Tag: hotstar

Top OTT Releases This Week: Ae Watan Mere Watan, Lootere, Fighter and More

This week, we have a piping hot buffet of new digital releases across genres. We have two Indian originals, post-theatrical releases, a high-budget sci-fi saga, and Marvel Studio’s hit series making a return.

One of the major releases of the week is Sara Ali Khan’s Ae Watan Mere Watan which will take you to the pre-Indepence Bombay. Khan is seen playing the celebrated freedom fighter, Usha Mehta. While the gallant leader dedicated her entire life to India, this Amazon Original will take you to the Quit India Movement, when the college-going Usha started an illegal radio station to broadcast messages from prominent leaders from various secret locations.

Next in Line is Hansal Mehta’s Lootere which will revolve around a cargo ship hijacked by Somalian pirates in Africa. The show gives a refreshing break from repetitive plotlines in crime thrillers and will keep you guessing what comes next.

Netflix’s 3 Body Problem is another big-budget release of the week. It offers an impressive cocktail of cultural, social, and scientific conundrums.

Marvel Studios also have a big release in the form of X-Men’ 97 which is a revival of sorts for the long-running hit show, X-Men: The Animated Series. However, whether the show sets the stage for other live adaptations is yet to be confirmed. Another major release by Marvel lined up for release this year is Wolverine & Deadpool.

Besides the ones listed below, Netflix’s biography film Shirley is also a good binge-watch option for the weekend, which brings from the page of American history the rivetting tale of Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to be elected to the United States Congress.

True crime documentary enthusiasts could watch Netflix’s Homicide: New York, in which investigators, officers, and detectives discuss some of the most notorious murder cases.

With that, here are the top OTT releases of the week that we recommend.

Ae Watan Mere Watan

When: Now Streaming

Where: Prime Video

During the Quit India Movement of 1942, a young college student in Bombay recognised the power of radio and started an illegal secret radio station to broadcast messages from Mahatma Gandhi and other prominent leaders across India, with the help of a few amateur radio operators.

While this endeavour lasted only three months, it played an important role in India’s struggle for Independence.

In this biopic, Sara Ali Khan plays the college student Usha Mehta, who later emerged as an important figure in Indian history. The film will tell you in detail how the rebellious freedom fighter started and continued to operate this station from various undisclosed locations and the various challenges she faced.

The fact that she was a Gandhian and her father, a judge under the British Raj, opposed her actions is also portrayed.

Fighter

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

Fighter is a visually striking patriotic drama about a few fighter pilots of the Indian Air Force who have vowed to protect their nation against all threats and dangers. Among these valiant officers are Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone, Karan Singh Grover and Manushi Chillar, headed by squadron leader Anil Kapoor. Hrithik’s character is a rebel who doesn’t shy away from bending the rules when it comes to justice, an attitude that doesn’t sit well with Anil Kapoor’s squadron leader, putting the two at loggerheads with each other in almost every scene.

If you find yourself amazed at the mannerisms of a few characters coming off as too professional, that’s because those are real-life Indian Air Force cadets bringing a slice of their everyday lives to the silver screen. You’ll also find plenty of references to the 2019 Pulwama attack, the 2019 Balakot airstrike and the 2019 India–Pakistan border skirmishes.

Since Fighter has used the same cinematographic techniques as Dune and other James Bonde movies, it offers plenty of jaw-dropping aerial action sequences, some of which are likely to remind you of Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick.

Lootere

When: Now Streaming

Where: Hotstar

Hansal Mehta’s (Scam 1992) will take you to the Somalian waters where a cargo ship with an Asian crew gets hijacked by Somalian pirates. The ship is owned by Vikrant, a nicotine-addicted businessman of Indian origin who has a lot more on stake than what appears at the surface and is desperately counting on it being retrieved. Rajat Kapoor plays the captain of the ship and delivers a fine performance.

The eight-episode-long show will give you a taste of crime, corruption, and dark secrets harbouring in African waters, with a special focus on Indian businessmen established there for decades. Get ready for thrill, knotty twists, a flavour of dark murkiness of the crime world.

The first two episodes have been released, and the other eight will be out every week. Shot in Hindi, Lootere can also be streamed in Telugu, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi, Malayalam, and Kannada.

3 Body Problem

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

3 Body Problem is a Sci-Fi drama adapted from Chinese engineer-author Liu Cixin’s novel of the same name, which serves as the first in the Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy.

The show begins with an astrophysicist witnessing her father’s public execution during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Cut to the future, she is taken to a secret radar base by the military. Meanwhile, in the present, a lot of strange unexplained phenomena are happening – many physicists committing suicide, prominent research being discovered as wrong, and all the stars blinking on and off!

