After the success of Sacred Games and Mirzapur, the Hindi region of the Ott space was filled with all kinds of episodic crime dramas. Off the top of my head, we got Delhi Crime, Hasmukh, Your Honor, Undekhi, Flesh, Aashram, A Simple Murder, Dark 7 White, and more. Paatal Lok managed to stand out, but since it was backed by an insanely talented star cast and a team of brilliant directors and writers, its success didn’t come off as a surprise. But the crime drama show that floored me was Mithya. Sure, it had stellar actors like Huma Qureshi and Parambrata Chatterjee in it and was being helmed by Rohan Sippy. However, everything depended on a newcomer, Avantika Dassani, and boy did she deliver in spades. The writing of her character was absolutely diabolical, and the cold way in which she went about the misty mountains of Darjeeling executing...

Actor turned director-producer Parambrata Chatterjee is riding high with an impressive body of work and juggling between projects with equal enthusiasm. This year the prolific actor-filmmaker Parambrata Chatterjee will be keeping busy throughout the year with a number of movies in his kitty and become one busy actor in 2024, shooting for several films, web series for different Ott platforms and directing and producing movies at the same time.

The multi talented actor was juggling between shoots and packed schedules hopping from one city to another in 2023 and we thought the actor will seem a little free in 2024, as he was working back to back schedules for his various projects in 2023 But the multi talented actor Parambrata Chatterjee has a busy year ahead and is living every actor’s dream.

Parambrata currently has some interesting line up of films in his kitty and year 2024, will be the busiest year for Parambrata...

Mumbai, Nov 7 (Ians) Actor Vipin Sharma, who has made his debut as a writer with crime-detective series ‘Pi Meena’, called it the most surreal experience of his life.

The actor is known for his performances in ‘Taare Zameen Par’, ‘Paan Singh Tomar’, ‘Guns & Gulaabs’, and ‘Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai’.

Talking about his dual role in the series, Vipin said: “Working on Pi Meena has been one of the most surreal experiences of my life. There was no virus in sight while we were writing it. I constantly thought about the Spanish flu and other pandemics and thought all that was never going to happen to us. It was so far in the past.”

“And then by the time we were around the last episode the virus struck and what I thought was fiction started to become an ugly, horrific reality. The shoot began during the second wave. I had just returned from Indonesia,...

Mumbai, Nov 7 (Ians) Actor Vipin Sharma, who has made his debut as a writer with crime-detective series ‘Pi Meena’, called it the most surreal experience of his life.

The actor is known for his performances in ‘Taare Zameen Par’, ‘Paan Singh Tomar’, ‘Guns & Gulaabs’, and ‘Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai’.

Talking about his dual role in the series, Vipin said: “Working on Pi Meena has been one of the most surreal experiences of my life. There was no virus in sight while we were writing it. I constantly thought about the Spanish flu and other pandemics and thought all that was never going to happen to us. It was so far in the past.”

“And then by the time we were around the last episode the virus struck and what I thought was fiction started to become an ugly, horrific reality. The shoot began during the second wave. I had just returned from Indonesia,...

P.I. Meena, a mystery thriller directed by Debaloy Bhattacharya, is currently streaming on Amazon Prime. Cradling a story in the nooks and crannies of Kolkata, the series revolves around a young private investigator, Meenakshi Iyer, who has been trying to unravel the reasons behind a murder. In trying to dig up the truth, she faces many perils, making her stand at crossroads where she has to decide whether to continue with the investigation or not. Why was Meena so keen on finding out the murderers? Will she decide to continue with her investigations? Will she finally succeed? There are many questions that pop up, and these can only be resolved if we stick around till the 8th and final episode of P.I. Meena. The amazing acting skills of Tanya Maniktala, Parambrata Chatterjee, Jisshu Sengupta, and others add a new flavor to P.I. Meena. Let us take a deep look...

The first week of November is a visual delight for the audience, as the digital platforms are offering a myriad of exciting titles, which will leave the viewers ecstatic. From the extended version of Shah Rukh Khan starrer ‘Jawan’, to Sushmita Sen’s ‘Aarya 3’, to the Indian reboot of the fun-filled nostalgic game ‘Takeshi’s Castle’, here is a list of six titles on various Ott platforms that have caught the attention of Ians this week.

‘Jawan’:

Shah Rukh Khan-starrer action packed pan-India film ‘Jawan’ will be streaming now with its extended version. The movie has enthralled audiences across the globe with its gripping plot, brilliantly choreographed action sequences, “masaledaar” (hard-hitting) dialogues and enticing acting prowess.

The flick stars Srk in a dual role, alongside Nayanthara, Vijay Sethupathi, Deepika Padukone (billed as a special appearance), Priyamani and Sanya Malhotra. It is a Red Chillies Entertainment presentation, directed by Atlee, Produced...

