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Murderbot is the latest sci-fi comedy-drama on Apple TV+ that is gaining widespread attention. Based on Martha Wells’ bestselling science fiction series, The Murderbot Diaries, the series, created by Chris and Paul Weitz, has a whole different twist to the otherwise overused humanoid concept.

Murderbot (played by Alexander Skarsgård) not only protects people, but it also enjoys watching soap operas in its free time and has difficulty making eye contact with others. Apart from an anxiety-ridden bot, we have an exploration crew that loves to get in trouble, and if trouble doesn’t come to them, they go looking for it. In the third episode of the first season, “Risk Assessment,” the PreservationAux goes looking for something completely unprepared.

The real threat is Murderbot’s streaming addiction Alexander Skarsgård as Murderbot | Credits: Apple TV+

When Murderbot first premiered, we got two episodes, and despite getting more than what Apple TV+ normally promises,...

Indian Director Vishal Bhardwaj who is renowned for directing award-winning films such as Haider, Omkara and Maqbool has joined Samir Zaidi’s directorial debut short film “Two Sinners” as Executive Producer.

The film is directed by multi-disciplinary artist and published poet Samir Zaidi, who has worked closely with Bhardwaj on Apple’s Fursat and Netflix’s Khufiya. Produced by Shivam Gupta and Zaidi, “Two Sinners” is a powerful short story set in an Indian forest, focusing on Azhar, whose older brother orchestrates a scheme compelling him to execute the perpetrator responsible for their sister’s assault.

Vishal Bhardwaj, whose Shakespearean trilogy earned global acclaim, rarely takes on short films as an Executive Producer, making this collaboration with Zaidi notable.

“Two Sinners” features BAFTA Breakthrough Talent from India (2024), Shardul Bhardwaj. Having starred in globally acclaimed films Eeb Allay Ooo!, The Scavenger of Dreams and Kuttey, Shardul has delivered yet another intense and memorable performance.

“Haider” (2014) stands as Vishal Bhardwaj’s crowning achievement—a film that transcends its identity as a mere Shakespearean adaptation to become a searing political commentary, a visual poem, and a profound meditation on the human condition within a conflict zone. Released in 2014 as the culmination of Bhardwaj’s Shakespearean trilogy following “Maqbool” (Macbeth) and “Omkara” (Othello), “Haider” transplants the Danish tragedy of “Hamlet” to the war-torn valley of Kashmir during the turbulent 1990s.

What sets “Haider” apart from typical adaptations is the way Bhardwaj skillfully interlaces Hamlet’s existential crises with the intricate socio-political landscape of Kashmir. The movie serves as a lens through which audiences study issues of betrayal, vengeance, political repression, and fragmentation of identity amid collective trauma. With haunting imagery, subtle performances, and a bold screenplay, “Haider” poses uncomfortable questions regarding state power, insurgency, disappearances, and the cost of pursuing truth in a world shrouded in deceit.

Indian producer Prerna Arora is including intimacy coordination clauses in actors’ legal agreements. Arora, known for acclaimed films “Toilet: Ek Prem Katha” and “Pari” is believed to be one of the first Indian producers to do so.

Intimacy coordination is a nascent field in Indian cinema with Aastha Khanna Bhardwaj (Netflix’s “Murder Mubarak”) being one of the pioneers in the Hindi-language Bollywood industry and Jayalakshmi Sundaresan (“Iruttu Araiyil Murattu Kuththu”) in the Tamil-language Kollywood industry. Shakun Batra’s Prime Video film “Gehraaiyaan,” headlined by Deepika Padukone, was one of the first Bollywood films to have a dedicated intimacy department and the team included Bhardwaj, Dar Gai and Neha Vyas.

Arora recognized the need to formalize protocols surrounding intimate scenes in response to industry-wide discussions on the importance of creating a supportive and respectful atmosphere on set.

“In light of recent conversations and movements within the global film industry, it...

The enigmatic greys of a Kashmir winter in ‘Haider’, the many tones of black in ‘Maqbool’ with such visual poetry where each note stands out, Vishal Bhardwaj’s cinema has never shouted ‘independent’ but subtly stood out from the movies of his time.

Not hyper-realistic in its treatment, it is Bhardwaj’s visual poetry that makes the thematic essence pull in reality at its most profound.

“What you call visual poetry in my films emerges from the deep-rooted love for poetry that never leaves me,” Bhardwaj told Ians. “Therefore, there is always an effort to lend a certain rhythm and deeper meaning to everything that happens in front of the camera.”

