iWorld
Eros Now’s original series Side Hero trailer generates over 10 million views in less than a week
Mumbai, September 24, 2018: Eros Now, the cutting-edge digital over-the-top (OTT) South Asian entertainment platform owned by Eros International Plc (NYSE:EROS) (“Eros”), a leading global company in the Indian film entertainment, recently launched the official trailer of its first original series – Side Hero on September 18th, has garnered more than 10 million views online. The eight-episode series has begun streaming today, September 24th. The trailer was launched less than a week ago and has since garnered more than 10 million online views, making it the most watched trailer of any Indian OTT original.
The Side Hero trailer, a unique binge-worthy show taking a stab at “cringe” comedy, based on the life of actor Kunaal Roy Kapur, has generated large online appeal and is now the only original series on any Indian OTT platform to receive such viewership in barely a week. Prior to the series’ launch on Eros Now, the poster and trailer announcement had also seen the highest level of engagement and trended number 1 on Twitter.
The show and hashtag #SideHero picked up buzz on Twitter prior to its trailer launch for its innovative high-level consumer engagement activities. The digital campaign included fun spoofs and memes of a morphed Kunaal Roy Kapur on super-hit movie posters like Bajirao Mastani, Bahubali, Ra.one and more, extending the OTT platform’s vibrant personality to the show itself. Kunaal’s first Side Hero meme was announced through his debut on social media sites like Instagram and Twitter.
The digital campaign also ran an exciting contest campaign #HowToBeAHeroIn7Days on @ErosNow twitter page to engage with audiences with the winner bagging an opportunity to be part of an upcoming Eros Now original. The noise and excitement around the trailer and show was further amplified by having an experiential on-the-ground activity with open air screenings for social media influencers with the all-star cast. Apart from the social media buzz, the trailer and show build up was backed by a robust 360° marketing campaign that strategically encompassed elements such as on-air promotions, on-ground associations, radio spots and various PR tools, making it an impactful campaign.
Commenting on the occasion, Ridhima Lulla, Chief Content Officer, Eros Group said, “We are thrilled with the phenomenal response Side Hero’s trailer has received. The entire social media campaign with its innovations has been instrumental in driving maximum viewership towards the trailer and building curiosity around the series. This accomplishment is testament to our belief in constantly testing waters, being relevant yet different and launching our first show in an unusual comic space. We hope to receive the same appreciation for the series as well which launched today on Eros Now.”
Side Hero is directed by Rohan Sippy and stars Kunaal Roy Kapur and Gauahar Khan as lead actors. All the episodes of the show are streaming now and available for binge viewing for INR 49 and INR 99 per month on Eros Now.
Catch the trailer of Side Hero: https://erosnow.com/movie/watch/1063782/an-eros-now-original-series/6893259/sidehero:-official-trailer
iWorld
Meta plans 8,000 layoffs in new AI-led restructuring wave
First phase from May 20 may cut 10 per cent workforce amid AI pivot.
MUMBAI: At Meta, the future may be artificial but the cuts are very real. The social media giant is reportedly preparing a fresh round of layoffs, with an initial wave expected to impact around 8,000 employees as it doubles down on its artificial intelligence ambitions. According to a Reuters report, the first phase of job cuts is slated to begin on May 20, targeting roughly 10 per cent of Meta’s global workforce. With nearly 79,000 employees on its rolls as of December 31, the move marks one of the company’s most significant workforce reductions in recent years.
And this may only be the beginning. Sources indicate that additional layoffs are being planned for the second half of the year, although the scale and timing remain fluid, likely to be shaped by how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve in the coming months. Earlier reports had suggested that total cuts in 2026 could reach 20 per cent or more of its workforce.
The restructuring comes as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg continues to steer the company towards an AI-first operating model, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to the transition. Internally, this shift is already visible: teams within Reality Labs have been reorganised, engineers have been moved into a newly formed Applied AI unit, and a Meta Small Business division has been created to align with broader structural changes.
The trend is hardly isolated. Across the tech sector, companies are trimming headcount while investing aggressively in automation. Amazon, for instance, has reportedly cut around 30,000 corporate roles nearly 10 per cent of its white-collar workforce citing efficiency gains driven by AI. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows over 73,000 tech employees have already lost jobs this year, compared with 153,000 in all of 2024.
For Meta, the move echoes its earlier “year of efficiency” in 2022–23, when about 21,000 roles were eliminated amid slowing growth and market pressures. This time, however, the backdrop is different. The company is financially stronger, generating over $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, with shares up 3.68 per cent year-to-date though still below last summer’s peak.
That contrast underlines the shift underway. These layoffs are less about survival and more about reinvention. As Meta restructures itself around AI from autonomous coding agents to advanced machine learning systems, the question is no longer whether the company will change, but how many roles will be left unchanged when it does.
