Discovery Channel’s ‘Planet Healers’ to feature India’s most promising start-ups

Bustling with more than 1.3 billion people, there is a huge pressure on resources and sustainable living that is in turn leading to India grappling with several environmental issues like air and water pollution, and those related to plastic and solid waste management. According to a WHO report, 9 of its top 10 polluted cities in the world are in India. The Ganges is amongst the 10 most polluted rivers in the world. Notably, India lost an average of 63 football fields worth of forest land every day between 2014 and 2017. The country produces almost 1,00,000 metric tonnes of waste every day. There is an urgent need for us to find long-term sustainable solutions.

Recognizing the problem, Discovery Channel, India’s leading destination for factual entertainment, premiered a four-part original docu-series ‘Planet Healers’ on 8th March, featuring eight of India’s most promising environment friendly start-ups, who are innovating ways to pave a path to a sustainable tomorrow. Hosted by Bollywood actor, Jim Sarbh, the series will deep dive into the journey of how these start-ups are working out innovative technology led solutions to environmental hazards faced by our country.

“Planet Healers is not just a TV show; it is an attempt by Discovery to create mass awareness about environmental hazards faced by our country which will have significant long-term impact,” said, Zulfia Waris, Vice President, Premium & Digital networks, Discovery Communications India. “We have focused this series on individuals who have dedicated themselves to create innovative technology led solutions for the conservation and preservation of our planet. They are common people with uncommon ambitions and incredible self-belief who are making a difference.”

The selected startups are spread across India, one of them being from Pune- RUDRA. Rudra collects plastic waste, such as bottles, bags, food pouches, wrappers, cable covers, etc., from different houses around the city and recycle it into fuel, gas and sludge. The poly-fuel is a mixture of diesel, petrol and kerosene, with very high calorific value which can be used in boilers, furnaces, stoves, in agricultural firms, etc.

Dr. Medha, Co-Founder of Rudra, said, “It is a great honor and validation to be featured on Discovery Channel, a dream come true. The reach and prestige of Discovery is huge, and we are happy that we can reach out to many people across the globe through them. This will help us in creating awareness of our technology and effort.”

“A deer died after consuming plastic before our eyes. And that moment changed our life forever and gave us the resolve to start this fight against waste plastics. We can bring change only if we work collectively; and all it needs is a small action from each one of us,” added Dr. Medha.

Other startups featured in the series are Urban Kisaan- empowers people to grow their own safe, fresh and high-quality food with the help of Hydroponic farming technique. Absolute Water converts 17 lakh liters of sewage water into drinking water every day while Saahas Zero Waste specializes in treating and recycling waste without disturbing the ecosystem. NaMo E Waste is working towards not just recycling but also ensuring safe disposal of e-waste. Afforest creates natural, wild, maintenance free, native forests using Miyawaki technique.  Farm2Energy provides a robust and integrated biomass supply solution for the advanced bio-fuels & bio-power industries. Chakr Innovation has created world’s first retro-fit emission control device for diesel generators which can capture over 90% of particulate matter emissions.

Get ready to be inspired by Pune based startup Rudra featuring on Planet Healers, a Discovery Channel Original on 29th March 2019, Friday at 7 PM only on Discovery Channel and Discovery HD World.

Endemol Shine Group, DoveTail Media and acclaimed film director Shekhar Kapur join forces to bring The Ibis Trilogy to worldwide market

Global content creator, producer and distributor Endemol Shine Group today announces the development of a major high-end production for the international market.

Shekhar Kapur, the award-winning film director behind ‘Elizabeth’ and ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age’ as well as Bollywood smash hits ‘Mr. India’, ‘Masoom’ and ‘Bandit Queen’ has signed a deal with Endemol Shine Group to bring to life the trilogy of best-selling novels by acclaimed author Amitav Ghosh.

Ghosh’s masterpiece, which begins with ‘Sea of Poppies’, continues with ‘River of Smoke’ and concludes with ‘Flood of Fire’, has already achieved classic status and is seen as a landmark of twenty-first century literature.

