iWorld
Natak Pictures brings new web series ‘UNSORTED’ on Disney+Hotstar
Mumbai: Natak Pictures explores the emotional conflicts faced by today’s modern generation that constantly juggles between personal and professional life, with the release of its web show UNSORTED. The leading film studio premiered the web show on Disney+Hotstar on 27 January 2023 and is receiving continued applause for the realistic portrayal of human emotions.
Written and directed by Natak Pictures founder & CCO Rahul Bhatnagar, UNSORTED is a story of two ‘not-so-perfect’ lovers who are trying to fill in the gaps for each other. The show conveys how our desire for ‘perfection’ is indeed the cause of human troubles. The plot of the show involves Tara (fashion designer), being sceptical about managing a long-distance relationship with her long time boyfriend Naman (an IT professional) who has decided to shift his base for a new job. Matters worsen when Tara finds Naman getting closer to his beautiful colleague, Seher. Everytime Naman attempts to save his relationship with Tara, he ends up complicating it even more.
Speaking on the release of the web show, Bhatnagar says, “The so-called celebrated love stories witnessed on the silver screen have influenced us to believe that romantic relationships in real life too are meant to be ‘all fair and gaudy’. This is exactly the notion we wanted to break with the web-show, UNSORTED.”
He adds, “We, at Natak Pictures, have always strived to give our audience the best of stories based on relatable experiences, and this web show has been yet another opportunity for us to reach and connect with a larger audience through our creativity. As we begin the year with UNSORTED–our sincere effort to celebrate imperfections in today’s romance– we plan to dedicate the entire 2023 to many more such releases.”
The engaging web show in the romantic-drama genre stars Pinki Ki Shaadi fame Mugdha Agarwal as Tara, Vikram Bhui as Naman and Tanya Singh Bhatnagar as Seher, respectively.
Speaking about their characters, Agarwal says, “As an actor, it is important for me to attach myself with characters that are relatable yet inspiring, and Tara fits the bill perfectly. She is someone who exhibits confidence and hardwork yet feels insecure about her relationships”.
Vikram Bhui too expresses that he likes to play characters that seem realistic when it comes to conveying human emotions while Tanya Singh Bhatnagar says, “My character is a reflection of how one cannot judge a book by its cover. While Seher externally seems intelligent and mature, deep down her past experiences still influence her ability to trust people.”
The three-episodic show has been meticulously shot by Mumbai-based cinematographer Aayush Gupta. Further, the music of the show has been beautifully composed by Tusshar Mallek.
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.
