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The 5G telecom services will be launched in India by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, October 1. An official statement states that the Prime Minister would officially launch 5G on Saturday in a few cities before gradually expanding across the whole nation over the following few years. The 5G services will be unveiled at an event held at Pragati Maidan in the nation’s capital on Saturday at 10 a.m., according to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The fifth generation, or 5G service, is anticipated to unleash new economic prospects and societal advantages, acting as a transformative force for Indian society and being capable of supporting ultra-high speed internet. Ashwini Vaishnaw, the minister of communications, had earlier stated that PM Modi’s ambition was to create 5G in parallel with global standards and to pioneer 6G technology. By 2035, India’s overall economic impact from 5G is anticipated to be worth USD 450 billion. The Ministry of Communications states that years of careful planning have culminated in the launch of 5G services. A successful 5G spectrum auction was recently held, and telecom service providers were given 51,236 MHz with a gross revenue of 1,50,173 crore. The auction brought together the desire for a strong 5G ecosystem capable of supporting its use cases like IoT, M2M, AI, edge computing, robotics, etc. In addition to the announcement of 5G, PM Modi will open the sixth edition of the India Mobile Congress 2022 (IMC-2022), which will take place from October 1–4 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.

In response to the information and broadcasting ministry withdrawing its approval for the news broadcaster to uplink 10 TV channels in the Ku-band (a type of satellite frequency) on the GSAT-15 satellite, Zee Media Corporation Ltd. (ZMCL) has filed a petition with the Delhi High Court. This uplinking gave the media company an unfair advantage over its rivals by making these channels available on DD Free Dish. An order from the ministry last week stated that ten regional news channels, including Zee Hindustan, Zee Rajasthan, Zee Punjab Haryana Himachal, Zee Bihar Jharkhand, Zee Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh, Zee Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand, Zee Salam, Zee 24 Kalak, Zee 24 Taas, and Zee Odisha (now Zee Delhi NCR Haryana), were allowed to operate on C-Band, another form of satellite However, it later discovered that same channels were also accessible via FreeDish, Doordarshan’s direct-to-home service. This occurred due to the proximity, co-location, and lack of signal encryption by both DD FreeDish and Dish TV transponders on the same GSAT 15 satellite. ZMCL responded to I&B’s show cause notice by asserting that the co-location of DD FreeDish and Dish TV on the same satellite and Prasar Bharti’s non-encryption of the signals, which is against DTH regulations, are to blame for the issue. “The order..is perverse as it has been passed in violation of the principles of natural justice. The very complaints on the basis of which the impugned order has been passed have not been shared till date with the Petitioners. Without access to these key documents, the Petitioners have been put at a grave disadvantage and are unable to exercise their right to a free and fair hearing,” ZMCL referred to the order as draconian in its writ petition. The company has underlined that the aforementioned instructions are of a very serious nature, very detrimental to its operations, and have far-reaching effects. Additionally, the media company has said that it hasn’t been given any time to pursue its legal remedies. “It is clear therefore, that the impugned order has been actuated by malice and is aimed to causing unlawful loss to the petitioner and unlawful gains to its competitors,” it has said.

According to an official, the information and broadcasting ministry is developing a model theatre policy in collaboration with all state governments in order to implement a pan-India single-window clearance system and aid with the recovery of the industry, which has been devastated by the covid-led disruptions. Government data shows that the number of screens has decreased from 12,000 to 8,000 since 2017. The two years of the pandemic saw a more pronounced downward trend. Comparatively, China’s number of cinema screens increased from 10,000 to about 70,000 during that time. “In the past five to six years, the number of theatres is on a decline. We must reverse this trend. The ministry has asked the Film Facilitation Office to work with Invest India to come up with a single-window portal for opening theatres, so that more and more theatres can be opened and the public gets to watch the magic of films in theatres. The Centre will also work with the states to create a model theatre policy to ensure states can adopt and work on the same,” Apurva Chandra, the union secretary for information and broadcasting, addressed a gathering on Tuesday at FICCI Frames Fast Track 2022 in Mumbai. According to Chandra, the government is looking at various models, such as the multiscreen movie theatres with a food court, sports arena, and other amenities that are already becoming common in some parts of India. To encourage and enable foreign filmmakers shooting in India, the ministry established the Film Facilitation Office as a part of the National Film Development Corp. (NFDC). It provides filmmakers with a single-window clearance mechanism. Invest India is an organisation that assists foreign investors in finding opportunities and choices in India. Since more and more viewers chose the comfort and convenience of video streaming platforms during the pandemic years, 1,500–2,000 theatres, the majority of which had single screens, have closed their doors, and several more are considering doing the same. In order to reach an agreement on the key provisions of the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2021, Chandra met with a number of members of the industry, including Shibasish Sarkar, president of the Producers Guild of India, Dinesh Vijan, founder of Maddock Films, Apoorva Mehta, CEO of Dharma Productions, R. Balki, Ayan Mukerji, and Gaurav Gandhi. Piracy and the U/A (unrestricted with caution or parental guidance required for audiences under 12 years) subcategory for film certification are among the problems. There was unanimously positive feedback from the industry participants.

