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| Khairul Anwar Salleh. |
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| Afdlin Shauki. |
HOT on the heels of its best-selling comedic reality show Raja Lawak, Astro introduces its very own comedy channel — Astro Warna.
Warna (Channel 132) is Malaysia’s first 24-hour comedy channel, and home to programmes featuring top local comedians such as Afdlin Shauki, Saiful Apek, Nabil Ahmad and Aznil Nawawi.
Warna brings viewers all-time favourite Malaysian comedies in Bahasa Malaysia and English, new home-grown sitcoms as well as stand-up comedies and “drama-comedies”.
Astro Malay language business vice-president Khairul Anwar Salleh said Warna was one of three new channels, the others being Malay film specialist Astro Citra (Channel 131) and Bollywood specialist B4U (Channel 133).
“The three channels come in one pack, Mustika, at RM12.95 a month,” he said.
Khairul said Warna was aimed at “bringing back more laughter and cheer” into Malaysian homes.
“Malaysians can laugh away their worries by tuning into Warna. It’ll also introduce them to our comedic talents, especially Nabil, Apek and Afdlin,” he said.
Raja Lawak, however, will remain in Astro Prima, as its production predates the new channel.
Among the new productions set to appear on Warna are Tok Ketua (9.30pm, Mondays), Impak Minima (9.30pm, Tuesdays), Ten Ten Ten (10pm, Wednesdays), Gerabak (10pm, Tuesdays), Spontan (10pm, Mondays) and Ek Eleh! Afdlin (10.30pm, Fridays).
Tok Ketua is a comedy series about a village headman. Directed by Sofi Jikan (Bilut) and produced by Adlin Aman Ramlie, it stars Zaibo, Ruminah Sidek, Bell Ngasri and Sepah.
Impak Minima is an educational but hilarious parody of the hit television series and film Impak Maksima. It stars Riezman Khuzaimi (of Impak Maksima), Angah and Munir.
Ten Ten Ten features “all-Malaysian” sketches by comedians Douglas Lim, Harith Iskander and Sharifah Shahirah, among others.
Gerabak which stars Raja Lawak graduates Along, Tauke, Angah and Yus, parodies Malaysian television, film and advertisements.
Spontan is a showcase of spontaneous humour by established and wannabe comedians. It stars Afdlin, Zizan and Din Beramboi.
Ek Eleh! Afdlin is Afdlin’s very own talk show with hilarious interviews. Datuk Siti Nurhaliza, Mawi, AC Mizal and Azean Irdawaty are among his guests.
Nabil will also star in Sonata Labu Labi with Fizz Fairuz (of the 999 public service advertisement fame). This comedy series is inspired by Tan Sri P. Ramlee’s hit comedy film Labu Labi.
And veteran comedians such as Jalil Hamid, Ruminah, Kartina Aziz and Sabri Yunus have their own comedy show, Kampung Jaguh.
“While 60 per cent of Warna’s content is local, we will also have foreign comedies such as Dharma And Greg and films like Jennifer Lopez’s Maid In Manhattan,” he said.
Citra aims to promote local films, and its first few movies will be Sepi (June 6), Antoo Fighters: Amukan Drakulat (June 7), Cicakman 2: Planet Hitam (June 28), Senario The Movie, Los Dan Faun and Susuk.
Citra also has its own productions, most notably the historical drama series Suatu Ketika at 9pm on Sundays.
It will feature the story of Sarawak freedom-fighter and Melanau schoolteacher Rosli Dhoby who was executed by the British for the murder of colonial governor Sir Duncan Stewart.
Other historical figures include football icon Datuk Mokhtar Dahari, courageous World War II nurse Sybil Kathigesu and the notorious Botak Chin. The series will also highlight Malaysian legends such as Si Tanggang.
Historical periods such as the Malacca Empire, the Emergency and the Japanese Occupation will also be featured in the series.
B4U, which means Bollywood For You features up to five Hindi movies a day. It also has celebrity interviews, music videos and Bollywood documentaries.
“B4U’s programmes and films come with Bahasa Malaysia subtitles,” he said.
Khairul said Astro decided to introduce the three channels based on customer feedback.
“We’ve got more than 1.5-million subscribers. Many of them have said that they want a comedy channel, and one that is dedicated to local films,” he said.
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