City Mumbai Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Naman Ramachandran Shailaja Padindala’s Kannada-language film “Naanu Ladies” won best narrative feature and Pedro Peira’s English and Spanish-language film “LA QueenCianera” best documentary feature at the 2022 Kashish LGBTQ+ film festival in Mumbai.Gujarati-language shorts “Muhafiz” by Pradipta Ray and “Dal Bhat” by Nemil Shah” won best Indian narrative short and the Riyad Wadia Award for best emerging Indian filmmaker respectively. “Muhafiz” also won best screenplay for Ray and Ashutosh Pathak.Padindala said: “ ‘Naanu Ladies’ is a film attempting to identify cis-het culture [as it] weaves itself into the queerness of everyday life.

EXCLUSIVE: U.S. marketing giant Trailer Park Group has taken its first steps into India with the acquisition of Mumbai-based creative agency White Turtle Studios.

Naman Ramachandran Varun Agarwal’s bestseller “How I Braved Anu Aunty and Co-Founded a Million Dollar Company” is being adapted as young-adult comedy-drama film “Bas Karo Aunty!”The project is backed by some of the biggest names in Bollywood, including the “Dangal” director Nitesh Tiwari and “Break Point” filmmaker Ashwini Iyer Tiwari’s Earthsky Pictures, Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP, Siddharth Roy Kapur’s Roy Kapur Films and Star Studios.The film is about today’s youth and their dilemmas, the thrills, risks, and romance of embarking on a new life path and chasing one’s dreams, and aims to capture the zeitgeist and entrepreneurial spirit of young India. It is directed by debutant filmmaker Abhishek Sinha and written by Nitesh Tiwari and Nikhil Mehrotra (“Chhichhore”).

Naman Ramachandran Indian actor Jackie Shroff (“Sooryavanshi”) will play the lead in Singapore-France-India co-production “Slow Joe,” it was revealed at the Cannes Film Market.Shroff will play the late Indian musician Joseph Manuel Da Rocha, known as Slow Joe, a former heroin addict and drug dealer who was born in Mumbai, was disowned by his family, heartbroken at 50 and who moved to Goa and cleaned up. On a trip to Goa in 2007, Lyon-based French musician Cédric de la Chapelle met Joe, now a frail 64-year-old who was making ends meet as a hotel room broker. Joe, also a poet and musician, sang for de la Chapelle, who was captivated by his voice and recorded some of his a cappella songs.Back in France, de la Chapelle played Joe’s songs for music producer Olivier Boccon-Gibod of Horizon Musiques, who was also entranced.

Naman Ramachandran Deaf Crocodile Films and Gratitude Films have acquired Indian films “Lalanna’s Song” and “Dhuin” for North American distribution. The deals were completed during the Cannes Market.“Dhuin” is one of six Indian titles selected by India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for a market screening.

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has boarded “Darlings,” headlined by top Bollywood star Alia Bhatt and directed by feature debutant Jasmeet K. Reen.Written by Reen, Parveez Sheikh (“Queen”) and Vijay Maurya (Disney+ Hotstar series “The Great Indian Murder”), “Darlings” is billed as a dark comedy which explores the lives of a mother-daughter duo trying to find their place in Mumbai, seeking courage and love in exceptional circumstances while fighting against all odds.The film is produced by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment and Bhatt’s Eternal Sunshine Productions.

EXCLUSIVE: Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment, Crazy Rich Asians producer SK Global, Jeff Sagansky and Florence Sloan have teamed to launch Jaya Entertainment, a content company focused on developing, producing and financing premium international series. Top TV producer Kaplan, prominent media investor Sagansky, Sloan and SK Global (via Ivanhoe Pictures) previously partnered in a Mumbai-based venture that produces hit Hindi-language Netflix series Delhi Crime, which won the International Emmy Award for Best Drama Series and returns for a second season on the streamer later this year.

Naman Ramachandran Principal photography has wrapped on “The Storyteller,” directed by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan (Busan title “Bittersweet”).The film is based on Indian Oscar winner Satyajit Ray’s short story “Golpo Boliye Tarini Khuro.” In the story about originality versus plagiarism, Ray was raising the question: “What is more important – the story or the storyteller?”A restored version of Ray’s “The Adversary” is playing at the Cannes Classics strand of the Cannes Film Festival.The cast includes Paresh Rawal (Amazon Prime Video film “Sharmaji Namkeen”), Adil Hussain (“Star Trek: Discovery”), Revathi (Netflix anthology “Navarasa”) and Tannishtha Chatterjee (Busan title “Roam Rome Mein”).The film is produced by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Studios (Netflix film “Dasvi”) in association with Purpose Entertainment (“Hotel Mumbai”) and Quest Films (Busan Kim Ji-seok Award winner “The Rapist”). Mahadevan said: “As part of the celebrations around the life and work of the legend Satyajit Ray, we are very happy and honored to share our own humble homage to the master storyteller.

Naman Ramachandran Paris and Mumbai-based production service company La Fabrique Films is looking forward to a further surge in business in the wake of new Indian filming incentives that were announced in Cannes.International productions filming in India can be reimbursed up to 35% of qualifying production spend in the country.La Fabrique, which specializes in European films shooting in India, has been operational since 2013 and films they have provided production services for include “Les Cowboys,” “The Best Is Yet to Come” and “And Tomorrow We Will Be Dead.” La Fabrique has just wrapped work on Laetitia Colombani’s “The Braid” and company principals Déborah Benattar and Javed Wani are currently attending the Cannes Film Market. The initial reimbursement for international shoots in India is 30%, which can go up by an additional 5% for productions employing 15% or more manpower in India.“The incentives will be a great advantage for foreign producers who decide to come and shoot in India also, because there is this bonus of 5%, they may want to employ more Indian technicians, because, from our experience, we have amazing technicians in India.

