Lionsgate India Studios Sets First Feature Film, Starring Neetu Kapoor, Sunny Kaushal, Shraddha Srinath (EXCLUSIVE)

Queen Charlotte! Netflix's spinoff series centered on the monarch has an official title, and only ET has the exclusive details the very first look. The anticipated prequel drama, which introduces India Amarteifio as the young queen, will be titled . In the official first photo (see below), which ET exclusively debuts, Amarteifio steps into the shoes of Queen Charlotte in a long-sleeved, corseted cream gown, draped by a light gray hooded cape as she adorns an elaborate crown on her head matched with priceless jewels for earrings.Though she looks fit to reign over England, her pensive facial expression as she steps into a palatial setting will leave fans wondering as she looks off to the side.During Saturday's virtual Tudum event for Netflix, viewers got a taste of young Queen Charlotte in action in a first look clip from the prequel.In the clip, as young Charlotte (Amarteifio) attempts to climb up a flower-adorned wall, young George (Mylchreest) catches her in the act and is bemused by her awkward situation. As she maintains that she's «not doing anything,» even though she very much is — a point George continuously brings up — Charlotte finally gives in, telling him she's trying to find the best way to climb over the wall.«Whatever for?» George curiously asks.«Because I think he may be a beast or a troll,» Charlotte answers, referring to the king, whom she does not know she's speaking to.

Queen Charlotte! Netflix's spinoff series centered on the monarch has an official title, and only ET has the exclusive details the very first look. The anticipated prequel drama, which introduces India Amarteifio as the young queen, will be titled . In the official first photo (see above), which ET exclusively debuts, Amarteifio steps into the shoes of Queen Charlotte in a long-sleeved, corseted cream gown, draped by a light gray hooded cape as she adorns an elaborate crown on her head matched with priceless jewels for earrings.Though she looks fit to reign over England, her pensive facial expression as she steps into a palatial setting will leave fans wondering as she looks off to the side.A limited series aimed to expand the universe, follows Queen Charlotte's rise to prominence and power. The prequel, which returns Bridgerton's Golda Rosheuvel as the older version of the character, tells the story of how the young queen's marriage to King George sparked both a great love story and a societal shift, creating the world of the Ton inherited by the characters in the flagship series.

Naman Ramachandran Hindi-language “Maja Ma,” starring Bollywood icon Madhuri Dixit Nene, is the first of many Indian original films from Amazon Prime Video, Aparna Purohit, the head of India originals for the streamer, has revealed. The film is a Prime Video commission, as opposed to an acquisition. “We have been acquiring films, we have been putting films straight on our service and over the last two years, we put almost 60 films out and we also bought into co-productions. Producing our own films was the next logical step,” Purohit told Variety. Next up are films in the Telugu and Tamil languages, with films in Malayalam and Kannada being explored. “We want to tell stories that are truly rooted in our soil, stories that are compelling, that are differentiated, in the hands of very passionate creators – story being the starting point for every decision. That’s the strategy,” said Purohit. “And we want to really delight our audiences spread across the length and breadth of the country.”

Naman Ramachandran Entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA) has signed Indian filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli. Rajamouli’s “RRR,” starring NTR Jr and Ram Charan, has been making waves around the world since it released in March and has collected some $150 million, making it the fourth highest grossing Indian film of all time. The Hindi-language dubbed version of “RRR,” a film originally made in the Telugu-language, is the only non-English-language film to trend globally for 10 consecutive weeks on Netflix.    Another film by Rajamouli, 2017’s “Baahubali 2: The Conclusion” is the second highest grossing film of all time in India with $278 million. Next up for Rajamouli is an as-yet-untitled film staring Mahesh Babu, which he has described as a globe-trotting action-adventure. The film will commence production in the spring of 2023.

Manori Ravindran International Editor Vice Studios global president Kate Ward is joining BBC Studios to oversee its factual portfolio, Variety can reveal. Ward has been appointed to the role of managing director for factual at BBC Studios Productions, where she replaces Tom McDonald, who left the company earlier this year to join National Geographic. With her new role, the well-respected executive — who most recently served as president of global studios and Pulse Films for Vice Media Group — will take on one of the most significant production portfolios in the U.K. industry, spanning the BBC’s Natural History Unit, Documentary Unit and Science Unit. She will also oversee relationships with BBC Studios’ roster of production companies, including Louis Theroux’s Mindhouse Productions, David Olusoga’s Uplands TV and James and Soleta Rogan’s Rogan Productions.