The first week of November is a visual delight for the audience, as the digital platforms are offering a myriad of exciting titles, which will leave the viewers ecstatic. From the extended version of Shah Rukh Khan starrer ‘Jawan’, to Sushmita Sen’s ‘Aarya 3’, to the Indian reboot of the fun-filled nostalgic game ‘Takeshi’s Castle’, here is a list of six titles on various Ott platforms that have caught the attention of Ians this week.

‘Jawan’:

Shah Rukh Khan-starrer action packed pan-India film ‘Jawan’ will be streaming now with its extended version. The movie has enthralled audiences across the globe with its gripping plot, brilliantly choreographed action sequences, “masaledaar” (hard-hitting) dialogues and enticing acting prowess.

The flick stars Srk in a dual role, alongside Nayanthara, Vijay Sethupathi, Deepika Padukone (billed as a special appearance), Priyamani and Sanya Malhotra. It is a Red Chillies Entertainment presentation, directed by Atlee, Produced...

The upcoming series ‘P.I Meena’ has unveiled its trailer and it boasts of a dark, and intriguing, narrative, showing itself to be hardcore and intense detective drama. Following a murder made to look like an accident, actress Tanya Maniktala’s character of Meena, a private investigator, ends up encountering something far more dangerous.

Meena is a private investigator and while a brilliant detective as alluded to by the trailer, the cases that she has been handling have been rather menial for her, or at least not satisfactory to her at all.

One day, Meena ends up encountering a case, which may just become for her the case of a lifetime.

The synopsis of the series states: “A young private investigator is the eyewitness of a road accident. A young man is hit by a speeding truck. Happens all the time. Or, does it?

“An existential link to her troubled past...

The upcoming series ‘P.I Meena’ has unveiled its trailer and it boasts of a dark, and intriguing, narrative, showing itself to be hardcore and intense detective drama. Following a murder made to look like an accident, actress Tanya Maniktala’s character of Meena, a private investigator, ends up encountering something far more dangerous.

Meena is a private investigator and while a brilliant detective as alluded to by the trailer, the cases that she has been handling have been rather menial for her, or at least not satisfactory to her at all.

One day, Meena ends up encountering a case, which may just become for her the case of a lifetime.

The synopsis of the series states: “A young private investigator is the eyewitness of a road accident. A young man is hit by a speeding truck. Happens all the time. Or, does it?

“An existential link to her troubled past...

Director Debaloy Bhattacharya, who is all set for the release of his crime-detective series ‘P.I. Meena’, starring Tanya Maniktala in the lead, shared his fascination towards the genre, adding that it is a Herculean task to translate the pages of a script to the screens for the audience.

Debaloy is known for his directorial works like ‘Dracula Sir’, ‘Biday Byomkesh’, ‘Roga Howar Sohoj Upay’, ‘Montu Pilot’, ‘ Indubala Bhaater Hotel’, and ‘Dupur Thakurpo’ among others.

Talking about ‘P.I. Meena’, he said: “I have always been overtly drawn to, and enticed by investigative thrillers. With ‘P.I. Meena’ being my first Hindi project, I couldn’t have hoped for a better way to mark my foray into the space.”

“While it is the director’s job to bring a story to life, it is a Herculean task to translate the pages of a script to the screens of the audience. I am grateful...

Director Debaloy Bhattacharya, who is all set for the release of his crime-detective series ‘P.I. Meena’, starring Tanya Maniktala in the lead, shared his fascination towards the genre, adding that it is a Herculean task to translate the pages of a script to the screens for the audience.

Debaloy is known for his directorial works like ‘Dracula Sir’, ‘Biday Byomkesh’, ‘Roga Howar Sohoj Upay’, ‘Montu Pilot’, ‘ Indubala Bhaater Hotel’, and ‘Dupur Thakurpo’ among others.

Talking about ‘P.I. Meena’, he said: “I have always been overtly drawn to, and enticed by investigative thrillers. With ‘P.I. Meena’ being my first Hindi project, I couldn’t have hoped for a better way to mark my foray into the space.”

“While it is the director’s job to bring a story to life, it is a Herculean task to translate the pages of a script to the screens of the audience. I am grateful...

Director Nikkhil Advani has recalled the shooting experience for the second season of ‘Mumbai Diaries’. The directordescribed it as a dangerous thing. “We had quite a shooting experience this season, it was surely a dangerous thing. The production design of the set had scaffolding everywhere, and one of the particular scenes involved Konkona being trapped in a room flooded in water. To ensure that she had something to hold onto, we literally strapped her to the scaffolding kept in the room,” he said.

Nikkhiladded: “And while we were inside the room, shooting and filling it up with water, we didn’t realise the amount of pressure it was exerting on the walls. We had to jump out of the set as the walls were beginning to give away. All in all, it was all cool and full of adventure, surely making it a fun shooting experience too.”

Created and Directed...

