MUMBAI: Did you miss the presence of Bollywood celebrities at Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif’s intimate wedding? Don’t worry. The newlyweds are all set to hold a grand reception in Mumbai next week, and you can expect your favourite stars to grace the event.

As per a source, Vicky and Katrina will throw the party for the film fraternity in the upcoming days and will resume work after concluding all wedding festivities. The two, who tied the knot at Six Senses Fort Barwara in Sawai Madhopur yesterday, were spotted boarding a helicopter to Jaipur airport on Friday morning.

Hours later, Vicky’s parents and brother Sunny Kaushal were also clicked by shutterbugs at the Jaipur airport. Actor Sharvari Wagh and producer Amritpal Singh Bindra were also there.

MUMBAI: ‘Baahubali’ fame director SS Rajamouli is all set to come up with the new film ‘RRR’, which features a stellar cast including Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn, Jr. NTR, and Ram Charan.

A day ago, he unveiled the film’s trailer that has left everyone impressed. On seeing the huge excitement and anticipation of the audiences from ‘RRR’, Rajamouli opened up on his craft in the film, said, “Obviously a lot of people will be expecting the same kind of film after Baahubali. We can’t keep bringing the same film again and again. But the trick is, if you look deeply, they’re not looking for another Baahubali. They’re waiting for the kind of experience they had in the film. The kind of emotion they felt in the film. That’s what they want. But, they can’t tell you that. They don’t have that much of analysation to tell you that. So, they simply say we need another Baahubali. But what they actually want is the same kind of emotions and highs they got in the film.” 

MUMBAI :On the trailer launch of her upcoming film ‘RRR’ on Thursday, actor Alia Bhatt was asked an interesting question that left her “stumped” and smiling.

Hinting at her boyfriend and actor Ranbir Kapoor, Alia was asked about the alphabet ‘R’ in the film’s title and in her life, and whether it’s a lucky factor for her. Alia laughed and said, “I am stumped. Mere paas jawab nahi hai…I am trying to be intelligent. I don’t have a good answer.”

After a pause, she smiled and cleverly replied, “Ji…R is a lovely alphabet, but so is he.” Along with Alia Bhatt, ‘RRR’ stars Jr NTR and Ram Charan in lead roles. Other cast members include Ajay Devgn, Olivia Morris, Samuthirakani, Alison Doody and Ray Stevenson.

The project is helmed by SS Rajamouli, who was also the mastermind behind the record-breaking ‘Baahubali’ series. ‘RRR’ will hit the screens worldwide on 7 January 2022. 

The rise of OTT platforms is providing the perfect opportunity to the lead actors and actresses from the ‘90s to make their much-awaited comebacks. While the Disney+ Hotstar series ‘Aarya’ marked the beginning of Sushmita Sen’s second innings as a performer, the MX Player series ‘Aashram’ legitimized Bobby Deol’s efforts to make a strong comeback to the world of acting.

Sanjay Kapoor also has been trying to establish himself as a character actor as part of his second innings and the Amazon Prime series ‘The Last Hour’ has helped him achieve it to some extent. Of course, there are many more examples of actors from the ‘90s and the 2000s trying to use the web as a means to resuscitate their careers. The most recent name that comes to mind is that of Raveena Tandon who has made her web debut with the Netflix series ‘Aranyak,’ which also stars Ashutosh Rana, another actor who made it big in the ‘90s, in a pivotal role alongside Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Zakir Hussain, Indraneil Sengupta, and Meghna Malik.

‘Aranyak’ is produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur and Ramesh Sippy with Rohan Sippy serving as the showrunner. The series follows Kasturi Dogra (Raveena Tandon), a harried local cop, who must learn to co-exist with her urbane replacement, Angad Malik (Parambrata Chattopadhyay) after a French teenage tourist disappears in a misty hill town of Sirohna. What ensues is a high stake game of deceit as the two mismatched hill station cops navigate a web of suspects on the big-ticket case that digs up skeletons and revives a nigh forgotten myth of a bloodthirsty, serial killing entity in the forest—the Leopard-Man, which is said to be responsible for a series of gruesome deaths in Sirohna 19 years back. But, ‘Aranyak’ is not a typical horror story in the vein of werewolf dramas that Hollywood is known for. With the ominous presence of the mythical entity lurking over the hill town, the series doesn’t back down from plunging into the political ploys employed in the power circles, drug and social media culture amongst the millennials, personal agendas amongst the grownups while taking a good old procedural approach to solving a puzzling murder mystery.

