'He was the Michael Jackson of the community.'
We do not whistle for Hathiram Chaudhary. And yet the bond we feel towards him is spontaneous, almost effortless. This is because he shares something of our too-ideal dreams, our wry acceptance of our limitations, our useful frustrations, and our pointless sprints, explains Sreehari Nair.
'If you are trying to tell an authentic Punjab story, it's almost impossible that the NRI fascination or the NRI characters will not be a part of it.'
In 2025, OTT series were entertaining enough, even though most were in the crime genre.
After a four-year wait, The Family Man 3 returns with Shrikant Tiwari facing his most personal battle yet.
'I insisted only Jaideep could play Inspector Haathiram Chaudhary.' 'Yes, Jaideep is a really good actor but this was not just about the performance.' 'Even that tired walk of him reflects the mood and theme of the show.'
'...you won't have to announce it yourself -- people around you will tell you it's time.'
'Your relationship with your child is changing every single day, ditto your relationship with your parents.'
Saif Ali Khan made his first media appearance after his shocking stabbing incident last month, and looked happy to announce his latest film, Jewel Thief: The Heist Begins.
Paatal Lok 2 breaks the second season curse and spins yet another engrossing mystery, observes Mayur Sanap.
'I was feeding off the bond that Ansari and Hathiram had formed during season one.'
'Sudip sir keeps telling me that what I have done is very Hollywood.'
Writers and creators are telling more authentic stories based in states and cities that we may not have seen much of in mainstream media, such as Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh. Or ones that we have some mistaken notions about like Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, highlights Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
'I will never ever forget Paatal Lok 2 because I left for the shoot the night I got married!'
'Life does not change in such a way that everything becomes easy. Struggle and hustle is there for everyone. 'The difference is that people have started knowing me.'
'When I am working on a series, be it Paatal Lok on Amazon Prime or Kohrra on Netflix, I never take it for granted that we will be back with another season.' 'It's only at the end of the season that I ask myself if I still have it in me to take the story further and if I would like to meet the characters again.' 'If the answer is yes, then I find ways to make the journey exciting for myself, like taking Inspector Haathiram Chaudhary to Nagaland.'
'There is simply too much to watch, read and absorb.' 'Just online consumption (news, entertainment, social media) in India was 2.5 hours a day in November 2024.' 'Add TV (just under 4 hours), other media, and the figure is closer to 7 to 8 hours a day for over one-third of Indians,' points out Vanita Kohli Khandekar.
Amazon Prime Video has announced a huge number of assorted Web series and movies, and the slate sure looks interesting.
Despite the Delhi police's tarnished reputation in recent months, viewers find themselves rooting for Inspector Hathiram Chaudhary because he displays both vulnerability and remorse, observes Ranjita Ganesan.
'We wanted to explore the divisions in India -- be it class, caste, language, religion or gender.'
'He was once a hero. He was the poster boy of investigative journalism.' 'Then suddenly, because the TRPs of his channel were down, his boss decides to sack him.'
'When you are crafting a story, it's always important to see how authentic that story is because if it is authentic and rooted, it will stand the test of time.'
Paatal Lok is definitely a must watch show. The credit for its success goes to the writers who enthralled us with their unique characters, but also to the wonderful band of actors who grabbed the opportunity to showcase their frightening raw talent, notes Aseem Chhabra.
'We want to push boundaries; we want to push the envelope as far as content is concerned...'
If Irrfan could have been our finest professor of empirical philosophy, and Nawaz is our foremost poet of that space halfway between the gutter and the stars, then Jaideep Ahlawat has to be our greatest artist-scientist, asserts Sreehari Nair.
From convincing film-makers to do shows for online, to having a slate with some of the best films and shows, Amazon Prime Video has come a long way since it came to India four years ago.
'I am most happy about the memes of Thor and me; that was so cool!' 'I showed my wife one where my face was photoshopped on Thor's body.' 'She loves muscles -- she's always keeps telling me to get muscles.' 'I showed her the photo and told her that the muscle guy has been replaced by the artist.'
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