Director Nikkhil Advani has recalled the shooting experience for the second season of ‘Mumbai Diaries’. The directordescribed it as a dangerous thing. “We had quite a shooting experience this season, it was surely a dangerous thing. The production design of the set had scaffolding everywhere, and one of the particular scenes involved Konkona being trapped in a room flooded in water. To ensure that she had something to hold onto, we literally strapped her to the scaffolding kept in the room,” he said.

Nikkhiladded: “And while we were inside the room, shooting and filling it up with water, we didn’t realise the amount of pressure it was exerting on the walls. We had to jump out of the set as the walls were beginning to give away. All in all, it was all cool and full of adventure, surely making it a fun shooting experience too.”

Created and Directed...

Actor Mohit Raina, who is currently receiving a lot of positive response to his recently second season of the streaming show ‘Mumbai Diaries’, has shared his ordeal when he was stuck in the Mumbai rains of July 26, 2005.

The second season of the show showcases the struggles faced by the medical fraternity in the fictional Bombay General Hospital as the city suffers a deluge.

Talking about the same, Mohit said, “I had gone to Chembur to a college for a relative who had come to Mumbai for admission. While returning from Chembur, I got stuck at Mumbai’s Carter Road area as heavy rains lashed the city”.

He further mentioned, “As the water started swelling up, I took refuge from the rains in a cafe and was stuck there for 3 days.”

When his ‘Mumbai Diaries’ co-actor Shreya Dhanwanthary interjected in a jest asking, “Why didn’t you swim back?”

Mohit replied laughingly,...

Actor Mohit Raina, who is currently receiving a lot of positive response to his recently second season of the streaming show ‘Mumbai Diaries’, has shared his ordeal when he was stuck in the Mumbai rains of July 26, 2005.

The second season of the show showcases the struggles faced by the medical fraternity in the fictional Bombay General Hospital as the city suffers a deluge.

Talking about the same, Mohit said, “I had gone to Chembur to a college for a relative who had come to Mumbai for admission. While returning from Chembur, I got stuck at Mumbai’s Carter Road area as heavy rains lashed the city”.

He further mentioned, “As the water started swelling up, I took refuge from the rains in a cafe and was stuck there for 3 days.”

When his ‘Mumbai Diaries’ co-actor Shreya Dhanwanthary interjected in a jest asking, “Why didn’t you swim back?”

Mohit replied laughingly,...

Mumbai Diaries Season 2 (Prime Video)

Starring Konkona Sen Sharma, Mohit Raina, Tina Desai, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Satyajeet Dubey, Natasha Bharadwaj, Mrunmayee Deshpande, Prakash Belawadi, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Riddhi Dogra

Directed by Nikhil Advani

Overlooking the rather strange lacuna in the timeline whereby the second season moves from the terror attack of 26/11/2008 to the monsoonal deluge of 26/7/2005, Mumbai Diaries part 2 is a more intricately sketched portrayal of a city under siege than part 1 which suffered from under-developed characters and over-informed plot developments.

By now we know who’s who at the Bombay General Hospital. They need no introduction, and their function within the disembodied domain of injury and trauma is clearly aligned to the crisis on hand. There is more of Konkona Sen Sharma’s Chitra Das this time than Mohit Raina’s Dr Kaushik Oberoi, the head of trauma who seems pretty traumatized himself.

There are tons of trauma to be negotiated...

Bengali-language focused streamer Hoichoi has unveiled a 24-strong slate on the occasion of its sixth anniversary of operations.

The platform has seen a 40% surge in direct subscriptions and a 60% rise in individual watch time per subscriber compared to 2022, Hoichoi said. The streamer’s monthly active users have doubled, it said. Apart from India and Bangladesh, its footprint is across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, U.S. and U.K. and international subscriber revenues have increased by 40%. The average engagement time per active user is 59 minutes.

The streamer is introducing a new segment Best of Bengal and a new addition to its World Classics strand, which will feature literary adaptations from Bengal and the rest of the world, respectively.

Hoichoi recently established a partnership with Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Cinema for its Hindi-dubbed content. One of the key strategic initiatives for the year ahead will involve exploring opportunities to

make content...

Mumbai, Sep 29 (Ians) The trailer of the upcoming second season of the medical drama streaming series ‘Mumbai Diaries’ was unveiled on Friday. The second season begins months after the events of season one as the staff at Bombay General Hospital has to confront a new set of challenges brought about by a day of torrential rain.

The trailer shows the events following the heavy deluge caused by incessant rains in the maximum city of Mumbai and how the medical infrastructure at Bombay General Hospital – a government hospital deals with it in the face of limited resources.

The staff at Bombay General Hospital once again needs to put aside their personal issues; some of which threaten to destroy them, their relationships and their very futures, to help a city survive. They will have to come to terms with past demons and present circumstances to try and stay afloat and do what they do best – save lives.