All in all, the show offers plenty of complex scientific problems, cultural challenges, extra-terrestrial dangers, and lots of suspense. The show has been adapted for television by Game of Thrones creators David Benioff, D. B. Weiss and Alexander Woo.

X-MEN ‘97

When: Now Streaming

Where: Hotstar

X-Men ’97 is a spiritual sequence to X-Men: The Animated Series, which ran on air from 1992-1995. The show picks up right after the events of the original series and introduces the viewers to a world where the X-Men leader, Professor X, is no longer in charge – leaving his proteges, Cyclops and Jean Grey, in charge.

The world still somewhat dislikes the mutant X-Men, who are anyway hell-bent on saving the world from all the dangers, irrespective of the bigotry they face on a daily basis.

Many actors from the original series have lent their voices, including Cal Dodd, Lenore Zann, George Buza, Catherine Disher, Chris Potter, Alison Sealy-Smith, Adrian Hough, Christopher Britton, Alyson Court, Lawrence Bayne, and Ron Rubin. The first two episodes have now been released, while the rest will be out every Wednesday at 12:30 pm IST.

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Top New OTT Releases This Week: Showtime, Ricky Stanicky, Maharani Season 3, Merry Christmas

Streaming platform releases this week include the biopic based on the life of an Italian adult film actor, dark secrets of the seemingly glamorous film industry, a fantasy adventure where a princess fights a fire-breathing dragon, an R-rated comedy, and a political thriller. The biggest Indian original this week has to be Disney+ Hotstar’s Emraan Hashmi starrer Showtime, where he is seen playing the son of a successful film producer. Another big Indian title to make its digital debut is Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi’s Merry Christmas, a crime thriller that actually begins as a romance. Here you’ll see the two strangers dealing with a dead body on the first night of their meeting.

For those looking for a no-brainer and entertaining light watch, we recommend Zac Efron and John Cena’s Ricky Stanicky, which is bound to make you laugh. Here you’ll meet three childhood friends who invent an imaginary Ricky Stanicky, whom they can use as a handy alibi and put the blame on for all their misconducts. Things take a hilarious turn when they hire a dimwit, washed-up actor to play Ricky when the families grow suspicious of his existence. John Cena has done an impressive job at playing this delusionally confident actor, who takes up this acting job too far.

For those looking for something from the pages of fantasy, Millie Bobby Brown’s Damsel could do it. She plays a dutiful princess whose wedding turns into a nightmare when she learns that she is actually a sacrifice brought in to settle the ancient debts to a fire-breathing dragon.

On the international shore, you could go for the K-drama Queen of Tears which follows a marital couple fighting fading romance in their marriage.

Some other notable OTT releases of the week are Hot Wheels Let’s Race, Full Swing Season 2, The Gentlemen, and The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy Season 2.

Here are our picks for the top OTT releases of the week.

Best OTT Releases This Week

Supersex

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

Supersex is a steamy biography of the popular Italian pornographic actor Rocco Siffredi. It narrates his journey from ordinary days to how he topped the adult film industry worldwide in no time.

The show starts with a sex convention where Rocco is announcing his retirement, making room for the rest of the series to be shown in flashback.

Get ready to explore the fame he experienced, the demons of his past, tumultuous relationships, and other personal anecdotes from his life, in this seven-part series.

The only Indian language in which the show has been dubbed is Hindi. Among the foreign language options are English, Portuguese, Czech, Spanish, French, German, Hungarian, Indonesian, Japanese, Polish, and Turkish.

Showtime

When: Now Streaming

Where: Disney+ Hotstar

The four-part series will take you to the underbelly of the other glamorous Bollywood film industry. The complex power dynamics, fierce competition, mistrust, and every other dark aspect are covered.

Emran Hashmi plays Raghu Khanna, the son of a successful film producer, whose inheritance comes under threat after his father’s demise. This is Hashmi’s second OTT project after Netflix’s Bard of Blood (2019).

Mouni Roy, Shriya Saran, Naseeruddin Shah, Rajeev Khandelwal, and Mahima Makwana can also be seen in prominent roles.

Merry Christmas

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

On Christmas Eve of the 1980s, a man (Vijay Sethupathi) returns to Bombay from Dubai only to discover that his mother is no more. Drenched in his sorrow, he crosses paths with a gorgeous woman called Maria (Katrina Kaif), who got stood up on a date because she brought her daughter along. Romance sparks off and the two instantly hit it off. Everything was going rosy and the two ended up at her apartment. Soon suspense and crime take over when a dead body is discovered in the apartment. The film was filmed simultaneously in Hindi and Tamil.