The Bengali word ‘Aranyak’ basically means “forest-grown” or “pertaining to forest”. And, aptly, the theme of the series as well as its setting is such that the idea of the woods is never lost or forgotten.

A character in the series that is dying from cancer talks about a magical mushroom found deep inside the forest that has the healing power to cure every malady. He recounts to his son how his father had succeeded in curing himself thanks to the healing powers of the mushroom he had discovered in the woods. But it had turned to be a bittersweet affair for this father who lost his voice in the forest. He attributes it to an encounter with the Leopard-Man during which his father barely escaped through but the fear nonetheless made him lose his voice. ‘Aranyak’ is a reminder of how easily the minds of the populace in the small towns can get occupied with superstitions and false beliefs. It’s not a case of illiteracy, for even those who are educated can fall for it at the drop of a hat.

‘Aranyak’ is well shot and edited with consistent acting performances on offer which means that it’s superior to a series like ‘Candy’. Having seen Raveena Tandon’s essay ultra-urbane characters throughout her career, it takes some time to accept her in the role of a small town cop. Also, her accent doesn’t sound very natural at first. In comparison, Parambrata Chattopadhyay’s Angad Malik is a far more believable character. But the chemistry between Tandon and Chattopadhyay is very strong from the word go. It might remind some of the chemistry that Chattopadhyay shared with Vidya Balan in ‘Kahaani’.

Chattopadhyay is an earnest actor who seldom disappoints but his performance in ‘Aranyak’ is truly exceptional. And once we get used to Tandon’s accent and delivery even she starts looking pretty believable in her role. But the best performance comes from Ashutosh Rana, and expectedly so. He plays a retired head constable named Mahadev Dogra, Kasturi’s father-in-law, who is still held in high esteem by everyone in the police department.

Although he seems to be losing his wits, he perhaps is the only one capable of solving the mystery of Leopard-Man. Zakir Hussain is also brilliant in the role of a powerful local politician who wants his daughter to be happy at all costs. The show’s surprise package is Indraneil Sengupta whose enigmatic character holds the key to an important secret about the French girl who mysteriously disappears at the start of the series.

‘Aranyak’ is not a typical whodunit that unfolds at a breakneck pace. On the contrary, it is a slow burner that’s deliberately paced. And so it does demand patient viewing.

It was the tenth of December yesterday, and I look back on how quickly time seems to have flown. It seemed just like yesterday that I was laughing at a WhatsApp forward, a GIF of a happy Santa Claus holding a vaccine syringe and dancing to ‘Jingle Bells’. The jubilation around the vaccine and the expectation of a ‘final solution’ to the covid pandemic seems like just a recent event. I almost need to pinch myself to be reminded that a full year has passed, and a very eventful one at that, with the second wave, vaccinations and a multitude of variants of the virus springing forth all over the world, Omicron being the latest.

Time is such a curious thing. Sometimes one wishes it moved faster and got us out of sticky situations soon. Sometimes one wishes it moved slower so that good times can be relished slowly. And sometimes one wishes time could stand still and show us the experience of eternity. Classical music can help you experience the third.

It was just recently that a friend of mine called me excitedly, exclaiming that he was listening to a film song in Raag Yaman, and for those few minutes had the experience of complete timelessness. A feeling of being in a totally different plane of existence where there was no past, present or future. It was, he described, one of the closest experiences of eternity that he had ever had. I smiled quietly because I knew exactly what he was talking about. Very often during my Riyaaz or during my concert and even sometimes during a session with a student, I have experienced this timelessness. And with extensive experience of this phenomenon, I can say that music has the capacity to take you to this priceless state of bliss with relative ease. If I were to describe this state further, I would say that it is an experience of being transported to a different world, like a beautiful dream where time stands still. Almost like one is watching a beautiful sunrise at its most beautiful point and has frozen there. One loses connection with everyday life and the drudgery of living life in the real world and has been transported to an ethereal place.

It’s a way to experience ecstasy without the escapism of drugs or alcohol. It is a way of feeling the wonder of love without needing to be in love. It is a way to see beauty without actually having to see it.

