iWorld
Hooq releases Thai original ‘Saranair Love You’ starring Mario Maurer
MUMBAI: Hooq, a Video on Demand service in South-East Asia, has released its first ever Thai Hooq Original movie, Saranair Love You, done in collaboration with Tech Digital Corporation, Thailand’s leading movie studio. Saranair Love You is a cinematic comedy, directed by Kiattisak Udomnak. It follows the adventures and misfortunes of two best friends, played by ‘Saranair Hen Phi’ star Willy McIntosh and ‘Sena Hoi’ Kiattisak Udomnak.
The plot centres around Willy and Kiattisak playing best friends, Rang and Peng, who after getting caught in a diamond heist goes on a whirlwind adventure to save their marriage, family relationships and even their friendship. At the same time, they are also trying to take revenge on their enemies and steal back their lost diamond, all while being tailed closely by a comedic cop duo who is just one step behind them.
They are joined with a great medley of stars such as Tonhom Sakuntala, Sun Prachakorn, Pong Kapol, Jack Fanchan, Yut Fedfe, Japan, Ji-Yoen and superstar heartthrob Mario Maurer.
“Where better to launch our first cinematic comedy original than in the land of a thousand smiles. Thailand comes with amazing talent for both movies and comedies and Hooq is very excited to release our first ever original in the country, Saranair Love You. This is the first of many exciting originals to come that delivers quality entertainment to our customers and hopefully will keep you Hooq’s to your screens. We will continue to push boundaries, to evolve and stay committed to delivering unique, compelling and edgy stories to millions of our customers both in Thailand and in the region,” said Hooq CEO Peter Bithos.
Saranair Love You is currently playing in Thai cinemas and will be available on Hooq 3 months after the last cinematic screening. This comes hot after the several other announcements of cinematic Asian originals co-produced by Hooq from Indonesia including Critical Eleven, Sweet 20 and Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts, which was also recently screened at the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes.
iWorld
Akhil Gupta retires as Bharti Enterprises vice chairman after three decades
The man who outsourced Airtel’s network and built Indus Towers leaves behind a telecom industry transformed
NEW DELHI: He was not the most visible face of Bharti. He was, by most accounts, the most consequential one. Akhil Gupta, known within the group simply as AKG, has retired as vice chairman of Bharti Enterprises with effect from March 31st, 2026, closing a chapter that stretched across more than three decades and reshaped Indian telecoms in ways still felt today.
Gupta was there at the beginning, part of the core leadership team that steered Bharti Airtel from a scrappy domestic operator into one of the world’s largest telecom and digital services companies. But it is two decisions in particular that cement his legacy. The first was persuading the industry that a telecom company need not own its own network. His outsourcing partnerships with IBM and Ericsson, considered eccentric at the time, stripped out capital costs and sharpened Airtel’s competitive edge. The model was subsequently copied across the global industry. The second was the creation of Indus Towers, now one of the largest tower companies in the world.
Both initiatives were studied as case material at Harvard Business School, where Gupta himself had studied. A chartered accountant by training and a dealmaker by instinct, he accumulated industry accolades across his career without ever particularly courting the limelight.
Bharti Enterprises, announcing the retirement on LinkedIn, credited Gupta with building the foundation of the group’s success and driving innovation, partnerships and long-term value creation.
The tributes are deserved. Gupta did not just help build Airtel. In many respects, he helped invent the playbook that modern telecoms runs on.
