iWorld
Banijay celebrates 25 years of Survivor
MUMBAI: Banijay is celebrating 25 years since the adventure reality format, Survivor, debuted in Sweden in September 1997. The milestone achievement follows the format’s most successful year-to-date last year, with 25 productions in 2021.
Survivor tests the spirit of a group of ordinary, yet extraordinary people who are marooned, with little more than the clothes on their backs and their own animal cunning. As they catch their own food, build their own shelter and order their own society, castaways must compete in increasingly difficult tests of strategy and guile.
Ranked the Best Reality Show Of All Time (Variety), Survivor, the format which is created by Charlie Parsons, has been commissioned in 50 territories and is one of the most loved and watched formats around the world. The anniversary follows the recent announcement that Survivor will return to the UK in 2023, with Remarkable Entertainment (part of Banijay UK) producing the series for BBC One and BBC iPlayer. Other recent comebacks for the format include Brazil, Norway, Bulgaria and Romania, with all-new first-time adaptations in Mexico and Serbia, as well as an upcoming launch in Canada (French).
Banijay global head of content operations Lucas Green said, “Survivor has all the elements of a hit format combining jeopardy, reality, strategy and adventure. Whilst each version is unique to its territory, every Survivor season celebrates the core values of this much-loved show. It has been honed through hundreds of seasons of expertise and is head and shoulders above the countless copycats which never quite stand up to the test. We are proud to produce the original – and in our view the best – adventure reality format on television. Most of all, we give thanks to those hard-working production teams around the world, with whom we celebrate this distinguished anniversary.”
Amongst the hugely successful iterations around the world are the U.S., which is the longest-running version with season 44 confirmed and more than 7.5 million viewers tuning in to the most recent season on CBS; The Netherlands, which has aired every year since 2000; the hugely popular French series, which will air its 29th season next year; and the originating market Sweden, which recently aired its 21st run of Expedition Robinson. The format also enjoys successful companion shows, all-star spin-offs and celebrity versions.
Survivor has created iconic moments over the last 25 years. These include an Israeli contestant meeting his child for the first time via video link at the Tribal Council, a player voting off her mum so she could progress in series 29 in the US, a proposal between two All Star contestants in the US. There was even a visit to the beach from Ivanka Trump in the Italian production, in heels and a sequinned dress!
iWorld
Subedaar puts Indian original cinema on the global map with record-breaking Prime Video debut
MUMBAI: Prime Video has a runaway hit on its hands. Subedaar, the gritty action drama starring Anil Kapoor, has stormed to become the most-watched Indian original movie on the platform in its opening weekend, cracking the Top 10 across 31 countries and landing in 91 per cent of India’s pin codes within days of its March 5 premiere.
The film, a visceral, emotionally-charged story of a retired soldier, Subedaar Arjun Maurya, wrestling with civilian life amid crime and corruption, has struck a nerve. Directed by Suresh Triveni and co-starring Radhikka Madan, Mona Singh, Saurabh Shukla, Aditya Rawal, Faisal Malik, and Khushboo Sundar, the film is already being hailed as a showcase for what Indian original storytelling can achieve on the world stage.
“Subedaar’s success is a reflection of the growing scale and global resonance of Indian storytelling,” said Nikhil Madhok, director and head of originals at Prime Video India. “The film’s emotional narrative, its rooted portrayal of a soldier confronting his toughest battles beyond the battlefield, has struck a chord. Anil Kapoor delivers an acting masterclass, while Suresh Triveni’s solid direction and great performances from the ensemble cast have resulted in love and appreciation from customers across the world.”
Kapoor, 62, has been here before, but rarely at this altitude. Written by Triveni and Prajwal Chandrashekar, with dialogues by Triveni, Saurabh Dwivedi, and Chandrashekar, the film is a production by Opening Image Films in association with Anil Kapoor Film & Communication Network (AKFCN), produced by Vikram Malhotra, Kapoor, and Triveni.
Subedaar streams exclusively on Prime Video in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu across India, and in over 240 countries and territories worldwide.
For Prime Video, the numbers tell the real story: one weekend, one film, a global footprint, and a very loud signal that Indian original cinema is no longer just travelling well. It’s arriving.