Will Smith spoke with David Letterman about “pain” and protecting one’s family prior to this year’s Oscars and the subsequent ‘slap heard ’round the world.’

Naman Ramachandran Australian film “The Laugh of Lakshmi,” by renowned theater director turned filmmaker S. Shakthidharan, will be one of the first films to make use of the newly announced Indian filming incentives.The film, a dance drama, is the story of a mother and a son separated by war.

Naman Ramachandran “The Boy Who Belonged to the Sea,” the multiple award-winning 2001 novel by Canadian author Denis Theriault, has been acquired for film adaptation by fledgeling U.K. outfit the White Lotus Picture Company.Set on the rugged north shore of the Gulf of St.

Indian superstar Salman Khan has teased his fans with a picture of him in action on the set of his upcoming film Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali.

Netflix’s upcoming Indian musical drama The Archies from director Zoya Akhtar has set its cast. The ensemble, who play characters from the iconic Archie Comics franchise, includes emerging talent such as Mihir Ahuja (Bard of Blood), Khushi Kapoor (The Garhwal Rifles) and Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter Suhana Khan in a but role.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefIndian activist filmmaker Pa. Ranjith is to begin production later this year on “Vettuvam” (aka “The Hunted”), a linked film and TV series about standing up to injustice and which is largely set in a prison.The projects are backed by Golden Ratio Films, the film production arm of Vistas Media Capital, and Neelam Studios.The story involves a rural gangster, who is a modern day Robin Hood to his people, but who turns himself in to the police in order to avoid his enemies.

K.J. Yossman Sir William Sargent, CEO and founding member of Oscar-winning VFX studio Framestore, whose work includes blocbusters such as “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” and “No Time to Die,” has revealed he is stepping down.Chief operating officer Mel Sullivan will replace him, with a mandate to focus on the company’s strategic direction.Sargant, who has been at Framestore for 26 years, will remain with the wider business, focusing on the Framestore Company 3 Group.CFO Claire Price will oversee the finances of Framestore and Company 3 from July while Fiona Walkinshaw is upped to CEO of film and episodic and Charles Howell serves as president of global advertising and content.

Naman Ramachandran South Asian focused streamer ZEE5 Global and BBC Studios India have partnered to create a slate of Hindi-language originals across genres, commencing with series “The Broken News,” an adaptation of Mike Bartlett’s BBC show “Press,” directed by Vinay Waikul (Netflix’s “Aranyak”). The plot turns on two rival news channels based in Mumbai – Awaaz Bharati, an independent, ethical news channel, and Josh 24/7 News, which offers sensationalist and invasive journalism, and what transpires between the main characters in their quest for news.

Naman Ramachandran Shivkumar Sharma, Hindustani classical musician and co-composer of several memorable Bollywood film soundtracks for the late Yash Chopra, died on Tuesday in Mumbai. He was 84.

EXCLUSIVE: Bollywood multi-hyphenate Farhan Akhtar will be part of the cast of Disney Plus’ upcoming series Ms. Marvel, Deadline has learned. Details regarding the character are under wraps, though his participation has been couched as a guest-starring role.

Will Smith is working to move forward following his high-profile Oscars altercation. A source tells ET that the star «has been going to therapy after the Oscars incident,» in which he stormed onstage and slapped Chris Rock in the face over a joke aimed at Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.ET has reached out to Smith's reps for comment.The news comes nearly two weeks after Smith — who went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor shortly after the infamous slap — was spotted in public for the first time in India.Smith arrived at a private airfield in Mumbai on April 23, where a horde of paparazzi awaited his arrival.

Adam Thomas has spoken about the moment he tried to save his dad's life. Dougie James, a much-loved Manchester music promoter and lead singer of the 1970s band Dougie James and the Soul Train, died in November 2020, aged 72.

Naman Ramachandran Rohit Shetty, the filmmaker known for his Singham cop franchise, and Reliance Entertainment, will produce a biopic on one of Mumbai’s most revered top cops and former commissioner of police, Rakesh Maria.The biopic will be based on Maria’s 2020 memoir “Let Me Say it Now” and will be mentored by Shetty. A director and cast have yet to be finalized.As deputy commissioner of police (traffic) in 1993, Maria cracked the Bombay serial blasts case. He was later deputy commissioner of police (crime) and then joint commissioner of police (crime), of the Mumbai police.

It has been a month since the 2022 Academy Awards but the celebs are still weighing in on Will Smith slapping Chris Rock.

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith are trying to find the best path forward in the wake of The Slap.

Amazon’s top U.S. and international execs are banking on even bigger things in India after launching the streamer’s biggest ever slate in the country.

Naman Ramachandran Amazon Prime Video India is betting big on India. At a marquee event in Mumbai the streamer announced that it will more than double its investment in Prime Video India over the next five years and revealed a 40-strong slate, its biggest to date in the country.The titles are in the Hindi, Tamil and Telugu languages, across new and returning scripted and unscripted original series and co-productions, streaming over the next 24 months.

Will Smith has reportedly travelled to India for "spiritual purposes". The 53-year-old actor arrived in Mumbai, over the weekend, and he's said to be on a spiritual journey after he smacked Chris Rock at the Oscars. Will - who won the Best Actor gong for his performance in 'King Richard' - is also planning to practice yoga and meditation, a source told People.

EXCLUSIVE: Jonathan Fuhrman has joined Castle Rock Entertainment as EVP and Head of Business Affairs.  

Chris Rock’s mom, Rose Rock, has spoken out for the first time since her son was slapped by Will Smith at the 2022 Oscars.

Is Will Smith ready to put the infamous slap behind him? It seems so…