Entertainment
Bollywood awaits Aditya Chopra’s ‘Befikre’
Los Angeles: Aditya Chopra` who last helmed “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi” in 2008, announced his next directorial “Befikre” on his father and veteran filmmaker Yash Chopra’s 83rd birth anniversary on Sunday. And the film fraternity can’t wait to see his “special gift”.
Karan Johar, who featured in Shah Rukh Khan-starrer “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” and also shares a strong bond with Aditya, tweeted: “Aditya chopra is my mentor and my teacher…nothing makes me happier than to see him doing what he does best!!! #Befikre”.
Uday Chopra said it was “a good day”. “Happy birth anniversary dad!! And happy to see my brothers next movie being announced today #Befikre #TodayIsAGoodDay”.
Aditya made the announcement via an e-letter issued to the media on behalf of his home banner Yash Raj Films (YRF).
“With the blessings of my father, on his 83rd birth anniversary, I’m announcing my next directorial venture after seven years,” he shared in the e-letter, which also features an “imaginary conversation” between Aditya and his father, whom he still considers as his “Go to Guy”.
Aditya admits in the letter that his father always wanted him to direct the “biggest films of YRF” and this new project is “not that”.
He has also shared that “Befikre” will “probably not” have the potential to be as successful as his earlier films — including “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” and “Mohabbatein” — but has admitted that he absolutely loves it.
The film’s tagline reads – “Those who dare to love”, indicating that love will be a core element in Aditya’s new film.
Kunal Kohli — who has a close association with Yash Raj Films, thanks to his directorials like “Fanaa” and “Hum Tum” that were produced by the banner — tweeted: “This announcement brought tears and respect. No one has the guts and balls #AdiChopra has. #befikre.”
Vishal Dadlani, who has co-composed music for the banner’s film “TA RA RUM PUM”, loved the way the new movie was announced. “#Befikre. Love how it’s been announced for Yashji’s birthday! What a kind man, what a great heart! #YRF #HappyBirthdayYashJi”.
Writer-filmmaker Milap Zaveri “can’t wait to see the next film by one of my favorite directors”.
Ali Abbas Zafar, who directed Yash Raj Films’ “Gunday”, also expressed his happiness on Twitter. “Happy birthday Yash ji one filmmaker that inspired me the most and what a special gift by Adi to him ‘Befikre’.”
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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