The trailer of the upcoming second season of the medical drama streaming series ‘Mumbai Diaries’ was unveiled on Friday. The second season begins months after the events of season one as the staff at Bombay General Hospital has to confront a new set of challenges brought about by a day of torrential rain.

The trailer shows the events following the heavy deluge caused by incessant rains in the maximum city of Mumbai and how the medical infrastructure at Bombay General Hospital – a government hospital deals with it in the face of limited resources.

The staff at Bombay General Hospital once again needs to put aside their personal issues; some of which threaten to destroy them, their relationships and their very futures, to help a city survive. They will have to come to terms with past demons and present circumstances to try and stay afloat and do what they do best – save lives.

Sujoy Ghosh’s Netflix original film “Jaane Jaan,” headlined by Bollywood royalty Kareena Kapoor Khan, has become the number one non-English film globally for the streamer. With 8.1 million views, the Hindi-language film is also in the Top 10 in 52 countries.

“Jaane Jaan” is the Indian adaptation of Japanese author Higashino Keigo’s bestselling 2005 novel “The Devotion of Suspect X.” It follows a single mother and her daughter who commit a crime and a neighbor who helps them cover it up amidst a police investigation. The cast also includes Jaideep Ahlawat (“Paatal Lok”) and Vijay Varma (“Dahaad”).

“I am so excited and thrilled to hear that the film has reached number 1 globally in the non-English section and is currently trending in 52 countries,” Kapoor Khan told Variety. “My Ott [streaming] debut with Netflix and working on a film like ‘Jaane Jaan’ has been so rewarding. The reactions, messages from fans and audiences around the...

The public’s interest in both crime and drama isn’t confined to any one border or culture. Nowhere is that more evident than on Netflix. Thanks to its impressively deep roster of global titles, Netflix is home to an equally impressive list of crime drama series from the U.S., U.K., and beyond.

It’s such an impressive list, in fact, that it can be pretty daunting to anyone who is just looking for a decent show to stream past the first couple of clicks and scrollthroughs. To help those intrepid crime drama watchers out, we’ve compiled a list of some of the hidden gems you can find on Netflix.

Read on to discover the 11 titles – three of which hail from the U.S., three from the U.K., two from India, two from South Korea, and one from Finland. We told you this was a global operation!

Parambrata Chattopadhyay is the latest actor to play Oscar-winning Indian master Satyajit Ray’s detective Prodosh Chandra Mitter Aka Feluda in streamer ZEE5 Global’s series “Shabash Feluda.”

Feluda first appeared in the Ray family’s Bengali-language magazine Sandesh in 1965. Ray directed two Feluda films, “The Golden Fortress” (1974) and “The Elephant God” (1978), where the Bengali detective was played by his frequent collaborator Soumitra Chatterjee. Feluda has subsequently been played by a range of Indian actors, including Shashi Kapoor, Abir Chatterjee, Tota Roy Chowdhury, Indraneil Sengupta and Bangladesh’s Ahmed Rubel.

The detective is part of the fabric of growing up in West Bengal and Bangladesh, akin to what Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple used to be for several generations in the west.

Chattopadhyay first interpreted the detective in 2017 for series “Feluda” for Bangladesh’s Bioscopelive which he directed and also played Feluda. “It was a very radical interpretation...

Ott platforms have not just changed the rules of the entertainment market, they have given, literally, a second life to Bollywood stars who had faded away from the public eye for quite some time. Of late, a number of senior actors, who had virtually retired from the industry or had limited theatrical releases, are now being reinvented and getting a hugely positive response to their work, courtesy of streaming platforms.

Here’s a list of nine actors who are back in the reckoning in their second innings because of Ott:

Harman Baweja

The actor made his debut with the 2008 release “Love Story 2050”, directed by his father Harry Baweja, and charmed the audience with his dancing skills (and little else!), but he was dismissed by all as the poor man’s Hrithik Roshan.

Hansal Mehta’s streaming series “Scoop”, which sees a no-longer-chocolate-boy Harman back in action as Joint Commissioner...

South Asian focused streamer ZEE5 has unveiled a 111-strong 2023 slate on the occasion of its fifth anniversary.

The lineup is across the Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bangla, Punjabi and Marathi languages. The content is from top producers including Dharma Productions, Salman Khan Films, Oscar winner Guneet Monga’s Sikhya Entertainment, Bhanushali Studios, The Viral Fever, Applause Entertainment, Rose Audio Visuals, Vikas Bahl, Vivek Agnihotri, Nagraj Manjule and Sudhir Mishra.

A-list performers in the shows and films include Manoj Bajpayee, Pankaj Tripathi, Huma Qureshi, Arya, Parambrata Chatterjee, Vijay Sethupathi, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte.

