iWorld
Jojo Movies rolls out Gujarati hits for rent on Prime Video across India
MUMBAI: Regional cinema just turned a corner, and Gujarati films are leading the way. Jojo Movies, a rising force in vernacular content, has partnered with Prime Video to make its acclaimed film library available on the platform’s movie rentals offering starting May 2025. The rollout marks a landmark moment for Gujarati cinema, which now finds itself accessible to a pan-Indian audience on demand.
Films such as 3 Ekka, Veer Esha Nu Seemant and other recent crowd-pullers will now stream as paid rentals, adding a fresh layer of visibility and viability to the regional film industry. The model lets viewers across India rent these films without subscription barriers, opening a direct monetisation channel for creators while broadening exposure for Gujarat’s cultural narratives.
“We are at a turning point in the evolution of regional cinema, and our collaboration with Prime Video is a game-changer for both Gujarati cinema and regional content as a whole”, said Jojo Movies founder & CEO Dhruvin Shah. “This isn’t just about distribution—it’s about redefining how regional stories are shared, valued, and experienced nationally. The availability of Gujarati films via Movie Rentals on Prime Video underscores the rising demand for culturally rooted storytelling. Our vision has always been to take powerful regional narratives to wider audiences, and this launch is a significant step in making Gujarati cinema a cultural force”.
The move is part of a larger strategic pivot by OTT platforms to tap regional growth engines. As internet penetration deepens and linguistic audiences seek relatable content, vernacular storytelling is no longer a side note—it’s a mainstage act. Jojo’s catalogue hitting Prime Video isn’t just about renting films; it’s about renting pride, culture and a slice of the state to the rest of India.
The digital release also sets the stage for new business models, giving filmmakers a chance to earn directly from pay-per-view audiences instead of relying solely on theatrical or subscription-led returns. For regional storytellers, that could be a ticket to creative independence.
iWorld
Meta plans 8,000 layoffs in new AI-led restructuring wave
First phase from May 20 may cut 10 per cent workforce amid AI pivot.
MUMBAI: At Meta, the future may be artificial but the cuts are very real. The social media giant is reportedly preparing a fresh round of layoffs, with an initial wave expected to impact around 8,000 employees as it doubles down on its artificial intelligence ambitions. According to a Reuters report, the first phase of job cuts is slated to begin on May 20, targeting roughly 10 per cent of Meta’s global workforce. With nearly 79,000 employees on its rolls as of December 31, the move marks one of the company’s most significant workforce reductions in recent years.
And this may only be the beginning. Sources indicate that additional layoffs are being planned for the second half of the year, although the scale and timing remain fluid, likely to be shaped by how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve in the coming months. Earlier reports had suggested that total cuts in 2026 could reach 20 per cent or more of its workforce.
The restructuring comes as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg continues to steer the company towards an AI-first operating model, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to the transition. Internally, this shift is already visible: teams within Reality Labs have been reorganised, engineers have been moved into a newly formed Applied AI unit, and a Meta Small Business division has been created to align with broader structural changes.
The trend is hardly isolated. Across the tech sector, companies are trimming headcount while investing aggressively in automation. Amazon, for instance, has reportedly cut around 30,000 corporate roles nearly 10 per cent of its white-collar workforce citing efficiency gains driven by AI. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows over 73,000 tech employees have already lost jobs this year, compared with 153,000 in all of 2024.
For Meta, the move echoes its earlier “year of efficiency” in 2022–23, when about 21,000 roles were eliminated amid slowing growth and market pressures. This time, however, the backdrop is different. The company is financially stronger, generating over $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, with shares up 3.68 per cent year-to-date though still below last summer’s peak.
That contrast underlines the shift underway. These layoffs are less about survival and more about reinvention. As Meta restructures itself around AI from autonomous coding agents to advanced machine learning systems, the question is no longer whether the company will change, but how many roles will be left unchanged when it does.
