Latest news with #Tiwari
Time of India
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Nitesh Tiwari spent 10 years on Ramayana pre-production, consulted Pandits and Vashisht Yoga Shastras for script authenticity: Report
Director Nitesh Tiwari, known for 'Dangal' and 'Chhichhore,' has reportedly spent a full decade preparing for his magnum opus 'Ramayana' being a cinematic retelling of the ancient Indian epic that aims to blend spiritual depth with visual grandeur. As revealed by the film's official social media handle the pre-production phase spanned 10 years, involving exhaustive work on scripting, screenplay, and dialogue development. Ancient texts and spiritual guidance shaped the script Tiwari and producer Namit Malhotra researched the Vashisht Yoga Shastras, a renowned collection of yogic and metaphysical writings, and spoke with Pandits to guarantee cultural and philosophical authenticity. This research informed the film's thematic tone, character arcs, and narrative structure, ensuring that the screenplay was both emotionally relatable to contemporary audiences and rooted in conventional wisdom. A cast worthy of the epic The film has some well-known stars including Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Ravi Dubey as Lakshman, and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. Supporting roles include Amitabh Bachchan, Rakul Preet Singh, Kunal Kapoor, Lara Dutta, Arun Govil, and Sheeba Chadha. The announcement video, which showed glimpses of Kapoor and Yash, was accompanied by a striking part composed by Hans Zimmer and A.R. Rahman, which will mark a rare East-meets-West collaboration in Indian cinema. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like This Could Be the Best Time to Trade Gold in 5 Years IC Markets Learn More Undo A decade of devotion: why the wait was intentional The film's world-building began as early as 2015, with Tiwari and Malhotra choosing to delay production until the script met their exacting standards. The team reportedly conducted tech rehearsals in Los Angeles in early 2024 and built over 12 elaborate sets, many of which have now been dismantled as post-production begins. The film is being co-directed by Ravi Udyawar and backed by DNEG, the Oscar-winning VFX studio behind 'Inception' and 'Interstellar,' ensuring that the visual storytelling matches the spiritual scale. Release timeline and format There will be two installments of 'Ramayana' the first on is scheduled for Diwali 2026 and the second for Diwali 2027. Ram and Sita's early years, their eviction, and Hanuman's introduction will be covered in the first section, while Ravana's role and the final battle will be covered in the second.
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Business
- Indian Express
Pune Inc: How 3 Pune entrepreneurs are fighting deepfakes with their own AI
In January 2024, a major scam shook the world. It involved an online meeting of a Hong Kong-based company in which a finance department employee was authorised to make 15 cash transfers totaling $25.5 million for an urgent acquisition. Soon, the company realised that the employee had been the only real person at the meeting. All others, including the Chief Financial Officer, had been deepfakes created by Artificial Intelligence (AI). To fight such crimes, a Pune-based company, pi-labs, was founded by Ankush Tiwari, Abhijeet Zilpelwar, and Dr Raghu Sesha Iyengar in 2023. The founders and their team members have worked together for more than 20 years in different environments. The company has its office in Aundh, fittingly located above a closely guarded jewellery showroom. Every week, pi-labs starts with a scrutiny of products, opportunities, roadmaps, and threats – the team members are security guards in their own right; their opponents are the gangs that deploy Artificial Intelligence-based technology to perpetrate digital deception. Tiwari, who is also the CEO, rattles off the threats that India alone confronts. 'India is very digitally savvy and has one of the best financial stacks in the world. A key feature is the video KYC. Now, deepfake (technology that can digitally alter a person's appearance) can bypass video KYCs to mimic somebody who has a good credit profile. Initiatives, such as the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, could be compromised. Deepfakes can make a lot of dead people alive, at least for the first six months, when the paperwork is taking place, and start siphoning off money. The losses would be crazy,' he says. The HR wing in major companies conducts recruitment interviews online, and who would know if an incompetent candidate gets an expert to answer the questions in a deepfake? 'Even if two per cent of incompetent candidates clear interviews in deepfake, it would result in direct monetary losses to the company, customer frustration, customer trust issues, and embarrassment,' says Tiwari. Then, there is law enforcement, where Artificial Intelligence is regularly being used to create new scams, from voice cloning to digital arrest. 'In the defence sector, too, how do we make sure that the country is protected from misinformation campaigns, and figure out the noise from the reality?' asks Tiwari. Belonging to an Army background, Tiwari got involved in the venture with the conviction that deepfake crimes, though they will rise exponentially, can be prevented. A bootstrapped and now customer-funded venture, pi-labs has created a deepfake detection platform called Authentify, which is AI++-based and can detect and verify the authenticity of digital media, such as video, audio, images, and voice cloning. 