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Tag: Half Ticket

  • Guru Dutt’s ‘Pyaasa’ only India restored film to compete at 72nd Venice Film Fest

    Guru Dutt’s ‘Pyaasa’ only India restored film to compete at 72nd Venice Film Fest

    MUMBAI: Pyaasa – a timeless masterpiece by Guru Dutt has become the only Indian film restored by an Indian company for a world premiere in the competition section at the 72nd Venice Film Festival.

     

    Ultra Media & Entertainment, which holds the negative rights of Pyaasa, had 45 experts working round the clock for over four months to restore and bring back the film to its original quality and showcase it globally.

     

    Pyaasa will compete with 20 other restored films from all over the world for the coveted “Venice Classics Award” for the best restored film.

     

    The 72nd Venice Film Festival will be held from 2 – 12 September 2015 in Venice.

     

    The 1957 Pyaasa stars Guru Dutt, Waheeda Rehman and Mala Sinha.

     

    The film has been restored completely for the Venice Film Festival with an objective of preserving and presenting it in its original quality to the global audience. Pyaasa will be screened on 11 and 12 September, 2015 in Sala Volpi auditorium at the Venice Film Festival. 

     

    Ultra Media & Entertainment CEO Sushil Kumar Agrawal said, “It gives us immense pleasure to present a cult classic like Pyaasa to the global audience. There is a huge fan following of Guru Dutt all over the world who have not been able to see this ageless magic in its original form and glory. It took us nearly four months to restore this film frame by frame and we are happy that the final outcome of the restored version can now be seen in its original form.”

     

    “Out of the many classics that we have restored, Pyaasa has a special place in our hearts. It is one of the rarest gems of Indian cinema and we take great pride in preserving it and showcasing it globally. In fact the film has already created substantial buzz and we have several distribution enquiries from various parts of the world. We are also planning a major theatrical release of Pyaasa post its screening at the Venice Film Festival,” he added. 

     

    Ultra is planning to promote and market the film at the festival and is expecting demand from international distributors, sales agents, ancillary content aggregators and exhibitors for the restored version of Pyaasa at the festival.

     

    The most challenging part after acquiring the rights was sourcing the authentic materials to complete the preservation. After much effort, Ultra found the original camera negatives of the film at an archive in India, However a lot of the parts of the negatives were either damaged or lost/ 

     

    Ultra decided to use as much parts as possible from the original camera negative and a few parts were used from 35mm prints. A new digital transfer was created in 2K resolution on the ARRISCAN film scanner.This in-house technology of Ultra Studio & Digital Lab helped in applying a multidisciplinary, data-centric approach to the entire film’s restoration process. 

     

    Once the complete film was digitally transferred, came the most challenging part of restoration. Thousands of instances of dirt, lines, scratches, splices, warps, jitters and green patches were manually removed frame by frame under careful supervision by experienced artists The in-house talented professionals used a specialized film content mending and defect removal mechanism in their repair process. They carefully selected the best way to restore this priceless classic to its original quality. 

     

    The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the 35mm optical soundtrack. Clicks, thumps, hiss and hum were manually removed frame by frame at the Ultra sound studio. The film will be presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 “Venice Classics” has been a crucial section of the Venice Film Festival, which has been premiering world class restored classics in the festival. The prime objective of this section is to bring back to spotlight old, underestimated and neglected films of the past, which have been restored an year back by film archives, cultural institutions or production companies around the world. 

     

    Over the years, Ultra has also restored various Indian classics like Chori Chori, Half Ticket, Paighaam, Insaniyat and Dil Tera Deewana amongst others.

  • A new ‘Cloudwalker’ in the virtual world

    A new ‘Cloudwalker’ in the virtual world

    MUMBAI: As the digital ecosystem in India is set to expand, the market for Video on Demand (VOD) platforms is only growing. A new kid on the bloc is Half Ticket, which claims to be India’s first curated VOD megastore.

     

    Launched 45 days ago by CloudWalker Streaming Technologies, the company researched for seven months before giving a go ahead to the beta version of the site. CloudWalker founder Jagdish Rajpurohit says, “We call ourselves as an enabler of one’s content in the digital world. If one has content which has a strong demand, and if people watch this content, then one will earn money.”

     

    But how different is Half Ticket from its competitors? Rajpurohit says as a matter of strategy they decided to curate content across the internet and bring it to the platform. They see themselves as digital exhibitors at par with brick and mortar multiplexes. “The difference between YouTube and other VOD’s is that one has to search content while in our case we make the content available to the audiences with ease,” says Rajpurohit while adding that they didn’t pay for the content.