Damsel

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

Princess Elodie’s dream fairytale comes to a jerking halt when she realises that her marriage with a charming prince is a sham and that she has been welcomed by the royal family as a sacrifice to repay an ancient debt. Soon she finds herself trapped alone in a cave with a fire-breathing dragon. The rest of the film revolves around the damsel trying to make it out of the cave alive.

Maharani Season 3

When: Now Streaming

Where: SonyLiv

Rani Bharti is still in jail for the false accusation of attempting to murder her husband; not ready to apply for bail. The ambitious housewife-turned-politician decides to fight fairly for justice and strongly believes that the judicial system will prove her innocent. As ugly twists and turns take over, more drama unfurls in this political thriller exploring the dark underbelly of Bihar politics.

Ricky Stanicky

When: Now

Where: Prime Video

Three childhood friends (Zac Efron, Andrew Santino, Jermaine Fowler) decide to blame all their misbehaviours on an imaginary “Ricky Stanicky”. From Halloween pranks to getting out of uncomfortable situations, Ricky Stanicky has been their ultimate saviour and cover-up for almost two decades. However, when their families finally become suspicious of whether such a man exists, the trio decide to hire a washed-up actor called Rod (John Cena), who does poor impersonations of celebrities, makes songs on masturbation, and performs in a shady club. The raging alcoholic flop actor takes this role of a lifetime too seriously and immediately steals the show. Get ready for lots of laughter in this light-hearted comedy by Peter Farrelly.

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Maamla Legal Hai, Sunflower Season 2, Shōgun and More: New OTT Releases for Weekend Binge-Watch

For this week’s new OTT release recommendations, we have a comic courtroom drama, a murder mystery, historical sagas, and a crime documentary. First is Netflix’s Ravi Kishan starrer Maamla Legal Hai set in the District Court of Patparganj where bizarre cases come up. Given that the show is based on true incidents, it serves as an interesting peek into our legal framework. Next in line is Sunil Grover’s Sunflower Season 2, which introduces new characters to add more suspense and layer to the plot. Grover was largely praised for his work in the first season. Next in line is Disney+ Hotstar’s Shōgun, which will take you to feudal Japan of the 17th century where an English sailor finds himself ship-wrecked.

Another brilliant pick could be Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, where Joaquin Phoenix takes on the role of the eponymous French emperor. Since the film has been nominated for Oscars for visual effects, production design and costume design, it is safe to assume that it’ll be a visual delight. Napoleon, which was first released in theatres in November last year, is now available to stream on Apple TV+. For documentary fanatics, Netflix has two: The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth, based on the infamous Sheena Bora murder case of Mumbai, and American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders, where the details of the mysterious death of an investigative journalist pursuing a political conspiracy emerge decades later.

On the international shore, almost all the major releases are in Korean, including The Impossible Heir, Wonderful World, and My Name is Low Kiwaan. Here’s a look at our picks for what to stream this weekend. Happy binge-watching!

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

If you are looking to watch a light-hearted comedy, Ravi Kishan starrer Maamla Legal Hai could be it. The eight-part series will introduce you to bizarre legal cases of East Delhi’s Patparganj District Court, inspired by true incidents. From a foul-mouthed parrot hurling abuse to an inmate pleading to start a family, expect ample absurdity in the show.

Here, Ravi Kishan is playing a prominent lawyer who aspires to become the Bar Association President and is always on the lookout for loopholes in the legal system. When an ambitious Harvard University graduate (Naila Grewal) joins the courtroom, things take a hilarious turn. (And if the terms Harvard and courtroom have drifted you into the world of Suits, umm… come on… it’s Patparganj, not New York! Although, one of the characters is definitely trying to copy Donna Paulson’s sassiness.)

Sunflower Season 2

When: Now Streaming

Where: Zee5

In the first season, Mr. Kapoor of Sunflower Society is found dead in his washroom, kickstarting an investigation. While the police were desperately trying to pin down Sunil Grover’s character for the crime, nothing could be proved. In the second season, you’ll meet bar dancer Rosie Mehta (Adah Sharma), the supposed mistress of the deceased, who has her name in the former’s will. As the plot thickens, it becomes trickier to catch the real culprit. Sunil Grover has again done an impressive job.

