Hindi
Rajesh Khanna and Shriram Lagoo to be feted at Pune Film Fest
MUMBAI: The seven-day Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) that goes underway on 7 January will be inaugurated by Dev Anand in the presence of State Ministers Sunil Tatkare and Ramesh Bagwe at Bal Gandharva Rang Mandir.
Chairman of the PIFF, Suresh Kalmadi said that the film festival would be the official film festival of the Government of Maharashtra from this year, as 2010 is also the golden jubilee year of the state.
This year, PIFF will confer lifetime achievement awards to Rajesh Khanna and Dr Shriram Lagoo for their outstanding contribution towards Indian cinema and theatre.
Starting this year, PIFF will introduce ‘Sachin Dev Burman international award for creative music and sound‘ for individuals who make a significant contribution in the field of music.
The first recipient of this honour would be music composer Pyarelal of the famous Laxmikant-Pyarelal duo.
This year, more than 150 films from 42 countries would be screened at six venues that include E-Square on University Road, Inox on Bund Garden Road, Fame at Fatima Nagar, City Pride in Kothrud, NFAI on Law College Road and NFAI on Paud Road.
Apart from the State Government, the festival is also being supported by the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Directorate of Film Festivals, National Film Archives of India (NFAI), Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), Alliance de Francais and Whistling Woods.
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.
