Hindi
Actors Chandrashekhar and Manoj Kumar honoured at Jagran Film Festival
NEW DELHI: Veteran Chandrashekhar whose film career spans from the black and white era to the early part of this century received the Grand Prize for lifetime contribution to the cinematic arts while thespian Manoj Kumar was honoured for his work as the Icon at the Jagran Film Festival which concluded in Mumbai over the weekend.
The 90-year old Chandrashekhar has acted in 186 films commencing in 1947 with Arsi. Beginning as an actor in Fashion in 1957, Manoj Kumar went on to act in or make a large number of films, many of them with patriotic themes which got him the nickname of Bharat Kumar. The government also honoured him with the Padma Shri.
 |
|---|
Versatile thespian Sridevi bagged the best actor (female) award for her comeback film English Vinglish, while the best actor award was shared by Ranbir Kapoor for Barfi! and Farhan Akhtar for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. Trupti Bhoir got a special mention as actor (female) for the Marathi film Touring Talkies produced by her and directed by Gajendra Ahire.
The best film award went to the film Kai Po Che!; which also bagged the best director award for Abhishek Kapoor and the background score award for Hitesh Sonik.
Among those who gave away the awards were the versatile Kamal Haasan, veteran filmmaker N Chandra, producer-director Sudhir Mishra, Tushaar Kapoor and Divya Dutta. Festival Advisor Manoj Srivastava was also present.
The programme presented by Kunal Kapoor and Huma Quraishi also included performances by the group Mati Baani, a World Music band combining elements of Hindustani Classical with various styles of Folk music and New age sounds
Ship of Theseus received the maximum awards: best debut director award for Anand Gandhi, the Jury award for best actor for Neeraj Kabi, the cinematography award for Pankaj Kumar, and the sound designer award for Gábor ifj. Erdélyi.
The special jury award was presented to Vishwaroopam for raising the bar of mainstream Indian cinema to an international level. The film also received the best editor award for Mahesh Narayanan.
 |
|---|
Aditi Singh Sharma received the best female singer award for the title song in the film Heroine while actor-singer Ayushman Khurrana received the male singer award for the film Vicky Donor. The best music award was given to Pritam for the film Barfi! for his brilliant compositions.
Vicky Donor also bagged the best screenplay award for Juhi Chaturvedi.
Kaushal Oza won the best short film award for his film After Glow.
A special highlight of the festival was the presence of Max Lefrancq Lumiere, grandson of Louis Lumiere, who screened the first-ever films made by the Lumiere Brothers in 1895 in Paris. Irrfan Khan and Dilip Tahil were among those present.
A total of fifteen cities were covered by the 4th edition of the Jagran Film Festival, which marked one hundred years of Indian cinema.
The Festival commenced in Delhi in July and culminated in Mumbai from 24-29 September. In between it travelled to Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Agra, Meerut, Dehradun, Patna, Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Indore, and Bhopal.
The various sections included the Jagran Classics of Indian films to mark a centenary of cinema, international and national shorts, the country focus on Korea, and World Panorama, and Indian showcase.
The centenary celebration included screening of films like Kundan Shah’s Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Satyajit Ray’s Apu Trilogy , Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay , Bimal Roy’s Madhumati and Do Bigha Zameen, Guru Dutt’s Pyaasa, Mani Ratnam’s Nayagan, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand, Vijay Anand’s Guide, K. Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam among others.
A special feature this year was Cinema for the Sellers – an Indian competition for Advertising Films.
Other sections include World Panorama, Indian Showcase, Indian Premieres, and Jagran Shorts.
Hindi
Kayhan Entertainment shifts focus to original IP creation
New studio founded by VFX veterans aims to build globally scalable Indian stories.
MUMBAI: India’s VFX talent has long helped Hollywood create blockbusters now a new studio wants to write the stories as well as the special effects. Kayhan Entertainment Private Limited is entering its next phase of growth as a next-generation storytelling studio focused on creating original intellectual property for global audiences. Founded by Dalbir Singh and Arushi Govil, the studio blends strong storytelling with world-class VFX and CGI across films, television, advertising and digital platforms.
While India has established itself as a global hub for VFX and animation services, Kayhan is making a strategic shift from pure execution to IP ownership. The studio aims to move beyond project-based work and develop culturally rooted content designed to travel internationally, while remaining open to strategic collaborations.
Dalbir Singh, with over 15 years of experience in VFX and filmmaking, has contributed to major global productions including Avengers: Endgame, Zack Snyder’s Justice League and Venom. He leads creative direction at Kayhan. Arushi Govil brings deep production expertise from leading studios such as MPC, Framestore and DNEG, having worked on Tenet, Mission: Impossible – Fallout and Brahmastra.
A key milestone for the studio was the launch of its first IP, Chote Tara Ka Bada Gadar, on Kids Zee in 2025. Kayhan is now expanding its slate with FAB 5, an original animated series that combines action, humour and emotional storytelling while promoting teamwork, courage and kindness. The fast-paced episodic format is positioned for long-term franchise potential across platforms.
Dalbir Singh, Co-Founder, said the studio’s primary focus is building an IP-led creative enterprise, while remaining open to the right collaborations. Arushi Govil, Co-Founder, added: “As we scale, our focus is on building the right mix of talent and capability… At Kayhan, we are investing in people as much as we are in IP, bringing together global experience and emerging creators to build stories that can compete at an international level.”
Looking ahead, Kayhan plans to evolve into a broader IP-led ecosystem spanning media, consumer products, education, talent development and immersive experiences such as AR and VR. The studio also intends to establish an IP incubator and develop transmedia storytelling formats.
From blockbuster VFX credits to building its own story universe, Kayhan Entertainment is stepping into the spotlight with a clear ambition, to create Indian IP that doesn’t just shine on screen, it travels the world.