Titles revealed so far include films and series including Manoj Bajpayee’s “Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai”; Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s “Haddi” and “Love is Blind,” Pankaj Tripathi’s “Kadak Singh”; Huma Qureshi’s “Tarla”; Sunny Deol’s “Gadar 2”; Vetrimaaran and Vijay Sethupathi’s “Viduthalai – Part 1”; Arya’s “Kathar Basha Endra Muthuramalingam”; Nagraj Manjule...

Actress Swastika Mukherjee, who was recently seen in the streaming movie ‘Qala’, has alleged that she received threatening emails from the co-producer Sandeep Sarkar of upcoming Bengali film ‘Shibpur’ and his associates.

She was allegedly informed that her pictures have been morphed and these images will be shared on pornography websites. Shocked at such a turn of events, the actress has filed a complaint with regards to sexual harassment at Golf Green Police Station in Kolkata.

The actress has also reportedly reached out to the Eastern India Motion Pictures Association, along with the scanned copies of these threat mails. While clarifying the nature of her association with the producer, the actor mentioned that she had never met the producer while shooting for ‘Shibpur’.

As per media reports, while the co-producer’s legal representative has denied his involvement in any such act they have also said that the actress took the...

Actor Ritwik Bhowmik shared that he feels like he has been “promoted” in his acting career while talking about his character in the series ‘Jehanabad – Of Love & War’. Ritwik appeared as a celebrity guest on ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’ along with Harshita Gaur, Parambrata Chatterjee, and Sudhir Mishra to promote his web series.

During the conversation with the host, he talked about his experience of playing a professor in the series as opposed to a student which he has always been seen playing otherwise.

Ritwik, who is known for his works in ‘Bandish Bandits’, ‘The Whistleblower’, ‘Modern Love Mumbai’, among others, said: “I definitely think it is a promotion for me. Also, by watching the audience’s reaction, I think it’s good progress from a student to a professor with respect to my characters. I am honestly enjoying this. It’s always exciting for actors to play...

Mumbai, Feb 21 (Ians) Actor Ritwik Bhowmik, who has received a lot of positive response for his recently released streaming show ‘Jehanabad – Of Love & War’, has said that he doesn’t put too much of himself in the parts that he plays for the screen.

Furnishing the reason behind the same, the actor said that he is still too young to let his political or value system imbue into a character so, he goes by the word of the director or a writer as he trusts their judgement better given their grip on the overall narrative.

The actor told Ians, “I as a young actor come with a very limited set of life experiences to put into a character. For me, the extent of me putting myself into a character is my height, my voice, my colour – basically the instrument of my body”.

He further mentioned that the characters...

Singapore-based film marketing and distribution firm Continental Entertainment Pte. Ltd. (Cepl), which holds global distribution rights for Bangladeshi auteur Mostofa Sarwar Farooki’s “Saturday Afternoon,” will release the film in the U.S. and Canada through Reliance Entertainment.

The Bengali-and-English-language film takes its cue from the brutal terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka in 2016, which took place on a quiet Saturday afternoon and left more than 20 people dead. It had considerable festival play, winning awards at Fukuoka, Moscow and Vesoul.

The film was initially banned and had finally been cleared for release in January after a four year struggle with the Bangladesh Film Censor Board. However Bangladesh’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting appears to have taken a U turn and the situation remains fluid. Consequently, the film will open in the U.S. and Canada on March 10 before its Bangladesh release. It will also be released...

Bangladeshi auteur Mostofa Sarwar Farooki’s “Saturday Afternoon” has finally been cleared for release after a four year struggle with the Bangladesh Film Censor Board.

The Bengali-and-English-language film takes its cue from the brutal terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka in 2016, which took place on a quiet Saturday afternoon and left more than 20 people dead. It had considerable festival play, winning awards at Fukuoka, Moscow and Vesoul.

However, the Bangladesh Film Censor Board banned the film. “The board did not sanction permission for the movie’s exhibition, both at home or abroad, as it would disrupt internal security and also tarnish the country’s global image,” the censor board’s then vice chairman Nizamul Kabir had told Afp.

Farooki began a long campaign to get the film cleared for release. Meanwhile, he also made his next film, “No Land’s Man.” The efforts intensified when it emerged that Hansal Mehta’s “Faraaz,...

The (sub)genre that has been carrying Japanese cinema to the international stage for years, was one of the main components of the explosion of Korean cinema during the last decades, and has given some of the most iconic Hong Kong titles, is not other than the serial killer movie. In this list, we tried to include some of the most memorable titles that include the particular type of murderers in their scripts, in a list, that as you can see, is filled with masterpieces, not only from the aforementioned countries, but also from India, China, Iran, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Without further ado, here are 35 Great Asian Serial Killer Moviers, in alphabetical order.

1. Baishe Srabon

For those who associate Bengali cinema just with Satyajit Ray, it should be a must-watch. A captivating neo-noir crime thriller that combines formulaic genre elements with subtleties for nerdy bookworms. We have two cops,...

