City Mumbai Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Naman Ramachandran Ameen Sayani, the doyen of Indian radio, died on Tuesday in Mumbai following a heart attack. He was 91. The news was confirmed by his son Rajil Sayani.

Naman Ramachandran Its raining biopics of revered 17th century Indian ruler Shivaji Bhonsle in Mumbai. Days after Sandeep Singh’s “The Pride of Bharat – Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj” was announced, billionaire Mukesh Ambani‘s Jio Studios and actors Riteish and Genelia Deshmukh’s Mumbai Film Company have unveiled their collaboration on “Raja Shivaji.” Both films were revealed on the occasion of the 394th birth anniversary of Shivaji, Feb. 19.

Naman Ramachandran A-list Bollywood actor Rani Mukerji and Turkish star Hande Ercel will be among the luminaries speaking at the Frames conference in Mumbai. Organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the annual confab is one of the largest media and entertainment industry events in Asia. The theme of Frames 2024 is “RRR: Reflections, Realities and Road Ahead.” Participants this year also include Arjun Nohwar, senior VP and general manager, South Asia, Warner Bros.

Dev Patel is making his directorial debut with the upcoming thriller Monkey Man and Jordan Peele has signed on as producer.

Sonali Shah, known for presenting on BBC's Escape to The Country and Magic FM, has had quite the journey. From reading news on BBC children's Newsround to presenting on BBC's world news, she's had a successful career in journalism. But there's more to Sonali than meets the eye.

EXCLUSIVE: India’s box office revenue reached a record $1.47BN (Rs122.3BN) in 2023, a 15% increase over the previous year, according to a report from Mumbai-based Ormax Media. But growth was partly due to rising ticket prices as admissions have still not recovered to the same level as 2019. 

Naman Ramachandran A screening of Isabel Herguera‘s San Sebastian winner “Sultana’s Dream” will kickstart the inaugural edition of AniMela, India’s first-ever international festival for animation, VFX, XR, gaming and comics, in Mumbai. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Herguera, alongside her Spanish and Indian crew, including Indian animation expert Upamanyu Bhattacharyya.

Boy Swallows Universe is a new limited series streaming on Netflix, an adaptation of Trent Dalton’s semi-autobiographical coming of age novel.The story follows Eli Bell, a traumatised 13-year-old working-class boy played by Felix Cameron, who is drawn into the criminal underworld in Brisbane, Australia in order to save his mother, played by Phoebe Tonkin, from danger. Eli’s father is absent, and his stepfather is a heroin dealer.The novel of the same name was Dalton’s debut, first released in 2018, and is set in 1983.The Netflix adaptation is written by John Collee, whose previous writing credits include 2003 film Master and Commander, 2006’s Happy Feet and 2018’s Hotel Mumbai.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles and The India Center Foundation, two non-profit organizations working with South Asian film in the U.S., have agreed to merge. Already long-time collaborators, IFFLA and ICF will, among other things, work closely to incubate and launch an industry development program to showcase the next generation of South Asian talent to studios, funders and media executives. “We saw an opportunity to scale our work nationally as one of the leading supporters of emerging creative talent in the diaspora.

Naman Ramachandran “Kalki 2898 AD,” the Indian sci-fi epic starring Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Deepika Padukone and Disha Patani, will release theatrically worldwide on May 9. The date was unveiled across Indian cities Varanasi, Mumbai, Delhi, Chandigarh, Chennai, Madurai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Bhimavaram, Kashmir and Vijayawada by actors in the raider costumes featured in the film. The film, which is directed by Nag Ashwin and backed by Vyjayanthi Movies, was teased at the San Diego Comic-Con last year.

Naman Ramachandran Tamil-language film “Annapoorani: The Goddess of Food,” headlined by “Jawan” actor Nayanthara, has been pulled from Netflix after attracting multiple complaints from Hindu groups. The film follows a girl from an orthodox Hindu family, who aspires to become India’s best chef. It released theatrically on Dec.

Naman Ramachandran Bruce Dern will star alongside Nepali cinema stalwarts Dayahang Rai and Hari Bansha Acharya in Binod Paudel’s “The World’s Happiest Man.” The story delves into the plight of Bhutanese-Nepali refugees who settled in the Ohio-Pennsylvania area and fought alienation and displacement. Paudel’s “Bulbul” was chosen as Nepal’s entry in the Oscars’ international category in 2019. He won best director at Nepal‘s National Film Awards, where he had previously won the screenplay award for “Saanghuro” (2013).

EXCLUSIVE: Disney+ Hotstar is going behind the curtains of Bollywood.

