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Bloomberg|Quint partners with Penguin Random House India to delve into India’s unique business history
MUMBAI: India’s premier business and financial news brand Bloomberg|Quint in partnership with Penguin Random House India is taking its coverage of India’s business ecosystem back to the beginning with an exclusive six-part show titled ‘Tales of Trade’, edited by management guru Gurcharan Das. Based on a book series by leading academicians and scholars, ‘Tales of Trade’ will have the authors delve into some of the most fascinating stories in the history of Indian business with an episode every week, starting February 24 with Bibek Debroy. Through the series, Bloomberg|Quint will introduce its audience to the startling and delightful ways in which these historical events are relevant to modern-day institutions and has an impact on the practice of doing business in the country today.
The ‘Indian way of doing business’ – with all its infinite cultural, regional, and linguistic variations – is the product of a rich legacy full of adventure, risk, and romance, tempered by Indian principles and values. The series’ 6 episodes will use provide an immersive, in-depth snapshot of India’s business history with an engaging narrative. The episodes will cover the Indian Railways, the East India Company, Managing Agencies, Mumbai’s 19th century merchants, the Marwari community, and the interplay of dharma and business in medieval India. Gurcharan Das will be joined by Bibek Debroy, Tirthankar Roy, Omkar Goswami, Lakshmi Subramanian, Thomas Timberg, and Donald Davis in his explorations of the rich and complex tapestry of India’s economic history.
Commenting on the show, Gurcharan Das said, “Tales of Trade is a six-part documentary series based on Penguin’s ‘Story of Indian Business’ conceived, edited and curated at my end. It is an exciting tale of adventures in the bazaar and the romance on the high seas beginning from ancient times of trade with the Roman world to today’s most successful business communities. The series takes you on exciting journey through conversations with scholars who reveal forgotten fables and rediscovered texts. With a 5000 mile coastline, the tales cover ancient Tamils who carried Indian culture to greater Asia; the caravans of 20,000 camels on the Silk Route who crossed the Hindu Kush mountains to trade with Central Asia and Russia; of risk taking Marwaris who spread across India in the 19th century with the coming of the railways; of the trail blazing merchants who shaped modern Mumbai; of Gujarati merchants from Kachch who traded along the golden triangle of Mandavi, Muscat, and Zanzibar; and of course, the story of the world’s first and most powerful corporation the East India Company.”
Talking about the partnership, Preeti Chaturvedi, AVP- Marketing and Publicity, Penguin Random House India, said “We are constantly looking for ways to make our books more discoverable and accessible to a wider readership. Tales of Trade is a series we are really proud of and we are confident that the partnership with BloombergQuint will help a relevant audience engage with the stories in an exciting format.”
Bloomberg|Quint reaches more than 2 million monthly users across its on-site and partner platforms. More than 50% of Bloomberg|Quint’s audience comprises of C-level executives and entrepreneurs. During Budget 2017, Bloomberg|Quint delivered over 50 million in reach, including 15 million video views and more than 25k shares on social media, ahead of several legacy players in the space. (Source: Google Analytics, Partner & Social Analytics). It was also recently rated as the most viewed business news brand on Facebook amongst new-age publishers. (Source: Vidooly, Facebook Video Report) and has been voted ‘Business Website Of The Year’ (Digipub Awards 2017)
iWorld
Prime Video unveils trailer for Tamil series Exam, streaming May 15
Dushara Vijayan, Aditi Balan headline scam thriller set in exam world
CHENNAI: Prime Video has dropped the official trailer of its upcoming Tamil Original series Exam, a high-stakes suspense drama set in the murky world of competitive entrance exams.
Backed by creative producers Pushkar and Gayatri under Wallwatcher Films, the seven-episode series is written and directed by National Award-winner A. Sarkunam. It stars Dushara Vijayan and Aditi Balan in lead roles, with Abbas playing a pivotal character.
Set in the fictional town of Thykara, the series follows Jhansi, played by Dushara Vijayan, as she attempts to expose a deep-rooted scam, aided by her mentor Jayachandran, played by Abbas. Standing in her way is DSP Maramalli, portrayed by Aditi Balan, setting up a tense face-off driven by ambition, pressure and moral choices.
The show will stream from May 15 on Prime Video in India and across more than 240 countries and territories. It will be available in Tamil, with dubbed versions in Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada, along with subtitles in 15 languages.
Writer-director A. Sarkunam said the story aims to resonate across geographies and social strata, going beyond the scam to explore ambition, pressure and the consequences of personal choices. He added that the narrative unfolds through the intersecting journeys of Jhansi and Maramalli, building tension as their worlds collide.
Dushara Vijayan described Jhansi as a fierce and determined character, calling the role both demanding and rewarding, with the story capturing the difficult choices her character must make.
Aditi Balan said the series offers a hard-hitting look at the exam ecosystem, adding that her character is layered and shaped by both internal conflict and external pressures.
Abbas, marking his return to mainstream Tamil entertainment, said the series stands out for its layered storytelling and unpredictable twists, with his character adding depth to the central narrative.
With its mix of suspense, social commentary and character-driven storytelling, Exam is shaping up to be a tense watch as it dives into one of India’s most high-pressure systems.