Actor-turned-director Parambrata Chatterjee is all set to play the lead in Kannada director Pawan Wadeya’s maiden Bollywood film titled ‘Notary’. In this film, the actor will be seen playing an honest employee who never lies even in the most hostile situations. Parambrata’s character is in a profession that often tempts people to compromise their core […]...

Amazon Prime Video pulled out the heavy international artillery to launch a massive Indian slate on Thursday. They are bullish about the market.

Kelly Day, VP of international, Amazon Prime Video, said at a round table during the event: “The future of global streaming services is really about global expansion, and moving much more ambitiously, to serving customers in our international markets all over the world. And truly, India is really leading the way for us. It is one of our fastest growing markets, represents some of our most engaged consumers. It’s just been doing really, really well.”

Day also said that India is an “innovation hub” for the service, with the country being used as the pilot for the single-device, mobile-only plan Prime Video Mobile Edition. The success of the plan prompted Amazon to roll out the service to a variety of countries around the world. “I really...

Actor Indraneil Sengupta expresses his delight at getting a prominent role in Rohan Sippy’s ‘Mithya’, featuring Huma Qureshi and Avantika Dassani in the key roles. The web series also stars Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Rajit Kapur, Samir Soni, Rushad Rana and others. Indraneil says: “I feel blessed that I am getting a chance to be associated with […]...

NetflixDirected by Vinay Waikul, ‘Aranyak’ stars Raveena Tandon as the police station head of a small town whose seeming idyllic and slow pace of life is disrupted by a horrific crime.Saraswati DatarFirst things first – Ott shows or any form of content that can be accessed on personal devices should come with trigger warnings. Including scenes of a young adult attempting suicide without any loud and clear trigger warnings is extremely irresponsible. Aranyak and the other release this weekend, Aarya Season 2, have graphic scenes of an attempted suicide with no trigger warnings. Please ditch the fear of spoilers at a time when the collective mental health of the nation/globe has hit rock bottom. We owe this to the viewers. Missing trigger warning apart, Aranyak, written by Charudutt Acharya and directed by Vinay Waikul, is an entertaining watch. Rohan Sippy serves as executive producer on this series co-created by Ramesh Sippy and Siddharth Roy Kapur.

Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi

Starring: Naseeruddin Shah,Vikrant Massey, Konkona Sen Sharma, Vinay Pathak, Supriya Pathak and Vineet Kumar

Written & Directed by Seema Pahwa

What a wonderful way for Indian cinema to begin the year! Let me say straightaway that Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi is a very fine film, and a spectacular start not just to this year, but also to veteran actress Seema Pahwa’s career as a director. Her understanding of the basically selfish selfserving nature of humankind is so deep, amd so bang-on that five minutes into the film I felt I was sitting awkwardly as part of Ramprasad’s grieving family, their sickening squabbles over tea and bathroom time, and later on, their bickering over their father’s property, all so lived-in so real it is hurtful even while it is amusing to the extreme.

Some critics have commented on the large number of characters, and how difficult...

ZEE5 Global recently announced the power-packed female and male lead cast for its 8th International adaptation of the popular Finnish show Black Widows. Now, the platform exclusively released the trailer of the web-series giving the audience a glimpse into the devious world of three Black Widows.

Set in a picturesque backdrop, Black Widows puts forth strong female leads at the centre stage of the narrative. But their not so perfect life swiftly implodes when they decide to put an end to their abusive and unloving husbands. As three women fake mourn the death of their husbands, they not only share a common secret, but they decide to take over the world as their life gets a new meaning to freedom. But, amidst their new life, a cop will tail their past bearings, and a husband returns from the dead to unveil the ultimate truth. Will the truth end the new...

Kolkata, Nov 15 (Ians) Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee's daughter Poulami Basu appealed to people not to come over to their place right now due to the pandemic situation.

"My mother's and my son's health is fragile at best. I humbly and earnestly request you please do not put them at risk," Basu wrote on her Facebook page.

The octogenarian actor passed away at Kolkata's Belle Vue Hospital on Sunday.

"With deep grief I must inform you that my beloved father, my Bapi left us this morning. As a family, we are devastated. Please say a prayer for his soul. I humbly and earnestly request you all please do not come over to our place right now," Chatterjee's daughter said.

The bereaved daughter requested everyone not to put her ageing mother and son at risk.

"Please keep the pandemic in mind and pray from the safety of your homes. If...

Mumbai, Nov 15 (Ians) Actor-director Parambrata Chattopadhyay, who is currently in Himachal Pradesh on work, regrets for not being able to join the last journey of Bangla cinema legend Soumitra Chattopadhyay, who passed away on Sunday.

Parambrata, who shot into national prominence with his roles in Bollywood films like "Kahaani" and "Pari", said the late actor, to him, was "a friend who also is a teacher".

