Hindi
I Am Kalam to be screened at Cannes Fest
MUMBAI: I Am Kalam, a feature film inspired by ex-President of India Abdul J Kalam, is scheduled to be screened in the Marche du section at 63rd Cannes Film Festival to be held from 12 to 23 May.
The film revolves around the trials and tribulations faced by a small boy who is yearning for education and is working to realise his cherished dreams. It has been directed by debutant Nila Madhab Panda in his quest to bring alive the topical genre of the late Satyajit Ray‘s cinema after decades.
Produced by the Smile Foundation, one of the leading National development organisations of India, the film aims at sensitising the masses about the quest of a child to nurture his dreams.
Says Smile Foundation GM Resources Anurag Bhatnagar, “The main objective of producing I am Kalam is to highlight how a child aspires to dream in spite of all the hardships of the life. Furthermore, Indian Government has recently passed the bill on Right to Education. But the act will remain a mere legislation unless and until the privileged mass come forward proactively for the cause. This film is an effort to appeal to all the privileged mass to come forward so as to make this act a reality on the ground as well.”
The film has also been officially selected for Vienna International Children‘s Film Festival.
Hindi
Dhurandhar 2 hit by YouTube leak amid record box office run
Cam-rip surfaces online but blockbuster streak continues at record pace
MUMBAI: It has been a dramatic week for Dhurandhar: The Revenge. Even as the espionage thriller smashes box office records, a piracy scare briefly threatened to steal its thunder after a full-length version surfaced on YouTube.
The leak emerged on March 30 via a channel titled “A2z movie”, which uploaded what appeared to be a cam-recorded print of the film. Clocking in at nearly three hours and 49 minutes, the footage was reportedly blurry but complete enough to spark spoilers and fan outrage online.
Soon after, users on X began flagging the issue, explicitly naming the “A2z movie” channel in their posts while tagging the film’s makers and urging swift legal action. Fans of director Aditya Dhar and lead star Ranveer Singh were particularly vocal, helping the issue gain rapid traction.
Within hours, the video was taken down, likely through a mix of platform detection systems and intervention by producers Jio Studios and B62 Studios.
Despite the leak, the film’s theatrical run remains virtually unshaken. As of March 31, the sequel has raked in an estimated Rs 872.17 crore net in India, with worldwide collections soaring to Rs 1,392.23 crore. Its Hindi opening day alone brought in Rs 102.55 crore, setting a new benchmark.
In a notable milestone, the film has matched Pushpa 2 as the fastest Indian release to cross the Rs 1,000 crore mark globally, achieving the feat in just seven days.
Interestingly, the version leaked online is believed to be an earlier cut. Midway through its theatrical run, the makers issued revised prints after eagle-eyed viewers spotted a fleeting editing error involving a cameraman’s reflection. The corrected version now plays across cinemas, adding an unusual twist to the film’s release journey.
Directed by Aditya Dhar, the high-stakes sequel stars Ranveer Singh alongside Sanjay Dutt, R. Madhavan, Arjun Rampal and Sara Arjun. The film has drawn praise for its scale and action sequences, though some critics have pointed to its intense violence and layered political themes.
For now, piracy may have made noise, but it has not slowed the juggernaut. If anything, the episode underlines the film’s cultural grip, proving that even a leak cannot derail a box office storm already in full force.
