Entertainment
Anurag’s aggressive approach to filmmaking amazing: Aanand L. Rai
Mumbai, Jan 3 (IANS) Filmmaker Aanand L. Rai prefers to collaborate with those who make work enjoyable. He says Anurag Kashyap, with whom he has joined hands for “Mukkabaaz”, is one such director who is aggressive in his work.
Rai was present at a press conference for “Mukkabaaz”, his first venture with Kashyap, here in Mumbai on Tuesday.
He said: “I really enjoy making films. I have only one condition when it comes to making films, to make them with people with whom my wavelengths amtches. I enjoy working with them.
“I wanted to work with Anurag, and when he told me this story, I thought there won’t be a better opportunity than this one.”
“The love story is amazing with sports and politics in the backdrop. I don’t think anybody has spoken about it in such a realistic manner. The way Anurag makes films aggressively is always amazing and I think that is really important to me as a producer,” Rai added.
“Mukkabaaz” features Vineet Kumar Singh, Zoya Hussain, Ravi Kishan and Jimmy Shergill. Releasing on January 12, the film is directed by Kashyap and produced by Rai.
Rai is himself directing “Zero”, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif.
He said “Zero” is the growth which he has been wanting after “Tanu Weds Manu Returns”.
“It is an important film for me. See, with each film, you ask for some change and growth within yourself. After ‘Tanu Weds Manu Returns’, I was asking for some growth within myself and I thought I should tell this story.
“It has been a long process to write this story, taking it on the floors and now releasing it,” said Rai on “Zero”.
The title and teaser of the movie were launched on New Year’s Day.
“This film is taking longer than a normal story. So it became important for us to share the title and glimpse of the film with the audience. New Year was starting and we thought of releasing the teaser and now we have a year to complete our film,” he said.
On the teaser, Rai was asked if there is a reason behind using the “Jab Jab Phool Khile” song “Affoo Khudaya”.
He said: “I don’t want to talk about it here and just end it. There is a very interesting back story as to why we did it and I will give you more time very soon to talk and discuss it.”
Asked to comment on rumours about a sequel to “Raanjhanaa” part 2, Rai said: “I don’t understand why people are asking for ‘Raanjhanaa’ part 2. I don’t think every picture that people like should have a part 2.
“Making a sequel is never the intention of making a movie.”
“A film will be made if you have a story. And as far as the sequel of ‘Raanjhanaa’ is concerned, the film was a complete story. Which I’ve already expressed and there will be no part 2 of the film. But I think Anurag Kashyap might have a ‘Mukkabaaz’ part 2”
–IANS
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Entertainment
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
International online casino Casino Days has published a report sharing their internal data on what types and brands of devices are used to play on the platform by users from the South Asian region.
Such aggregate data analyses allow the operator to optimise their website for the brands and models of devices people are actually using.
The insights gained through the research also help Casino Days tailor their services based on the better understanding of their clients and their needs.
Desktops and Tablets Lose the Battle vs Mobile
The primary data samples analysed by Casino Days reveal that mobile connections dominate the market in South Asia and are responsible for a whopping 96.6% of gaming sessions, while computers and tablets have negligible shares of 2.9% and 0.5% respectively.
The authors of the study point out that historically, playing online casino was exclusively done on computers, and attribute thе major shift to mobile that has unfolded over time to the wide spread of cheaper smartphones and mobile data plans in South Asia.
“Some of the reasons behind this massive difference in device type are affordability, technical advantages, as well as cheaper and more obtainable internet plans for mobiles than those for computers,” the researchers comment.
Xiaomi and Vivo Outperform Samsung, Apple Way Down in Rankings
Chinese brands Xiaomi and Vivo were used by 21.9% and 20.79% of Casino Days players from South Asia respectively, and together with the positioned in third place with a 18.1% share South Korean brand Samsung dominate the market among real money gamers in the region.
Cupertino, California-based Apple is way down in seventh with a user share of just 2.29%, overshadowed by Chinese brands Realme (11.43%), OPPO (11.23%), and OnePlus (4.07%).
Huawei is at the very bottom of the chart with a tiny share just below the single percent mark, trailing behind mobile devices by Motorola, Google, and Infinix.
The data on actual phone usage provided by Casino Days, even though limited to the gaming parts of the population of South Asia, paints a different picture from global statistics on smartphone shipments by vendors.
Apple and Samsung have been sharing the worldwide lead for over a decade, while current regional leader Xiaomi secured their third position globally just a couple of years ago.
Striking Android Dominance among South Asian Real Money Gaming Communities
The shifted market share patterns of the world’s top smartphone brands in South Asia observed by the Casino Days research paper reveal a striking dominance of Android devices at the expense of iOS-powered phones.
On the global level, Android enjoys a comfortable lead with a sizable 68.79% share which grows to nearly 79% when we look at the whole continent of Asia. The data on South Asian real money gaming communities suggests that Android’s dominance grows even higher and is north of the 90% mark.
Among the major factors behind these figures, the authors of the study point to the relative affordability of and greater availability of Android devices in the region, especially when manufactured locally in countries like India and Vietnam.
“And, with influencers and tech reviews putting emphasis on Android devices, the choice of mobile phone brand and OS becomes easy; Android has a much wider range of products and caters to the Asian online casino market in ways that Apple can’t due to technical limitations,” the researchers add.
The far better integration achieved by Google Pay compared to its counterpart Apple Pay has also played a crucial role in shaping the existing smartphone market trends.
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