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National Centre of Excellence and film facilitation office for media and Entertainment industry in the offing: Ravi Shankar Prasad

India’s talent combined with the power of Information Technology would act as a springboard to launch India into the big league, said Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Communications & Information Technology, while inaugurating the 17th edition of FICCI FRAMES on the theme ‘Change or Perish – The Year of Digital’.

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Mr. Prasad said that the Government of India recognized the importance and relevance of promoting media and entertainment industry. Hence, visa processes were being eased for film shootings. Besides the National Centre of Excellence was coming up for the media and entertainment industry and a new film facilitation office was also being set up. He added that a new category in National Film Awards – Most Film Friendly State – has been introduced to felicitate the state that provides greater access to the film industry.

The Minister said that for the government campaigns like Make in India, Skill India, Digital India and Smart Cities, digital was the foundation. He added that to bridge the digital divide in the country, there was a need for empowering India digitally.

Mr. Prasad said that India should create content for global consumption and deliver outstanding content quality. He suggested that the epic stories of Ramayana and Mahabharata should be taken to the world via quality film making. He added that existing TV ranking system was not very reliable, therefore there was a need for a structured, fair and reasonable system to allow creation of quality content.

On the occasion, Mr. Prasad along with the other dignitaries released the FICCI-KPMG Report, ‘The Future: Now Streaming’.

Mr. Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries Ltd., said that India was poised to become a $100 billion industry in the coming decade but still ranked 150th in access to internet and mobile. He added that this would soon change with the coming of Reliance Jio, which is one of the largest greenfield digital start up in the world. Jio would enable India to rank among the top 10 countries in mobile access with its enhanced coverage, service quality, data quantity and capacity and affordability.

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Mr. Ambani said that Jio will start its coverage with 75% population when it is rolled out later this year and will go up to 90% by 2017. He added that currently only 15-20% population is covered. With Reliance Jio browsing speeds will also be enhanced by up to 40-80%.

Mr. Uday Shankar, Chairman, FICCI Media & Entertainment Committee & CEO, Star India, said that Star’s mobile app Hotstar became a pioneering app which had 5 crore downloads. 

This exhibited that the digital consumption was voracious and there was a need to be creative to encourage new content for the emerging digital platforms. 

Mr. Shankar said that India cannot remain in a state of denial as the world was changing and it was time India adopted and embraced digitisation. Power of stories will remain and breaking away from the traditional media, the digital media was making way for new stories.  He added that talent and technology was not bound by geography any more.

Dr. A Didar Singh, Secretary General, FICCI, said that this year delegations from almost 20 countries were participating in FICCI FRAMES. The flagship event of FICCI in the media and entertainment sector was in its 17th year and has been moving ahead with the support from the government.

The vote of thanks was presented by Mr. Ramesh Sippy, Co-Chairman, FICCI Media & Entertainment Committee.

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Also present on the dais were Mr. Francis Gurry, Director General, WIPO; Mr. J B Perrette, President, Discovery Networks International and Ms. Aditi Rao Hydari, Film Personality.

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Jacqueline Fernandez gives a shout out to Marathi film selected for the Venice International Film Festival

It is incredible to see actress Jacqueline Fernandez come in support for Chaitanya Tamhane’s The Disciple. The marathi movie became the first Indian movie to land at Venice Film Festival competition after almost 20 years, making our nation proud. It’s a huge achievement for Indian cinema and perhaps she is the first mainstream actor to give them a shout out and congratulate them. 
A blend of good story, a receptive audience and strong backing from a influential actress such as Jacqueline will make the regional cinema flourish and make a global impact. She wants to be a part of good storytelling and believes in promoting such regional cinema that otherwise don’t get the support they deserve. 
Ever since its entry to the competition, The Disciple has been in talks for multiple reasons. One of them being how this film needs as much support especially from Bollywood because of its reach. By doing so it makes the platform of cinema more accepting. With Jacqueline’s massive social media following, her support is definitely going to draw more eyeballs towards the movie. 
Jacqueline has a beautiful soul that is very well reflected in the humanitarian deeds she engages in. Be it speaking to a COVID survivor to raise awareness or supporting animal welfare, Jacqueline has always extended her support for those who would need it. It’s due to her philanthropic approach that the actress is admired by her fans and is one of the most followed celebrities on social media.

