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Tag: Sumukhi Suresh

  • A Regal Feast: Behrouz Biryani launches luxurious ‘Royal Metal Handi’

    A Regal Feast: Behrouz Biryani launches luxurious ‘Royal Metal Handi’

    MUMBAI: Behrouz Biryani, has introduced its most opulent offering yet the ‘Royal Metal Handi’ biryani. Launched just in time for Ramadan, this first-of-its-kind metal handi elevates home dining and group feasting with portions serving two or four.

    To mark the launch in true royal fashion, Behrouz installed a dramatic countdown billboard at Mumbai’s Mahim Causeway, concealed behind velvet curtains. As the timer reached zero, the curtains dropped, revealing a steaming Nawabi Handi biryani with the message,‘Once a royal secret, now a royal feast’.

    The brand is also transforming a section of Inorbit Mall Vashi into a Nawabi palace, treating visitors to a special Eid surprise—a traditional ‘Eidi Lifafa’ containing Behrouz Biryani gift vouchers.

    To amplify the launch, Behrouz has partnered with top Indian comedians and influencers, including Sumukhi Suresh, Prashasti Singh, Sahil Shah, and Aadar Malik. They will partake in an interactive challenge, deciphering ancient Urdu clues to unlock the royal biryani.

    Rebel Foods co-founder & CEO, Ankush Grover stated, “The Royal Metal Handi is our way of adding an extra touch of grandeur to Ramadan feasts. From our unveiling film featuring Saif Ali Khan to our ‘Barkat Box’ community initiative, we are making Behrouz the flavour of the season.”

    To further captivate audiences, Behrouz has produced a grand television commercial featuring Saif Ali Khan and narrated by Vijay Raaz, reinforcing the brand’s royal heritage.

    Behrouz Biryani has also launched a special Ramadan menu, featuring Zaffrani Gosht Biryani, Murgh Biryani, rich Haleem, Angara Murgh Kebabs, Gosht Seekh Kebabs, crispy Murgh Samosas, and the indulgent Shahi Tukda. Additionally, the ‘Royal Iftari Sandooq’ offers a seven-course Nawabi feast, including Murgh Shorba, Dum Gosht Biryani, and a regal dessert selection.

    With this lavish new offering, Behrouz Biryani continues to set the benchmark for festive dining, making this Ramadan a truly royal affair.

  • Stand up comedy has been a slow romance and I am enjoying it: Sumukhi Suresh

    Stand up comedy has been a slow romance and I am enjoying it: Sumukhi Suresh

    Mumbai: Comedy is considered an art and known as one of the most powerful forms of expression for telling the truth to power. In India, personal, societal, and political satire-related stand-up and comedy shows are highly popular. These shows are popular sources of entertainment and provide happiness which may be defined as funny programs on YouTube and other social media handles.

    Sumukhi Suresh, known for her sharp wit and humor, is all set to entertain her audiences on an international stage with her show “Hoemonal.” Starting from 31 July to 11 August, which marks an incredible milestone in her career as she takes her comedy beyond borders.

    Sumukhi’s journey from a comedian to an actor, writer, and entrepreneur is nothing short of inspiring. Starting out in stand-up comedy, she quickly gained acclaim for her relatable humor. Her success on the comedy circuit laid the groundwork for her expansion into acting and writing, where she has continued to impress with her creativity.

    In addition to her artistic pursuits, Sumukhi is the founder of Motormouth, a platform that reflects her entrepreneurial spirit to foster new talent. Through Motormouth, she has contributed significantly to the comedy scene, helping emerging comedians find their voice.

    Indiantelevision.com caught up with Suresh where she shared her stand up comedy journey, vision behind creating Motormouth, the Edinburgh fringe festival, combating misogyny and much more…

    Edited excerpts

    Congratulations on taking ‘Hoemonal’ international! What inspired this decision and what can audiences abroad expect from the show?

    Thank you so much!  