Together with Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee and Tigmanshu Dhulia, Bhardwaj has been instrumental in ushering in a new era in Indian cinema after the almost traumatic 80s when Hindi cinema hit its lowest. He believes, though, that the independent...

New Delhi, Sep 21 (Ians) As the country is immersed in Ganeshotsav, Ott platforms brings an exciting array of titles for the viewers to binge-watch this week.

From crime drama whodunit series ‘Charlie Chopra’ to slice of life show ‘Hostel Daze 4’ and Nithya Menen starrer comedy drama ‘Kumari Srimathi’, this week’s offerings will delight you, and promise to entertain with a diverse range of captivating content.

Here’s a list of six titles on various Ott platforms that have caught the attention of Ians this week.

‘Kumari Srimathi’

Nithya Menen-starrer upcoming comedy drama series ‘Kumari Srimathi’ is set in a village in East Godavari. It hilariously encapsulates the tribulations in the life of a 30-year-old woman (played by Menen), who challenges stereotypes in a small town riddled with antiquity. It also features Nirupam, Gautami, Thiruveer, Talluri Rameshwari, Naresh, and Murali Mohan in pivotal roles.

Produced by Early Monsoon Tales, a web division of Vyjanyanthi Entertainments,...

New Delhi, Sep 21 (Ians) As the country is immersed in Ganeshotsav, Ott platforms brings an exciting array of titles for the viewers to binge-watch this week.

From crime drama whodunit series ‘Charlie Chopra’ to slice of life show ‘Hostel Daze 4’ and Nithya Menen starrer comedy drama ‘Kumari Srimathi’, this week’s offerings will delight you, and promise to entertain with a diverse range of captivating content.

Here’s a list of six titles on various Ott platforms that have caught the attention of Ians this week.

‘Kumari Srimathi’

Nithya Menen-starrer upcoming comedy drama series ‘Kumari Srimathi’ is set in a village in East Godavari. It hilariously encapsulates the tribulations in the life of a 30-year-old woman (played by Menen), who challenges stereotypes in a small town riddled with antiquity. It also features Nirupam, Gautami, Thiruveer, Talluri Rameshwari, Naresh, and Murali Mohan in pivotal roles.

Produced by Early Monsoon Tales, a web division of Vyjanyanthi Entertainments,...

Iffla Will Open With Khufiya Directed By Vishal Bhardwaj And Close With All India Rank By Varun Grover

US Premieres of Documentaries The World is Family by Legendary Filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, and The Golden Thread by Nishtha Jain

Exclusive Masterclass with World Renowned Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj

Today the 2023 Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) announced the lineup of official selections for the 21st annual edition of the internationally acclaimed film festival. Iffla will showcase 24 films from 13 countries and in 14 languages, including the world theatrical premiere of Vishal Bhardwaj's Khufiya, the world premiere of Atul Sabharwal's Berlin, and the North American premieres of Varun Grover's dramedy All Indian Rank, Dominic Sangma's Garo language film Rapture,and the Malayalam film Aattam (The Play) by Anand Ekarshi. Plus, the LA premiere of Joram by Devashish Makhija.

Passes and Gala tickets are now available at www.indianfilmfestival.org. Tickets to...

National Award winning filmmaker-composer Vishal Bhardwaj has adapted Agatha Christie’s novel ‘The Sittaford Mystery’ into a streaming series tentatively titled ‘Charlie Chopra’. It is set to release the pilot episode preview of the detective thriller on Friday. The pilot episode will take streamer’s subscribers on an interactive escapade.

The series is set in the snow-capped mountains of Himachal Pradesh, and will follow the journey of Charlie Chopra and her pursuit to uncover a deep mystery.

After watching the pilot, viewers will be required to help the protagonist named Charlie Chopra solve the mystery by finding clues and identifying a character to dig deeper. They are also asked to come up with a title.

The series boasts of an ensemble cast featuring Naseeruddin Shah, Neena Gupta, Ratna Pathak Shah, Wamiqa Gabbi, Priyanshu Painyuli, Gulshan Grover, Lara Dutta, Chandan Roy Sanyal, and Paoli Dam.

The series is directed, co-produced, and co-written by Vishal Bhardwaj.

Amazon miniTV today unveiled the trailer of its recently announced young romance drama ‘Highway Love’, promising an unconventional romantic experience. Featuring the much-loved on-screen duo of Ritvik Sahore and Gayatri Bhardwaj in the lead, the series is a wholesome blend of love, heartbreak, emotions and a long highway journey. Revolving around a recently heartbroken yet confident feisty Inaya and an awkward and reserved Dhun Dhun, Highway Love will take the audience on a colourful and heart-warming trip exclusively on Amazon miniTV on June 16th for free.