Napoleon

When: Now

Where: Apple TV+

The Oscar-nominated biopic has finally made its OTT debut. This historical drama delves into the turbulent life of the French emperor and military commander Napoleon Bonaparte. The film takes you back to the French Revolution and notable Napoleonic Wars, charting the leader’s rise and fall.

Joaquin Phoenix (Joker) does an impressive job of portraying the historical figure. Expect a lot of epic battle scenes, grand sets, political references, and fine costumes. Besides the textbook facts about Napoleon’s excellence and military techniques, the film also explores his rocky relationship with empress Joséphine.

The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

Although the crime documentary was supposed to be released last week, its premiere was halted after the CBI pleaded with the Bombay High Court. The series has now been approved by the court and has hit the digital screens. It revolves around the shocking murder case of 25-year-old Sheena Bora in 2012, where the prime murder suspects turned out to be her mother Indrani Mukerjea, her mother’s driver, and her stepfather Peter Mukerjea. The three were alleged to have abducted, killed and subsequently burnt Sheena’s body.

### Shōgun

When: Now

Where: Disney+ Hotstar

An adventurous English sailor is shipwrecked in Japan in 1600s and soon finds himself stuck in the political turmoil with shogunates, factions, rivals and dishonoured samurai. Here, the heir of the deceased leader is too young and is taken care of by a council of five lords. This ten-part series is based on James Clavell’s 1975 bestselling novel of more than 1,000 pages, which was previously adapted into a 1980 limited series. Expect lots of adventure and action.

For details of the latest launches and news from Samsung, Xiaomi, Realme, OnePlus, Oppo and other companies at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, visit our MWC 2024 hub.

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Poacher, Avatar the Last Bender, Screen Actor Guild Awards and More: New OTT Releases This Week to Binge Watch This Weekend

Although there is just one Indian-original release this week in the form of Alia Bhatt produced Poacher — based on illegal ivory poaching in India — we also have quite a few other big names from across genres. For starters, Netflix will host the Screen Actor Guild Awards live for the first time, touted as a grand experiment for the streaming platform. The awards will start streaming at 5:00 am (IST).

Another high-budget release is Avatar: The Last Airbender, a live-action adaptation of the popular series of the same name on Netflix. However, if you have followed the original series back in the day, chances are high that you might not be as impressed with the adaptation. The series has attracted mixed reviews from critics and ardent fans.

Next, we have the final season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch on Disney+ Hotstar, in which the eponymous Bad Batch’s limits are tested.

On the international shore, there is Through My Window 3: Looking At You, the final chapter of the Spanish romance trilogy. It follows the typical romantic dilemmas and the inability to move on after separation. If you haven’t already binged on the first two parts, you can find them both on Netflix.

If you have an appetite for documentaries, you could go for the new British crime docu-series Can I Tell You A Secret? which gives a bone-chilling insight into a serial cyber stalker who made the life of countless women a living hell. Another choice could be Apple TV’s documentary on football legend Messi, which follows him along the five World Cups.

For comedy fanatics, Netflix dished out another comedy special: Mike Epps’s Ready to Sell Out. Here, the American stand-up comic gets candid about his finances, romantic life, and hilarious street observations.

In case you are wondering about Netflix’s documentary on the Sheena Bora murder case, which was supposed to be released on February 23, its release has been halted after the CBI pleaded to the Bombay High Court. The series is likely to premiere only after it gets a green light following a special screening of the series for the Central Bureau of Investigation (are there many cuts and edits in store?).

Well, that’s all for this week, folks. Happy binge-watching!

Poacher

When: Now Streaming

Where: Prime Video

Poacher is a gripping thriller drama about illegal elephant ivory poaching grappling the green lushes of South India. Here you’ll find a group of Indian Forest Service officers, NGO workers, police constables and Good Samaritans risk their lives for the cause. The series is a fictionalised account of true harrowing incidents. The show comes from Emmy Winning Delhi Crime’s creator Richie Mehta. Alia Bhatt has co- produced.

Avatar The Last Airbender

When: Now Streaming

Where: Netflix

If you remember Nickleodeon’s mega-hit show, you already know what this new release is about. Like the original animated version, the live-action adaptation is based in a world where some people, titled Avatar, have the superpower to manipulate one of the four elements—water, earth, fire or air—through “bending”. Gordon Cormier plays the 12-year-old Aang, a prodigious Airbender who has just discovered that he is the new Avatar, and he must now master all the four elemental powers, to save the world from the Fire Nation’s tyranny. Be prepared for a lot of special effects and impressive moves in this eight-episode-long series.

