iWorld
Amazon Prime Video to stream Afsos from 17 Jan
MUMBAI: Amazon Prime Video has announced the trailer of much-awaited series Afsos. Produced by Only Much Louder (OML), the suspense thriller is a dark comedy about a suicidal man, a maverick monk and a deadly assassin amidst the realm of immortality. The eight-episode series is co-created by Dibya Chatterjee and renowned comedian Anirban Dasgupta and will be available for the members across 200 countries and territories as a binge starting 17 January 2020.
Anirban Dasgupta, who marks his debut as a show creator, said, “Afsos is my second collaboration with Amazon Prime Video after my special ‘Take It Easy’. Both these experiences have been memorable and I am happy that this unique series has found its home on the service. Creating this show with Dibya Chatterjee and OML was enjoyable and I am grateful to everyone who has come together to bring this wild story to life.”
Nakul’s only goal in life is to seek some sort of closure. After several failed suicide attempts, he pays for his own death. Upadhyay, a deadly women assassin is assigned to get the job done, but Nakul has a change of heart. He chooses to live, however Upadhyay never leaves a job undone. A riveting cat and mouse chase ensues while a divine intervention flips everything upside down in this black comedy thriller. Produced by OML and created by Anirban Das Gupta and Dibya Chatterjee, directed by Anubhuti Kashyap, the series available on Amazon Prime Video stars Gulshan Devaiah, Anjali Patil – winner of the National Film Award – special mention and state Nandi Award for Best Actress, Heeba Shah, Danish Sait, Dhruv Sehgal, among others.
Amazon Prime Video has the largest selection of latest & exclusive movies, TV shows, award winning Amazon Originals such as The Family Man, Made in Heaven, Four More Shots Please!, Mirzapur, Inside Edge, Comicstaan among others, Stand-Up Comedy, biggest Indian and Hollywood films, US TV series, most popular Indian & international kids’ shows all available, ad-free, with a world class customer experience. The service includes titles available in Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi and Bengali.
Sign-up for Rs. 999 annually or Rs. 129 monthly and watch the upcoming Amazon exclusive series Afsos, newest releases in Hollywood & Bollywood, the latest US TV shows, kids’ favorite toons and Amazon Originals.
iWorld
X launches XChat messaging app on iOS with calls and encryption
Standalone app marks shift from “everything app” vision, adds E2E messaging.
MUMBAI: From one big app to many small chats, X seems to be splitting its ambitions. X has rolled out its standalone messaging app, XChat, to iOS users, opening up a new front in its evolving product strategy. The app allows users to connect with existing X contacts through private and group messages, file sharing, as well as audio and video calls. The launch follows a limited beta phase, where the platform tested the product with a smaller user base to refine the experience. Now available publicly, XChat marks a notable pivot from earlier ambitions championed by Elon Musk to turn X into a single “everything app” combining messaging, payments, commerce and more.
Instead, the company under xAI ownership and backed by SpaceX appears to be building a suite of standalone applications, each targeting specific use cases while expanding its broader ecosystem.
At launch, XChat includes end-to-end encrypted messaging, PIN-based access, disappearing messages, and features such as message editing, deletion for all participants, and screenshot blocking. The company has also said the app is free from advertisements and tracking mechanisms, positioning it as a privacy-first alternative in a crowded messaging space.
However, security claims around the platform are likely to face scrutiny. Earlier iterations of XChat drew criticism from experts who argued it fell short of established encrypted platforms like Signal. With the wider rollout, the app is expected to undergo fresh evaluation to assess whether those concerns have been addressed.
Beyond messaging, XChat will also house X’s Communities feature, which is being discontinued on the main platform due to low usage and spam concerns. Migrating these users could provide an early boost to adoption, effectively turning XChat into both a communication and community hub.
The move underscores a broader recalibration at X less about cramming everything into one app, and more about spreading bets across multiple touchpoints, one message at a time.
