Hindi
Bollywood Festival of Norway from 7-14 Sept
MUMBAI: The Bollywood Festival Norway, one of the biggest Film festivals happening in the country, will be celebrating 100 years of Indian Cinema. On the occasion, the festival organizers have planned to highlight and screen the best of Bollywood and show the true meaning of Hindi Cinema. The highlight of the Festival, will be the presence of Hema Malini along with daughters Esha and Ahana Deol.
Said Festival Director Nasrullah Qureshi, “This is Hema Malini‘s first visit to Norway, the country in which the Nobel peace prize is given out. It will be an honor for Bollywood festival Norway to have Hema Malini as our guest.
“Our previous guests have been personalities like Anil Kapoor, Amisha Patel, Vidya Balan, Arshad Warsi, Manoj Bajpayee, Prem Chopra Neha Dhupia, Padmini Kolhapure, Sharman Joshi, Sonakshi Sinha and Salman Khan to name some.”
The Bollywood festival Norway aims to promote Indian culture, dance and cinema in Norway, and have been doing so for the past 10 years with great friends from the Indian film industry.
Not only that, the festival will be celebrating its 10 years with dance show at Oslo concert house on 9 September with Hema Malini, Esha Deol, and Ahana Deol performing a classical dance presentation in Odissi and Bharat Natyam.
The Indian dance and film festival runs from 7 to 14 September.
Hindi
Shekhar Suman opens acting academy in Mumbai
The veteran actor-presenter launches SSFA, promising immersive, mentorship-led training for aspiring actors and storytellers
Mumbai: Forty years in front of the camera, and Shekhar Suman still isn’t done. The actor, host, writer and director, one of Indian entertainment’s most restless polymaths, is now training his sights on the next generation, launching the Shekhar Suman Film Academy (SSFA) in Mumbai on 22nd April 2026. Registrations for the inaugural batch are already open.
SSFA pitches itself squarely against formula-driven acting schools, leading with an intensive three-month programme that Suman says he personally designed and will largely conduct himself. The curriculum blends voice and speech work, emotional access, body awareness and camera technique with the Linklater Voice Method, film language and on-set discipline, and rounds off with a student film, giving trainees their first taste of a real set.
Masterclasses with actors, casting directors and filmmakers sit alongside the core course. The academy is conceived as a platform that will eventually sprawl into screenwriting, direction, cinematography, music production and post-production: a full creative ecosystem rather than a single acting school.
“For me, this academy is not just an institution. It is a very personal way of giving back to the craft that has given me everything,” said Suman. “Over the years, acting has taught me discipline, imagination, resilience, and the importance of truth in performance. Through this academy, I hope to create something that goes beyond training and becomes a true creative journey for every student who walks in.”
Behind the scenes, the academy is backed by GBM Studios. Dharmesh Sangani, founder and visionary, is the driving force, bringing what the academy describes as “a focused approach to creating meaningful opportunities within the industry.” Adhyayan Suman, founder and director and Shekhar’s son, adds a performer’s perspective honed across acting, music and direction. Ekant Babani, partner and chief operating officer, handles strategy and operations.
Entry is deliberately low-barrier. No prior training is needed: applicants sit a basic self-audition test, shifting the focus firmly to potential rather than polish. The academy says it aims to stay accessible while delivering a premium, hands-on experience.
In a country where acting schools multiply almost as fast as OTT platforms, Suman’s personal stamp and his willingness to stand in the room and teach may be the sharpest edge SSFA has. For those ready to test that promise, the curtain is already up. Apply at shekharsumanfilmacademy.com