30th Screen Actor Guild Awards

When: February 24

Where: Netflix

Netflix has long been trying to delve into the live-streaming sector. The platform made its debut in the field with sports events and recently bought rights for the streaming of WWE RAW.

Screen Actor Guild Awards could kick start a new avenue of expansion for the platform. The event will honour the best achievements in film and television performances for the year 2023. While last year the ceremony was broadcast on Netflix’s YouTube channel, it is the first that Netflix will be streaming an event of this kind.

Some of the major films nominated across categories are Barbie, Maestro, Rustin, Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, The Color Purple and more. Among web series are Succession, The Morning Show, The Last of Us, Barry, and The Bear, among others.

Constellation

When: Now Streaming

Where: Apple TV+

Imagine you are an astronaut returning to the Earth after a major accident in space. But now a lot of pieces of your life are missing. Scary, isn’t it? Noomi Rapace steps into the shoes of this devastated astronaut in Apple TV’s latest psychological drama Constellation. All she has are broken memories and alarming findings to uncover the truth.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 3

When: Now Streaming

Where: Disney+ Hotstar

The third season picks up shortly after the end of Season 2, with Omega (Michelle Ang) still under the grasp of the Empire. A lot of cliffhangers of the previous seasons are to be answered in this one.

The two new interesting terms introduced in the series are M-Count (microscopic life forms that reside in all living cells) and Project Necromancer, which revolves around securing Palpatine’s resurrection.

While this might be the final season for Star Wars: The Bad Batch, the first three episodes that the platform dropped today have confirmed multiple connections of the series with other Star Wars movies and shows, including Mandalorian. New episodes will air weekly until the conclusion on May 1, 2024.

Through My Window: Looking at You

When: Now

Where: Netflix

In case, you haven’t seen the first two parts, Through My Window films have a girl named Raquel as their protagonist, who is hopelessly in love with her neighbour Ares, whom she admires from her window. Ares, by the way, is oblivious to her existence, let alone her feelings. Things take an amusing turn when he starts reciprocating, despite his family’s protests.

Raquel and Ares went on their separate ways in part 2, but can’t seem to be able to move on in their lives. In this instalment, the duo is seeing other people, while struggling with the burning memories they share. Like a typical rom-com, when the two again cross paths, emotional turmoil is inevitable. Tune in to find out if they re-unite.

For details of the latest launches and news from Samsung, Xiaomi, Realme, OnePlus, Oppo and other companies at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, visit our MWC 2024 hub.

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Disney, Reliance Sign Non-binding Agreement for India Media Operations Merger: Report

Reliance Industries, India’s most valuable company, and Walt Disney signed a non-binding term sheet to merge their Indian media operations, the Economic Times reported on Monday, citing sources it did not name.

Under the merger, Reliance would own 51% through a combination of shares and cash, with Disney holding the remaining 49%, giving more control to Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance group, the newspaper said.

The deal is likely to be completed by February, with Reliance aiming to finish the process by the end of January, subject to regulatory approvals, it said.

Reliance and Disney did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Reuters reported two weeks ago that company executives were meeting in London to discuss the next stage of the media merger.

A merger would create one of India’s biggest entertainment empires, competing with television interests such as Zee Entertainment and Sony and streaming giants including Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Reliance runs many TV channels and the JioCinema streaming app through its media and entertainment unit, Viacom18. Ambani has been locked in a fierce battle with Disney, offering free streaming of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, whose digital rights were once with Disney in India.

This has sparked a user exodus from Disney’s streaming app Hotstar in recent quarters. Since early this year, Disney has been exploring a sale or joint venture partnership for its India business, which includes many TV channels. The proposed deal would create a unit under Reliance’s Viacom18 to take control of Star India through a stock swap, the Economic Times said. The parties are working on a plan to invest $1 billion to $1.5 billion in the business, it said, without specifying whether this was the total or the amount each would invest.

The board is expected to include an equal number of directors from Reliance and Disney, with at least two representatives each, the newspaper said. They are also in consideration of having at least two independent directors, but this might change in the coming weeks, the report said.

(Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)

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ICC Cricket World Cup 2023: India vs New Zealand Sets Live Streaming World Record With 4.3 Crore Viewers

India recorded a convincing four-wicket win over New Zealand — their first over the Black Caps in an ICC tournament since 2003 — to climb to the top of ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 table on Sunday. Handing New Zealand their first defeat of the tournament, India have now won five games on the trot at the World Cup, looking strong favourites to lift the trophy for the first time since 2011. Rohit Sharma and co. chased down a target of 274 with 12 balls to spare, courtesy an emphatic 95 from Virat Kohli. In the process, the match also set a new world record for live streaming, with Disney+ Hotstar recording 4.3 crore live concurrent viewers.

