch. “We do not want the new product to affect our existing brands. With ‘Time Pass’, we are hitting the mass end of the market with a product which is cheaper than a cup of tea at a roadside shop,” he said. ‘Time Pass’ is priced at Rs 5 per issue.
Like every large media house, Vikatan is at a crossroads, hoping to retain its loyal and traditional readership base and yet cross over with a gamut of new reading options to tap younger readers. “Print is no longer a sunrise industry, but it is far from sunset in India. This is a western myth which has caught us,” he said.
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