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MTV Staying Alive Foundation, Paramount Global and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have partnered on “In Bloom,” a short film anthology focusing on gender equity.

Directed by emerging female filmmakers from Nigeria, Kenya, India, the U.S. and Brazil, the anthology addresses a range of issues including period poverty, child marriage, gender-based violence, HIV self- stigma, family planning and women’s economic empowerment. As a part of the MTV Staying Alive Foundation’s mission of storytelling to change lives and Paramount’s “Content For Change” initiative, the series aims to champion new voices and enable conversations to dismantle systemic injustices in support of the U.N.’s gender equality goal.

The creative lead on “In Bloom” is Tope Oshin, Nigerian TV and film director and board member of U.N. Live. The shorts include English-language comedy-drama “Period,” written and directed by Nicole Teeny (U.S.): Like many of...

Musical Theatre composer-lyricist Tanvi Rajgarhia, who is professionally known as ‘Jhansi’ has shot a Broadway-style music video titled ‘We Break Up Because Of Family Reasons’, which was released on Wednesday. Jhansi is the first Indian to be invited into ‘The Harvard of Broadway’ BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop.

The video has been shot in collaboration with director Priyanka Banerjee, who is known for her multi-starrer short film ‘Devi’ starring Kajol, Shruti Haasan and Neha Dhupia.

The theatrical video was shot in Mumbai in one day.

Talking about her concept, Jhansi shared, “The meaning of this song and title is literally whatever the listener is bringing to the table with their life experience. The story of ‘Breaking Up because of Family Reasons’ applies to your life. Could be your own breakup, a relationship you never began because you knew your parents would object, or your friend crying on your shoulder...

An evening to remember for the Indian film industry as Filmfare hosted the 66th Vimal Elaichi Filmfare Awards 2021 on 27th March 2021. Making a much-awaited return, because ‘the show must go on’, the awards ceremony, this year, was held as a closed-door event where the coveted Black Lady was awarded to deserving winners from across a host of categories.

The biggest winner of the night was the movie Thappad, which bagged the Best Film award and saw director-producer Anubhav Sushila Sinha and T-Series’ Bhushan Kumar accepted the iconic Black Lady. It was an emotional moment for Babil Khan as he accepted the Best Actor in a Lead Role (Male) on behalf of his father Irrfan Khan for his memorable performance in Angrezi Medium. Add to that, the Awards further honoured and celebrated his legacy and contribution as the versatile actor was awarded posthumously the Lifetime Achievement Award.

On the other hand,...

Short film In just 13 minutes, the film holds up a mirror to our deeply patriarchal society and packs a powerful punch against sexual violence.Geetika MantriSpoilers ahead Women have been saying it for a long time. Statistics have also proved it. And yet, the disbelief remains constant when a survivor reveals that she has faced sexual violence from a person known to her. A short film – Devi – drives home this very point and much more in just 13 minutes. With an ensemble cast including Shruti Haasan, Kajol, Neha Dhupia and many others, the story begins with all the women sitting in the living room. It’s clear that the women are a motley group – one is studying, another woman in a burkha is waxing her leg, a woman in a pantsuit is sitting on a chair next to another woman in party clothes, taking a shot from a bottle of alcohol,...

Short film In just 13 minutes, the film holds up a mirror to our deeply patriarchal society and packs a powerful punch against sexual violence.Geetika MantriSpoilers ahead Women have been saying it for a long time. Statistics have also proved it. And yet, the disbelief remains constant when a survivor reveals that she has faced sexual violence from a person known to her. A short film – Devi – drives home this very point and much more in just 13 minutes. With an ensemble cast including Shruti Haasan, Kajol, Neha Dhupia and many others, the story begins with all the women sitting in the living room. It’s clear that the women are a motley group – one is studying, another woman in a burkha is waxing her leg, a woman in a pantsuit is sitting on a chair next to another woman in party clothes, taking a shot from a bottle of alcohol,...

EntertainmentApart from Kajol and Shruti Haasan in the lead roles, the short film also stars Neena Kulkarni, Neha Dhupia, Yashaswini Dayama and Shivani Raghuvanshi among others.Digital NativeKajol and Shruti Haasan have been signed up to play the lead roles in a short film titled Devi. The star cast also includes Neena Kulkarni, Neha Dhupia, Yashaswini Dayama and Shivani Raghuvanshi among others. Priyanka Banerjee is wielding the megaphone for this venture, which is about circumstances bringing together nine oppressed women from different walks of life, all of them dealing with the same issue. On being part of the short film, Shruti said she simply loved the concept when she first heard it. She added, “We often talk about sisterhood and how women need to stand with each other. Devi highlights that aspect in such a lovely way, with such a powerful message. It’s disturbingly poignant and that’s why...