iWorld
Vodafone Idea and Starz launch Lionsgate Play in India
Mumbai: Vodafone Idea Limited, India’s leading telecom operator and STARZPLAY, the international premium subscription platform from STARZ, a Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) company, have joined hands to launch Lionsgate’s premium service Lionsgate Play in India. This partnership will enable Vodafone Idea customers’ access to a broad portfolio of celebrated blockbusters and award-winning feature films from the studio.
Video is the new growth driver in the digital content consumption today. Vodafone Idea’s partnership with STARZPLAY is a step towards boosting the growth of the digital ecosystem in India. The partnership will capitalize on this huge potential by offering viewers with an array of premium content across genres.
Lionsgate Play will be available to Vodafone Play and Idea Movies & TV subscribers as a part of this strategic collaboration between the two companies. The offering includes multibillion-dollar global blockbuster franchises The Hunger Games and The Twilight Saga, multiple Academy Award ® winner La La Land and the international breakout hit Wonder, with much of it available in four local languages. The content library will be spread across genres like horror, comedy, drama, action, thriller, documentaries to name a few.
Following the launch, the offering will boast an illustrious line up of digital premieres of Lionsgate films coming to the service in the first year including Robin Hood, Crank, Sahara, Redcliff, Jersey Shore Attack, Killers, Grudge, Letters to Juliet, American Pyscho 2, Nerve, Facing Ali, Down A Dark Hall and American Assassin.
Commenting on the partnership, Avneesh Khosla, Operations Director – Marketing, Vodafone Idea Limited said, “At VIL we strive to bring world class partnerships to our consumers with the singular focus to enrich their experience. With Lionsgate Play we are extremely excited at the prospect of offering premium world class English content to our consumers to enable them to enjoy the best that Hollywood has to offer.”
“The partnership with Vodafone Idea creates an exciting opportunity to expand the Lionsgate Play offering as a premium service that delivers a vast library of compelling films and a great user experience to all of our shared customers. We are delighted to bring this premium service to India with a leading global platform like Vodafone which has such enormous reach and tremendous distribution expertise. Our partnership is the latest affirmation of the enormous role that telcos are playing in shaping the digital age of content,” said Rohit Jain, Managing Director of Lionsgate South Asia.
iWorld
Mastercard expands concert series with comedy and music format
Vir Das, Zakir Khan and Papon headline multi-city shows across India.
MUMBAI: From punchlines to power chords, the stage is getting a genre upgrade. Mastercard has unveiled the next phase of its multi-city concert series in India, blending stand-up comedy with live music in a format that mirrors the country’s evolving entertainment tastes. The new line-up brings together a diverse mix of performers, including comedians Vir Das and Zakir Khan, alongside singer Papon. The shift marks a departure from earlier editions that were primarily music-led, featuring global and Indian acts such as Enrique Iglesias, A. R. Rahman and Sunidhi Chauhan.
Curated in collaboration with Tribe Vibe and EVA Live, the expanded series is designed to create a broader cultural platform that brings humour, storytelling and music into a single live experience.
Vir Das will kick off the comedy segment in New Delhi with four shows across two days at Yashobhoomi on 9 and 10 May. Meanwhile, Zakir Khan is set for an extended run in Mumbai, with nine shows scheduled at Dome SVP Stadium across 12, 13, 14, 19 and 20 June, with additional dates expected.
On the music front, Papon will headline a six-city tour, beginning in Chandigarh on 16 May, followed by Ahmedabad on 29 May and Lucknow on 30 May. The tour will then move to Bengaluru on 6 June, Hyderabad on 7 June, and conclude in Indore on 14 June.
The series continues to offer exclusive benefits for Mastercard cardholders, including priority ticket access and premium lounge experiences at venues positioning the platform as both an entertainment and lifestyle proposition.
Beyond the spotlight, the initiative carries a social dimension. Through its partnership with Learning Links Foundation, Mastercard has enabled nearly 90 students from underserved communities across cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Chandigarh to experience live events often for the first time aiming to spark interest in careers within the experience economy.
As live entertainment becomes increasingly hybrid and experiential, Mastercard’s latest move signals a simple insight: today’s audience doesn’t just want a show, they want a story, a laugh and a memory, all rolled into one.
