Filmmaker & CEO Wave Cinemas Rahul Mittra to attend the first mega film festival in Mizoram organized by the Government!

Award winning film maker and CEO Wave Cinemas Rahul Mittra & producer of hit Bollywood films like Saheb Biwi aur Gangster series,  Bullet Raja & Sarkar 3 would be attending the first ever Indian Film Festival Mizoram in Aizawl from 23rd – 25th January alongwith a galaxy of path breaking film makers from India. 

The first of its kind mega film festival in Mizoram is being jointly organised by the Government of Mizoram and Innovations India under the patronage of the  ambitious Swachh Bharat Abhigyan. The festival will open with Amitabh Bachchan starer Sarkar 3 and shall showcase 5 path breaking films in different Indian Languages curated by Captain Rahul Bali who has been successfully organising Indian Film Festivals Worldwide. 

The Indian Film Festival Mizoram shall be inaugurated by Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla on 23rd January at the Vanapa Hall in Aizawl and shall be attended by dignitaries & Luminaries from across India and the world. 

Rahul Mittra, who shall be the Chief Guest at the festival appreciated this initiative by the Govt. of Mizoram and said,"I am looking forward visiting Mizoram and am sure the festival will offer a great platform to filmmakers to explore the rich natural resources of the state, apart from interacting with local filmmakers & talent.” 

 The Festival will also promote the Cleanest small town of Asia – BIATE as a destination that has conformed to the Swachh Bharat Abhigyan in an exemplary manner. A short film making competition has also been announced on this subject and the winners will get cash prizes & certificates of Appreciation by the State Government.

Managing Director of Innovations India & the Curator of IFF Mizoram Captain Rahul Bali said, " Indian Film Festival Mizoram is sure to generate awareness about Mizoram across the world. As the state partners, we look forward to introducing the Magnetic Mizoram to the world & seek to develop a lot of synergies for the overall growth of the state. We have a lot of interactive events planned in Mizoram in the near future."Apart from Rahul Mittra, National Award winning film makers like Umesh Shukla, Rajesh Mapuskar, Mikhil Musale, Shahnaab Alam, Popular Assamese Actress Zerifa Wahid and the talented Italian Film Maker Katerina Tarbo Ignatenko along with popular TV actor and General Secretary of CINTAA - Sushant Singh would also be attending the Festival.

Gaurav Sharma to put his Black Belt skills into use in BIG Magic’s Deewane Anajne

BIG Magic's show Deewane Anjane has never failed to entice its audience with the characters getting into interesting and amusing situations time and again. The comic trails of Jay Pathak and Gaurav Sharma keeps the audience glued to the television screen. However, this time around the situation turns a bit of tipsy topsy due to an unexpected turn of event, where we see the lead actor Gaurav Sharma aka LK gets into a brawl with a local don.

A source close to the production house informs us about the new developments, “As Biji's money gets stolen by some miscreants, LK reaches out to the well known Vasooli Bhai in his locality for help. Upon hearing the story, Vasooli Bhai directs him to Jhoota Don stating that since the money has been stolen in his area, the culprit has to be him. His habit of lying on every occasion possible got him the tag of Jhoota Don. Unaware of the circumstances LK will go to fetch the money from the Don. To his surprise, he is challenged for a fight with Jhoota Don to get his money back.”

Speaking about the sequence, Gaurav Sharma said, “It is an interesting sequence with a boxing ring set up. I am a black belt holder and I enjoyed shooting this plot. However, given the comical theme of the show, I couldn’t go that aggressive on the action scene. However, we had lot of fun off-screen too while shooting this. We recorded some kicks and flips in a video. It was a good experience overall.”

What fate lies ahead for LK. Will he be able to face the wrath of the don and get his money back? To Know more stay tuned to Deewane Anjane every Monday to Friday at 8pm only on BIG Magic

Unique anthology on legendary Singer Mohammed Rafi released

A bilingual book on legendary singer Mohammed Rafi "The World of Rafi / Rafi Ki Dunia” was released recently in a function organised at India Islamic Cultural Centre in New Delhi.