    Edinburgh fringe festival is one of the most prestigious festivals in the world for performers. The festival was the inspiration behind it honestly. The audience can experience an honest tale of a 30s woman trying to balance hormonal imbalance and dating imbalance. I feel the core of Hoemonal is relatable and amusing and I would love for audiences abroad to experience that too.

    As the founder of Motormouth, could you share with us the vision behind it and how it supports emerging talent in the entertainment industry?

    Motormouth is my endeavor to bring together writers into the writers room and create movies and shows with protagonists that are female, flawed and fabulous.

    The aim is also to develop more women who can be head writers and shows-runners. I wish to be able to do the same work for other genders as I learn more about it.

    Comedy often transcends cultural boundaries. How do you think your style of humor resonates differently across different audiences, especially as you take your shows international?

    Comedy is most effective for me when I am most honest about what I am thinking about a premise. So when I write the show, I try to keep my jokes and observations as rooted in reality as I can.

    I like to perform by personalising my anecdotes and observations so that the audience either relates to it and those who don’t end up rooting for me.

    From your roots as a comedian to now branching into acting, writing, and entrepreneurship with Motormouth, how has your journey shaped your approach to comedy and storytelling?

    Actually my beginning was improv and sketch comedy. This is my love for writing and acting. Stand up comedy has been a slow romance and I am enjoying it.

    Each of these skills are so dynamic that there is something new to learn every day. I also think they are interconnected in so many ways that it helps in the overall growth of me as an artist.

    Lastly, what is your response to the “Women can’t do Comedy” narrative around the globe as we have been hearing this misogynist remark for a decade or so and what advice would you give to the upcoming female comedians for the same?

    This remark is not going away. Also this remark is centuries old now. In fact the moment I see this comment, I know a video of mine has gone viral.

    The only way to combat this is to keep doing the job, making money, dreaming about owning a mansion in your favorite city and then laugh at whoever says “women can’t do comedy”.

  • TV not ready for the characters I write: ‘Pushpavalli’ creator Sumukhi Suresh

    TV not ready for the characters I write: ‘Pushpavalli’ creator Sumukhi Suresh

    NEW DELHI: Amazon Prime has been investing heavily in Indian originals for its platform, and it seems like comedy is one of the most preferred genres. Several stand-ups and sketches by Indian comics have been hosted on its home page and have gained immense popularity as well. One such show is Sumukhi Suresh’s Pushpavalli, directed by Debbie Rao, which recently came out with its second season. 

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com about her experience of creating Pushpavalli, Suresh went all praise for the platform stating that she is glad that the show is on Amazon Prime. “No other OTT platform would have done it the way Prime did. My fellow writer had a very dark vision for the show. I was very sure that we wanted to show revenge. During my meeting with Prime, sometime in March 2018, I was pleasantly surprised to see their reaction to my vision. They supported me in making it darker. They told me to make her murder someone,” she said. 

    Suresh further added, “Also, there are many OTT platforms which are apprehensive about taking up a show (Indian original) in English. It was so wonderful that they let me keep the show in English and also supported me.”

    She also revealed that the platform gave her full liberty to plan and execute the marketing for the show. “They helped me in understanding what is wrong and what will work more but they truly supported my vision. For example, the whole 'explain the season within 60 seconds' videos we did for Instagram was my idea and we did that with full support from Prime.” 

    Asked if making season 2 of the show added pressure given the first season was a raging hit, Suresh quipped that her team and she are very self-critical and that helped them deal with the expectations. 

    “We were very cognizant of the fact that we need to write a tighter script and we needed to be very fast-paced. The first season had ended on a very dramatic note and it was our responsibility to take it back to comedy and then to drama,” she explained. 

    According to Suresh, the writing team gave a very close-to-shooting script to director Debbie Rao who then added her thought process to make the wonderful show. Rao also edited the show herself to make sure everything was pitch-perfect. 