     

    Besides curating, the company is also creating digital content. Explaining the same he says, “We are offering pre-marketing digital services. If one is making a film, one also shoots a lot of the making of the film which is useless. By using this and adapting our own scripts, we make customised content for producers to use for promotions.” It is also making a digital comedy serial in Hinglish of which the IP will rest with CloudWalker.

     

    The platform is also creating a space for independent cinema which will give them an opportunity to earn revenue for a longer time. “Half Ticket is not a video platform but it’s a digital distribution platform. It works on the strategy to help producers’ monetise better,” he says.

     

    While low bandwidth is one of the biggest challenges, according to Rajpurohit, the biggest opportunity will come when 4G enters the space. He further goes on to say, “Compared to the last five years, I see better days ahead. But the biggest challenge will be to make people aware that premium content is available digitally and one has to pay for it.”

     

    A 12 member team looks after curation of the content. “Our crucial point was that the internet today is uploading close to 220 hours of content every minute. In this scenario there is a 99 per cent chance of one missing the content they wish to see until and unless there is curation involved; one will not be able to choose the best,” the executive informs.

     

    So what is the checklist followed to select the content? Firstly, the content sourced is strictly family oriented. Secondly, the ratings and reviews based on film websites are taken into account before filling the content deck.

     

    The total team strength of the company is 32 and is based in Mumbai. The first level of funding came from the seven promoters of CloudWalker, who have invested a total of Rs 7 crore. It is in talks with two to three more funding companies who have expressed interest in the platform.

     

    The portal, which follows an advertisement driven model, is also reaching out to regional cinema makers. “We are telling regional cinema filmmakers that if they want to reach out to audiences worldwide, it will become much cheaper to bring the new content to a digital platform and release it. And as far as revenue is concerned, it is the same. If a film sells two to four lakh tickets across the world, then the production house can easily earn Rs 4 to 5 crore which is not possible theatrically,” he informs.

     

    The company plans to soon announce a Master Class for film distribution in the independent cinema.

     

    While content from channels like Colors, MTV, Nick, Viacom18, YouTube, History TV18, Dailymotion among others is already available on the platform, it is also in talks with two GECs. “The platform has 23,000 to 24,000 hours of content currently and is attracting a traction of 75,000 to 80,000 users every day. An app released four days ago has so far received 150 to 200 downloads,” boasts Rajpurohit.

     

    As part of its promotions, the platform tied up with My French Film Festival India and had a special screening at PVR wherein celebrities like Digamanshu Dhuliya, Ketan Mehta and Anurag Kashyap were present.

     

    Chalking the road ahead, Rajpurohit concludes, “We are in talks with new film distributors and will continue bringing festivals like ‘My French Film Festival’ to India.”

  • MAX2 adds colour to TV screens this festive season

    MAX2 adds colour to TV screens this festive season

    Mumbai, 11th November, 2014: Relive the magic of legendary black and white movies through Sony Max 2’s movie festival – ‘Rang Barse’ which will air every Sunday in November at 7 pm. The iconic movie channel plans to brighten the moods of the viewers this festive season by showcasing 4 black and white movies in colorized versions. By presenting Bollywood fans with films dating back to the 1950s, the movie festival resonates with the channel’s positioning of showcasing timeless movies that have an eternal appeal.


    Comprising of romantic comedy films ranging from ‘Chori Chori’to ‘Dil Tera Deewana’ & ‘Half Ticket,’ the movie festival will take viewers on a nostalgic journey down the memory lane of the golden era. A noteworthy film being aired during this festival is ‘Naya Daur’ which sees Vyjayantimala and Dilip Kumar in memorable roles. The film revolves around how industrialization threatens the existence of tongawallahs (horse cart drivers).

    Commenting on the Rang Barse film festival Neeraj Vyas, Sr. EVP & Business Head, MAX & MAX2 said, “We believe in the art of great story telling and building an appreciation for legendary films.  What better way to do this than to showcase colorized versions of black and white films which are iconic films which one can never tire of seeing. We do hope our viewers enjoy watching our ‘Rang Barse’ movie festival and relive the magic of these legendary films.”  

    Tune-in to catch the ‘Rang Barse’ movie festival airing every Sunday in November at 7pm only on MAX 2

  • …and Pran’ is no more, leaving millions of fans grieving

    …and Pran’ is no more, leaving millions of fans grieving

    NEW DEHLI: Veteran actor Pran Sikand, who had been presented the country’s highest honour in cinema in May this year, passed away today after a prolonged illness.