National Album Day 2022 on October 15. It’ll be available exclusively on vinyl in HMV stores across the UK and online.

Naman Ramachandran Shibasish Sarkar has been unanimously elected as president of the Producers Guild of India (PGI) at the first meeting of its newly constituted Guild Council of Management. Sarkar is currently the chair and CEO of International Media Acquisition Corp (IMAC), a special purpose acquisition company targeting the Indian media industry. His last stint was as group CEO at Reliance Entertainment, a part of the Reliance ADA group . He previously held senior positions at Viacom18 and UTV Disney. Sarkar replaces prolific producer and former Disney India chief Siddharth Roy Kapur, who was in the position for six years and successfully weathered many storms during his tenure, including providing for industry workers during COVID-19, leading the industry against defamation of Bollywood by some Indian TV channels and pitching to India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting making a strong case for soft-touch regulation with an emphasis on self-regulation by the industry rather than an external censorship regime.

Clayton Davis Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages are Davis’ assessment of the current standings of the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any film or performance. Like any organization or body that votes, each individual category is fluid and subject to change. Predictions are updated every Thursday. LAST UPDATED: Sept. 20, 2022 CATEGORY COMMENTARY: A large wave of official submissions have been announced with some expected and a few surprising choices. Some early favorites are already out of the running after not being chosen by their respective countries. Pan Nalin’s “Last Film Show” will represent India instead of the global box office smash “RRR” from S.S. Rajamouli, while Monica Stan and George Chiper’s “Immaculate” will define Romania in the race instead of Cristian Mungiu’s “R.M.N.” The Telluride and TIFF hit “Godland” from Hlynur Pálmason was also passed over for “Beautiful Beings” from Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson

Pan Nalin’s Last Film Show, produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur, Nalin, Dheer Momaya and Mark Duale, has been selected as India’s official entry for the Best International Feature Oscar race.

Naman Ramachandran Popular Indian actor Parineeti Chopra (“Saina”) and actor and musician Harrdy Sandhu (“’83”) star in “Code Name: Tiranga.” An espionage action thriller, “Code Name: Tiranga” is the story of a spy on an unfaltering and fearless mission for her nation in a race against time where sacrifice is her only choice. Chopra plays an Indian Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) agent who is on a journey across many countries. It is directed by Ribhu Dasgupta (“Bard of Blood”) who previously directed Chopra in “The Girl on the Train.” Co-stars include Sandhu, Sharad Kelkar (“Bhuj: The Pride of India),Rajit Kapur (“Rocket Boys”), Dibyendu Bhattacharya (“Maharani”), Shishir Sharma (“Raazi”), Sabyasachi Chakraborty (“Avijatrik”) and Deesh Mariwala (“Bellbottom”).

Naman Ramachandran Filmmaker R. Balki and actor Dulquer Salmaan are teaming for the first time on “Chup,” a thriller where a serial killer brutally murders Bollywood film critics and carves star ratings on their foreheads. The cast also includes Bollywood veterans Sunny Deol (“Gadar: Ek Prem Katha”) and Pooja Bhatt (Netflix’s “Bombay Begums”), Shreya Dhanwanthary (Amazon Prime Video’s “The Family Man”) and Tamil-language cinema stalwart Saranya Ponvannan (“Viruman”). Balki, whose credits include “Cheeni Kum” (2007) and “Paa” (2009), both starring Amitabh Bachchan, last directed “Pad Man” (2018), starring Akshay Kumar.

Indian Matchmaking star Nadia Jagessar has hit back amid criticisms of ‘cheating’ after backlash from this series. Nadia starred in the popular Netflix reality series in season one, where Sima Taparia matched her up but unfortunately, things didn’t quite work out, and the 34-year-old returned for series two. During this series, which also saw the return of contestant Aparna Shewakramani amongst others, Nadia continued the storyline of her relationship with Shekar Jayaraman not having progressed much, despite him meeting her family early on.

Naman Ramachandran “Vikram Vedha,” starring Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan and Radhika Apte, is releasing worldwide in over 100 countries, making it one of the widest openings for a Bollywood film. Besides India, the film is releasing in territories where Bollywood films normally release day-and-date, including North America, U.K., the Middle East and Australia and New Zealand, on Sept. 30. What is remarkable is that the film is also releasing day-and-date in countries where Bollywood fare releases after it has had its initial run in the traditional territories. “Vikram Vedha” is opening across 22 countries in Europe and 27 countries in Africa and Latin America, including Japan, Russia, Panama and Peru, all non-traditional territories for Bollywood.

