Amazon Signs Deal With Indian Government to Boost Country’s Creative Economy

Made in Chelsea OG Ollie Locke will soon be becoming a father to twins this summer with his husband Gareth after they announced they fell pregnant via surrogacy. And after three-and-a-half years of trying for a baby, Ollie, 36, has now revealed the very moment he knew he wanted him and Gareth to start a family of their own.

Naman Ramachandran The south Indian media and entertainment industry grew 33% in 2022 to record revenues of $3.57 billion in 2022, a new report has revealed. The report, titled South India: Setting Benchmarks for the Nation in Media & Entertainment, was prepared by Team MCube Insights for the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), southern region, and was released during the recently-concluded Dakshin conference. It covers in detail the region’s key sectors – film, television, streaming/digital, radio and print – across the four language vectors of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam spread across the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and union territory Puducherry.

Naman Ramachandran The rights of three songs from iconic 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical “The Sound of Music” have been acquired by Indian film “Music School.” The musical was adapted as a 1965 film by Robert Wise, starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, which went on to win five Oscars and also had two live television adaptations – on NBC in 2013 and ITV in 2015. “Music School” is directed by Indian civil service officer-turned filmmaker Paparao Biyyala, who has obtained the rights for three songs from “The Sound of Music” – “Do Re Mi,” “So Long Farewell” and “Sixteen Going on Seventeen.” Veteran Indian composer Ilaiyaraaja has recreated the songs along with the London Philharmonic Orchestra to suit the sensibilities of an Indian audience.

Naman Ramachandran The cream of the southern Indian film industry was present in force at the just concluded Dakshin South India Media and Entertainment Summit in Chennai. Organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), southern region, the event kicked off with recent south Indian Oscar winners, Kartiki Gonsalves, director of winning documentary short “The Elephant Whisperers” and Prem Rakshit, choreographer of winning original song “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR” being felicitated. The stage was then set for a heavyweight filmmakers panel moderated by former Variety correspondent Anupama Chopra, with Mani Ratnam, director of Tamil-language blockbuster “Ponniyin Selvan: 1”; Vetrimaaran, whose acclaimed Tamil-language “Viduthalai Part 1” is currently on release; Rishab Shetty, star and director of Kannada-language smash hit “Kantara”; and Basil Joseph, director of Malayalam-language Netflix superhero film “Minnal Murali” participating.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles is expanding its efforts to engage the industry side of the business and in June will host its inaugural IFFLA Industry Day. The festival was founded in 2002 and, now in its third decade of operation, has pivoted to a strategy of year-round programming and events. The center piece of the IFFLA Industry Day will be a pitch competition that involves selected emerging and established film and TV writers and directors who pitch their upcoming project to a panel of executives from different sectors of the industry. The executives and a live public audience will provide feedback and heighten the sense of discovery. The winner will receive a $10,000 development grant.

Kate Middleton made a rare faux pas during a visit to an Indian restaurant in Birmingham with her husband, Prince William, to celebrate the city's diverse culture.The Princess of Wales, whose daughter Princess Charlotte will have a key role in the upcoming Coronation, was happily getting involved in the kitchen at The Indian Streatery, an authentic, family-run independent Indian restaurant, where she was given the opportunity to try a few dishes. However, the 41 year old was unaware that a bit of food became stuck in her teeth as she smiled away widely at those she was mingling with.

Callers to an Indian restaurant in Birmingham were in for a shock on Thursday afternoon as they received a Royal welcome when making their orders. Prince William and Kate Middleton were photographed laughing together as they visited Indian restaurant The Indian Streatery while in Birmingham to celebrate the city’s diverse culture.

Naman Ramachandran “Rana Naidu,” the Indian adaptation of “Ray Donovan,” has been renewed for a second season by Netflix. The news emerged the same day that Netflix announced a 1.75 million jump in subscriptions worldwide. The action thriller that stars Venkatesh Daggubati and Rana Daggubati trended on the No.1 spot as the most watched series in India for three consecutive weeks after launch last month and continues to be in the top 10 series in India for the fifth week in a row. It trended in Netflix’s global top 10 for non-English TV for two weeks after it launched on March 10.

Citadel doesn’t premiere on Amazon Prime Video until April 28, but the spy thriller starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Richard Madden is set for a second season, and it’s coming to California.

Plumes of smoke were seen over a town in Greater Manchester on Sunday evening (April 16) after a fire broke out at a closed down restaurant.

The Sands International Film Festival, Scotland’s burgeoning film event, opened its second edition this weekend with the world premiere screening of Citadel, the much-talked-about Prime Video series from Marvel auteurs Anthony and Joe Russo.

A controversial former Indian politician has been shot dead on live TV. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Comcast, the conglomerate behind NBCUniversal and the Sky European TV giant, is to invest $200 million in Bodhi Tree Systems, a company headed by James Murdoch and Uday Shankar, a former head of Disney in India. The move was approved by the Competition Commission of India on Wednesday. The funds will be directed to buying a small minority stake in Indian media group Viacom18. The move is part of a complicated series of transactions that bind Viacom18 ever closer to Reliance Industries, the petroleum to telecoms conglomerate controlled by Mukesh Ambani which is now upending Indian media with its Jio cellular, broadband internet and streaming companies.

A+E Networks Boosts Co-Pro Offering With Double UK Hire

EXCLUSIVE: The BBC’s controversial Narendra Modi documentary may have been banned in India but local viewers are still finding ways to watch it, according to analysts.

Matchmaker Sima is back to help singles find their soulmates.

Priyanka Chopra is getting ready for the launch of her Prime Video series Citadel and she has already lined up another project with Amazon!

Amazon India has signed a Letter of Engagement (LoE) with the country’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) in a bid to boost the creative economy.

Angelique Jackson CAA has signed filmmaker Megan Park for representation. Park’s feature directorial debut, “The Fallout,” premiered at SXSW in 2021 and took home the festival’s grand jury prize and audience award, as well as the first-ever Brightcove Illumination Award for writing the screenplay. The film was released on HBO Max in Jan. 2022 and stars Jenna Ortega and Maddie Ziegler, following the teenagers as they attempt to rebuild their lives after a school tragedy. Park was named one of Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” for 2022 and also won the Toronto International Film Festival’s Rising Star Award and an Emerging Directors Award from the Cannes Film Festival.

Priyanka Chopra is opening up about the truth behind the acting industry.