News

The team behind SonyLIV drama Freedom at Midnight are moving the Indian Independence story on for its second season following a strong response to Season 1.

The story, directed and showrun by Nikkhil Advani, is set to go from the tense negotiations around of the Indian Partition of 1947 to the refugee crisis that followed the borders being redrawn, with Season 1 ending on a cliffhanger after launching this month and setting the scene for the second.

“The basic objective for now to ensure that this show travels as much as it can,” said Danish Khan, Executive VP and Business Head at SonyLIV and its in-house production arm, StudioNext. “Obviously, that brings larger subscriptions and bigger business. If we can do that, Season 2 will even become bigger.”

Season 2 will comprise eight episodes and likely roll out next year. Khan said anticipation for the second run was building, but that “as a first step,...

Sony Liv has a sure-shot winner in Freedom at Midnight. Adapted from a book written by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins, the Indian series depicts the struggle of the Indian freedom movement and how the founders laid the foundation of one of the largest democracies in the world. The seven-episode long Nikhil Advani-created miniseries faithfully adapts the book. Let us look at the cast and characters of Freedom at Midnight in this article.

Sidhant Gupta as Jawaharlal Nehru

Actor Sidhant Gupta, who made a huge splash last year in the Prime Video series Jubilee, helmed by Vikramaditya Motwane, has got the meaty part of Jawaharlal Nehru here. For Gupta, who’s only thirty-five years old, it was a particularly challenging part as the show is set mostly during 1946–47, when Pandit Nehru is almost sixty. But given Gupta had already shown his skill as an actor, there was no reason...

Exclusive: SonyLIV’s ambitious Indian independence drama Freedom at Midnight has added British cast.

Cordelia Bugeja, Richard Teverson, Luke McGibney, Andrew Cullum and Alistair Findlay have joined the series, which charts India’s struggle for independence and subsequent partition.

McGibney and Bugeja will play the last Viceroy and Vicereine of India, Lord Louis Mountbatten and Lady Edwina Mountbatten, respectively. Finlay is Archibald Wavell, the Commander-in-Chief and Viceroy of India preceding Mountbatten. Cullum brings to life Clement Attlee, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, while Teverson portrays Cyril Radcliffe, the chairman of the Boundary Commission for the Partition of India.

They join Sidhant Gupta (Jubilee), who stars as Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, Chirag Vohra (Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story) as...

Mumbai, May 2 (Ians) The upcoming streaming show ‘Freedom at Midnight’, based on the eponymous book, is set to delve into India’s fight for Independence, showcasing critical moments from the partition era.

It details the events behind the last year of British Raj from 1947 to 1948 and how it gave away India, which was a part of its empire.

The events begin with the appointment of Lord Mountbatten of Burma as the last viceroy of British India and conclude with the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

The first look of the show was unveiled on Instagram on Thursday by showrunner and director Nikkhil Advani, who captioned Gandhi’s quote, “Jawahar and Sardar will be like two oxen yoked to the government cart. One will need the other, and both will pull together.”

The show stars Sidhant Gupta, once again showcasing his acting prowess against the backdrop of partition after ‘Jubilee’.

It also...

Indian streamer SonyLIV has unveiled the cast and a first look for its magnum opus series “Freedom at Midnight.”

Based on the 1975 non-fiction book by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre, the political drama delves into India’s independence movement, weaving together untold tales and critical moments from the era when the country’s then British colonial rulers partitioned the country into India and Pakistan.

Sidhant Gupta (Prime Video series “Jubilee”) plays Jawaharlal Nehru, who became the first Prime Minister of independent India, Chirag Vohra (SonyLIV series “Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story”) Mahatma Gandhi and Rajendra Chawla (Netflix film “Looop Lapeta”) Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who became the first deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of India.

The series is produced by Monisha Advani and Madhu Bhojwani for Emmay Entertainment in association with StudioNext and Sony Liv. Nikkhil Advani (SonyLIV series “Rocket Boys”) serves as the showrunner and director. The series is written by Abhinandan Gupta,...

Looop Lapeta

Starring Taapsee Pannu, Tahir Raj Bhasin

Directed by Aakash Bhatia

There is something to be said about a film that doesn’t shy away from its chaotic scenario. In fact, Looop Lapeta welcomes it. There is an arresting anarchy at the heart of this audacious endeavour to combine the heist genre with the cinema of self-realization. The fusion almost works.

Not that there are any breathing spaces for philosophical ruminations. The pacing is breakneck. And the characters that Savi(short for Savina) played by the ever-adventurous Taapsee Pannu, encounters in her heaving journey to save her wastrel boyfriend Satyajit(Tahir Raj Bhasin) from being annihilated by his sinister boss(Dibyendu Bhattacharya),will have you gasping for breath. This is not what Savi or the audience signed up for.

There is a peculiar kind of energy at work here; a sort of Savi-on-wheels-or-is-it-something-else kind of loco logic runs through this runner’s raga.

Capturing the true essence of a father-son relationship, Sony Sab’s slice of life offering Tera Yaar Hoon Main is all set to go musical.

The show has taken the viewers into the lives of the Bansal family members where it highlights a father’s attempt to be his teenage son’s friend. While Rajeev (Ssudeep Sahir) is trying his best to keep up with Rishabh’s (Ansh Sinha) fast-paced life, the show also dives into the khatti meethi journey of a joint family.

The upcoming episodes of Tera Yaar Hoon Main will witness Rajeev’s one such attempt to be his son’s ‘yaar’ as he decides to participate in a dance competition with his son, but little does Rishabh know that Rajeev will be facing one of his greatest fears.

For an upcoming dance competition in school, Rishabh decides to participate with one of his family members. His friend,...

Actors Rajendra Chawla and Naveen Pandita will play father and son in the show "Ek Bhram... Sarvagun Sampanna".

They will be seen essaying negative leads who plot against Shrenu Parikh's character.

Also Read:?Ek Bhram...Sarvagun Sampanna designer Reena Chopra gets candid

"I have seen Rajendraji multiple times on screen and I was in awe of his act on the very first day on the set. Sharing screen space with him as his son is going to be very helpful for me and I feel privileged," Naveen Pandita said, on playing Rajendra Chawla's son.

Talking of his character, Rajendra Chawla said: "My character Anupam Chopra is the manager of a business empire who never got credit for his work. The biggest reason for me to take up this role was Anupam Chopra is an unabashedly bad guy and has no qualms about it."

The show airs on StarPlus.