On this occasion, music lovers were present in large numbers besides well known personalities from different fields were present. Many singers from Mumbai, Amritsar and Delhi paid musical tributes to Mohammad Rafi Sahab. The function was organised by Golden Greats.

Releasing the book, film producer and music promoter Amarjit Singh Kohli, said that Mohammad Rafi remains till today the most versatile of all the singers who could sing any type of song. Such versatile geniuses are born in a millennium. Every singer has some idol and Rafi has perhaps the biggest following amongst budding singers. He said that Vinod Viplav has been doing marvellous job and he had earlier penned the legendary singer’s first biography titled ‘Meri Awaz Suno,’

Music Organiser and presenter Mr. Kaushik Kothari said that probably because of the miraculous blend of all the singing qualities that he possessed with that humility and godliness that he conveyed and expressed silently and so naturally during his lifetime. A man of few words, he was a great human being and a singer that made him the greatest legend of all time. This new book, edited by Vinod Viplav tells the different shades of his personalities and his fan followings.

Viu set to launch musical drama Spotlight 2 on 26th January

~Presented by Viu and Vikram Bhatt, Spotlight 2 will be a fitting addition to the                         popular Spotlight franchise by Viu~    

               ~Presented by Viu and Vikram Bhatt, Spotlight 2 will feature   

                              Karan V.Grover and Aditi Arya~ 

Viu, the premium video-on-demand platform by Vuclip, a PCCW media company announced the launch of Spotlight 2 making this a franchise of the successful Viu Originals series Spotlight. Presented in association with known writer and director Vikram Bhatt, the theme of the franchise is a running series that captures the rise, fall and resurrection of a music superstar. An intense and stormy romance between two headstrong people on the opposite ends of the spectrum - Spotlight 2 explores the exasperating reality of being a music celebrity. The series is being directed by Siddhant Sachdeva and will feature popular television actor Karan V Grover along with two dazzling former Miss India’s , Aditi Arya and Ruhi Singh. Focusing on compelling content offered in a contemporary setting, the series will feature more than 7 originally composed tracks brought to life by soulful musicians Harish Sanganay, Ankit Shah and other popular artists. The show goes live on Viu (Both App and The Web) from 26th January 2018.Based on the buzzing music industry in Mumbai, Spotlight 2 is a story of a talented but flamboyant musician, Vicky, who is on the verge of career-suicide. His hard work and melodious voice helped him climb the ladder of success in the music industry in a very short span of time. But his arrogance, drug addiction and utter disregard for the industry and his fans brings him crashing down. The story is the journey of this lost character with a heart of gold trying to connect back with his music with the help of his ex-girlfriend and how he rises back from the fall.

Speaking on the launch of Spotlight franchise, Manasi Sapre, Head of Programming, Viu India said, “At Viu, we focus on creating compelling content and a viewing experience that captivates our audience and is relatable at the same time. We are able to provide this content because we associate with extremely capable and talented people from all walks of life. With Spotlight 2, we celebrate the great journey we have taken on with Vikram Bhatt. We are excited to launch the Spotlight franchise and in the upcoming months, you will see a lot more original shows from Viu that will surely going to excite the audience.” 

Speaking on the release of Spotlight 2, Vikram Bhatt says, “When Spotlight 1 was a success, I was confident I will make another one. Spotlight 2 chronicles a musician’s journey as he falls to fame, and then, strives to make a comeback. A story that encapsulates the loneliness that stardom brings along with the glitz and glamour in the life of a superstar. And the story is very apt for the digital platform. Today, the first screen of preference is the cell phone so it was only natural that I present this franchise to the audience on the web.” 

The 13 episode series which can be binged watched on 26th January 2018, will mark the launch of the twelfth original series by Viu. With shows like Gehraiyaan, PillA, Pelli Gola and Social, Viu is ceaselessly introducing refreshing concepts combined with gripping scripts and revered talent to ensure an exhilarating viewing experience for their viewers. Since its successful launch in India last year, Viu has witnessed exponential growth in terms of the audience base and engagement.

