Indian Media and Entertainment Industry Grows 8% to Reach $28 Billion, Annual FICCI-EY Report Reveals

Zendaya and Tom Holland were spotted enjoying a date day in California at Indian Wells Tennis Garden.The Hollywood duo looked to be fixated on the BNP Paribas Open, as they watched Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Daniil Medvedev of Russia compete in the Men's Final. Euphoria star Zendaya, 27, and Spider-Man actor Tom, also 27, were joined by a friend as they watched the match unfold from the stands.The couple chatted and reacted to the match, with Tom covering his mouth at one point. The star looked stylish in a dark brown open shirt and white top, paired with tinted glasses and his hair swept to the side.

is having a moment—and what better poster girl for the viral haircut than Zendaya, the queen of looking excellent in everything she does? The star has been flying the flag for the bouncy, glamorous bob since the end of 2022. While many other celebrities were sporting blunt, short bobs at the time, hers was a breath of polished and old Hollywood-inspired fresh air.Iga Swiatek of Poland meets Zendaya after defeating Maria Sakkari of Greece in the women's singles final of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells Tennis Garden on March 17, 2024.Fast forward to March 2024 and she’s not said goodbye to the haircut that suits her so well.

Emmerdale's Paige Sandhu has left fans gobsmacked with her body transformation after leaving the ITV soap.The 27 year old, who played Meena Jutla on Emmerdale from 2020 to 2022, is set to appear as a princess in the upcoming British-Indian film Lioness. But it's not just her new role that's got fans talking - they've also noticed how fab she looks off-screen.This week, Paige took to social media to share that she's been following a tough workout plan that's left her feeling fit and confident.

Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev were swarmed by an overwhelming number of bees in the third game of the match.During the match, bees were flying around, and one stung Alcaraz on his forehead. This made him uncomfortable, and he started swatting them away, causing chaos in the court.

Naman Ramachandran Revered Indian actor Waheeda Rehman, who was accorded the Dadasaheb Phalke award, India’s highest film honor, last year, has donated her personal memorabilia to the Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) for preservation. Rehman, the 86-year-old grande dame of Indian cinema, has worked with most of the legendary filmmakers of her country during her career and the roles she chose were in films that are considered classics in the annals of Indian cinema.

The late Paul O'Grady reportedly left a massive £15.5m in his will, with £125,000 set aside to look after his five beloved pet dogs. Paul also donated a huge £500,000 to the Battersea Cats and Dogs Home, which was featured on his popular TV show - ITV's For the Love of Dogs.This Morning presenter Alison Hammond was revealed as the new host of the series earlier this year following Paul's passing.

Naman Ramachandran Oscar, BAFTA and Grammy-winning composer A.R. Rahman (“Slumdog Millionaire”) is set to release 16 new compositions with the Dubai-based Firdaus Orchestra. Firdaus Orchestra is an all-woman ensemble of 50 musicians from 23 Arab countries, mentored by the composer.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Thailand is poised to get serious about its commitment to the film industry, and plans to launch a major new body, the Thailand Creative Culture Agency, with a budget of THB7 billion ($200 million). Long a destination for Hollywood, China and India productions, and currently playing host to the lensing of Season 3 of “The White Lotus,” Thailand has many of the elements that could contribute to building a major film industry. These include diverse locations, skilled crews, studio facilities and a location production, or incentive, scheme.

Naman Ramachandran India’s B62 Studios has an early 2024 hit with February release “Article 370,” and also has an ambitious slate lined up with plans for expanding into eastern Asia. B62 was launched by the brothers Dhar — Lokesh and Aditya — and is named after their address in Delhi’s Lajpat Nagar neighborhood, where they grew up watching the best of Bollywood alongside arthouse cinema. Lokesh Dhar went on to a flourishing career in film marketing, distribution and syndication before turning to producing, while Aditya Dhar directed military action film “Uri: The Surgical Strike,” one of the biggest Indian box office hits of 2019.

Naman Ramachandran Indian sales outfit Indywood Distribution Network has sold Rupesh Paul’s “Kamasutra – The Revenge” wide ahead of Hong Kong’s film rights market FilMart. Starring Sherlyn Chopra, Milind Gunaji and Gajendra Chauhan, and produced by San2Creations, the film follows two princesses – one who is robbed of her dreams when forced to accept a middle-aged king as her husband, and another thirsty for revenge. Indywood has sold the film to Twin (Japan, all rights); A2 Filmes (Latin America TV/VOD); Filmbridge (Mongolia, all rights); Pioneer Film (Philippines, all rights) and RFT Films (U.K./Ireland, theatrical).