Naman Ramachandran A brace of films exploring important subjects are in contention from India in the best live action short film category at the 96th Academy Awards. Reema Maya’s “Nocturnal Burger,” an investigation of child abuse at a dysfunctional police station in Mumbai, had its world premiere at Sundance. It has since traveled to more than 50 film festivals globally and won 34 awards including the Oscar-qualifying Golden Chair for best international short at KortfilmFestivalen, Norway.

Naman Ramachandran Arlene Nelson will direct a documentary series on Indian Women’s Premier League cricket team U.P. Warriorz, it was revealed on the sidelines of the Asian TV Forum and Market (ATF). The men’s Indian Premier League (IPL) is one of the most lucrative properties in world sport.

Tubi Hires Endeavor Exec For International Expansion

Naman Ramachandran High powered global experts will feature at the inaugural edition of AniMela, India’s first-ever international festival for animation, VFX, XR, gaming and comics (AVGC-XR). The four-day event is by India’s Aniverse and Visual Arts Foundation (AVAF), which has partnered with the government of India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and France’s Annecy International Animation Festival. As revealed by Variety, the festival will take place Jan.

ZEE5 Global has struck a series of deals to carry several smaller Indian streamers in the U.S. on its service, as it bids to become the top aggregator from South Asia in the States.

Georgia Toffolo has given followers an insight into her stunning trip to the Maldives with her BrewDog founder boyfriend James Watt. The 29 year old enjoyed a lavish vacation with the 40 year old entrepreneur behind the brewery and pub chain brand. Made in Chelsea star Georgia looked incredible as she posed next to a private pool at the picturesque location in a flattering black swimsuit and sarong.

Naman Ramachandran “Bridgerton” star Charithra Chandran will headline the cast of “Arzu,” a drama series based on the sexy novel of the same name by Mumbai-based Riva Razdan. Geetika Lizardi, whose writing credits include “Bridgerton,” “Mira, Royal Detective” and “Outsourced,” is attached to write and will also serve as showrunner.

EXCLUSIVE: Bombay Berlin Film Productions (BBFP) has revealed that August Diehl has been cast to play the role of German Olympic athlete Otto Peltzer in upcoming biopic The Distant Near. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Sting, Jonas Brothers, Halsey and OneRepublic are among the headline acts set to perform at Lollapalooza India. The music festival is set for a second edition Jan.

Naman Ramachandran Subrata Roy, chair of Sahara India Pariwar, a former major player in the Indian media space, died on Nov. 14 in Mumbai. He was 75.

Naman Ramachandran Mira Nair has boarded Indian filmmaker Sarvnik Kaur’s Sundance-winning documentary “Against the Tide” as an executive producer. The film follows Mumbai-based fishermen Rakesh and Ganesh who are inheritors of the great Koli fishing knowledge system — a way to harvest the sea by following the moon and the tides. Rakesh has kept faith in the traditional fishing methods while Ganesh has strayed away from them, embracing technology.

Caroline Brew editor Seven veterans who have transitioned into various careers and pursuits that inspire others were honored in “Variety Salute to Service” presented by the History Channel. Marine Corp and Navy veteran Montel Williams hosted this year’s special, which premiered Monday on the History Channel and was produced by A+E Factual Studios. Williams explained that the veterans highlighted are those who, “continued to answer the call of duty long after their act of service was done.” He first introduced Jeremy Locke, Sgt.

Sarvnik Kaur’s documentary Against The Tide won the Golden Gateway Award at this year’s Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, while the Silver Gateway Award went to Bahadur – The Brave, directed by Diwa Shah. The Special Jury Award went to Kanu Behl’s Agra. 

Naman Ramachandran Sarvnik Kaur’s documentary “Against the Tide” has won the Golden Gateway Award at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. The film previously won awards at Sundance, Sydney and Seattle. Diwa Shah’s San Sebastian winner “Bahadur: The Brave” received Mumbai’s Silver Gateway Award.

Bangladeshi director Mostofa Sarwar Farooki is attending Mumbai Film Festival with feature-length drama Something Like An Autobiography, which is playing in the festival’s Icons: South Asia section after premiering in the Jiseok section at Busan. 

Rapture, the second film from Indian filmmaker Dominic Sangma, is being presented with  the Cultural Diversity Award at this year’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards. 

Naman Ramachandran Director Atlee‘s “Jawan,” starring Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, is the highest grossing Indian film of the year with $138.6 million. With 91%, it has also become the first Indian film to surpass the 90% level critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, above Karan Johar’s “Rocky aur Rani kii Prem Kahaani” (88%) and Khan’s own “Pathaan” (83%). Atlee apprenticed with renowned blockbuster maker S.