Hindi
Reliance, Spielberg fork out $26.5 mn to Paramount for 17 projects
MUMBAI: Reliance ADAG and Hollywood director Steven Spielberg have bought 17 projects from Viacom Inc‘s Paramount Pictures for $26.5 million, making the first moves to develop a wide slate of films.
Reliance and Spielberg‘s DreamWorks studio are equally sharing the costs. The roster includes films like 39 Clues, Chicago 7, Motorcade and Dinner With Schmucks.
“We have together acquired 17 projects from Paramount,” confirmed Reliance Big Entertainment president Rajesh Sawhney while declining to comment on the financial details.
Reliance and Spielberg are in the process of setting up a $1.5 billion company that would finance 32 movies over six years.
The global economic meltdown, though, is having an impact and it seems that the funding would be raised in various legs. JPMorgan Chase & Co is arranging a $350 million debt within three months. Reliance will put in a similar amount as equity.
“These carefully selected properties will lay the foundation for the new company. The partners continue to move forward with the various phases of additional funding,” a statement said.
The timetable for the financing has, thus, been adjusted. But the partners remain enthusiastic and committed to achieve the original long term goals.
Reliance will pump in $550 million as equity investment while JPMorgan Chase & Co. will lead the debt financing.
Hindi
Rashmika Mandanna, Shanaya Kapoor and Naila Grrewal climb IMDb’s Indian celebrity rankings
Upcoming films and returning shows are driving fan interest across Bollywood and streaming
MUMBAI: Bollywood’s popularity contest has a new weekly scorecard, and the numbers are telling. IMDb’s Popular Indian Celebrities list for this week places Shanaya Kapoor at number six, buoyed by buzz around her film Tu Yaa Main. Naila Grrewal slots in at seven on the back of the returning comedy series Maamla Legal Hai, while Rashmika Mandanna climbs to eighth, riding mounting anticipation for Cocktail 2.
The list, available exclusively on the IMDb app for Android and iOS, tracks trending Indian entertainers and filmmakers each week, drawing on data from more than 200m monthly visits to the platform worldwide.
Further down the rankings, Raaka is keeping two of its biggest names in the spotlight. Deepika Padukone holds 11th position, with Allu Arjun close behind at 13th, as the film continues to find traction with audiences.
The list offers fans a weekly pulse on who is breaking through, who is holding steady, and who is fading. It is a barometer as unsparing as the box office itself.
