Satellite TV network Star TV has launched a Hindi entertainment channel and news service for the UK Asian community.

Star News will be the UK's first news channel broadcasting continuous live news from India.

Rupert Murdoch-owned Star TV is Asia's largest satellite network and Star Plus is India's number one Hindi entertainment channel.

The satellite service begins with a line-up of the Indian subcontinent's most popular comedy and drama serials such as Saans and Kyunki, and Bollywood blockbusters.

Interviews

Peter Mukerjea, chief executive of Star's India operation, said: "We are enabling Asian communities in the UK to enjoy the entertainment and news that their fellow countrymen see everyday back home."

In India Star TV shows some of India's most-watched programmes, including the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and the chat show Rendezvous, which has frequent interviews with Bollywood stars.

The UK Asian audience, estimated at 1.5m, is the second biggest market in the world for Bollywood films.

The service will cater to the Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Bengali and Urdu speaking communities in the UK. It will be available on British Sky Broadcasting's Sky platform.