Event Coverage
Films, glamour and poor cousin TV
MUMBAI: The opening of the annual Ficci Frames 2010 was glamorous with the presence of Bollywood personalities like Yash Chopra, Karan Johar, Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif, but the television industry was treated as a poor cousin on the first day.
With the 11th Ficci Frames concentrating like the previous years on the business of entertainment, even the bigwigs of Bollywood along with those from the United States concentrated on business.
Perhaps the only difference was that the presence of these personalities perforce made everyone speak only about cinema, despite the fact that the three-day meet is about all aspects of entertainment.
And Katrina along with Dutch actress Victoria appeared to be present to add the glamour quotient, and participated in the Lamp Lighting ceremony.
But unlike other events which do not have a political bent, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan stayed on for the entire duration of the session, which started almost an hour late and lasted around two hours.
And expectedly, Shah Rukh Khan who is still smarting from the ‘My name is Khan’ controversy and Yash Chopra apart from the Chief Minister used the podium to make political points, mostly surrounding around the attempts to prevent the screening of the Karan Johar-directed SRK starrer.
Interestingly, Fox Filmed Entertainment CEO James N Gianopulos not only quoted SRK who had recently said that in India, seeing films was like brushing teeth in the morning and ‘you cannot escape it’, but also Mark Twain about the way Indian civilisation had affected the world.
As the day rolled on, the debate on entertainment moved to other areas. A big miss, however, was the absence of the Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni who was caught up in Parliament following the issuance of a whip in Rajya Sabha where the discussion on the Budget was coming up for voting. She will now be available on the final day of the event.
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
