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Tag: Anil Sharma

  • This New Year’s eve, experience ‘Gadar’ on Zee TV!

    This New Year’s eve, experience ‘Gadar’ on Zee TV!

    Mumbai: Having hit the bull’s eye at the box office, Gadar 2 went beyond being just a film. Adored by the masses, this cinematic masterpiece not only outperformed all box office records, reigniting a passion for cinema, but also evolved into an emotion and a movement for its audience. After its blockbuster success in theatres, Gadar 2 is set to captivate audiences on Zee TV at 12 noon and 9 pm on 31 December 2023.

    Zee TV chief cluster officer Aparna Bhosle said, “Following its tremendous box office success, Gadar 2 is set to premiere on Zee TV as a New Year’s Eve delight for our viewers. The film’s enduring appeal lies in the strong emotions it stirs, making it more than just a movie but a testament to the power of impactful storytelling.”

    Starring Sunny Deol, Ameesha Patel, Utkarsh Sharma, and Simrat Kaur, the movie is a continuation of the 2001 blockbuster film ‘Gadar,’ focusing on the romantic tale of Tara Singh’s son. The plot unfolds as Tara Singh (Sunny Deol) goes missing during a border clash between India and Pakistan, presumed to be captured by the Pakistani army. In a bid to rescue his father, Jeete (Utkarsh Sharma) ventures into prohibited territory. ‘Gadar 2’ achieved significant commercial success, earning a staggering ₹691.08 crore worldwide and securing its place as the second highest-grossing Bollywood film in history. Directed by Anil Sharma, and distributed by Zee Studios, Gadar 2 is an action thriller that will surely entertain the audience this New Year’s Eve.

    With intense drama and mind-blowing action up its sleeves, Gadar 2 is all set to add excitement to your New Year’s Eve plans as it airs at 12 noon and 9 pm on 31 December, only on Zee TV!

  • Tata Play Binge’s October entertainment extravaganza: The new launches we loved

    Tata Play Binge’s October entertainment extravaganza: The new launches we loved

    Mumbai: Lights, camera, October action! As the vibrant colours of October begin to fade and we cosy up in our blankets, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the cinematic and episodic treasures that graced our screens this month. In the last month, the entertainment industry brought us a stellar lineup of films and series that kept us glued to our seats. From thrilling blockbusters to heartwarming dramas, the past month was nothing short of a cinematic rollercoaster. So, grab your popcorn, settle in, and join Tata Play Binge as we explore the top movies and series that shone brightly in October.

    Gadar 2 on ZEE5

    Gadar 2 is a Bollywood action drama film directed and produced by Anil Sharma. It is a sequel to the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha and features the same old cast of Sunny Deol, and Ameesha Patel but now along with Utkarsh Sharma, and Aamir Naik in prominent roles. The storyline provides the original fans a glimpse into the Tara Singh family now set in 1971 as Tara Singh returns to Pakistan to rescue his imprisoned son Charanjeet “Jeete” Singh. The film became a commercial success as it grossed 685.19 crores worldwide, making it the seventh highest-grossing Bollywood film ever. This high-octane drama had everything the 90’s kids look for in a Bollywood Masala movie. So grab that popcorn and witness the iconic hand pump moment again in Sunny Paaji style.

    Permanent Roommates Season 3 on Amazon Prime Video

    TVF’s Permanent Roommates made its debut on YouTube in 2014, and its groundbreaking success led to a lineup of web series being produced as it opened up the content industry to the concept of long-format shows. Now, after a seven-year hiatus, the beloved cast, Nidhi Singh and Sumit Vyas and others reunite for Season 3. In this new season, Tanya contemplates leaving the country for new experiences, while Mikesh secretly resists the idea. The series not only delves into their lives but also explores their parents’ journeys. With five engaging episodes, it follows their quest for permanent residency in Canada and the events that unfold, while keeping the essence of Tannu and Mikki alive all through the season. With the quirks of Mikesh accompanied by the antics of Tanya, this season of Permanent Roommates will leave you wanting more, yet satisfied with the way the series concludes. Binge on all the episodes if you haven’t yet!

    Kaala Paani on Netflix

    Kaala Paani presents a compelling narrative set in the near future on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, known for their unexplored history. In 2027, a deadly virus threatened the island, but authorities initially dismissed it, putting lives at risk. The series, created and co-directed by Sameer Saxena, explores the moral and ethical dilemmas in handling such sensitive situations, making it thought-provoking. The exceptional cast, including Mona Singh and Ashutosh Gowariker, delivers powerful performances, while the series weaves themes of human greed, politics of emotions, inclusivity, and man vs. nature into a heart-wrenching tale of separation and choice.