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Abhay 2 Cast Announcement

ZEE5’s ABHAY 2 FEATURES A PHENOMENAL ENSEMBLE CAST INCLUDING A GUT-WRENCHING ARRAY OF VILLAINSAsha Negi & Nidhi Singh will star opposite Kunal Kemmu .


Bidita Bag, Raghav Juyal, Indraneil Sengupta and Asheema Vardhan join Abhay 2 in a never seen before villain avatarIndependence Day weekend premiere on 14th August 2020 National, 25th July 2020: ZEE5 has earned the reputation of presenting some of the best crime-thrillers in the web space and the platform continues to reign with the second season of Abhay. Premiering on 14th August, ‘Abhay 2’ #TheRoadToJustice is one of the most unpredictable crime thrillers that will feature a gut-wrenching array of villains. 
The 8-episode series also has an ensemble cast, all of whom are power-packed performers. Joined by Asha Negi and Nidhi Singh opposite Kunal Kemmu. Bidita Bag, Raghav Juval, Indraneil Sengupta and Asheema Vardhan will be joining them in a never seen before villain avatar. The second season has meticulously paid attention to every character making it one of the most sought out crime thrillers to have launched. The story and narrative of all the villains will hook the audiences to their devices leaving them wanting for more. 
“Let me start by saying that this is a character that no one has seen me play yet and that is really exciting for me. The details will be revealed when you watch Abhay season 2, but I can tell you for sure that you are going to see me in a completely different avatar. I cannot tell you if it is good or bad (that’s a secret), but I play a role of a journalist, who is extremely passionate, but as the season moves ahead, you will see the different shades of my character slowly unfold. The transition from playing romantic roles to the thriller genre has been very exciting for me and I am looking forward to the Abhay 2 premiere on 14th August on ZEE5.” expressed Asha Negi.
“As an actor it’s great to have references to look at, but when a script comes across talking about a prostitute who kills men and gets orgasms by watching them drown. I mean, it’s a complete blank canvas and that is the most exciting part for an artist. Abhay 2 has meticulously paid attention to every character development. It has been extremely challenging and thrilling at the same time. I am looking forward for it to premiere on 14th August on ZEE5, giving the show, characters and story the global reach it deserves” expressed Bidita Bag.
Recently, ZEE5 gave the audience a glimpse of the most devious supervillain in the second season i.e Ram Kapoor and also introduced another villain i.e Chunky Pandey who will be
seen in his most challenging role, yet. Both the video created a lot of conversation amongst media and fans alike.
ZEE5’s franchise ‘Abhay’ earned much praise for its first season. The narrative revolves around Abhay Pratap Singh, a sharp investigating officer who understands a criminal’s
mindset. He can go to any extent to solve a case but ends up dealing with his personal demons. Season 2 marks the return of Kunal Kemmu aka Abhay Pratap Singh, a role that has won him a lot of praise. 

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Did you know that Shakuntala Devi, pointed out a mistake made by a computer during her BBC London interview and got the name ‘Human computer’

The upcoming biopic of Shakuntala Devi, directed by Anu Menon has been the talk of the town ever since its inception. Giving us insights into her life, Vidya Balan will be seen essaying the role of Shakuntala and her magic will yet again leave us amazed. Sanya Malhotra essays the role of Anupama Banerjee, Shakuntala’s daughter. The movie is making its way on Amazon Prime Video on 31st July.

While we are looking forward to witness ups and downs of Shakuntala’s life, did you know how did Shakuntala ended up with a title of ‘Human computer’.It so happened that during her BBC London interview back in 1950, Shakuntala Devi was given a complex maths problem to be solved but she pointed out that the question given by the computer was incorrect. Nobody believed her then, until the next day when the channel realised that Shakuntala was correct. Ever since then,  ‘Human Computer’ has become synonymous with Shakuntala Devi.

The cast and crew of the movie, actually shot at yesteryears BBC studio. Adding to the authenticity and making it more relatable, Vidya shared, “It was wonderful to be shooting there. You know actors want that, the real locations and when it has that sort of history and all, it makes it that much more real and relatable.”

It’s only after that show, that Shakuntala became a household name and her mathematical gifts soon became an inspiration to many. Through this movie, we not only get to see her genius side but also her struggle of being a mother amidst her achievements.

While the entire nation awaits to meet her on the screen, the movie will also bring out a beautiful relation of a mother – daughter duo.


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