Chhello Show (‘Last Film Show’), a small-budget Gujarati drama, was chosen as India’s official entry to the Academy Awards for the international film category on Tuesday, putting all rumours to rest and defeating prominent Hindi and southern language films. A big screen release for the Pan Nalin-directed movie, which stars Bhavin Rabari, Bhavesh Shrimali, Richa Meena, Dipen Raval, and Paresh Mehta in the lead roles, is planned for late 2022. It managed to beat SS Rajamouli’s historical drama RRR and political drama The Kashmir Files. The film Chhello Show, about a young child in a Gujarati village who pays a projectionist to watch movies at his theatre, had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2021. The movie comes after the Malayalam thriller Jallikattu and the Tamil drama Koozhangal, both of which were chosen to represent India at the Oscars the previous two years but failed to receive any nominations. The year before, the winning entry was the musical drama Gully Boy by Zoya Akhtar. After Gyan Correa’s The Good Road in 2013, Chhello Show is the second Gujarati movie in the last ten years to be chosen for the award. However, only three Indian movies—Mother India (1957), Salaam Bombay! (1988), and Lagaan (2001)—have ever been nominated for an Academy Award. The 95th Academy Awards will take place in the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 12, 2023. Filmmaker Nalin has received recognition for a number of critically acclaimed works. His Hindi and Japanese-language motion picture Valley of Flowers won the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles’ best picture award in 2006, while Faith Connections, an official selection at the Toronto Film Festival in 2013 and winner of the festival’s audience choice prize in 2014, was also produced by him. In addition to being nominated for the 2016 All Lights India International Film Festival, Nalin’s feminist story Angry Indian Goddesses, which received the crowd award at the Rome Film Festival and the audience choice award at the Toronto International Film Festival, is well-known to Hindi-speaking viewers. The United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences bestows its annual award for best international film feature on a full-length movie made outside of the US and with a majority of dialogue in languages other than English. The Film Federation of India, the country’s top organisation of producers, distributors, exhibitors, and studio owners, makes the final decision regarding the official selection. Critics and movie enthusiasts were hoping for either SS Rajamouli’s RRR or Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files to be submitted as the official entry, therefore Chhello Show’s selection came as a surprise. The former, a high-budget action spectacular, has already conducted a significant promotional campaign in the US and tells the story of two fictional Indian revolutionaries. The latter, which has gained considerable support and admiration from the political machinery, is focused on the exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from the state.

Brahmastra Part One: Shiva, starring Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor has become a box office sensation. The Ayan Mukerji-directed Karan Johar production made over Rs 200 crores at the global box office in its first four days of release. The fantasy trilogy’s upcoming sequels have sparked a flurry of fan theories and speculative posts on social media. The movie’s OTT platform release is keenly anticipated by fans. In the past, major platforms paid astonishing sums for the digital rights to high-budget films. The staggering sum of Rs 350 crore was paid for the digital streaming rights to SS Rajamouli’s massively successful movie RRR. KGF: Chapter 2, the successful follow-up to Yash, not far behind, sold its OTT rights for a whopping Rs 320 crore. For more than Rs 100 crores, Akshay Kumar also sold his direct-to-OTT movie Laxmmi Bomb to Disney+ Hotstar. According to numerous sources, OTT giant Disney+ Hotstar has already purchased the rights to Brahmastra. According to reports, the digital platform paid Rs 80 crore for the rights to the Ranbir-Alia movie.  Within five days of its release, the movie—which also stars Nagarjuna, Mouni Roy, and Shah Rukh Khan—passed the Rs 150 crore milestone at the Indian box office. Brahmastra Part 2: Dev, the movie’s second season, is expected to be completed by the beginning of the next year, according to director Ayan Mukerji. By December 2025, the director hopes to have the movie in theatres. Who will play the lead part in Brahmastra 2 is a subject of much speculation. According to reports, Deepika Padukone will play Amrita, the mother of Ranbir Kapoor’s Shiva, in the sequel. For the role of Dev, the male lead in part two, a variety of possibilities have surfaced, ranging from Ranveer Singh to Hrithik Roshan.