Before his death, Soumitra Chattopadhyay was shooting for a documentary titled "Abhijan" directed by Parambrata. The last he was at the shooting floor in Bharatlaxmi Studio was in October.

"Some considered him a teacher, some a guru, and so did I... he was my own, very own ‘Udayan Master'... but beyond it all, he was a dear dear friend! The last one and half years had us grow fond of each other, not as if there weren't minor disagreements now and then, like the way it happens between friends.

DeathChatterjee had been on life support after being admitted to hospital on October 6 after he tested positive for coronavirus.Tnm StaffBiswarup Ganguly, Cc By 3.0 , via Wikimedia CommonsMultiple award-winning legendary Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee died on Sunday after an over-a-month-long battle with multiple ailments, a statement issued by a Kolkata hospital, where he was undergoing treatment, said. He was 85. The thespian is survived by wife, son and daughter. Chatterjee was admitted to the hospital on October 6 after he tested positive for coronavirus. He recovered from the infection, but his condition did not improve as he suffered from multiple ailments, including neurological complications. "We declare with a heavy heart that Shri Soumitra Chattopadhyay breathed his last at 12.15 pm at Belle Vue Clinic today (15 November 2020). We pay our homage to his soul," the hospital said in its statement. Chatterjee's health condition was "extremely critical" and he was "not responding at all" to treatment,...

Kolkata, Nov 15 (Ians) Veteran Bengali Actor Soumitra Chatterjee's health condition is "extremely critical" and he is "not responding at all" to treatment, said critical care expert and head of the medical board at Kolkata's Belle Vue Hospital Arindam Kar.

The octogenarian actor's health condition "extremely" deteriorated over the past 48-hours.

"The team of doctors including neurologist, nephrologist, cardiologist, those from critical care medicine, infection disease specialist, both from public and private sectors, every one has put their effort to get the legend back from the critical stage, but it is not working," said Kar.

He said that the doctors have tried really hard to "revive" Soumitra to a better state. "We are very sorry to say that he is not responding at all."

The 85-year-old Dadasaheb Phalke awardee has been admitted in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Kolkata's Belle Vue Hospital for almost 40 days and his consciousness level went down significantly Since Friday.

Mumbai, Nov 12 (Ians) Actor Sharad Kelkar found it fascinating to play a character with dark and white shades in equal proportions, in the digital project Black Widows.

Essaying the role of Jatin Malhotra, Sharad said: "At first glance, Jatin looks like the ideal person. He has worked hard to get the success he has today. As the story unfolds, the audience will see that there is more to him, a darker side that he keeps his family shielded from."

"It was fascinating for me to play a character with equally dark and white shades to it. There is lot of mystique to my character. I am looking forward for everyone to witness it," he added.

Actor Parambrata Chattopadhyay will be seen playing a cop in the series.

He said: "After playing the role of a quirky taxi driver in 'Tiki-Taka', switching to Pankaj Mishra as a cop was a complete u-turn for me.

Kolkata, Nov 5 (Ians) Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee remained critical but stable on Thursday. According to hospital sources, the octagenarian continued to be on ventilator support and his haemoglobin and platelet counts remained on the lower side.

The octogenarian was not administered dialysis as his urea and creatinine levels came down. His liver and organ functions remained okay. The actor's low haemoglobin and platelet count is due to multiple transfusion and blood loss, doctors said.

Hospital sources said the nephrology review board would discuss about long term kidney support to Chatterjee while the neuro board would deliberate on long term air management on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the actor's daughter Poulami Bose criticised a section of the civil society, saying: "when my father is fighting for life in t he hospital a few people are now busy in mud-slinging. There should be limit of fake news."

Chatterjee has been admitted in the...

Kolkata, Oct 30 (Ians) Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee's health condition showed marginal improvement on Friday, but still remained critical, doctors said.

Chatterjee underwent a second dialysis on Thursday at Kolkata's premier Belle Vue Clinic. Chatterjee has been on ventilator support since Monday after the medical team at the hospital described his renal function as 'not so good'.

According to hospital sources, there has been no further gastrointestinal bleeding on Friday. However, his haemoglobin had gone down for a while and doctors had to go for two units of blood transfusion.

The 85-year-old Dadasaheb Phalke awardee has been admitted to the ICU for almost 20 days now. The key problem for Chatterjee was Covid-19 encephalopathy, hospital sources said.

His platelet counts are stable for the time being and no platelet transfusion had been done. The count is slowly increasing and there is no temperature as well. The antibiotic is also working on his body,...

Kolkata, Oct 15 (Ians) Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee's health condition has marginally improved in the last 24-hours after the second Covid-19 test result came negative on Wednesday night, hospital sources said.

According to reports, the oxygen level in Chatterjee's body also increased to 97 per cent on Thursday and he also has no fever since Tuesday evening.

The octogenarian actor's kidney, liver function, ammonia level in the blood, the infective mucus are slowly normalising. The cardiac function, blood pressure, respiration and urine output are improving too, sources said.

