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Sanjay Raut says late politician Bal Thackeray was not anti-Muslim man
Mumbai: Politician and film producer Sanjay Raut, who is also the writer of the forthcoming film “Thackeray” based on Bal Thackeray, says that though there is a perception that the late politician was “anti-Muslim”, it is not true.
The producer was present along with the cast and crew of the film for the launch of the song album here.
Asked if Thackeray disliked and maintained a distance from the Muslim community, Raut told the media: “Bala saab was never an anti-Muslim man. He was a true patriot. He was one of those lovers of the nation and people’s person that never allowed caste and religion to come in between…
“People asked us why we cast Nawazuddin (Siddiqui) bhai as saab in the film. I would say that this is the biggest salute from us to the ideology of Bala saab. Also, note that Nakash Aziz sang the title song of ‘Thackeray’ because we believe that saab kept merit beyond religion.”
Calling Thackeray the “biggest nationalist”, Raut mentioned that “his vision was to bring people together for the development of the nation”.
Sanjay Raut claims Bal Thackeray was never an anti-Muslim man:
The event was also attended by Nawazuddin, actress Amrita Rao, Nakash, composers Rohan-Rohan and lyricist Manoj Yadav, among others.
The film is releasing before the election. Asked if the story will influence people’s mind to vote for a particular political party, Raut said: “Look that film ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’ is made based on Sanjaya Baru’s book. But our film is not based on any book, it is a life story. This is not a propaganda film. Like the way we watched films on Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, we will watch this film on Thackeray saab.”
Bala saab’s son Uddhav Thackeray and grandson Aaditya Thackeray were also present at the event.
“We are releasing it between 1200 and 1300 screens in India. It includes Marathi and Hindi. Overseas…we are attempting around 400 screens,” said Ajit Andhare, chief operating officer of Viacom18 Studios.
“Thackeray” is releasing on January 25.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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