Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment

Big hit Stree 2 gives Bollywood a much needed boost

Horror comedy Stree 2 exceeded all expectations to become a big box office success. The sequel to 2018 sleeper hit Stree has clocked up such huge figures worldwide that it will be this year’s biggest Bollywood success, in terms of investment on return, due to its relatively low budget. One of the reasons for its success has been the abject failure of bigger budget movies Khel Khel Mein and Vedaa, which were released on the same Independence Day weekend (16). Headlined by Rajkummar Rao and Shraddha Kapoor, Stree 2 has given a much-needed boost to a Bollywood industry that has endured a horrible year with several flops.

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Cricketer Yuvraj Singh Bollywood biopic may not be a winner

(From left) Yuvraj Singh, Bhushan Kumar and Ravi Bhagchandka

Cricket being India’s favourite sport means a forthcoming biopic of Yuvraj Singh seems like a great idea. The big hitting batsman had an action-packed career that included making a winning comeback after beating cancer. Unfortunately, in recent years, a huge number of cricket movies in Bollywood have failed. With the shockingly bad standard of young Hindi cinema heroes, it will be difficult to find someone convincing and bankable to play Yuvraj in the movie. He also has several alleged scandals associated with him, including his chequered love life, which will likely not be included in any biopic, thereby making the project inauthentic. Yuvraj not ranking up there with all-time greats could also work against the film, which will be produced by Bhushan Kumar and Ravi Bhagchandka.

International film festival favourite set for a UK cinema release

All We Imagine As Light 

Artistic south Asian films that receive global acclaim at international festival rarely get a big screen release in UK. That is why it’s great that All We Imagine As Light will be released in cinemas across the UK on November 29. This will be followed by a Blu-ray and BFI Player release in early 2025. The 2024 Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix winner, written and directed by Payal Kapadia, explores the complexities of female friendship. The Mumbai-set story revolves around three individuals, battling their own challenges, who take a trip that allows their desires to be manifested. Kapadia said, “Although All We Imagine as Light is my first fiction feature, it’s still very important to me that fiction and documentary can exist together. What I try to do is approach fiction in a non-fiction way. I find the juxtaposition of the two very interesting and I strongly believe that it makes the non-fiction more fiction and the fiction more non-fiction.”

Akshay Kumar continues his disastrous run with film flop Khel Khel Mein

Khel Khel Mein

Akshay Kumar added to his unbelievably bad box office run with newly released movie, Khel Khel Mein. The comedy turned out to be another disaster despite its big star cast and the fact it was released on India’s Independence Day (15). This now means that 13 of Akshay’s last 15 movies have been huge failures. Clueless financiers don’t seem to have got the message that his time at the top is obviously over, as the actor has a whole load of movies on the way, which will also likely be rejected. Instead of burning their money on him, they should perhaps be investing in younger talent.

John Abraham has another huge failure with box office disaster Vedaa

He may have an enviable physique, but the harsh reality is that most movies headlined by John Abraham have been abject failures, largely due to his inability to spot a good story. He added to his huge list of high-profile disasters with Vedaa. The action-drama was roundly rejected by audiences and demonstrated once again that the actor doesn’t have what it takes to headline a higher budget movie. His biggest success in recent years was playing the villain in Pathaan, which only became a super hit because it starred Shah Rukh Khan.

Bigg Boss starts to round up hopeless participants for new season

With the 18th season of popular reality TV show Bigg Boss due to be premiered in October, producers are trying to find mostly Z-list celebrities to participate in the show. While it is understandable for the unknowns to be part of India’s answer to Celebrity Big Brother, those who are more established should stay away from the annual car crash hosted by Salman Khan. Most participants, including popular TV stars, who have been silly enough to sign up have seen a detrimental effect on their respective careers, despite getting a short burst of attention. The show will offer up humiliation that many won’t be able to come back from.

Acclaimed espionage thriller finds a home on streaming site ZEE5

Berlin

After delighting audiences on the festival circuit, fabulous film Berlin finally found a home on streaming site ZEE5 Global. The espionage spy drama, set against the backdrop of 1990s New Delhi, is decidedly different from other Indian movies. The story of a deaf-mute man - accused of being a foreign spy and a sign language expert sent to uncover the truth by a devious high-ranking intelligence officer - received rave reviews.

Aparshakti Khurana, Ishwak Singh and Rahul Bose deliver stand-out performances in the newly premiered drama well worth watching. Director Atul Sabharwal said, “With Berlin, we've created a spy thriller that is sure to keep the audiences on the edge of their couches. The on-screen chemistry between Aparshakti and Ishwak is nothing short of electric - it's a treat that I believe viewers will thoroughly enjoy.”

Award-winning British Asian stand-up comedy show snapped up by Netflix

Ahir Shah with 2023 Edinburgh Comedy Award (Photo: Euan Cherry/Getty Images)

In terms of stand-up comedy, one of the biggest UK success stories of the past year has been Ahir Shah’s acclaimed show Ends. The five-star rated show was described as ‘a beautiful, lyrical love letter’ and followed up a stunning win at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe with sold-out performances across the UK. Global audiences will be able to watch the stand-up show that combines comedy with a moving personal immigrant experience, British Asian history, contemporary politics and family insights. It is due to be premiered on Netflix on September 10. There is still a chance to experience the razor-sharp show live as Shah will be touring it across the UK until January 30, 2025, including another run at Soho Theatre in London from September 24-28.