The trailer takes viewers through the life of Dhun Dhun and Inaya as they cross paths on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. Circling around the highway journey of these two strangers, the story depicts how some unexpected encounters can change our lives. The heart-warming trailer gives a sneak peek of how two completely opposite personalities cross paths with each other and become an integral part of each other’s lives.

New Delhi, June 7 (Ians) The Delhi government has decided to employ helium leakage detection technology to easily identify any leaks in the water pipeline. According to Aap government, by utilizing this “modern” technology, the people of Delhi will get relief from the problem of contaminated water.

“From now onwards, there will be no need to dig up roads to identify water leaks in the underground pipeline,” said an official.

Delhi’s Water Minister, Saurabh Bhardwaj, inspected equipment for detecting leaks and contaminated water in the pipeline in the Shahpur Jat area.

Bhardwaj also tested the technology to assess its effectiveness in identifying leaks in the pipeline.

The minister said that complaints about the supply of contaminated water had been received from Shahpur Jat area in the past few days, leading the government to adopt the technology as a solution.

“It should be noted that often drinking water and sewer water get mixed.

New Delhi, May 19 (Ians) Obesity has a huge impact on physical health, psycho-social and mental health, and can increase the risk of depression, especially among children and adolescents, said doctors on Friday.

Obesity is one of the fastest growing chronic health conditions, rising quite rapidly in children and adolescents.

The World Obesity Federation in a 2023 report predicted that in the next 12 years, more than 51 per cent of the world’s population will be overweight or obese.

“Being obese can lead children to experience subtle forms of teasing and discrimination, they might develop the tendency to stay isolated and turn to food as a comfort,” Dr. Arun Bhardwaj, Consultant – Minimal access and Bariatric surgery, Hcmct Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka, told Ians.

“When compared with normal-weight children, those with obesity have a 32 per cent greater chance of developing depression. This number is even higher for young girls and they have a 44 per cent...

Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj has concluded the production of his upcoming web series ‘Charlie Chopra & The Mystery Of Solang Valley’.

Bhardwaj took to Instagram, where he shared a picture along with the cast and crew of the series, which marks his debut in the Ott long-format story-telling.

“Charlie Chopra wrapped!! Unbelievable!!! We did it :)” he wrote.

The show is the official adaptation of Agatha Christie’s novel ‘The Sittaford Mystery’ and is set in Himachal Pradesh. It will revolve around the journey of Charlie Chopra and her quest to uncover a deep mystery.

The show features Lara Dutta, Naseeruddin Shah, Neena Gupta, Ratna Pathak Shah, Wamiqa Gabbi, Priyanshu Painyuli, Gulshan Grover and Chandan Roy Sanyal, among many others.

New Delhi, March 30 (Ians) Amid surge in Covid-19 cases in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will chair a meeting on Friday to review the situation even as the government said it is “on alert”.

Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said: “We are on alert, Covid-19 situation in Delhi being closely monitored.”

Bhardwaj chaired an emergency meeting on Thursday, where Special Secretary, Health, the Director General of Health Services, nodal officer for oxygen and testing, and Medical Directors of several hospitals including Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (Lnjp) were present.

However, talking to the media about the increasing cases, the minister said that the Delhi government has not discussed any restrictions so far.

As many as 300 new cases of Covid-19 and two deaths were registered in Delhi on Wednesday. According to the bulletin issued by the Health Department, there are currently 806 active cases in the capital and the infection rate is 13.89 per cent.

Popular singer and composer Manan Bhardwaj brings listeners another heartfelt track with T-Series’ latest single ‘Never Together’ produced by Bhushan Kumar. The song is yet another showcase of Bhardwaj’s musical prowess as he has not only sung the track but also penned the lyrics and composed its music. Starring Manan alongside Yesha Sagar, the touching music video is directed by Savio Sandhu, who manages to capture the emotions even in stoic silences.

Shot at picturesque locations in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Manan Bhardwaj dons the avatar of an army-man who returns to his hometown only to face heartbreak by Yesha Sagar, who plays his love interest in the music video.

Says Manan Bhardwaj, “‘Never Together’ is a real life story of so many broken hearts and incomplete lovers. Not for the groom, not for the bride, this song is from the third person who can’t do anything but let her go with someone else.