    Pran, 93, died in Mumbai’s Lilavati Hospital, at around 8:30 pm this evening. He had been undergoing treatment at the hospital for almost a month for several complications. He is survived by his widow, and his three children and various grandchildren.

    Pran had become the 44th recipient of the Dadasabhe Phalke Award when Information & Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari visited him at his residence – a first for the award since its institution in 1971 – on 10 May and presented it to him as the thespian had been forbidden to travel by his doctors..

    The only other occasion that a presenting official had come off stage to present the award to a recipient was when the then President did so for showman Raj Kapoor in 1988 when he had a sudden asthmatic attack. The award was instituted in 1969, the birth centenary year Dadasaheb Phalke, considered the Father of Indian Cinema.

    During his six-decade career which began in the mid-1940s, Pran gave performances in almost 350 films as a hero, a villain, a character actor, and even excelled in comedy. He made his debut as an antagonist in Dalsukh Pancholi`s Punjabi film Yamla Jat (1945) and went on to essay a number of iconic characters in Hindi cinema after that.

    He also acted in super-hit films like Milan, Half Ticket, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat, Devdas, Madhumati, Kashmir Ki Kali, Upkar, Brahmchari, Johny Mera Naam, Purab Aur Paschim and many more. .

    He often prided over the fact that a film was often not complete unless he was a part of it, and the star cast always listed various actors and then in a separate slide came the words ‘…and Pran’.

    Consequently, his biography by the late Bunny Reuben was also titled ‘…and Pran’..

    The citation for the Dadasaheb Phalke award read: ‘This highest award in cinema given by the Government of India is conferred upon Shri Pran for his outstanding contribution to Indian Cinema. His impressive performances have bestowed an entirely unique new dimension to the negative and character roles in Hindi cinema. His contribution to mainstream Hindi cinema is well recognized ensuring him the place of one of the most illustrious and celebrated actors of Indian film industry. During his career, he has given sterling performances in over 350 films and in each one of them, he brought new mannerism and style, holding the audience spell bound by his acting. This citation is in recognition of Shri Pran’s inspiring journey in the Indian cinema spanning over several decades.

    The Twitterverse was replete with condolences and messages from various foks including Amitabh Bachchan, the Prime Minister, Shah Rukh Khan, among others remembering Pran. Here‘s a sample:

    Amitabh Bachchan: It was Manoj Kumar ji‘s vision that converted Pran Saheb from villan to compassionate powerful character roles ! ‘Shaheed‘, ‘Upkar‘

    Mahesh Bhatt: Enchanting memories of Pran Saab courses through the hearts of millions of people who grew up watching his films. India loves u Sir!

    Narendra Modi: Sad to know of demise of legendary actor Pran. He will be remembered for generations. Condolences to his family. May his soul rest in peace

    Dr Manmohan Singh: I convey my heartfelt condolences to the the bereaved family and Pran‘s countless fans and admirers. I pray for peace of the departed soul

    Riteish Deshmukh: RIP Pran Saab – Thank you for entertaining us all these years- will miss you sir. SHER KHAN u will live for ever- RIP Pran Saab

    Kareena Kapoor: R.I.P Pran a true legend will never be forgotten.’

    Priyanka Chopra: #Zanjeer will miss Sher Khan forever.RIP Pran saheb.Thank you for giving us such a legendary legacy.loss of a legend.prayers and condolences

    Arjun Rampal: RIP Pran Saab, you immortalised so many characters, was fortunate to play one of them. You live in my heart forever.’

    Sushma Swaraj: With the sad demise of Shri Pran, the country has lost an artist par excellence.

    Geeta Kapur: He now lives only through his films…RIP Pran sir

    Randeep Hooda: And Pran..RIP, Grew up watching him and always thought he was really the character he played instead of an actor , You walk among us sir..

    Anup Soni: Most enchanting, amazing characters, villinious roles.. generations of actors have learned how to prepare a character.. RIP Pran Sir.

    Sreedevi Boney Kapoor: Today we have lost a legend, a gem and an iconic actor. We will miss you. RIP Pran Saheb..

    Suhasani Haidar:Everyone remembers a #Pran line:I remember “hum bolega toh bolega ki bolta hai” everytime I‘m accused of talking too much! #RIP #kasauti

    Shah Rukh Khan: Why do icons who shaped our lives and emotions have to go away? U will sir, remain etched in our hearts. Allah bless ur soul Pran Sahib.

    Anupam Kher: Final Curtain Call for one of the Most Loved Actors of Indian Cinema. An Actor & A Gentleman. Pran Saab- We will miss you & your Warmth.RIP.

    Tunku Varadarajan: RIP Pran: Villainy never had more character, or style.