The agreement also brings together Endemol Shine Group companies, Artists Studio (‘The Fall’) and Endemol Shine India (‘Test Case’) who will produce the drama in partnership with TV packaging consultancy service DoveTale Media who initially acquired the rights to the books.

Justin Pollard, whose credits include the blockbuster ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise as well as hit television series ‘Vikings’ and ‘The Tudors’, is on board as Historical Consultant and Story Editor. Set in mid-nineteenth century AsiaAsia, the series will interweave the lives of vividly drawn characters against the backdrop of the opium wars between Britain, India and China.  The team is in the process of lining up a lead writer.

Abhishek Rege CEO, Endemol shine India said “We at Endemol Shine India have been focused developing quality content not just the Indian market but something that would elicit curiosity from a global audience. This is the first step in that direction. The Ibis Trilogy project will be an amalgamation of the best global creative and production talent, including Endemol Shine India, Artists Studio, Dove Tale Media, Amitav Gosh, Lars Blomgren and Shekhar Kapur!”

Shekhar Kapur adds; “I have always been fascinated that the drug trade was the engine for the Industrial Revolution. Amitav Gosh’s books brilliantly bring out the vast epic and emotional tale of opium, from its beginnings in India where it is grown and onto China where it is pushed by drug lords. The story also follows the journeys of indentured labour from India to colonies around the world and tells the intriguing tales of people from India, America and China at a time when modern history was being formed. I’m very much looking forward to collaborating with Endemol Shine in this gripping series that could run into many seasons.”

Lars Blomgren, Head of Scripted for EMEA at Endemol Shine Group says; “Our ambition is to create a major high-end franchise for the international market, matching the scale and epic sweep of the Ibis novels. This deal represents our Group collaborating at its best, creating an exotic, never before seen tale with wide audience appeal. Shekhar Kapur completes the exclusive package and we’re expecting great interest in bringing this to the global audience.”

Lars Blomgren was appointed Head of Scripted EMEA in 2018 and is charged with enhancing Endemol Shine Group’s premium offering through increased collaboration, shared investment and opportunities across the Group.

Last year Endemol Shine Group’s unparalleled network of award-winning scripted producers and companies across markets in Europe, Middle East and Asia were responsible for 50 non-English language productions.

Recent and forthcoming series include Norway’s Beforeigners (HBO Europe), Sweden’s Beartown (HBO Europe), The Idhun Memories (Netflix), Cathedral of the Sea (Antena 3/ TV3/ Netflix) and Matadero (Antena 3) from Spain, The Oldenheim Twelve (RTL4) and Lois (NPO1) from the Netherlands, Germany’s Dark (Netflix) and Pagan Peak (Sky Deutschland), France’s Insoupconnable (TF1) and Guyanne (Canal+), Italy’s While I Was Away (Rai Uno) and Queens (Hot) and Just for Today (Yes) from Israel.

Adeeb Rais is the new Actor-Director on the block to watch out for

 

Adeeb Rais who started his journey very young with his debut feature film – Main Aur Mr Right, recently debuted as an actor in the web series – Yeh Crazy Dil. Having made short films like Lovey Dovey starring Nidhi Sin and his recent one Auntyji starring the legendary Shabana Azmi, this is Adeeb’s first web series as an actor and director.

Yeh Crazy Dil stars Zoa Morani opposite Adeeb Rais and the two have fabulously run the series on their shoulders. Lillete Dubey, who plays Zoa’s mother has done complete justice to her cameo of a modern age mother. Mini Mathur too, elegantly leads her cameo of playing a renowned publisher. Adeeb on the other hand is the new kid on the block. Having played his part well behind the camera so far, Adeeb fit in the shoes of an actor with natural ease.

Adeeb who is basking in on the love for his debut shares that work has begun for his next web series already. With his last short film Auntyji, now nominated at the Filmfare awards, Adeeb is trying to break the set norms of the industry and stand out with his work, both as an Actor and Director!!