    Scam 2003: The Telgi Story on SonyLiv

    ‘Scam 2003’ follows in the footsteps of its acclaimed predecessor, ‘Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story’. This time, it delves into the world of Abdul Karim Telgi, a humble fruit seller who ascended to become the mastermind behind a colossal stamp paper fraud. While Gagan Dev Riar delivers a compelling portrayal of Telgi, the series, helmed by showrunner Hansal Mehta and directed by Tushar Hiranandan takes us through the intricate web of forgery and government corruption that fueled Telgi’s empire, offering a peek into his manipulative tactics and the entangled network of collaborators. With only a portion of the episodes released, ‘Scam 2003’ is yet to fully unveil the scale of Telgi’s operations leaving viewers intrigued but awaiting more.

    Aakhri Sach on Disney+ Hotstar

    Aakhri Sach is a crime thriller series inspired by the tragic Burari incident, which revolves around the suspected suicides of 11 family members spanning three generations. The show follows a dedicated police officer, Anya played by Tamannaah Bhatia, tasked with investigating the unsettling mass suicide. However, as the series unfolds, it grapples with the challenge of balancing the gruesome reality of the event with fictional storytelling. The story still manages to grip the audience even after the end is known. This definitely should be on your watchlist if you haven’t binged on it yet.

    John Wick : Chapter 4 on Lionsgate Play

    The awaited return of Keanu Reeves as the legendary assassin John Wick! Directed by Chad Stahelski, the film is the latest instalment in the action-packed franchise. In this chapter, John Wick faces off against the High Table, the organisation that has marked him for death. With an arsenal of weapons and his unparalleled combat skills, John Wick takes on new adversaries. As John Wick embarks on a mission to earn his freedom, the film promises more intense action sequences, complex choreography, and breathtaking visuals, making it a thrilling addition to the franchise.

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  • ALL ABOUT MUSIC 2023 all set to commence at Grand Hyatt Mumbai!

    ALL ABOUT MUSIC 2023 all set to commence at Grand Hyatt Mumbai!

    Mumbai: All About Music, India’s biggest music conference, is back again taking place from the 7th till the 9th of September at Grand Hyatt Santacruz Mumbai. All About Music, launched in 2017, is a global gateway into the Indian music market. India’s biggest B2B conference dedicated to music has completed six sold out editions by bringing together industry experts and stakeholders from every vertical of the music business and engaging the attendees through discussions around innovations and advances in the business of music.

    This year’s theme is “Transitions”, which focuses on exploring uncharted territories in our industry. With the emergence of new technologies like artificial intelligence and evolving market trends in the post-pandemic era, we find ourselves at a crossroads. How can we navigate this constantly changing landscape? Who can guide us through this transition? And most importantly, which path should we choose? The theme “Transitions” encompasses both the personal and universal aspects of this critical moment, encouraging people to forge meaningful connections during the conference and reimagine the future of the Indian music industry.

    This year’s event provides a three-day immersive experience with hand-picked keynote speakers, engaging panels, interactive workshops, captivating artist showcases, engaging masterclasses, and inspiring conversations. Attendees can connect with industry leaders at Connect Corner, network, and pitch their music to filmmakers and record labels. The event will cover a variety of topics, including consumption patterns, navigating the success of an artist, music publishing, understanding your rights, modern-day A&R, effective monetization strategies, and music distribution methods.

    Some promising personalities to look forward to in this edition are Shreya Ghoshal, Ricky Kej, Joshua Burke, Alfonso Perez-Soto, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwar, Bismil, Daler Mehndi, Anil Sharma, Jay Mehta, Krsna, MC Stan, Nucleya, Nirmika Singh, Mayur Jumani, Baba Sehgal, Raja Kumari, Satvinder Singh Koli, Srushti Tawade and many more.

    Did you know that All About Music has a platform called Pitch Your Music? This is a great opportunity for up-and-coming artists to showcase their talent! There are three categories available: ‘Pitch to Filmmakers’, ‘Pitch to Record Labels’, and ‘Pitch to Showcase’. You can pitch your music to a jury of filmmakers like Ashwiny Iyer, Mohit Suri, Anil Sharma & Vivek Agnihotri & Sabbas Joseph. You can also pitch to Record Labels like Saregama India, Warner Music India, Universal Music Group, T-series & Tips Music this will allow for prompt feedback and reviews from them. Additionally, the Pitch to Showcase category provides artists with a chance to perform on the main stage after the conference. The aim of the conference is to empower artists and give them the chance to showcase their work directly to filmmakers, showrunners, and record labels.