Stars from across the entertainment industry have come together to celebrate and honour International Women's Day, with a flurry of empowering posts and touching tributes flooding social media. Former footballer David Beckham used his platform to shine a spotlight on inspiring young women he encountered during his charity work in India.Through a series of photos, David applauded their efforts in standing against child labor, child marriage, and gender-based violence, emphasising the importance of investing in girls' health, education, and rights.

Naman Ramachandran Bollywood star Sonakshi Sinha is all praise for her director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, whose anticipated magnum opus series “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar” is due on Netflix this year. Netflix describes the series as “an epic saga of love, power, revenge and freedom.” With a cast that also includes Manisha Koirala, Aditi Rao Hydari, Sharmin Segal, Richa Chadha, and Sanjeeda Sheikh, the series is set in the midst of multiple power struggles in Heeramandi, Lahore (now part of Pakistan) and more generally in undivided, pre-independence India, where anti-colonial freedom movements were emerging.

Naman Ramachandran The Indian media industry is improving when it comes to women in significant positions but there is a way to go before gender parity is reached, a high-powered panel debated at Mumbai’s Frames conference. The annual media industry conference is organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). Aparna Purohit, head of India and Southeast Asia originals, Amazon Prime Video, talked about the early “tough days” when she started her journey.

Naman Ramachandran Bollywood A-list star Rani Mukerji was in refreshingly candid form at Mumbai’s FICCI Frames media industry conference, proffering frank opinions on the Indian theatrical business. The usual Hindi-language domination of the all-India box office was reversed for a period in 2021-22, when films from the south of India, including “RRR,” “Kantara,” “Ponniyin Selvan” and “Vikram” dominated, and the northern counterparts from’ Bollywood’ struggled to become hits. Since then, the north-south competition has evolved again.

Naman Ramachandran Warner Bros. Discovery and Room to Read have partnered on “She Creates Change,” an animation and live-action film project to promote gender equality through the stories of young women around the world. Room to Read is a global education nonprofit aiming to creating a world free from illiteracy and gender inequality.

Naman Ramachandran Bollywood star Yami Gautam reveals her process in making “Article 370” and has addressed the issue of the film being banned in the Middle East. A political action thriller, the film deals with the events leading to the 2019 revocation of Article 370 of the Indian constitution, which granted special status to the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, some parts of which are under dispute between India, Pakistan and China since independence from the British Empire in 1947. Gautam plays Kashmiri Indian National Intelligence Agency officer Zooni Haksar who is sent back to Kashmir by Prime Minister’s Office official Rajeshwari Swaminathan (Priyamani, “Jawan”) on a mission to achieve the revocation with minimal bloodshed.

$10 billion Sony-ZEE merger plans and late February’s confirmation that Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries (which incorporates Viacom18 and streamer JioCinema) is to tie up most of Disney’s streaming and pay-TV businesses in an $8.5 billion deal, Indian media is set to gain a new market leader. For local and international operators in the world’s most populous nation, the consequences of those tectonic shifts extend across streaming, pay-TV, channels, advertising, sports and content.

sudden death of Lady Gabriella Windsor’s husband, Thomas Kingston, has sparked renewed interest in the editor — and her parents, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.Kingston and Gabriella, 42, tied the knot in May 2019 at Windsor Castle after meeting five years prior. The financier was found dead at age 45 in Gloucestershire, England, on Sunday.

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has revealed its upcoming 2024 Indian slate and Monika Shergill, VP, content has outlined the streamer’s commissioning philosophy and strategy for the country. New titles on the slate include: Luv Ranjan comedy film “Wild Wild Punjab”; Neeraj Pandey heist film “Sikandar Ka Muqaddar”; scripted Anubhav Sinha thriller series “IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack”; Kapil Sharma’s unscripted comedy series “The Great Indian Kapil Show”; and cricket themed docu-series “The Greatest Rivalry – India vs Pakistan,” featuring top Indian and Pakistani cricketers.

Drishyam,” a hit Indian thriller in which an ordinary man confounds the police in order to protect his family, is to be re-made in English. Production is by India’s Panorama Studios with U.S. companies Gulfstream Pictures and JOAT Films.