Earlier, Soumitra's daughter Poulomi Bose had appealed to all netizens not to indulge in rumour-mongering about the health of her Covid-affected father.

Chatterjee was battling with Covid-19 and got admitted to Kolkata's Belle Vue Hospital last week.

Chatterje was tested positive for coronavirus on October 5.

He was admitted to the hospital the very next morning. He was shooting for a documentary titled 'Abhijan',...

Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee, who is battling with Covid-19 at Belle Vue Hospital in Kolkata, continues to remain "critical" on Tuesday.

Hospital sources said that the 85-year-old widely celebrated actor is not keeping well and is in a drowsy, confusional state. Earlier, Chatterjee was given convalescent plasma therapy twice. His neurological condition has not shown any change in the last two days.

"If this continues he might be put on invasive ventilation support," sources said, adding that Chatterjee has been running a high fever since Sunday afternoon. An Mri was also conducted on the actor but no structural defect was found in the report.

A team of 15 doctors is overseeing his health condition at the hospital.

Chatterjee was tested positive for coronavirus on October 5. He was admitted to the hospital the very next morning.

Earlier, the actor was shifted to intensive care unit on late Friday night a s...

Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee is now stable and his blood pressure and all other vital parameters are also normal, family sources said on Saturday.

"As per the team of 12 doctors attending to him, my father is maintaining his vital parameters and is stable on this count. His blood pressure is normal and he has no need of oxygen administration at the moment," said Poulomi Bose, daughter of the veteran actor.

Updating on the health condition of Chatterjee, she wrote on a social media post that the actor was suffering from Covid Encephalopathy as per the physicians' assessment and therefore was disoriented and restless at this time.

"All due care is being taken on this count. There has been no detoriation on account of his comorbidities, including high PSA count, pneumonia tendencies and compromised lungs, which is a good sign," said Bose, a theatre personality and freelance actor.

Thanking everyone...

Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee was shifted to Intensive Care Unit in a private hospital late Friday night after the 85-year-old's health deteriorated, hospital sources said on Saturday.

Chatterjee, who had tested coronavirus positive on October 5, was suffering from several comorbidities. He was immediately shifted to an ICU for close monitoring.

A day after his Covid-19 test on October 5 gave positive report, he was admitted to the hospital but in a stable condition.

The sources said Chatterjee was unwell for the past couple of days and reportedly suffering from fever. He was shooting for a documentary titled 'Abhijan' directed by actor Parambrata Chattopadhyay.

He had attended the shoot floor at Bharatlaxmi Studio on October 1. The next shooting schedule was on October 7.

It was learnt that the actor had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related problem. Last year, he had suffered a bout of pneumonia and was admitted to a hospital for a few days.

Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee has tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday and is stable, sources said.

The veteran actor was admitted to a private nursing home in Kolkata around 11 am, a day after he took a Covid-19 test.

A private nursing home bed was booked for the actor on Monday evening, where he was shifted this morning.

The sources said Chatterjee was unwell for the past couple of days and reportedly suffering from fever. He was shooting for a documentary titled 'Abhijan' directed by actor Parambrata Chattopadhyay.

He had attended the shoot floor at Bharatlaxmi Studio on October 1. The next shooting schedule was on October 7.

It was learnt that the actor had symptchronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related problem. Last year, he had suffered a bout of pneumonia and was admitted to a hospital for a few days.

Earlier, many actors, directors and producers like Ranjit Mallick, his daughter and actress Koel Mallick,...

Director Srijit Mukherji’s recent project “Dwitiyo Purush” is set for release on January 23, 2020. The film is a sequel to the directors previous film “Baishe Srabon” and follows a cop following in the footsteps of his mentor. A trailer for the production was recently made available through Svf and can be viewed below.

Synopsis

Dwitiyo Purush is a sequel of Baishe Srabon where Prosenjit Chatterjee dies at the end. In this film we will see Parambrata chattopadhyay as a police inspector who follows the path that Prasenjit Chatterjee showed him in Baishe Srabon to fight with criminals in various regions of kolkata. (IMDb)...

What are your plans for a Saturday afternoon? A trip to the market? To a movie? To a sporting event? Perhaps, like the people in the film Saturday Afternoon, you’re spending the time in a café, and filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki returns to the London Indian Film Festive with a film that takes inspiration from the deadly July 2016 terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka, a film that is harrowing and compelling in equal measure. Gone is the black humour the director used effectively in his previous films Television and Ant; instead, Farooki creates a pressure cooker situation in which to examine contemporary Bangladeshi society. The café becomes a kind of microcosm, with people of different nationalities and religions caught in the web of this attempt by a group of fundamentalist Muslims to gain attention for their cause.

In the initial stages, the hostages are separated into two groups: foreigners and Bangladeshis.