Virat Kohli, wife Anushka donate Rs 2 crore in COVID-19 fight
New Delhi: India captain Virat Kohli and his actor wife Anushka Sharma have donated Rs 2 crore to a fund-raising project, which will raise a total of Rs 7 crore to support the country's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two are raising money through crowd-funding platform Ketto. "...Virat Kohli and Bollywood superstar Anushka Sharma are aiming to raise Rs. 7 crore for COVID relief in India," a press release from the celebrity couple stated.
"They are kickstarting a fundraising campaign #InThisTogether on the crowd-funding platform Ketto and are putting Rs. 2 crore for this initiative."
The campaign will run for seven days on Ketto and the proceeds will be directed to ACT Grants, the implementation partner which will work towards providing oxygen, medical manpower, vaccination awareness and tele-medicine facilities all through the pandemic and the amount.
"We are going through an unprecedented time in the history of our country and our nation needs all of us to unite and save as many people as possible. Anushka and I have been shocked to see the human suffering since last year," Kohli said.
Kohli said that he and his wife had tried to help as many peope as possible in their fight against the virus.
"We have been working towards helping as many people as possible all through the pandemic and now, India wants our support more than ever," he said in a statement that was also shared on his social media handle.
"We are starting this fund-raiser with the confidence that we will be able to raise substantial funds to aid those in dire need. We are confident that people will come forward to support fellow countrymen in crisis. We are in this together and we shall overcome this."
Anushka said it has been painful to watch the suffering of people as the country's health-care system struggled to cope with the case load.
"Virat and I have been hugely pained looking at the inexplicable suffering that people are going through and we hope that this fund will aid in our fight against the virus that we are all helplessly witnessing," she said.
Gayatri Yadav, spokesperson ACT Grants said, "Having strong voices like Anushka and Virat help drive fundraising efforts will go a long way towards helping us realise this goal. On behalf of India's startup ecosystem, ACT Grants is truly grateful to have them join this mission."
Anushka and I have started a campaign on @ketto, to raise funds for Covid-19 relief, and we would be grateful for your support.
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) May 7, 2021
Let’s all come together and help those around us in need of our support.
I urge you all to join our movement.
Link in Bio! ?#InThisTogether pic.twitter.com/RjpbOP2i4G
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JioHotstar to invest Rs 4,000 crore for South Indian content push; unveils 25-title slate
Chennai (PTI): Streaming service JioHotstar on Tuesday announced that it will invest Rs 4,000 crore over the next five years to strengthen South India’s creative economy, unveiling a 25-title slate as part of a major push for regional content.
In one of the biggest announcements by an Indian streaming platform for the southern markets, the company showcased its “South Unbound” vision at a high-profile event here.
Sushant Sreeram, Head – SVOD Business & Chief Marketing Officer at JioStar, said the investment forms part of a broader collaboration with the Tamil Nadu government.
“Earlier today, JioHotstar formalised a Letter of Intent with the Government of Tamil Nadu in the presence of the Chief Minister M K Stalin. This outlines a shared commitment to invest in talent, expand infrastructure and build a future-ready creative economy from the South.
"As part of this vision, JioHotstar will invest Rs 4,000 crore to nurture creators, strengthen the production ecosystem and build a pipeline of stories that are ready for India and ready for the world,” he said.
Calling South India the “heartbeat of Indian storytelling”, Sreeram said the investment signalled the platform’s long-term commitment to local creators.
"JioHotstar started as a dream — to build entertainment rooted in India’s storytelling heritage and powered by cutting-edge technology. The resplendent storytelling traditions of the South motivate us to keep championing authentic, rooted narratives while offering greater accessibility and choices for every viewer," he said.
The event was attended by Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, veteran actor and MP Kamal Haasan, senior state officials, and leading stars and filmmakers from across the southern industries.
Deputy CM Stalin said the partnership will generate “1,000 direct jobs and 15,000 indirect jobs”.
“Cinema in Tamil Nadu has always been a force for social change. OTT is not replacing cinema; it is expanding it. Today, a filmmaker in Madurai or Salem can upload a story and reach audiences across the world. The cultural and economic impact of this partnership will be massive," he added.
aasan said Indian media and entertainment was undergoing a fundamental transformation driven not by technology alone, but by the audience itself.
“We gather at a moment when India’s media and entertainment is not merely growing, it is transforming. For the first time, this shift is not driven by device or format, but by the audience itself,” he said, adding that storytelling today is “screen agnostic”.
“Regional is becoming the new national, and ethnic the new international. Stories born in Madurai, Malappuram or Machilipatnam are no longer regional cinema; they are national cultural events,” Haasan said, giving the example of movies such as “Kantara”, “Drishyam”, “Baahubali”, “Pushpa” and Tamil hits like “Vikram”.
The event was also attended by Mohanlal, Nagarjuna, Vijay Sethupathi, Priyamani, Aishwarya Rajesh and others -- along with directors Jeethu Joseph and Ahammed Khabeer
The streamer's ambitious content slate, unveiled as part of its “South Unbound” initiative, includes sequels to blockbuster franchises, new long-format shows, films, adaptations, and high-engagement reality formats.
The Tamil slate features a mix of returning favourites and new originals, led by "Bigg Boss Tamil", now hosted by Vijay Sethupathi, and "Good Wife S2", the legal drama starring Priyamani.
The lineup also includes "LBW – Love Beyond Wicket", a relationship drama; the family comedy "Cousins and Kalyanams"; the psychological drama "Resort"; and "Heartbeat S3", which brings back Anumol, Karthik Kumar and Deepa Balu.
Other Tamil offerings include "Lingam", an action-drama; "Love Always", a multigenerational love story; the marquee title "Kaattaan" starring Vijay Sethupathi and Milind Soman; and "Second Love", a non-fiction relationship series.
In Telugu, the platform returns with "Bigg Boss Telugu" hosted by Nagarjuna, alongside new originals such as "Moodu Lantharlu" starring Aishwarya Rajesh; the police procedural "Vikram on Duty"; "Varam", a mystical relationship drama; and the hit comedy-drama "Save The Tigers S3" with Chaitanya Krishna.
The slate further includes "Vishakha", the Telugu adaptation of "Aarya" led by Kajal Aggarwal; the relationship-based non-fiction format "Mad for Each Other"; and the Telugu debut of the iconic adventure franchise "Roadies".
From Malayalam, the platform brings back "Bigg Boss Malayalam" hosted by Mohanlal; "Kerala Crime Files S3" featuring Aju Varghese; the mystery drama "Secret Stories: Roslin"; "Anali", "1000 Babies S2" with Neena Gupta and Rahman; and the hard-hitting drama "Pharma" starring Nivin Pauly.
The Kannada lineup includes "Bigg Boss Kannada" hosted by Kichcha Sudeepa; "Batchmates", a nostalgic friendship drama; and the food-and-humour-based non-fiction series "Comedy Cooks".
Across languages, the platform also announced new films such as "Lucky The Superstar", featuring GV Prakash, Anaswara Rajan and Meghna Sumesh, and "Kenatha Kaanom", positioned as broad-appeal mainstream entertainers.