'Authentify can be deployed either on-premise or in the cloud, giving organisations the flexibility to choose the setup that best suits their needs while ensuring the highest level of data confidentiality. It is designed to address the evolving threats of deepfakes and tampered content, and aims to protect the digital assets of enterprises,' says Tiwari. The company primarily works with law enforcement agencies at the state and central levels, and the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) sector. 'We launched our project in an interesting time, when India and several other democracies were going to have elections. Most of these countries were impacted by one deepfake or another. We could detect when a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Bollywood actors that came in was not right. There have been cases of women impersonation and child pornography that we have helped with. Being on the defensive side, we help law enforcement agencies,' Tiwari mentions. With enterprises, on the other hand, pi-labs plays a protective role by keeping away deepfake videos and KYCs. Pilot projects are underway with five banks. 'We are a grounded company, but we proudly claim that we have a potent deepfake deduction product. We believe things of national security have to be built by native entrepreneurs, and we at pi-labs are doing innovations for a safer tomorrow. Slowly, but surely, we are finding our space. We will always be a bottom-line-looking company, which is not in a hurry, so we take no shortcuts. We are ready to build the hard way, but the essential belief in the team is that we are on to something big. We are building for national defence and India's security,' says Tiwari. Dipanita Nath is interested in the climate crisis and sustainability. She has written extensively on social trends, heritage, theatre and startups. She has worked with major news organizations such as Hindustan Times, The Times of India and Mint. ... Read More
News18
2 days ago
- News18
Chicken Instead Of Paneer? Lucknow Man Claims He Fell Sick After Restaurant Messed Up Order
Last Updated: This mix-up allegedly resulted in the customer suffering a severe food-related disease, leading authorities to conduct an extensive investigation. Order mix-ups in restaurants and food delivery services have become a fairly common occurrence. While not ideal, they are often the result of human error, especially during peak hours, and can usually be addressed through proper training and preventive measures. However, in some cases, customers choose to pursue legal action against restaurant owners. In a recent incident, an FIR was filed against a popular Chinese food brand after a customer alleged that he was served chicken kali mirch instead of the paneer kali mirch he had ordered. This mix-up allegedly resulted in the customer suffering a severe food-related disease, causing authorities to file a complaint and conduct an extensive investigation. What Exactly Happened? Manish Tiwari, a private employee from Pandit Purwa in Indira Nagar, Lucknow, submitted the complaint with the Vibhuti Khand police station. Tiwari recounted the incident, saying he went to a friend's house in the Kamta neighbourhood and the two decided to eat together. They chose a vegetarian dinner and ordered 'paneer kalimirch dry" from a well-known restaurant near Hahnemann crossing through a food delivery app. According to Tiwari, the delivery person arrived on time and handed up what appeared to be their vegetarian order. However, the dish included chicken instead of paneer. Trusting the restaurant's service, the duo ate dinner, unaware that the paneer tasted different. A few minutes after eating, Tiwari claimed that his friend felt sick and suffered from severe vomiting, raising immediate concerns about the food's contents. Now, a video of Tiwari is circulating online, wherein he is seen lashing out at the restaurant workers for serving chicken instead of paneer. लखनऊ- पनीर की जगह चिकन भेजने पर हंगामा। चाइनीज वॉक रेस्टोरेंट पर लगा आरोप। सावन में धार्मिक भावनाएं आहत करने का आरोप। रेस्टोरेंट पर पनीर की जगह चिकन भेजने का आरोप। रेस्टोरेंट में हंगामे का वीडियो हुआ वायरल। पीड़ित ने विभूतिखंड थाने में दी तहरीर।। @lkopolice @Uppolice — MOHD KALEEM ANI NEWS AGENCY (@mohdkaleem36) July 20, 2025 Legal Action Tiwari immediately lodged an FIR against the restaurant at the Vibhuti Khand police and accused them of gross negligence. 'An FIR has been filed based on the complaint, and the case is being investigated," said Vibhuti Khand SHO Sunil Singh. Police have filed an FIR on multiple charges, including BNS sections 125 (a) for acts endangering life or personal safety, 271 for negligent spread of infectious diseases, 272 for spreading infection of a life-threatening disease, and 318 (4) for cheating the restaurant owner and staff. Additional DCP Pankaj Kumar Singh stated that as part of the inquiry, police are carefully verifying order details, inspecting food samples, and reviewing delivery records to ensure the validity of the complaint. view comments First Published: July 22, 2025, 09:45 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
