The TV entertainment drought may finally be over for Hong Kong's Indian community when the popular Zee TV network is relaunched in its new digital form this week.
Housewives and businessmen from the Indian subcontinent have been up in arms since the Hindi-language Zee Television network went digital in June, leaving them without news and soap operas from India.
'There is nothing to watch on ATV or TVB unless you are a sports or animal or bird fan and enjoy watching documentaries every day,' Mid-levels housewife Mala Daswani said.
Bootleg copies of shows, often taped by overseas relatives of the 40,000-strong South Asian community, circulate widely in the territory and can be rented from Indian video stores in Chungking Mansions and ethnic grocery stores.
Some locals said they had travelled across the border to try illegal decoder boxes in their quest for quality television.
A spokesman for regional satellite TV and broadband provider Pacific Satellite International said more than 100 households would be able to tune in this week.