Link to teaser promo:

TV frat stands divided on whether national anthem should be sung in theatres

Our TV actors give us their take on whether the national anthem should be played in theatres.Ankush Bali: I don’t think the National Athem should not be played in halls. There is no point to show or prove patriotism just before watching a movie.

Rohan Gandotra: In our busy life, I feel that's the only place where we get to listen to our national anthem and we actually stand and give respect to it. I don't think in our day to day life or even on  Republic Day and Independence day for that matter, one actually stands up for the national anthem. Compulsion or no compulsion, I feel it's a right decision to play the national anthem in cinemas. It hardly takes two minutes of your free time.

Sehban Azim: There's nothing wrong in making the national anthem compulsory in theaters, right before a movie. It's just a two-minute thing and I guess we all as Indian citizens should have no problem standing up for it. It would make a difference because in our school days, we all have stood up every day for it and it reminds us of our country. It surely induces love and praise towards our motherland. Now we hardly get to hear it or sing it. As almost everyone goes to the theatre, so it seems the legit place to make it happen, to invoke that same emotion which we experienced when we were growing up.

Himmanshoo Malhotra: I think it should be played since it keeps you in touch with the beautiful lyrics of the anthem and their in-depth meaning. As it is life is running at such a faster pace, standing up for the anthem and taking a respite for 2 mins is actually necessary. Also, we must take care of the fact that all these things should be done not imposingly but voluntarily.

Saurabh Pandey: I think the main idea of playing the national anthem in cinema halls is to make you remember the national anthem, as we hardly ever singh it otherwise. Secondly, we should remember that we are Indians and the love that we have for our country should always be in our hearts. I am sure that many of us don't even remember the lyrics  of our national anthem. So I think it's a good way to give two minutes to our country before we get ready to get entertained. I also feel that it should be compulsorily in every factory, office, workplace in India, to sing that national anthem before the work day begins. I totally think it's a good thing. Also, the meaning of national anthem is beautiful. It's a beautiful description of India.

Sanjay Gagnani: I’m a patriotic and so I wouldn’t mind dedicating two minutes of my time in singing the national anthem before a watching a film. But whether it should be played or not in cinema halls, I wouldn’t like to comment on that instead I would leave that to our constitution and supreme courts to decide. Because I have full faith in the decisions of the constitution and the Supreme Court of my country.

Sneha Wagh: Nationality should be in heart more than in cinema halls. I don’t understand what good it will do to play the national anthem before a film, if people don’t know how to respect it.

Gurpreet Singh: Yes, I agree that the  national anthem should be played in cinema halls. I don't know why people can't stand for even 52 seconds, it's our motherland after all. We have the time to watch the movie for 3 hours, but we don’t have the time to stand for the national anthem. It is our duty to show respect to our national anthem. Our Indian army fights every day and night and stands for us. Our freedom fighters have struggled a lot of things to get us independence, then why can't people respect that? Whenever there is a terrorist attack, so many people say we are with our army. All their patriotism comes out at that time. We should stand and show respect to our national anthem.

Gavie Chahal: Our national anthem is our pride. Standing in respect of it is equal to respecting and touching the feet of your parents and take their blessings every morning. Do you know that in countries like Australia, every day at 6 PM at all community centers, pubs or wherever, they play a 1-minute anthem in respect of their soldiers and martyr! And here people find it difficult to stand before a film.

Sshrey Pareek: To be very honest, it's a good gesture to remind us in theatres at least. I don't think any countryman sing or remember national anthem in daily life. I get goosebumps every time I listen to it in theatres and I have not seen in so many years that anyone is not standing and disrespecting it.

Ssharad Malhotraa People go to the cinema halls to watch a film. They go there for entertainment. At that time many of them are not serious and don’t sing the national anthem seriously. We often see people moving or even laughing when the national anthem is going on. This is why I feel that it should not be played in theaters.

Arjun Bijlani Our country has given us so much and we should be grateful. The national anthem should invoke a sense of pride in us. If this happens, then it won’t matter where we are signing it. I am ok with the idea of national anthems being played in cinema halls.