    “At All About Music this year, we attempt to navigate the transitions that are shaping the industry’s future. With ‘Transitions’ as our theme, we embrace the enigmatic forces molding music – from the uncertainty around AI to changing consumption patterns and models within the music industry. Our stage unites local and international voices, bridging genres and cultures,”  said Create and Collab business head Ashish Jose. 

    Gain insights about India’s music world industry by securing your spot in the making of music history by
    registering before 30 August!

  • OTT censorship not feasible: former DD additional DG Mukesh Sharma

    OTT censorship not feasible: former DD additional DG Mukesh Sharma

    MUMBAI: The censorship of OTT content in today’s dynamic world will not help much, according to Deviprasad Goenka Management College of Media Studies dean Mukesh Sharma.

    Sharma, who has also worked with national broadcaster Doordarshan in various capacities in the past and had an illustrious career, said, “What happens today is that with technology if you block one thing, something else pops up. Who knew about OTT five years ago? The government had censored films, TV and everything else, but this medium came up with new challenges. Tomorrow, if OTT is censored, some other platform will crop up.”

    He is of the view that the government needs to have faith in its people and can only caution them about the right use of the media instead of blocking content. Sharma contended that the onus also lies on the content creators who should be more sensible and alert towards public sentiments.

    Also present at the event was director and producer Anil Sharma, who echoed the same thoughts about censorship. He said, “The censorship of OTT is not in place today, but who knows it might be there in future. I believe that the first censorship comes from self, from within the people. That’s why proper education tools should be there to help people understand the just use of media, be it OTT or any other form.”

    Mukesh Sharma also briefed about the massive growth that the media industry is seeing these days. He noted that the M&E industry in India is going to worth around Rs 2.26 lakh crores in 2020. While all the media are growing simultaneously, digital is seeing a huge leap of 30 per cent year-on-year and it is only bound to grow. He feels that OTT definitely has an upper hand on content now.

    “At the moment, I do not find anybody going back to television. TV viewing has gone down considerably; film and digital are two platforms which are neck to neck now. But if good films are not made people will stop going to the theatres as well,” he said.

    Stating that the industry is getting smarter in terms of content generation, Sharma quipped, “I feel now there is a lot of scope to express oneself, in a way one wants to, in the creative industry. Look at how the movies are performing now. The Khans are tanking at the box office while movies made in tier 2 or tier 3 towns are earning well. Young filmmakers, young actors, people who nobody knew about are now household names. OTT is already making waves in the content sphere and other media are catching up.”

    But he feels that there is still a long way to go when it comes to creating good public service and science-related content. He noted that earlier Doordarshan used to broadcast public service announcements and that helped in creating awareness, but today the viewership of Doordarshan has gone down and no other medium has taken the responsibility of sharing these messages. “Earlier the brands were also very creative. For example, the ‘Jaago Re!’ campaign by Tata Tea was a great initiative. While a few brands today as well are trying to work in that space, they are not as extensive as earlier,” he said.

  • Single screen saab

    Single screen saab

    MUMBAI: Anil Sharma’s Singh Saab The Great may as well have been a Punjabi film: much of the dialogue and songs are in Punjabi. This follows a week after Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s almost-Gujarati Ram-Leela, which had dialogue with Gujarati blend and just about every song and background songs taken from Gujarati folk music. If this is these makers’ idea of being different, they are succeeding only in limiting their audience. As for the rest, Sharma tries to cash in on Sunny Deol’s “dhai kilo haath” which now, with time, weighs three and half kilos, which he uses to take on hundreds of goons let loose on him by the villain, Prakash Raj. It is a simple story: Sunny is an honest government servant and Prakash Raj is a despotic evil man. Take it or leave it.

    Sunny Deol is a Sikh gentleman who descends on village after village and town after town to cleanse them of villains, corruption and other such evils. But one day a journalist, Amrita Rao, barges into his office and starts accusing him of hiding from the law in the guise of a Sardar without having completed his 18 year jail sentence, which he was given along with five of his colleagues. That is the cue; you know a flashback is coming. So Sunny, who usually flares up with fury at the slightest provocation, goes soft on this TV reporter and decides to tell her all.

    Sunny is the usual oft-transferred collector who is posted to a town where Prakash’s writ runs large, unchallenged. Because like all such bad men of recent era, he controls enough MLAs and MPs to topple the local government! However, Sunny turns out to be a tough ‘un-government-servant’ kind of guy. While he is dispatching Prakash off with disdain, the latter dares to threaten to harm his sister, meriting a resounding slap from Sunny. That is reason enough for Prakash not to use his clout and get Sunny transferred of town but to let him be and use his guile to harm him and his family on a regular basis. Guile is something Sunny’s brawn is no match for.