‘Why did he call Parliament session?' asks Congress MP Pramod Tiwari on PM Modi's trip to U.K. and Maldives
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming visit to the U.K. and Maldives from July 23 to 26 during the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Mr. Tiwari on Sunday (July 20, 2025) questioned the Prime Minister's commitment to democracy, suggesting he should review his attendance record in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Congress MP, while talking to ANI, said, 'When the Prime Minister knew that he would be abroad on those dates, why did he call the session? The Prime Minister should look at his attendance as to how many days he attended the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Our Prime Minister is not serious about democracy.' The Monsoon Session of Parliament, starting today, July 21, is expected to be intense, with the Opposition's INDIA bloc gearing up to grill the Narendra Modi-led government on several contentious issues. Flashpoints Key flashpoints include Operation Sindoor, handling of the Pahalgam terror attack, the Air India Ahmedabad plane crash and the Bihar Electoral Roll Revisions. Mr. Tiwari emphasised the importance of the Prime Minister's presence in Parliament to address these critical issues, expressing doubts about the government's seriousness in running the House. He criticised the Centre for bad governance and said that there were important issues the Opposition wanted to raise in the house, and the PM's presence was required. 'Operation Sindoor, the issue of Bihar, the issue of foreign policy. Atrocities against SC women have increased under this government, and we will raise all these issues in the House. We clearly told the government that these issues are important, so the Prime Minister should be present, but I think the government is not serious about running the House', he added further.
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Business Standard
3 days ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
We have identified 8 issues: Cong MP Pramod Tiwari ahead of Monsoon Session
The Monsoon Session of the Indian Parliament is scheduled to begin on July 21 and conclude on August 21. During this session, the govt plans to push its legislative agenda, which includes new bills ANI Congress MP Pramod Tiwari on Sunday gave an inside in the INDIA alliance meeting held on July 19, and said that the INDIA Alliance has finalised its strategy ahead of Monsoon Session of Parliament, which centres around the Pahalgam terror attack, Operation Sindoor, and statements made by US President Donald Trump. MP Tiwari, while talking to ANI, said, "Yesterday, a detailed discussion on formulating strategy for the upcoming session regarding the crisis in which the nation has been pushed into by the BJP-NDA Government. It was a joint effort held in a conducive environment. I am happy to tell you that keeping national interest as supreme, it has been decided against the BJP's activities that are weakening the country, its democracy and economy." MP Tiwari said that the US President Trump's statement about the five fighter jets being shot down is disturbing and added, "It has been decided to raise issues, the most important being the Pahalgam attack. To date, the traces of terrorists have not been found. Regarding Operation Sindoor, US President Donald Trump stated for the 24th time that he secured the ceasefire. A shocking statement was made that five fighter jets were shot down. The defence attache also said the same. CDS too said the same. This disturbs us." He also mentioned that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) happening in Bihar is killing democracy and said, "In Bihar, democracy is being murdered with SIR. The manner in which India has been isolated in its foreign policy is also an issue. Even now, heinous massacres are occurring - Israel is doing this in Gaza is also an issue. The issue is also about the oppression of SC, ST, women and minorities and crimes against them. We have especially identified 8 issues. We are confident that all 24 parties (in the INDIA Alliance) will support us; even the parties who are not a part of this will support us." The Monsoon Session of the Indian Parliament is scheduled to begin on July 21 and conclude on August 21. During the monsoon session of Parliament, the government plans to push its legislative agenda, which includes some new bills. The bills on the agenda of the government include Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill of 2025, Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill of 2025, Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2025, the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) bill 2025, the Geoheritage Sites and Geo-relics (Preservation and Maintenance) bill 2025, the Mines and Mines (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill 2025, the National Sports Governance Bill 2025 and the National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill 2025. The government's agenda also includes the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2024, the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024, the Indian Ports Bill, 2025, and the Income Tax Bill, 2025. The monsoon session of Parliament will continue till August 21.