Neeti Mohan and Aditya Narayan’s musical face-off in Colors’ Khatra Khatra Khatra

When friends meet after a long time, what often follows is squall of laughter and pranks. COLORS’ Khatra Khatra Khatra features television’s most popular faces –  Bharti Singh, Harsh Limbachiyaa, Aditya Narayan, Anita Hassanandani, Vikas Gupta and Aly Goni, who are in a constant battle to outwit each other through a series of pranks. The show serves as an entertainment feast to the audience as the contestants walk on a path which is filled with unpredictable incidents.

In the upcoming Holi special episode, Bollywood’s talented singer Neeti Mohan will be seen performing on popular holi tracks like ‘Rang Barse’, ‘Balam pichkari’, etc. Even after being aware of the format of the show, Neeti didn’t shy away from being a part of it and was sporty enough to participate in a musical face-off with Aditya Narayan. While they had to sing songs decided by other contestants, there was another twist to the game as the words of the songs were twisted. The one who loses had to face the brunt of the punishment. As a part of the punishment, there was a spray that was attached to the mike and whenever Neeti and Aditya sang the wrong lines water was sprayed on their face.

Talking about the face-off, Aditya Narayan said, “I am a huge fan of Neeti’s singing. We all know how talented and graceful she is when it comes to singing. Recently we had a face-off in which the songs word were twisted and it was really difficult to sing. To make it tougher, there was a water spray attached to the mike which sprayed water on our face while singing. But hats off to Neeti, the way she sang even after so many hindrances was something to look forward.”

Guess what Jimmy Shergill wanted to become before he chose acting?

Everyone has dreams of becoming something when they’re young. Someone wants to become an astronaut, someone a pilot and some doctors.

And that’s exactly what Jimmy Shergill dreamt of. He confessed on Famously Filmfare on MX Player that wanted to become a doctor before he became an actor!

“When I was little, my mother would always feel that I would become a doctor. I wonder why, though! So, I took that thing very seriously. And when I was in school also, if I start counting I guess it was till the 11th grade that I tried very hard thinking I would study biology and would definitely go for it and go into medical and I thought of becoming a doctor. My mother would tell me since childhood that I would grow up to become a doctor.

But when the proper experiments began in the 11th grade on cockroaches and frogs and whatever, I ran away from there. I thought to myself if I cannot dissect a cockroach or a frog or watch it happen, how do you expect me to probably have a human body with me and study it? I tried very hard. But then I called my mother and said that I won’t be able to do it and that I tried a lot”, said Jimmy.

Myntra’s Roadster launches a new range of Augmented Reality T-Shirts

Roadster, one of India’s leading casual outdoorsy lifestyle brands, announces the launch of Augmented Reality Tees (AR Tees) or the talking tees. With this launch, Roadster marries fashion, design and technology, offering shoppers a set of t-shirts that bring their roadster visual to life. This new range has been developed in-house by Myntra’s own Innovation Labs and is set to take the level of Innovation in fashion to the next level.

Although talking tees appear as normal graphic tees, it has in it, a readable AR code that the Myntra app can read and bring the graphic to life. Viewers get a taste of the concept through sounds and visuals of being on the road, with each graphic design bringing to life, the brand’s philosophy of hitting the road and creating experiences through a simple shake of the phone, or by aiming the device at the AR reader on the shirt.

As a leading innovator in the process of applying technology to fashion design, Myntra is not only disrupting the way brands are built but is also changing the course for its private brands in the process. This new innovation is set to change the way people look at the every-day staple t-shirt that has come a long way, from the solids to the popular graphic tees

From an experienced wanderer to a soulful camper, the limited edition collectable is for everyone who loves their tech-grease, for those who love to stay in trend and certainly for all those who like to hit the road. The tees are 100% cotton, with 6 different AR stories to collect with each design and priced at Rs. 999/-. The AR experience is only available on Android.

 

 

‘PM Narendra Modi’ to hit the theatres early, new release date: 5th April 2019

 

Film PM Narendra Modi has been one of the most talked about films of the year. The anticipation for the film has gone higher after the makers revealed the 9 looks of actor Vivek Anand Oberoi in the film. We will not have to wait for a long time to watch the film as the makers have now decided to come a week early i.e 5th April 2019. The film will also release in Tamil and Telugu.

