Film Production
Paytm partners with Dharma Productions to launch loyalty card for fans
MUMBAI: Dharma Productions will be launching an industry-first exclusive loyalty card for its fans. The production house that has given the Indian film industry some of the most iconic films, enjoys an unprecedented fan-following across the globe.
The production house has partnered with Paytm which is India’s largest payments company to introduce first-of-its-kind loyalty program will reward their fan family in the country with exciting offers, experiences and tempting discounts.
The loyalty card will be exclusively made available through the Paytm app from 3rd July onwards and there is limited availability of the cards.
Dharma kick-started the year with the blockbuster Raazi along with other movies. Joining the loyalty program will grant fans first access to all Dharma films and they will also be eligible for exclusive Dharma rewards. Fans can buy their loyalty card exclusively on Paytm and get access to various rewards, right from availing a cash-back of upto Rs 1500 cash-back on their films to a trip to movie sets and locations where Dharma movies were shot among other exciting deals.
Karan Johar said, “We have received unconditional love from our fans over the years and this has indeed been a blessed journey so far. This offering is our way of thanking them.”
Paytm CFO and SVP Madhur Deora added, “We are excited to grow our relationship with one of the country’s top production houses Dharma Productions as the exclusive Loyalty & Reward Partner for the Dharma Loyalty Card. We have been focused on improving the movie-watching experience with the widest assortment of theatres and novel first-of-its-kind offerings like Cancellation Protect.”
Paytm Movies is the country’s fastest-growing entertainment ticketing platform. It powers online ticketing for 4800 movie screens in 750+ cities, registering an exponential 500 per cent growth as compared to 2016, the year of launch for Paytm’s movie ticketing and event booking platform. It is aiming to sell over 100 million tickets by end of this year.
Film Production
Arka Mediaworks onboards 88 Pictures as animation studio partner on ‘The Eternal War – Part 1’
Arka Mediaworks announces that 88 Pictures, the acclaimed animation and visual storytelling studio known for its cutting-edge CGI and cinematic artistry, is on board as the animation partner for the highly anticipated Baahubali: The Eternal War, a groundbreaking two-part 3D animated feature film set in the globally beloved Baahubali universe.
Baahubali: The Eternal War represents a bold new chapter in the Baahubali saga envisioned for national and international audiences and crafted with the ambition of delivering one of India’s most ambitious and globally benchmarked animation projects to date.
88 Pictures will execute the animation production, bringing to life the film’s richly detailed worlds, epic battle sequences, and larger-than-life characters with its signature blend of artistic vision, performance-driven animation, and advanced production pipelines. Working closely with the film’s creative leadership and technical partners, the studio aims to set new benchmarks in animation quality, cinematic storytelling, and global scalability.
This animated epic follows the successful re-release of Baahubali: The Epic (the combined theatrical version of the original live-action films) on 31 October 2025 across India and the USA. During the film’s interval, legendary creator and director S.S. Rajamouli (Baahubali 1 & 2, RRR) stunned audiences with a surprise teaser for The Eternal War – Part 1. The video immediately went viral, garnering widespread national and international acclaim across LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube for its ambitious visual style and scale.
Produced by Arka Mediaworks and led by co-founder and CEO Shobu Yarlagadda – producer of the iconic Baahubali duology, The Eternal War brings together fantastic storytelling and cutting-edge animation.. The film is directed and written by acclaimed animation filmmaker Ishan Shukla (Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust, Star Wars: Visions – “The Bandits of Golak”) and screenplay by Scott Mosier (The Grinch). Mihira Visual Labs, the studio co-founded by Yarlagadda anchors the film’s animation, visual development, and execution.
The partnership with 88 Pictures brings significant pedigree to the project; the studio is well-regarded for its work on high-profile international titles including DreamWorks’ series Trollhunters, the HBO Max original series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, Disney’s animated short An Almost Christmas Story to name a few.
Yarlagadda shared, “We are happy to onboard 88 Pictures as the animation studio partner for our prestigious and most expensive animated film from India. We believe that their expertise and capabilities will allow us to produce a first-of-its-kind, world-class animated feature film from India.”
88 Pictures founder & CEO Milind D. Shinde said, “Baahubali changed the way cinema is perceived and became a defining milestone that turned the tide for Indian live-action filmmaking. Expanding the franchise into an entirely new universe—at a never-seen, never-done scale—through an animated feature created in India for a global audience is set to redefine how the world views Indian animation. We are truly thrilled to be part of this landmark project and to bring it to life under the visionary direction of Ishan Shukla, guided by the experience and leadership of acclaimed producer Shobu Yarlagadda.”
Shukla expressed, “Eternal War requires a level of visual and emotional precision that can only come from teams who truly understand both craft and intent. Working with 88 Pictures, alongside Mihira Visual Labs, has been a deeply collaborative experience. This association brings together technical excellence and creative sensitivity, enabling us to translate an ambitious vision into a compelling cinematic reality.”
Baahubali: The Eternal War – Part 1 is scheduled for release in 2027