    Another difference that the show had this time was a better budget. Suresh mentions that the first season was shot within just fifteen days because of the tight budgets. But this time, she had better control over the finances and a better amount of money to spend. 

    Asked if she wrote the show with business in mind, or to get creative satisfaction, Suresh found herself in a tight spot. The very loquacious woman took a brief pause before answering, “If I have to write something and I have this dilemma if the scene has to make business sense or should fit the narrative of the show, I will go with the latter.”

    She also added that she is writing for the female audience. “I have no shame in admitting that I write for the women. I don’t care if a man doesn’t like my show at all. I will continue to write for women.” 

    She, however, admitted that while creating shows for platforms like Prime, one of her goals is to get more subscribers for them. She feels that she should be able to give a return on investment to the platform so they are eager to get her back on the platform. 

    Asked if she has some other shows up her kitty for the platform other than Pushpavalli season 3, Suresh said that she is busy juggling between three other writing rooms currently but there isn’t any OTT platform in her head where she would be putting them. 

    “One of the shows is going to be a thriller, one is an out and about comedy. The third show is very close to my heart that I am developing from a slice of my mother’s life. This will be a mix of comedy and drama,” she noted. 

    Will she be open to taking any of the shows to television? Suresh thinks that the platform is not ready for the sort of characters she writes. 

    “I can give you two hundred and five hundred and even more episodes but you will not like the characters that I write,” she said with laughter. 

    She, however, is willing to work on a movie with director Debbie Rao, which she feels will be a blockbuster if ever made.

  • Sumukhi Suresh and Girliyapa create their mark at News18.com’s ireel awards 2018

    Sumukhi Suresh and Girliyapa create their mark at News18.com’s ireel awards 2018

    MUMBAI: Popular for writing and performing sketches and viral videos, stand-up comedienne Sumukhi Suresh bagged the Best Actress (Comedy) award at the New18.com iReel Awards 2018 for her role in Amazon’s  ‘Pushpavalli.’ It was a double delight for Sumukhi, the creator of the show, as Pushpavilli also claimed the Best Comedy award later in the evening. Best Writing (Comedy), on the other hand, was bestowed upon the new-age platform Girliyapa for their renowned show ‘Mr and Mrs.’

    As for Pushpavalli, the show was created by Sumukhi herself, who also played the titular role of a lady who is a stalker, in this dark comedy.  In the series, Pushpavalli, moves from Bengaluru to Bhopal to chase Nikhil, a man she met at an event. Sumukhi steals the show with not only her performance but also her strong writing.

    Accepting the award for Pushpavalli at the event, an elated Sumukhi said, “I’d like to thank News18 and iReel for this award. I’d like to make a small note here regarding the misconception that shows are going to be made by one person alone. It takes an entire team. I’d like to thank everyone involved with Pushpavalli, my writers and directors. I know it’s kind of a Public Service Announcement, but if you’re a woman and are looking to make a show, then just go ahead and make it. You’re going to make mistakes but it’s going to end up being an amazing experience.”

    Coming to the popular series Mr. and Mrs., it features Nidhi Bisht as Madhu and Biswapati Sarkar as Sanjay, as a married couple. The show is filled with bags of wit and humour. The story comes out in full flow through some very good writing by Preksha Khanna and Pradyot Mokashi. This light-hearted show has earned a lot of fans and has built anticipation for another season, reflecting the demand for series that feature well-written content.

    Present at the event, Preksha and Pradyot walked up the stage to claim the award. Commenting on the win, Pradyot said, “I’d like to give my heartfelt thanks to Biswapati Sarkar. Whatever writing I know is because of him. I’d also like to a give big thanks to TVF.”

