Sweet Love Coming Soon To Star Life

Star Life, an English dubbed Bollywood channel operated by JioStar that offers a variety of series and movies has announced the addition of a new series Sweet Love. Known in India as Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad, the series airs from 3 December at 22:30 CAT.

Synopsis for Sweet Love 

Katha and UV's paths cross in college, leading to an initial heated argument where Katha makes a remark about UV's mother, wounding his pride. In a fit of rage, UV decides to teach Katha a lesson by charming her into falling in love with him as part of a plot with his friends. Katha, initially impressed by his perceived kindness, starts developing feelings for him, unaware of his true intentions. The deception is exposed when Katha overhears UV discussing his successful plan, leaving her heartbroken and reinforcing her belief that men are untrustworthy. 

Katha Kumari Jindal: A compassionate botanist who is reserved and has a strong moral compass. She has a deep-seated distrust of men and marriage due to her mother's past experiences.

Udayveer "UV" Jindal: A handsome, charismatic chef who runs a café and appears carefree on the surface but deeply misses his mother, who was forced to leave the family home years ago due to manipulation by his aunt. 

Based on the series Kothha, Sweet Love premiered on StarPlus on 6 June and concluded on 22 September 2025 with 106 half hour episodes. It starred Afia Tayebali as Katha Kumari Jindal and Abrar Qazi as Udayveer "UV" Jindal.

Sweet Love airs daily at 21:30 CAT replacing Sacred Love from 3 December alongside Bound By Love at 22:30 and Noyontara: The Hidden Truth at 22:00. Later in the month, Star Life will also be rolling out a female centered series titled Ishani.

Insult To Injury. MultiChoice Might Be Reviving Me As A Pop-Up Channel On DStv

Last year, MultiChoice and M-Net decided to do away with Me and 1Magic as part of its streamlining endeavours with further content folded under Showmax. From the looks of things, it appears as if MultiChoice is now pushing to have Universal TV and Bravo to pick up the cracks.

Bravo and Universal TV are owned by NBCUniversal who have a 30% stake in Showmax so the idea of MultiChoice using these brands as replacements doesn't seem far fetched. Canal+ Afrique whose parent company took control of MultiChoice had been distributing them in place of the channels.

For a limited time, MultiChoice had given its Premium and Compact+ consumers an open window to Showmax through 1Max. This is what the company had put in place of 1Magic while those viewing Me got nothing.

Fast forward to 2025, it looks like MultiChoice may be looking to revive Me in a not-so-distant future most likely like how 1Max was set up for 1Magic.

MultiChoice had been experimenting on the channel but this carnation of the brand looks nothing like Me or it's previous forms being M-Net City, M-Net Series Zone and The Series Channel.

Me would boast a variety of international series and films while this version only exists to promote local content from M-Net's stable being Tonight With Trevor Noah, Gomora and The Wedding Bashers. It's kind of like what they did with M-Net Binge and not long ago with 1Max and 1Magic.

M-Net Binge was a catch-up channel for M-Net's programming then was shuttered and revived as an HBO pop-up channel. 1Magic which infused with South African flavour was folded under a Pan-African tailored brand like 1Max.

At least for these incarnates some fragments of the content was retained unlike Me in this regard whose offering is just limited to local content or repeats. Gomora had already been viewed on Mzansi Magic with Vallei Van Sullei on KykNet & Kie why is it being used to hype up a pop-up channel.

The only rash explanation would be the Mzansi Magic 16 pop-up channel the company had launched a few months ago. For the festive holidays, they revived it but now as "The Me Channel" but with KykNet's lineup of content.

Interesting to note, M-Net City which served as Me's previous incarnations was initially suppose to launch as an entertainment channel for South African programming. Before M-Net scrapped plans to launch the channel only for the trademark to be revived as a placemat for M-Net Series Zone.

Bound By Love Coming Soon To Star Life

Star Life, an English dubbed Bollywood channel operated by JioStar that offers a variety of series and movies has announced the addition of a new series Bound By Love. Known in India as Bohot Pyaar Karte Hai, the series airs from 3 December at 22:30 CAT.

Synopsis for Bound By Love 

The story begins with Indu, an optimistic and kind-hearted woman, who is deeply in love with a man named Mahesh. However, when she goes to propose to him, she discovers he is already married. Mahesh insults Indu and beats her father, leading to their breakup. 

Emotionally shattered, Indu boards a bus back home. On the journey, she helps a pregnant woman deliver a baby. The woman, named Kadambari, later abandons the newborn baby and leaves a note asking Indu to raise the child. Indu, seeing a new hope in her life, decides to adopt the girl, names her Zoon, and raises her as her own, despite initial opposition from her family. 

Bound By Love premiered on Star Bharat on 5 July and concluded on 10 December 2022 with 133 half hour episodes. It starred Karan V Grover as Ritesh Malhotra, Sayali Salunkhe as Indu Raina and Kiara Sadh as Zoon Raina basically lead roles.

