1. COVID-19: BMC Directs Film City to Stop All Shoots Immediately
The novel coronavirus outbreak in India continues to affect the entertainment industry as measures are being put in place to contain its spread.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday, 16 March, issued a directive to Mumbai's Film City to suspend shooting at its premises with immediate effect. Subhash Shantaram Borkar, Joint Managing Director of Film City, confirmed the news to Pinkvilla saying that the shooting of The Kapil Sharma Show and Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial Gangubai Kathiawadi, as well as several Hindi and Marathi serials, has been cancelled in compliance with the orders.
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2. Met Gala 2020 Called off Indefinitely Due to Coronavirus Outbreak
New York's annual fashion extravaganza, the Met Gala, has been postponed indefinitely due to the global coronavirus outbreak. The event was scheduled to take place at the Metropolitan Museum on 4 May. The Met Gala has been held on the first Monday of May ever year since 2005.
Met Gala co-chair and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour shared the news in her Monday column for the magazine. “Due to the unavoidable and responsible decision by the Metropolitan Museum to close its doors, 'About Time', and the opening night gala, will not take place on the date scheduled,” she wrote. A new date has not been set.
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3. ‘Angrezi Medium’ To Re-Release When It’s Safe, Says Director
Recently, Angrezi Medium director Homi Adajania took to Instagram to upload a story that read: “At midnight all theatres will close across India till the authorities give us further notice. We will re-release Angrezi Medium when it is safe to do so. Till then stay safe and be kind to each other.”
A few days back, most state governments issued advisories that cinema halls, gyms, swimming pools will be shut till 31 March owing to the rising cases of coronavirus.
Angrezi Medium, starring Irrfan Khan, Radhika Madan and Kareena Kapoor released on 13 March, the same day Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray announced shutdown of cinema halls.
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4. Netflix, Zee5 & More Refuse to be Part of Self-Regulatory Body
With a new council being set up for content regulation on over-the-top (OTT) platforms, some streaming services are opting out of the body. Streaming platforms like Hotstar, Jio, SonyLIV, Voot and Eros Now have signed up for being a part of the independent adjudicatory council which will be receiving consumer complaints.
However, platforms like Netflix, Zee5, AltBalaji, MXPlayer and Arre have refused to be a part of it. This body, called the Digital Content Complaint Council (DCCC), will be presided over by a retired judge and representatives from the entertainment fraternity and government as well. It will look into complaints from consumers and the government.
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5. SRK’s Next Production to Be on Muzaffarpur Shelter Home Case?
Founded by Shah Rukh Khan, Red Chillies Entertainment’s latest release, Kamyaab, had received a lot of appreciation from critics. Now, according to a report by Mumbai Mirror, SRK has zeroed in on his next film as a producer.
The movie will reportedly be based on the Muzaffarpur shelter home mass abuse case of 2018. It will be helmed by Pulkit, who has previously directed a show on Subhas Chandra Bose and the 2017 film Maroon.
A source told the publication that Pulkit had started working on the script soon after the case came to light. “The director has done a lot of research about the case and the film is supposed to go on floors in July. The cast will be finalised soon.”
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