Naman Ramachandran Leading Indian AVOD platform MX Player has set a multi-year partnership with Lionsgate to bring premium Hollywood content onto the service. Via this agreement, MX Player consumers in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Maldives will now have access to more than 50 Hollywood blockbuster films dubbed in the Hindi, Tamil and Telugu languages in a year. Titles available in September include “Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1,” “Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2,” “War” and “Destruction: Las Vegas.” Mansi Shrivastav, senior VP, content acquisitions and alliances, MX Player, said: “Our partnership with Lionsgate allows us to bring some of the most popular and commercially acclaimed Hollywood films to our viewers in their local languages. This partnership also enables us to attract new users to the platform while consolidating our existing audience base. We are thrilled with this alliance and look forward to working closely with the team at Lionsgate to make more Hollywood content available for users in the region.”

As the world mourns the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Sunny Hostin shared a very different take than the numerous tributes celebrating the life of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch.

“I think though we can mourn the Queen and not the empire,” said Sunny Hostin on The View today.

Kajol, one of India’s best-loved actors, stars in Disney+ Hotstar series “The Good Wife – Pyaar, Kanoon, Dhoka,” an adaptation of the CBS series of the same name. Disney unveiled a first look image for the show that is now in production. With the Indian title translating as ‘The Good Wife – Love, Law, Deception,’ Kajol plays a housewife who is forced to return to work as a lawyer after her husband’s public scandal puts him behind bars. The series is directed by Suparn Verma (Amazon Studios series “The Family Man”) and produced by Mumbai-based Banijay Asia. Kajol has credits that include romance “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai,” melodrama “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…,” romantic thriller “Fanaa,” drama “My Name Is Khan,” and hit the action comedy “Dilwale,” in 2015. She hails from the Mukherjee family which is studded with actors, directors and producers, and has been married to Ajay Devgn for more than twenty years.

Naman Ramachandran Rukmini Maitra (“Sanak”) will play the lead in Ram Kamal Mukherjee’s Bengali-language film “Binodiini – Ekti Natir Upakhyan” (“Binodiini – Tale of a Theater Artist”). The film will be a biopic of Binodini Dasi, also known as Nati Binodini, who had a flourishing career as an theater actor in 19th century Bengal between the ages of 12 and 23 and was known for her innovations, including creating a stage make-up style that blended European and Indian techniques. (The difference in spelling between the actor’s name and the title of the film is due to numerology.) The film is written by Priyanka Poddar (“Parineeta”) and will be produced by Shhailendra Kkumar for SS1 Entertainment and Suraj Sharma for PK Entertainment, who are currently collaborating on “1770 – Ek Sangram,” and Prateek Chakravorty for Pramod Films (“Maara”) in association with Mukherjee’s Assorted Motion Pictures and popular Bengali cinema actor Dev Adhikari’s Dev Entertainment Ventures.

Naman Ramachandran Veteran Indian actor Kabir Bedi, who has an extensive body of work in Italy including all-time favorite television series “Sandokan,” was conferred a lifetime achievement award at Venice on Saturday. Bedi was presented with the Filming Italy Movie Lifetime Achievement Award at the Venice Production Bridge market. The award was presented by producer and actor Tiziana Rocca and Roberto Stabile, the head of the international department of Italian national audiovisual body ANICA. The actor, who has served as an unofficial ambassador for Indo-Italian relations for some four decades, said during his acceptance speech, “I have tried to make people in Italy focus on India for many years, and people in India focus on Italy for many years.”

Naman Ramachandran Bhutanese filmmaker Dechen Roder’s new film, “I, The Song,” which is selected at the Venice Production Bridge’s gap financing market, will commence principal photography in December. Roder’s debut feature “Honeygiver Among the Dogs” premiered at Busan in 2016, and went on to have a successful festival run including at Berlin, Locarno, Hong Kong, Taipei and Fribourg, where it won three major awards. “I, The Song” was born when two friends of Roder experienced the horror of being in non-consensual pornographic videos and photos in Bhutan, where in both cases it was recorded and shared without their knowledge or consent.