Prior to its rollout, The Evil Eye Returns will conclude on 2 December with Noyontara: The Hidden Truth replacing the show at 22:00 with Bound By Love at 22:30 on 3 December. Other shows expected to rollout on the channel within the month is Ishani.

Disney's Linear TV Channels Return To Sky Italia

Disney's linear TV channels are coming back to Sky. In a few days, as ItaliaOggi can exclusively reveal, the partnership agreement between the Burbank giant and Comcast’s broadcaster will be officially announced. The deal will bring some of Disney’s rich content catalogue — including Disney, FX, Hulu, etc. — back to good old traditional linear television channels, which, contrary to what many analysts have claimed for years, never actually go out of fashion.

Soon, therefore, Sky Italia subscribers will enjoy a new Disney-branded channel, with potential future developments in the areas of animation, TV series, movies, and documentaries.

Sky’s strategy

All of this fits into a broader strategic redesign in which Sky is reshaping its partnership perimeter based on the value perceived by its subscribers. This same logic explains the recent acquisitions of TV rights for basketball and rugby, the renewal of the UEFA agreement for Champions League rights from 2027–2031, and the ongoing negotiations with Liberty Media-Dorna for the renewal of MotoGP rights (whose current deal expires at the end of 2025). MotoGP currently finds itself with TV ratings halved, a championship of little interest, and no standout personalities apart from Marc Márquez — yet it is unlikely to give up its relationship with Sky (the platform that still guarantees the greatest visibility for the two-wheeled circus) and may simply accept a lower fee for the rights.

The end of the partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery

The agreement with Disney comes just as Sky Italia’s long relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery is officially coming to an end. As is already known, from 1 July 2025 all Eurosport, Discovery, and even the free-to-air channels of the WBD group disappeared from Sky. On 31 December 2025, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, all Warner films, and new HBO series will definitively leave the platform. HBO, controlled by WBD, was the home of flagship titles such as House of the Dragon, Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, Succession, The Last of Us, The White Lotus, and The Pitt.

The future of HBO and Warner content on Sky

From 2026 onwards, Sky will still be able to broadcast new seasons of most of those existing franchises (with the exception of The Pitt), but no longer on an exclusive basis. However, it will no longer have direct access to new Warner or HBO films and brand-new series.

At least not directly. Because, thanks to the many new partnerships Sky is signing, Warner content that has “left through the door” may very well come back in “through the window” — possibly via Peacock, Netflix, or other platforms.

BBC Studios Africa Reveals New Format For BBC Lifestyle, Hidden Gems: South Africa

BBC Lifestyle is set to unveil Hidden Gems: South Africa, a fresh and immersive travel series that takes viewers off the beaten path to discover South Africa’s most luxurious and lesser-known escapes. Launching in 2026, the six-part series blends influencer-led storytelling with audience participation to celebrate the country’s rich natural beauty.

Hidden Gems: South Africa follows five South African travel influencers as they explore and showcase two of South Africa’s greatest hidden gems per episode, each accompanied by a guest. In each episode, the influencer receives an envelope revealing the surprise gems which they must visit, review, and showcase. BBC Lifestyle viewers will vote for their favourite hidden gem from the series and be in with the chance of winning exciting prizes. The most compelling review and favourite gem, voted for by the audience, will be revealed in the final episode (Episode Six) with the winning influencer receiving a special prize.

The series sees the influencers traveling across South Africa, offering a curated look at destinations that combine luxury with authenticity. Each episode is shaped by a distinct theme, celebrating the diverse beauty and character of South Africa’s landscapes.

The new series is produced by PD Production, the producers behind BBC Lifestyle’s popular shows – Listing Jozi, Listing Cape Town, Listing Mauritius and Listing Coastal South Africa which is currently airing on BBC Lifestyle (DStv channel 174) every Wednesday at 8pm with repeats Thursdays at 5pm.

Pierre Cloete, Vice President for Africa at BBC Studios, commented: “We’re thrilled to bring Hidden Gems: South Africa to BBC Lifestyle in 2026. This new format celebrates the diversity and richness of South Africa’s hidden destinations and showcases authentic local stories and personalities that will resonate with audiences across the continent. For the first time, BBC Lifestyle viewers will be invited to vote for their favourite gem, adding an exciting interactive element to the series.” 

Nico Nel and Trevor Kaplan producers from PD Production said: “With Hidden Gems: South Africa, we wanted to go beyond the usual travel show format. By empowering local influencers to spotlight South Africa’s hidden gems, we’re creating a series for BBC Lifestyle that’s both visually stunning and unique. We have just started filming and can’t wait for viewers to see the magic that’s been captured”

Hidden Gems: South Africa is proudly sponsored by LekkeSlaap, South Africa’s leading accommodation app.

Gerriline Fouché, LekkeSlaap's Chief Marketing Officer said “Hidden Gems: South Africa beautifully captures what we love most about local travel: discovering special places and the passionate people behind them. It’s a privilege for LekkeSlaap to help shine a light on these unique stays across the country.”