    Applauding the winners were esteemed attendees such as  Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, Nikhil Advani, Hansal Mehta, Harsh Chhaya, Surveen Chawla, Kubra Sait, Rajshree Deshpande, Ameesha Patel, Tanushree Dutta, Tisca Chopra, Rasika Duggal, Vikas Gupta, Karan Wahi and Ronit Roy, who graced the event with their presence.
    iReel Awards 2018 is the 2nd edition of the content awards by News18.com that celebrates, honours and recognizes the brightest talent in the Indian web series space. 

  • Amazon Prime to stream new originals in reality series format

    Amazon Prime to stream new originals in reality series format

    MUMBAI: Amazon Prime Video India has announced the creation of multiple Unscripted Originals (reality shows) for India, a first for a digital streaming service.

    The lineup comes to life with three new reality shows – Jestination Unknown, The Remix and Comic Kaun featuring industry stalwarts such as Vir Das, Anu Menon, Amit Trivedi, Sunidhi Chauhan and Nucleya; and comedians Tanmay Bhat, Sumukhi Suresh and Abish Mathew. With this foray into reality shows, Amazon Prime Video is once again changing the way video content is created and consumed in India.

    Prime Video head of content – Asia Pacific James Farrell said, “Reality shows are now more popular than ever, across a variety of genres. Customers globally have told us how much they enjoy reality shows, like the Japanese Prime Video fan favorite, The Bachelor Japan. With the launch of multiple new Original reality shows, we’re aiming to offer our Indian customers a variety of quality new reality content to enjoy.”

    Amazon Prime director – content Vijay Subramaniam said “We’re always looking for new ways to engage with our customers. We know Indians enjoy reality TV, so we are creating new originals with the best new concepts and local Indian talent. We’re excited to add more variety to our service, and continue to reinvent the way Indian customers watch TV.”

    Amazon revealed details of three reality shows which include a mix of comedy, music, travel and experiential content.

    Jestination Unknown: Jestination Unknown will be a six-episode travelling comedy show that follows celebrated Indian comedian, Vir Das, and a rotating group of his comic friends. As each episode explores a new city across India, Das and his comic friends will explore the most important question of this show: what does India find funny, what doesn’t it find funny, how does the whole package of local culture – be it food, folklore, music, dance – change the perspective of a stand-up comedian, and their quest for comedy in India. Each episode will feature a series of sketches, vignettes, keen insights into how a comedian ticks, and will, eventually, culminate to a new stand-up comedy performance based on the group’s experience in the current city.

    Some of the talent that will feature in the show, produced by ‘Weirdass’, along with Vir Das include Sharul Channa, Anu Menon, Kavi Shastri and Ashwin Mushran.

    The Remix: Based on an established format that has been sold in 15 countries across Asia, Africa and Europe, The Remix will be a 10-episode music reality competition show where DJs and singers pair up to create remixes and compete for a big prize. In each episode, the DJ/singer pairs will reinterpret a popular song in a new style or format, which will change from challenge to challenge. At the end of every performance, a panel of celebrity judges will choose who advances and who will be eliminated. The Remix will be the first series to incorporate a DJ and electronic music, but will feature many of the same core storytelling elements as its predecessors.

    Some of the talent that will feature as judges in the show, produced by ‘Grey Matter’, will include Nucleya, Sunidhi Chauhan and Amit Trivedi.

    Comic Kaun (Working Title): Comic Kaun will be a 10-episode nationwide hunt to find India’s next big comic sensation. A panel of top comedian judges will preside over a pool of emerging comedians in India who will compete for the coveted prize. Each episode will focus on a specific comedy genre (e.g. anecdotal, observational, and improvisational) and the judges will serve as mentors in their genre of expertise. Comic Kaun offers an opportunity to embrace this genre in a fresh, new competition format that has not been used in India yet.

    Some of the talent that will feature in the show, produced by ‘OML’, will include well-known comics Abish Mathew and Sumukhi Suresh as the hosts along with top comedians like Tanmay Bhat, Kenny Sebastian, Naveen Richard, Aadar Malik, Sapan Verma, Kanan Gill, Kaneez Surka and Biswa Kalyan Rath.