iWorld
Royal Stag Barrel Select Large presents Short ‘Mama’s Boys’
MUMBAI: After the recent success of Sujoy Ghosh’s Ahalya, Jaydeep Sarkar’s Nayantara’s necklace and Adhiraj Bose’s Interior Café, Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films has hit the digital screen again withyet another short film, ‘Mama’s Boys’. Starring the bold and mysterious Neena Gupta and the versatile Aditi Rao Hydari along with the young heartthrob of Bollywood Arunoday Singh, the new release has been directed by Bollywood’s critically acclaimed actor, writer and director, Akshat Verma.
Themed on the objective of “keep perfecting”, Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films is a platform for independentdirectors to showcase their film making skills and create a niche for themselves in the industry. The platform gives a stage to storytellers to showcase their artistic creativity and reach out to their target audience in through the online world.
Commenting on the release, Raja Banerji, Assistant Vice President, Marketing, Pernod Ricard India, said “As creativity has no boundaries and filmmakers are constantly innovating to perfect their method of artistic expression, being digitally connected has also become extremely important for them to reach out to the new age audiences. The whole idea of Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films is to enable them to continue to express themselves as great story tellers. Resonating with our core philosophy, this platform is meant to help them keep perfecting their skills and establish themselves in the market. In line with this thought, we are very thrilled to associate with the persistent innovative genius of AkshatVerma’s new film- Mama’s Boys”.
The man behind Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films’ new release, ‘Mama’s Boys’, Akshat Verma is credited to be the creative force behind movies like ‘Delhi Belly’, ‘Ek main aurEktu’ and ‘The Ode’. With this new short film, Akshat Verma hastried exploring to portray his thought in a modern formin an epic like Mahabharata. The story is an inspiration from director’s believe about the unfairness in Arjun’s marriage and the position he is heaved in where he charms the beautiful Draupadi and wins her hand only to find out later that he has to share her with the rest of his brothers. This excerpt is depicted in the Pandava’s residence and the story intriguingly unfolds where Arjun has to finally compromise despite his unwillingness.
Talking about his film, director,Akshat Vermasaid, “’Mama’s Boys’ is a reflection of my childhood memories when Amar Chitra Katha fascinated me and Mahabharata enthralled me with its multiple nested stories. I had an amazing time shooting with some of the industry’s most talented actors.Neena Gupta was a delight to work with, Aditi’s versatility was commendable and Arunoday Singh possesses an incredible comic timing where the audience only knows him for being a tough guy onscreen. Royal Stag Barrel Select large Short Films has indeed presented me this great opportunity to me to connect with my audience through the digital platform and it has overall been a remarkable experience”.
About Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films:
Royal stag Barrel Select Large Short Films (LSF) is a portal that is the hub of Indian short films. It gives the audience the window to enjoy short films made by large directors. It gives budding film makers a platform to showcase their short films with large ideas. It is a vehicle to submit Indian short film makers to the international festival circuit. LSF is a parallel platform for indie films that can take co-creation with social media to the next level. The platform Pioneered under the aegis of Royal Stag Mega Movies, and Royal Stag Large short Film gains the first mover advantage in a medium that will be the future of entertainment. LSF has released films of well-known Bollywood directors and gives opportunity to upcoming directors. In recent times, Platform has been built on identified core attribute of RSBS – ‘Keep Perfecting’ and hence now targeting a more refined and evolved RSBS audience. Adhiraj Bose is the face of the platform and platform already showcased a digital film on how to make “perfect films”.
iWorld
Netflix cuts jobs in product division amid restructuring
Layoffs hit creative studio unit as leadership and strategy shifts unfold.
MUMBAI: The streaming wars may be fought on screen, but the latest plot twist is unfolding behind the scenes. Netflix has reportedly begun laying off several dozen employees from its product division as part of an internal reorganisation, according to a report by Variety. The cuts are believed to have primarily affected the company’s creative studio unit, which works on marketing assets such as in app trailers, promotional visuals and live experience content for the streaming platform.
The company has not disclosed the exact number of employees impacted.
According to the report, the layoffs were not tied to employee performance. Instead, the restructuring eliminated certain roles while other employees were reassigned to different teams within the organisation.
The roles affected are understood to include designers, producers and creative specialists responsible for marketing and brand experience initiatives.
The job cuts come as Netflix adjusts its leadership structure and reshapes its product and creative teams. Last month, Elizabeth Stone was promoted from chief technology officer to chief product and technology officer, giving her oversight of product, engineering and data operations across the company.
Earlier, in December 2025, Netflix also appointed Martin Rose as head of creative for global brand and partnerships, a move seen as part of a broader restructuring of the company’s brand and product functions.
Despite the layoffs, Netflix remains one of the largest employers in the streaming sector. The company is estimated to employ around 16,000 people globally, with roughly 70 percent of its workforce based in the United States and Canada. In 2023, the company reported approximately 13,000 employees, indicating that its headcount had grown significantly before the latest restructuring.
The workforce changes arrive at a time when Netflix is navigating a shifting financial and strategic landscape in the global entertainment industry.
The streaming giant recently secured $2.8 billion in additional cash after receiving a breakup fee from Paramount Skydance following its withdrawal from a deal involving Warner Bros. Discovery.
Speaking to Bloomberg, Netflix co chief executive Ted Sarandos explained that the company had evaluated multiple scenarios during the negotiations but chose not to match the competing offer once it learned that a higher bid had been submitted.
Netflix had capped its offer at $27.75 per share and ultimately stepped back rather than pursue Paramount’s $111 billion acquisition deal, which included a personal guarantee.
Sarandos also cautioned that the financing structure behind the Paramount Skydance transaction could have ripple effects across the entertainment industry.
According to him, the debt heavy deal could trigger significant cost cutting, with David Ellison, chief executive of Paramount Skydance, expected to eliminate about $16 billion in costs and potentially cut thousands of jobs as part of the integration process.
For Netflix, the current restructuring appears to be part of a broader attempt to streamline operations while continuing to invest in product, technology and global content even as the streaming industry enters a new phase of consolidation and financial discipline.