Producer Sandip Ssingh said, “We are bringing this film a week early on public demand. There is a lot of love and anticipation among the people and we don’t want them to wait longer.This is a story of 1.3 billion people and I can’t wait to show it to them.”

Directed by Omung Kumar, ‘PM Narendra Modi’ the film will traverse the journey of Narendra Modi from his humble beginnings to becoming the Prime Minister of India. The makers unveiled the first look and poster of the film in January in 23 languages made a splash on the internet.

The film has versatile actor Vivek Anand Oberoi in and as ‘PM Narendra Modi’, actors Boman Irani, Manoj Joshi, Prashant Narayanan, Zarina Wahab, Barkha Sengupta, Anjan Shrivastav, Yatin Karyekar, Ramakant Dayma, Akshat R Saluja,Jimesh Patel and Darshan Kumaar in important roles.

Producer, Creative Director and Story by Sandip Ssingh.Produced by Suresh Oberoi and Anand Pandit the film is directed by biopic maestro Omung Kumar.

Mika Singh makes Holi more colourful with his special performance on Colors’ Gathbandhan

Music and dance complete all celebrations! Keeping up with the enthusiasm and energies that surround the festival of Holi, COLORS’ popular show Gathbandhan is gearing up to celebrate this occasion with a grand party hosted by Savitri Mai (Sonali Naik).

In this celebration, viewers will be delighted to witness the very talented singer, Mika Singh, who sets the stage on fire with his special performance along with the star cast of the show. Mika Singh will be seen entering the show as a special guest invited by Savitri Mai (Sonali Naik), who is his big fan both in reel and real life.

Being the showstopper of the party, Mika will be seen singing his famous renditions like, ‘Saavn mai lag gayi aag’, ‘Dil Mein Baje Guitar’ and ‘Aankh Maare’. Along with his performance, the viewers will also get to see Mika playing cupid and trying his best to get Raghu (Abrar Qazi) and Dhanak (Shruti Sharma) closer to each other. He will also help Raghu with special tips and tactics to sweep Dhanak off her feet.

Talking about his association with Colors, Mika Singh said, “Associating myself with Colors has always been a great experience. This is my first on a fiction show and I’m really excited to celebrate Holi with the cast of Gathbandhan. One thing I really like about Holi is that this festival bridges social gaps and brings everyone together without discrimination. I’m also going to unite two hearts through the power of music .”

Adnan Sami invited Rekha Bhardwaj as a special mentor on The Voice

StarPlus’ The Voice is setting the stage on fire as the contestants battle out with their team members for the second round of the show. The coaches of the show Adnan Sami, Harshdeep Kaur, Kanika Kapoor and Armaan Malik have nurtured and groomed the contestants for the battles. Each coach has taken help from a renowned musician to mentor the contestants. The soulful singer Adnan Sami took help of his dear friend and India’s famous Sufi musician and Bollywood singer, Rekha Bhardwaj, to mentor and groom the contestants.

 

Rekha Bhardwaj and Adnan Sami have collaborated in many duets and their association with each other goes way back. As per sources, Rekha Bhardwaj not only came to meet the contestants but also spoke about her lesser-known side and inspired the contestants in every which way. They were thrilled to meet and interact with her. She did her best in helping Adnan Sami with the coaching and encouragement that the contestants needed to give their best in the battle round.

 

It would be a delight for the viewers to watch the amazing talent mentored by two soulful singers Rekha Bhardwaj and Adnan Sami come on StarPlus’ The Voice. The show is keeping the viewers hooked to their screens with lively performances and the fun-filled moments between the stellar line-up of coaches.

“I can’t even make tea and these kids cook so well,” says Randhir Kapoor.

The Kapoors – Randhir, Rajiv and Rishi and their families are known for their fondness for food.

 “I can’t make a proper cup of tea so I am amused at the cooking skills these little Junior Masterchef contestants have. They have been cooking international cuisine at such a tender age and I am so proud of them. The modaks we had today were delicious and added great flavour to our festival,” says the charming Randhir Kapoor.