iWorld
Indiantelevison.com-Akamai webinar explores what makes UGC platforms tick
MUMBAI: When Chad Hurley. Steve Chen and Jawed Karim created YouTube in 2005, little did they know their brainchild would spawn the phenomenon of user-generated video content. Today, more than 300 hours of video are uploaded by users on Youtube every minute resulting in billions of views per year. Ditto with social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, Twitter and hundreds of new entrants such as TikTok, Firework, Roposo etc.
What is the technical architecture that goes into making a successful UGC video service? What is their business model? How have they fared during the pandemic and what kind of challenges are they continuing to face? What are the practices business executives and tech professionals have put in place to optimise and provide a best in class service?
These and many other such questions will be answered by a stellar panel of executives who will be coming together for a virtual round table “The rise and rise of user-generated content and the tech that enabled the rise” organised by indiantelevision.com in partnership with CDN and security provider Akamai Technologies.
Under The Content Hub Tech Series umbrella, it will feature industry’s top practitioners such as Firework head of content & strategic partnerships Sudarshan Kadam, Roposo co-founder and VP product management Glance Avinash Saxena, Samoso Lab founder and ex-CEO Abilash Inumella, Bolo Indya cofounder and CEO Varun Saxena, Akamai Technologies director of products – APJ Media Rishi Varma, Zee5 business head expansion projects and head of products Rajneel Kumar. The virtual roundtable which is taking place on zoom and streamlined lined on indiantelevision.com social outlets will be moderated by Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari.
Users can log onto indiantelevision.com’s Facebook page (@ITVNewz) today at noon to watch the interesting chat live as Wanvari gets the senior professionals to get as candid as they can get about this burgeoning vertical.
Indiantelevision.com has over the past year initiated and pioneered a series of virtual round tables in partnership with leading video tech suppliers and video content industry practitioners to help in spreading an understanding of tech and business challenges and solutions around them.
Today’s session is a continuation of that initiative.
Session: Indiantelevision.com’s The ContentHub Tech Series Virtual Rountable powered by Akamai Technologies. “The rise and rise of user-generated content and the tech that enabled the rise.”
Date and Time:12 June 12 noon IST
Registration link: https://lnkd.in/gtzp_DD
Simulcast live on Zoom and Facebook
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
