Entertainment
For ‘Pad Man’, focus was on film’s impact, not business: Balki
Mumbai, March 6 (IANS) Filmmaker R. Balki, whose last directorial venture “Pad Man” was on menstrual hygiene, says the idea behind making the film was to create awareness and not just generate box office. And so, the makers are content with the response.
With Akshay Kumar leading the cast in the movie, it did well at the box office but not as per expectations.
Asked if the subject affected the film’s business, Balki told IANS here: “When you make a film on menstruation, the intention is never the box office number, but the impact it creates. The best part is people now do not shy away talking about menstruation.
“Even if 10 people changed their thought, I would consider that as good sign. And whatever number our film has got at the box office, it shows how many people watched the film, keeping the intention of the film in mind. For us, it is a huge achievement.”
According to trade experts, while the film attracted footfalls in metros, the small town audience was not too enthusiastic about the subject.
In that case, did the film reach its target audience?
“Well, I think when it comes to awareness of menstruation hygiene, even city people are also not aware of it that well and it is also taboo for them. Even inside Mumbai, if you go a little into the interiors and suburban areas, people are not open to talk about it. So we are trying to arrange a free screening of the film in the rural areas, with Melinda Gates Foundation… We have already started from the outskirts of Maharashtra,” he said.
Balki conducted a masterclass at the Ficci Frames 2018 on Tuesday. He spoke about his journey from his first feature film “Cheeni Kum” to “Pad Man”, apart from his special bond with Amitabh Bachchan.
–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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