iWorld
Netflix: Kashyap, Motwane to direct parallel ‘Sacred Games’, targeting 5-6 originals in a year
MUMBAI: Renowned filmmakers Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap have been commissioned to work on two parallel stories in Netflix’s maiden India-set original series ‘Sacred Games’ based on Vikram Chandra’s best-selling novel.
The series, to be produced in partnership with Phantom Films, will be available to Netflix’ over 100 million subscribers in over 190 countries. Netflix plans to gradually increase Indian originals following its recent announcements of three projects. Netflix said it was targeting “at least five to six Indian originals a year.” Netflix’s other planned Indian originals are — Again and Selection Day.
Competitor Amazon Prime announced 18 homegrown originals when the service launched in December, which are at various stages of production. It already premiered its first original — “Inside Edge.”
About ‘Sacred Games,’ a Netflix executive said: “This is an ambitious storytelling. We have two directors following two different decades of what’s happening in the Mumbai crime underworld.”
At Jio MAMI, Netflix VP – international original series Erik Barmack said that the series, shot on real locations in Mumbai, will delve into the city’s intricate web of organised crime, politics, corruption, and espionage.
At the festival, a few images from the series were unveiled featuring actors Saif Ali Khan and Nawazuddin Siddique. The show sees Khan playing the role of cop Sartaj Singh, while Siddiqui portrays gangster Ganesh Gaitonde. Barmack said that the storytelling format was quite amazing and hoped the show made a mark globally.
Vikramaditya and Anurag will follow two characters. One is on the Gaitonde storyline, the other on Sartaj. They, of course, collide (eventually).
If one thought of the conventional storytelling and where TV was 15 years ago, the idea that you could do these things in different time periods with anti-hero and complex characters was quite amazing, he said.
Netflix would, Barmack said, like to see more Indian talent working on its US productions, as The Lunchbox’ Ritesh Batra lead its original film “Our Souls at Night.” Netflix also plans to introduce Indian actors in its US productions, such as Sense8 featured Tina Desai in a major role.
e-commerce
Instamart and Duolingo launch street spell check campaign for Instaprint
Duo the owl fixes signboard typos across cities to showcase instant printing.
MUMBAI: If spelling mistakes had a sworn enemy, it might just be a bright green owl with a printer. Instamart has teamed up with language learning platform Duolingo for a quirky nationwide campaign that turns everyday spelling errors into a public spectacle while promoting its instant printing service, InstaPrint. The playful activation takes aim at the many misspelled shop boards and public signs scattered across Indian streets. From “saloons” that promise haircuts rather than drinks to menus and posters peppered with punctuation mishaps, the campaign sends Duolingo’s mascot Duo on a mission to restore linguistic order.
Armed with Instamart’s instant printing feature, Duo prints corrected versions of the mistakes on the spot and pastes them over the originals. The result is a series of humorous street interventions that have quickly begun circulating on social media.
Photos and videos of the grammar correcting owl have been widely shared online, with amused users reacting to the unexpected spell check patrol. One user joked, “Ab ayega na maza bhidu,” capturing the internet’s delight at the unusual campaign.
Behind the humour lies a practical message. The activation is designed to showcase the capabilities of Instaprint, Instamart’s printing service that allows users to print documents and posters almost instantly.
The company says the feature is meant for everyday needs such as printing resumes, visa documents or last minute posters without the usual scramble to locate a print shop.
Instamart introduced Instaprint in 2025 across select metropolitan cities including Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. The service allows users to order printed materials directly through the platform, extending the quick commerce model beyond groceries and household essentials.
By combining Duolingo’s famously persistent owl with India’s street level spelling quirks, the campaign taps into the internet’s long running fascination with grammar mistakes while demonstrating a real world use case for instant printing.
After all, in a world full of typos, sometimes what you really need is a quick printer and a very determined language teacher.