The celebration of National Cinema Day, which was originally slated to take place on September 16, has been postponed by the Multiplex Association of India (MAI). The MAI announced in an official notification that the National Cinema Day will henceforth be held on September 23 in response to requests from various stakeholders and to encourage as much participation as possible. To celebrate National Cinema Day, more than 4,000 screens at multiplexes across the nation, including PVR, INOX, Cinepolis, Carnival, and Delite, have partnered up to give a “celebratory admission price” of Rs. 75. Many online commenters, however, claimed that the decision to postpone National Cinema Day was made as a result of the enthusiastic crowd reactions to the newly released sci-fi action movie “Brahmastra: Part -1: Shiva,” which led to the theatre owners asking MAI to delay the celebrations for a week. Due to the boycott and cancel culture that has been prevalent in recent months, Bollywood has received a lot of attention on social media. At the moment, “Brahmastra” is being credited with reviving the big-screen experience. According to trade reports, the sci-fi action movie made over 100 crores in India after just three days of release, which is the greatest opening-week total of any Hindi movie this year. After three days, “Brahmastra” had raked in 225 crores worldwide at the box office. The national multiplex trade body issued a statement saying, “The National Cinema Day was previously announced to be held on 16th September, however, on request from various stakeholders and in order to maximise participation, it would now be held on 23rd September.” According to the MAI, the significant discount is a way of expressing gratitude to moviegoers who helped the theatre reopen following a prolonged closure caused by the Covid-19 outbreak. According to the MAI, the National Cinema Day would bring people of all ages together to enjoy a day at the movies. “National Cinema Day celebrates the successful reopening of cinemas and is a ‘thank you’ to the moviegoers who made this happen. National Cinema Day is also an invitation to those moviegoers who haven’t made it back to a cinema near them, yet,” the association said. It should be mentioned that the Hollywood movie Avatar will be back in theatres on September 23. James Cameron’s 2009 science fiction blockbuster will have a re-release on September 23 in India, according to Disney. The 4K High Dynamic Range upgraded version of Avatar is returning to theatres. It is yet unknown, though, whether or not the public will be able to see this cult sci-fi at Rs 75.

The issue of regulating OTT players, or applications, like WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal is causing key ministries to reach conflicting decisions. From the standpoints of public safety and national security, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Department of Telecommunications (DoT) have supported the idea. The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) is currently opposed to all regulations. To stop the spread of false information, the DoT has stated that a mechanism should be developed that gives it the authority to selectively restrict OTT apps or content. These opinions were compiled by the DoT, which then requested that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) review its 2020 recommendations regarding OTT apps. MeitY, in contrast, disagrees with DoT and claims that no regulations should be put in place for OTT providers because the 2020 recommendations are sufficient for the time being. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) said that it should be the only department involved in content and online news because they fall under its purview. According to the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), as OTT apps provide the same set of services, they should be subject to the licencing framework, particularly the universal licence. The ministries have provided their opinions as part of the DoT’s consultation process on the issue of app regulation. The TRAI is anticipated to release a consultation document, inviting feedback from all the stakeholders, before finalising its recommendations.

The movie Brahmastra, which reunites Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt for the first time, was finally released in theatres on Friday. Despite being released on a non-holiday, the Ayan Mukerji movie had a roaring start, with sales in the range of 35–36 crore. This appears to surpass Ranbir’s greatest opening to date, Sanju, which brought in 34.75 crore on day one in 2018. On the first day of its release in Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu, the movie was expected to do well owing to strong advance booking numbers. Although Ranbir had previously stated that he couldn’t take the advance booking figures seriously because “till the audience doesn’t see the film, the game doesn’t begin.” Brahmastra was the highest opening day ever for original Hindi content on a non-holiday, generating between 35 and 36 crore net, according to a report on Boxofficeindia.com. According to the estimate, the Hindi version will bring in between 32 and 33 crore net. Additionally, it suggested that during the weekend, there might be $8–10 million in overseas collections. The greatest opening on a non-holiday was achieved by SS Rajamouli’s Bahubali: The Conclusion, which brought in 41 crores. With Hindi dubbing, it was simultaneously shot in Tamil and Telugu. Since the start of advance booking, 11 crore rupees worth of Brahmastra tickets have been sold as of Wednesday night. These were recognised as the finest advance booking figures for any Bollywood film during the post-pandemic period. Critics, however, had conflicting opinions and mixed reviews about Brahmastra. Most of them termed it as a visual treat while appreciating the VFX but pointed out the poor storyline, dialogues and screenplay. Now, how the audience perceives the cinematic experience of the ‘Astraverse’ and what reflects on the box-office in this weekend will determine the fate of this 410-crore film.