iWorld
When can you watch Friends: The Reunion in India?
KOLKATA: In another piece of good news for the fans of the iconic TV show Friends, OTT platform Zee5 announced on Tuesday that it will stream the highly anticipated Friends: The Reunion in India simultaneously with the US and the world on 27 May.
Talking about the excitement ahead of the premiere, Zee5 India chief business officer Manish Kalra said: “We received an overwhelming response from the audience after recently announcing that the show will stream exclusively on ZEE5 in India. We are proud to share that we will bring this event to India along with the world on 27 May at 12.32 pm!”
Kalra said viewers can also avail Friends: The Reunion Special unlimited viewing offer at least 12 hours in advance before the launch for a seamless experience. “We are all geared up to make this a resounding success in India along with the rest of the world,” he added.
The trailer has already set the social media ablaze and raked up millions of views across several channels. HBO Max will debut the famous sitcom special on Thursday, May 27 in the US, marking the first anniversary of HBO Max’s launch. The show’s actors Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer will return to the iconic comedy’s original soundstage, Stage 24, on the Warner Brothers Studio lot in Burbank for a real-life unscripted celebration.
It will feature a variety of special guest appearances including David Beckham, Justin Bieber, BTS, James Corden, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Lady Gaga, Elliott Gould, Kit Harington, Larry Hankin, Mindy Kaling, Thomas Lennon, Christina Pickles, Tom Selleck, James Michael Tyler, Maggie Wheeler, Reese Witherspoon and Malala Yousafzai. Ben Winston directed the special and executive produced along with “Friends” executive producers Kevin Bright, Marta Kauffman, and David Crane.
The special hails from Warner Bros. Unscripted Television in association with Warner Horizon, Fulwell 73 Productions, and Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions. Aniston, Cox, Kudrow, LeBlanc, Perry, and Schwimmer executive produced the special. Emma Conway, James Longman, and Stacey Thomas-Muir co-executive produced.
e-commerce
ONDC names Vibhor Jain MD and CEO; Rohit Lohia joins as CBO, Manoj Thakur as CTO
Leadership formalised as open commerce network sharpens focus on scale and user value
The Open Network for Digital Commerce has formalised Vibhor Jain as managing director and chief executive officer, cementing a leadership transition at India’s ambitious open commerce platform as it pushes for scale and relevance.
Jain, who had been serving as acting chief executive officer since April last year following the exit of Thampy Koshy, steps into the role with effect from 7th April , according to a report by The Economic Times. He previously served as chief operating officer at the government-backed network, which enables buyers and sellers to transact across applications through an open, interoperable system.
Setting out his strategy, Jain underscored the network’s differentiated architecture. “Going forward, we are concentrating on what open, interoperable infrastructure can uniquely enable, things that no single platform has the incentive or the architecture to do,” he said.
He added that the immediate priority is to widen ONDC’s impact across user cohorts often underserved by platform-led commerce. “My priority is to deepen the value ONDC creates for the people it exists to serve: kisaans, karigars, kiranas, gig workers, first-time investors, and daily commuters across India,” he said.
Jain also flagged leadership reinforcement within the organisation, noting that ONDC has “a strong and exciting leadership team in place”, with Rohit Lohia joining as chief business officer and Manoj Thakur as chief technology officer.
With over 18 years of experience spanning entrepreneurship and consulting, Jain brings a track record in technology-led, large-scale transformation programmes and internet businesses. At ONDC, he has been closely involved in shaping strategy and operations as the network seeks to move digital commerce away from platform-centric models towards an open network approach.
Before ONDC, Jain worked with JUMO, where he helped set up the fintech firm’s India operations, and led the India launch of Mobike, handling regulatory, policy and operational aspects of its market entry. Earlier, he co-founded Atlanta Healthcare, an air quality management company, and spent more than a decade in consulting roles at Andersen and EY, advising governments on public policy and technology-driven reforms, including work on the Aadhaar programme and tax systems.
The mandate is clear but the path is complex. As ONDC attempts to rewrite the rules of digital commerce, Jain now carries the burden of turning open architecture into mass adoption, in a market still dominated by platform power.