Disney+ Hotstar owns the digital streaming rights for the ongoing World Cup and, according to the streamer, 4.3 crore live concurrent viewers tuned in on Sunday to watch India versus New Zealand. This marks a new world record for streaming, breaking the previous record set by the India versus Pakistan match on October 14.

Hosts India and 2019 World Cup finalists New Zealand were the only two undefeated sides at the tournament heading into the match, with the Black Caps sitting top of the table on the basis of a higher net run rate. While New Zealand fielded an unchanged side from their win over Afghanistan, India made two changes. Suryakumar Yadav and Mohammed Shami came in for the injured Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur.

India won the toss and put New Zealand to bat, who set up a total of 273 with the help of Daryl Mitchell’s 130 off 127 balls, with Shami taking five wickets in the process. While Kohli narrowly missed out on another century, his 95 helped India reach 274 with two overs remaining.

The India versus Pakistan match on October 14 also set a global streaming record when over 3.5 crore live concurrent viewers tuned in on Disney+ Hotstar to see the much-awaited clash. The streamer holds the streaming rights for the World Cup in India and is also offering new viewing features for the tournament in association with the ICC. Its new MaxView feature allows cricket fans to watch matches in portrait mode on their smartphones, with ICC providing a dedicated vertical feed.

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iPhone 13, OnePlus 11R, Redmi 12, Galaxy M14 and More Available With Discounts on Amazon: Here Are Top 15 Mobile Deals



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OTT Releases This Week: Kaala Paani, King of Kotha, The Fall of the House of Usher, More

As we approach the end of October, OTT platforms continue to put out fresh content, offering plenty to binge on during lazy weekends. We’ve all experienced the mundanity of scrolling through streaming apps for hours as our food grows cold, so we’ve returned with a list of recommendations to keep you engaged. First up, Mona Singh and Ashutosh Gowariker come together for Kaala Paani, a Netflix survival drama set in the isolated Andaman and Nicobar Islands. On the same platform, we’ve also got filmmaker Mike Flanagan’s not-so-surprising return during the Halloween season — this time, with The Fall of the House of Usher, a modern-day take on the eponymous Edgar Allan Poe short story.

The Dulquer Salmaan-led King of Kotha is another standout, debuting on Disney+ Hotstar less than two months after its theatrical release. Then, of course, you can catch a new episode of Loki season 2 — not mentioned below — to follow the God of Mischief on more of his time-hopping adventures. The series premiere drew 10.9 million viewers globally, marking the second-most watch premiere for Disney+. With that, here’s a guide on what to watch this weekend:

Kaala Paani

When: Now streaming
Where: Netflix

When a mysterious illness spreads throughout the lush Andaman and Nicobar Islands, its inhabitants — including a group of tourists gathered together for a festival — are trapped within and forced into a fight for survival under the perpetual delusion of a cure being developed soon. Politicians and law enforcers struggle to keep the denizens calm while the medical professionals toil all day, tallying fatalities and figuring out what caused them. It’s also why this thriller show is named the way it is — Kaala Paani, a reference to the prison in Port Blair, whose actual walls aren’t made of brick and mortar, but thousands of kilometers of seawater that make ideas of escape impossible. The story, however, is unveiled through its cast — Mona Singh (Made in Heaven), Ashutosh Gowariker (Lagaan), and Amey Wagh (Asur) — differing perspectives.

Permanent Roommates Season 3

When: Now streaming
Where: Amazon Prime Video

One of TVF’s most-beloved couples, Tanya (Nidhi Singh) and Mikesh (Sumeet Vyas), is back with a third instalment of Permanent Roommates. The pair is still together after seven long years, navigating fresh challenges, albeit Tanya feels stuck in her partner’s so-called ideal life. Attributing this unhappiness to her mundane career, she brings up the idea of wanting to move abroad Canada and sort of restart their life from scratch. Mikesh, however, isn’t fond of that and wants to stick to his Indian roots, having spent years in the US before and finding some solace here. As you’d expect, this decision puts the couple at odds, taking them on a bumpy ride as they rekindle their love and interests.

The Fall of the House of Usher

When: Now streaming
Where: Netflix

Ruthless siblings Madeline (Mary McDonnell) and Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood) turned Fortunato Pharmaceuticals into a huge corporate empire, albeit with a fair share of malpractice. But things get wild when a mysterious woman from their past, Verna (Carla Gugino), invades their life, causing the Usher bloodline to die one by one in horrific ways that are reminiscent of renowned author Edgar Allan Poe’s works. As usual, creator Mike Flanagan is reunited with some of his previous collaborators in The Fall of the House of Usher, including Rahul Kohli (Midnight Mass), Kate Siegel (The Haunting of Hill House), and Samantha Sloyan (The Midnight Club).