    Producer: Anuj Sharma, Sangeeta Ahir.
    Director: Anil Sharma.
    Cast: Sunny Deol, Amrita Rao, Urvashi Rautela, Prakash Raj, Shahbaz Khan, Johny Lever, Sanjay Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Yashpal Sharma.

    The problem is that the fear of the villain vanishes in the very first encounter between the two, when Sunny slaps him. Whatever a writer or director does to resurrect his villainous nature after that does not help: he can have hundreds of his goons kill women or harass them to teach Sunny a lesson but he does not seem threatening. A villain has to be built till the end, preferably larger than the hero so that as much as the hero, even the viewer wants him punished! But if a maker has not learnt that in over three decades in filmmaking, it is too late.

    The film is a poorly conceived and executed and any claims (though it may read so in the titles) to story, screenplay and direction are not substantiated. Just filling up frames with crowds does not make an extravaganza. And what is with all the Punjabi dialogue and music? Who are they catering to—even Punjabi films have come of age and rate much better than Singh Saab The Great.(Not to mention they cost much less.) Music, even if Punjabi, is routine. Editing and photography both look uninspired. Action has been seen alike in many South remakes recently.

    Sunny Deol plays himself, the character he has been playing since his debut; mostly looking angry and trading punches. Amrita Rao’s fascination for the widower Sunny is rather too cliché. Urvashi Rautela as a many years younger wife leaves no mark. Prakash Raj matches Sunny in his consistency at villainy since his Hindi debut; the least he could do is vary his expressions.

    Singh Saab The Great, is an old fashioned mass film with appeal for single screen patrons with its best prospects being in the North.

  • Indian short film Kush in Oscar race

    Indian short film Kush in Oscar race

    MUMBAI: It’s always a proud moment for the Bollywood industry when any movie enters the race to the Oscars. Walking on those lines, Indian director Shubhashish Bhutiani’s short film Kush has been short-listed by the Academy for 10 live-action shorts that will advance in the Oscar race.

     

    Three or five films out of these 10 films will be selected for Oscar nomination by the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members.

     

    Kush, a 25 minute film, stars Sonika Chopra, Shayaan Sameer and Anil Sharma. It has been produced by Shubhashish’s father Sanjay Bhutiani through their Red Carpet Moving Pictures banner.

     

    Bhutiani made the film, inspired by a true story, for his graduation project at New York’s School of Visual Arts.

     

    The film’s story takes place during the riots that followed the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984. The story revolves around a school picnic where a teacher is trying to protect Kush, the only Sikh child in the group from the violence raging around them.

     

    To top it all, Kush won the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film at the 70th Venice International Film Festival 2013 and jury prize at Hamptons International Film Festival.

     

    The other nine short listed films include ‘Aquel No Era Yo’ (That Wasn’t Me) by director Esteban Crespo, ‘Avant Que De Tout Perdre’ (Just before Losing Everything) by director Xavier Legrand, ‘Dva’ (Two) by Mickey Nedimovic, ‘Helium’ by director Anders Walter, ‘Throat Song’ by director Miranda de Pencier, ‘Tiger Boy’ by Gabriele Mainetti, ‘The Voorman Problem’ by Mark Gill, ‘Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa?’ (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?) by Selma Vilhunen and ‘Record/Play’ by Jesse Atlas.

     

    The Short Films and Feature Animation Branch Reviewing Committee viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting at screenings held in Los Angeles. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco in December.

     

    The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced on 16 January while the Oscar ceremony will take place on 2 March, 2014 at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland Center.

  • Life-size wax statue of Phalke to be installed at Wax Museum, Lonavala

    Life-size wax statue of Phalke to be installed at Wax Museum, Lonavala

    MUMBAI: What better way to pay a tribute to founding father of Indian films Dadasaheb Phalke by erecting a full-size wax statue of the grand old man in the centenary year of the Indian film industry that falls on 3 May this year.


    The wax statue will be created and installed at the Celebrity Wax Museum (CWM) in Lonavala according to a memorandum of understanding between the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy and CWM managing director Sunil Kandalloor.


    The announcement was made when film folks gathered recently on the occasion of the 68th death anniversary of Phalke at the Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari (Film City) here.


    Present to pay homage were filmmakers Anil Sharma, Gautam Bhatiya, Gopal Ram, Romy Behl, veteran actor Chandrashekhar, singer Udit Narayan and trustees Ramgopal Gupta, Neena Jalan and Prabhat Pandey.