The reason, I believe, classical music Raagas have this power is because, in essence, Raagas are connected to the ultimate and liberating spiritual truth of life that can set us free. This deep connection is hidden in the pursuit of Sur or divine sound in every Raaga. I can imagine a Raaga of Indian Classical music as a ladder, with one end firmly placed on the symbolic ground or in the harsh reality of our inner emotional state, and the other end at the doorway of heaven, holding the magical keys to fulfilment and bliss. This connection between the earthly and the divine is what we experience when we engage deeply in classical music. The timelessness comes from being able to finally bridge this gap between reality and divinity, and traverse that distance through the magic of Indian classical music.

This friend of mine who experienced this timelessness was elated as this is the closest that we can get to experiencing the divine on this earth. When this happens, it touches our very soul and allows us to weep in delight. Weep because we can finally catch a glimpse of God. We can finally be sure that there is a truth out there that is more real than our reality and yet so blissful and perfect.

Music is a stamp of God on earth. The subliminal spiritual undertones of Indian Classical music are what enable the experience of timelessness. It is there for every troubled or restless soul on the earth to experience, so accessible and yet so profound. It is time the world takes notice. Because making time stand still can never be easier.

The writer is a vocalist of both Hindustani and Carnatic Classical music, with over three decades’ experience. She is also the founder of Music Vruksh, a venture to make classical accessible for its aesthetic and wellness benefits.

The widespread acceptance of OTT streaming platforms in the last couple of years—by filmmakers and audiences alike – has been nothing short of revolutionary. A number of creative souls have begun to hope for a chance to showcase their work and earn fame and recognition. Cracking the big OTT networks without insider access seems nearly impossible, but there is an easy solution at hand.

ABC (All Bout Cinema) Talkies is a film-tech start-up launched in February 2021, which describes itself as the ‘World’s First Cinema Marketplace’. It is a free trade platform aimed at connecting cinema / OTT networks with independent filmmakers, who can showcase their work of art and monetise it. ABC Talkies also assists these filmmakers with the marketing and promotion of their creations.

“Our platform is a versatile, analytical and connected marketplace, whose mission is to transform the way people make and watch movies. ABC Talkies intends to bring about a cinematic revolution by allowing talent to transition into the digital world seamlessly. We are keen on fostering talent from Tier-II cities, smaller towns and states where opportunities for filmmakers are otherwise few and far between,” say the founders, Shalibhadra Shah and Siddharth Sinha.

With digital content consumption growing exponentially post-pandemic, consumers are looking for new-age content. Hence, there could not be a more opportune time for indie filmmakers to find their footing and grow. The ABC Talkies model works on a pay-per-view basis for the audience. All categories of films are included such as short films, feature films, documentaries and cine plays. The filmmakers choose what they want to earn as revenue on ticket sales. An array of in-house film reviewers watch the film, rate it and give their feedback. On the basis of this feedback, a few good films are picked every month for a spotlight on the filmmaker and the films through various marketing and PR initiatives.

Further, ABC Talkies offers the service of dubbing films in any other language if they reach a certain milestone of viewership on the platform. “Certain films have a great story but are not shot well because of a monetary crunch, hence we pick such films and help the filmmakers to recreate those films through sponsorships from corporate clients. Every film on our platform that reaches a certain viewership milestone is opened up to other OTT platforms or independent distributors to preview and buy,” explains Shah.

Though there are similar platforms available around the world, there is none in India. “What we offer to filmmakers in the country is something no other platform is offering and we want to become the trusted digital library where OTTs come and buy commercially viable indie films directly from the creator,” shares Sinha.

Recently, this film-tech startup raised Rs 2 crore in fresh funds from an Ahmedabad-based angel investor, who is also the CMD of a 21-year-old IT company with over 500 employees. ABC Talkies plans to deploy the new capital into accelerating the growth of the brand. This includes strengthening product development, increasing its marketing activities, improving the quality of content, and increasing the number of filmmakers with the pay-per-view option for monetisation.

Shah explains, “We are in the process of our mobile app development and this round of funding could not have come at a better time. ABC Talkies is at a critical juncture where scaling and sustaining operations is extremely important for survival. This funding will help ABC Talkies continue with its goal of becoming India’s first and only film-tech platform while helping it scale up.”

Adding to this, Sinha says, “A shift is expected in the way content is consumed. Thus this seems like an ideal time for us to ramp up our services and the funding for our platform has come in right on time.”

Unlike regular OTT platforms, ABC Talkies does not restrict films from being uploaded on its platform, with the only caveat being that they conform to government guidelines. Uploading of films is free of cost, which makes it a truly unique platform combining film and technology to offer a completely distinctive experience to the audience.

The writer pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be reached on nooranand@gmail.com.