King of Kotha

When: Now streaming
Where: Disney+ Hotstar

Dulquer Salmaan stars in this period drama as Raju, a power-hungry individual who grows up to become a merciless gangster like his father, much to his family’s dismay. Some depressive circumstances in his crime-infested town of Kotha cause him to leave forever, that is, until he is summoned back by Inspector Shahul Hassan (Prasanna) to take down the ruthless drug empire built by Kannan (Shabeer Kallarakkal), an old friend of Raju. On a mission to save the youth of Kotha from living on narcotics, the two go head-to-head, dissolving past differences in gung-ho style action and fight sequences. King of Kotha is directed by debutant Abhilash Joshiy and it also stars Aishwarya Lekshmi (Ponniyin Selvan: II) in the lead.

Upload season 3

When: October 20 (Now streaming)
Where: Amazon Prime Video

Newly-downloaded Nathan (Robbie Amell) and his handler Nora (Andy Allo) are now officially in a relationship, living an ideal life, albeit with the risk of the former being deleted. For the uninitiated, Upload is set in a futuristic world whereupon computer programmer Nathan’s mysterious death his conscience is uploaded onto a digital afterlife called Lakeview. Through this, he continues living and interacting with people he knew in real life, though in season 3, a new problem presents itself. Turns out, there’s another version of him living elsewhere, which the ‘real’ Nathan ponders whether it counts as identity theft. Meanwhile, the clone has presented his ex-girlfriend Ingrid (Allegra Edwards) with a second shot at making their lost relationship successful, which is bound to cause some drama.

The Conference

When: Now streaming
Where: Netflix

Halloween season always calls for slasher movies, and this week we’ve got The Conference, a Swedish language thriller trapping a group of municipal employees in a fight for survival. The public-sector workers are at a modest countryside resort in order to celebrate their latest achievement, when accusations of corruption start getting hurled around, unravelling the dysfunctional relationship between them. Meanwhile, a mysterious masked figure stalks and trudges along the compound, killing the members one-by-one in a brutal fashion. The Conference stars Katia Winter, Maria Sid, and Adam Lundgren as leads.

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Disney Is Considering Selling Its Indian Streaming and TV Business, Reliance Is Among Potential Buyers

Walt Disney has held preliminary talks with potential buyers for its India streaming and television business including billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries, according to people familiar with the matter.

The US entertainment giant has discussed a range of options with would-be suitors, from a deal for the entire Disney Star business to a piecemeal transaction that may include some combination of its assets including sports rights and regional streaming service Disney+ Hotstar, the people said.

Disney has been weighing strategic options for the business including an outright sale or setting up a joint venture, Bloomberg News reported in July after the Indian unit lost its streaming rights to the Indian Premier League cricket tournament to Viacom18, a tie-up between Paramount Global and Reliance. Disney had approached Reliance about potentially buying a stake in the business, a person familiar with the matter said at the time.

Discussions are ongoing and may not lead to any deal, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Disney could decide to hold onto the assets for longer, they added. A representative for Disney declined to comment.

A spokesperson for Reliance said the company “evaluates various opportunities on an ongoing basis” and will make the required disclosures when necessary, declining to comment further.

Though Disney Star has seen declining subscriber numbers after losing the IPL streaming rights, it hasn’t ceded the entire cricket business, securing the television rights through 2027. Last year it agreed to license the TV rights for International Cricket Council men’s matches to ZEE Entertainment for four years, with Disney+ Hotstar retaining the digital rights.

JioCinema, the streaming service backed by Reliance, netted a record 32 million concurrent viewers in May for the IPL final, which was free to watch on the platform. The venture has begun charging for some content on the platform after signing a multi-year pact to stream Warner Bros. Discovery’s exclusive content in India.

© 2023 Bloomberg LP

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School of Lies, Starring Nimrat Kaur, to Release on June 2 on Disney+ Hotstar in India

Streamer Disney+ Hotstar on Wednesday announced that its upcoming series ‘School of Lies‘, starring Nimrat Kaur, will premiere on its platform on June 2.

