iWorld
Netflix content offering includes Satnam Singh doc
MUMBAI: Satnam Singh Bhamra, first India-born basketball player to be drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA), has received another big honour. His life has been made into a documentary.
Titled, One in a Billion, the film was released on 6 December in the US. What’s even more exciting is that the documentary has been picked by streaming juggernaut, Netflix.
The 90-minute long doc has been directed by RGTV founder Roman Gackowski and is produced by OBB Pictures CEO Michael D Ratner. Netflix has acquired streaming rights to telecast the documentary, which also features NBA commissioner Adam Silver, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and NBA’s senior director of international basketball operations Troy Justice.
One in a Billion depicts Bhamra’s life from being born in a small, remote village of Ballo Ke in Punjab’s Barnala district to the night of 25 June 2015 when he created history when he was drafted into the NBA in New York. He was selected by Dallas Mavericks as 52 pick and presently plays as a centre for Texas Legends in the NBA development league.
Bamra’s father Balbir Singh is excited about the movie based on the life of his son and is on cloud nine.
iWorld
WhatsApp tests ‘WhatsApp Plus’ paid subscription tier
€2.49 plan adds customisation tools, messaging and calls remain free.
MUMBAI: Your chats may soon get a glow-up at a small monthly price. WhatsApp is testing a new paid subscription tier called ‘WhatsApp Plus’, signalling a shift towards premium personalisation features while keeping its core services free. The feature is currently being rolled out to a limited set of Android beta users, with early reports from WABetaInfo indicating a price of €2.49 per month (approximately Rs 274). Meta has confirmed the test, stating that it is designed for users who want more control over how they customise and organise their app experience.
Importantly, the subscription remains optional. Core functionalities including messaging, voice calls and community features will continue to be available free of charge, ensuring that the platform’s primary use case remains unchanged.
Instead, WhatsApp Plus focuses on aesthetic and organisational upgrades. These include exclusive sticker packs, new themes, custom app icons and personalised notification tones. On the functional side, subscribers may be able to pin up to 20 chats significantly higher than the current limit of three along with access to custom chat lists and enhanced categorisation tools.
Industry observers suggest the offering is largely cosmetic. Social media consultant Matt Navarra noted that the features lean more towards visual and usability enhancements rather than altering the app’s core functionality.
While global pricing has not been finalised, the subscription is expected to remain a low-cost monthly plan, with reports indicating a possible one-month free trial for eligible users. The feature is still in beta, meaning the final set of offerings could evolve before a broader rollout. Support for iOS users is also anticipated in the coming weeks.
The move mirrors a broader trend in the social and messaging ecosystem, where platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram have introduced similar subscription layers adding premium features without placing core services behind a paywall.
For WhatsApp, the strategy appears clear, keep the conversation free, but charge for a little extra flair around it.