Produced by BBC Studios, the eight-episode mystery drama show is directed Avinash Arun Dhaware. It also features Aamir Bashir, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, Sonali Kulkarni and Jitendra Joshi along with Varin Roopani, Divyansh Dwivedi, Aryan Singh Ahlawat, Hemant Kher, Parthiv Shetty, Adrija Sinha, and Aalekh Kapoor. The web series is part of the Hotstar Specials slate of content produced in India for Indian audiences of the streaming service.

School of Lies is set in the fictional Dalton Town, surrounded by hills where a young 12-year-old boy goes missing from a private boarding school RISE, and the subsequent domino effect it causes as the truth is only as complex, as simple. A tale of shame, anger and grief, the narrative explores various stakeholders as the mystery unfolds – young boys on the cusp of adulthood, an aging teacher with a terrible secret, a distant counsellor with a moral conflict, and a panicking mother in denial.

Kaur essays the role Nandita Mehra, the school counsellor, and the actor has said that she learnt about the layered complexities of children and how they can reveal a new side to them every step of the way. The series, said to be inspired by real-life events, brings forth mind bogglingly unpredictable occurrences behind the closed gates of a fictional boarding school.

“Playing the highly complex role of a guidance counsellor in this establishment with the dilemma of having to choose between the right and the necessary path of action in unprecedented life situations was not only tremendously rewarding but an experience that’ll forever be close to my heart,” added Kaur. The series puts a strong focus on topics of child abuse, and will have a run of eight episodes for the season.

Samsung Galaxy A34 5G was recently launched by the company in India alongside the more expensive Galaxy A54 5G smartphone. How does this phone fare against the Nothing Phone 1 and the iQoo Neo 7? We discuss this and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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  • Release Date 2 June 2023
  • Genre Drama, Mystery, Thriller
  • Cast

    Varin Roopani, Vir Pachisia, Aryan Singh Ahlawat, Nimrat Kaur, Aamir Bashir, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, Hemant Kher, Nitin Goel, Shakti Anand, Aalekh Kapoor

  • Director

    Avinash Arun Bhaware

  • Producer

    Deepali Handa

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on Twitter, Facebook, and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel.


Gyaarah Gyaarah: Karan Johar and Guneet Monga Kapoor Announce Zee5 Original Web Series



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The Last Of Us Behind-the-Scenes Featurette to Air After March 13 Season Finale

Ahead of the season finale of The Last Of Us which is set to air on March 12 (March 13 in India), the show has announced that the ninth episode with be followed by a behind-the-scenes featurette on the show titled Making Of The Last Of Us. The show, based on the popular 2013 video game of the same name, is close to the end of its critically acclaimed and successful first season run, which is available to stream on Disney+ Hotstar in India (for now).

As per a tweet by the official handle for The Last Of Us (the handle for the HBO TV series), the behind-the-scenes featurette will air immediately after the end of the ninth and final episode of the first season of The Last Of Us on March 12 in the US. In India, the ninth episode will be available to stream at 8:30am on March 13 on Disney+ Hotstar, as usual.

There is no word on whether the Making Of The Last Of Us featurette will be available to watch in India on Hotstar as of now, but it could just drop in the ‘Trailers and More’ section of the title, so fans should keep an eye out for it. The Last of Us has already been renewed for a second season.

The tweet from the show’s handle also comes with a short video clip showcasing some of the filming techniques, CGI tricks, and interviews with key figures attached to the show such as lead actors Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. It also showcases many of the ‘infected’ in full make-up and costume, so fans will likely enjoy this sneak peek into the makings of the popular series.

Notably, Disney+ Hotstar announced that it will no longer play host to HBO content, which includes The Last Of Us, from March 31. The HBO catalogue has been on Hotstar since the launch of the service in 2015, with shows such as Game Of Thrones serving as a big draw to bring in early users to the then new streaming service.

Fortunately for fans of The Last Of Us, Hotstar will remain the streaming platform for the show till the end of the first season and for a few days beyond the final episode airing, although those hoping to watch the soon-to-release fourth season of Succession are left without any easy options, for now.

From smartphones with rollable displays or liquid cooling, to compact AR glasses and handsets that can be repaired easily by their owners, we discuss the best devices we’ve seen at MWC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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  • Release Date 16 January 2023
  • Genre Action, Drama, Thriller
  • Cast

    Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Anna Torv, Nick Offerman, Gabriel Luna, Merle Dandridge, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Storm Reid, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene, Elaine Miles, Melanie Lynskey

  • Director

    Kantemir Balagov

  • Producer

    Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, Carolyn Strauss, Rose Lam, Evan Wells, Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on Twitter, Facebook, and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel.


Uber, Ola Apply for Aggregator Licences in Maharashtra, RTO Official Says

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