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Filmfare Ott Awards 2024 Winners Include Kareena Kapoor & Diljit Dosanjh. ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

Filmfare Ott Awards 2024 were held in Mumbai on Sunday to celebrate and honor the best talent in the web space. The 5th edition of the ceremony was a star-studded affair, with celebrities like Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ananya Panday, and Imtiaz Ali attending.

Kareena and Diljit Dosanjh were the night’s biggest winners as they were declared the Best Actress and Best Actor, respectively, for their films Jaane Jaan and Amar Singh Chamkila. Ar Rahman won two trophies for his work on the background music and music album of Amar Singh Chamkila.

Filmfare Ott Awards 2024: Complete List of Winners Shows Categories: Best Series: The Railway Men Best Actor (Male): Comedy: Rajkummar Rao (Guns & Gulaabs) Best Actor (Male): Drama: Gagan Dev Riar (Scam 2003 – The Telgi Story) Best Actor (Female): Comedy: Geetanjali Kulkarni (Gullak Season 4) Best...

Koimoi Audience Poll 2023: Nominees For Best Actor With A Difference (Female) (Picture Credit: IMDb)

The year 2023 has offered us some of the best content on Ott. With mainstream stars foraying into web series and taking their careers a step forward, we got some mind-blowing performances in web series last year. So, we are back with a new set of nominations in Koimoi Audience Poll 2023.

It is our annual tradition to honor the best in the business, and last year offered us a range of web series from dark comedies to thrillers, from dramas to comedies, from rom-coms to quintessential romances, and from societal dramas to family entertainers, the year had us all covered.

We are here with the nominations for the best actress of 2023 who offered something different, a little extra than the effort. That particular X factor made their act shine like a star in the galaxy of performances.

Choose Your Favourite Actor With A Difference (Male – Web Series) On Koimoi Audience Poll 2023 (Picture Credit: Facebook & IMDb)

Koimoi Audience Poll: While the heroes/superstars always take away the major limelight, it’s good to see that true actors, who always keep challenging themselves by experimenting, are getting more appreciated. Today, even we’ll honor them by discussing the ‘Best Actor With A Difference (Male)’ in the web series category. The nomination list includes Vijay Sethupathi from Farzi, Gagan Dev Riar from Scam 2003, and two others.

Before we get started, let us inform you we have shortlisted the four best nominees for the category, and the audience will have the power to vote for their favorite by clicking on one of the options in the Twitter poll mentioned at the end of the article.

Take a look at the nominees for the Best Actor With A Difference (Male – Web Series...

While many are jetting off for Christmas and New Year holiday getaways, if you find yourself in the ‘stuck-at-home’ club, fret not! We’ve got your back with a curated list of binge-worthy series to turn your holiday into a memorable entertainment extravaganza. Whether you’re nestled with family or enjoying some me-time, these series across diverse genres might keep you hooked and your holiday spirits high, literally!

From gripping crime dramas to heartwarming comedies, this list has something for everyone. So, grab your pop corns & pizzas, cozy up, and let the holiday binge begin! Because who needs a tropical beach when you’ve got the perfect series to escape into?

Scam 2003

This holiday season, delve into the captivating tale of deceit and suspense with ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’ on SonyLIV. Directed by Tushar Hiranandani and co-directed by Hansal Mehta, this Indian financial thriller serves as the second instalment in the ‘Scam’ franchise.

Scam 2003: The Telgi Story, Volume 2

For those out there lost in the Ott jungle of gangsterism and scams, Telgi Story Volume 2, produced by Applause Entertainment which began in September , reaches a compelling culmination two months later when Abdul Karim Telgi meets his nemesis.

But at what cost?

For Telgi as played by the invisibly riveting Gagan Dev Roar, trouble kicked in hard when he decided to play the vulgar money flaunter in a dance bar. The five concluding volumes, all showcasing a wealth of plotting excellence without making a song and dance of it, chronicle the sharp and jagged edges of the corruption trap Telgi lays down for the powerful political lobby, coming back to prick him in the places where it hurts the most.

As the saying goes, if you hang around pricks for long, you get pricked sooner or later. As the drama in the second season...

‘Two Way Street’, an 18-minute short film starring Gagan Dev Riar and Joy Sengupta is having its Oscar qualifying run in Los Angeles. The film is a Semi-Finalist at the Best of India Short Film Festival which is the official festival for Shorts TV – the world’s largest catalogue of high-quality short films. It has been hand-picked to be qualified for the Academy Awards. The one-of-a-kind public screening event for the film is being held at the prestigious Lumiere Cinema in Beverly Hills, California, USA from the 22nd to the 28th of September, 2023.

Director Asmit Pathare had this to say about the film, “We have been advancing with every step. Initially, we won the Best Director at Pune Short Film Festival which had films from all over Maharashtra. Then we won the V Shantaram Award at the South Asian Short Film Festival that had films from all over South Asia.

‘Two Way Street’, an 18-minute short film starring Gagan Dev Riar and Joy Sengupta is having its Oscar qualifying run in Los Angeles. The film is a Semi-Finalist at the Best of India Short Film Festival which is the official festival for Shorts TV – the world’s largest catalogue of high-quality short films. It has been hand-picked to be qualified for the Academy Awards. The one-of-a-kind public screening event for the film is being held at the prestigious Lumiere Cinema in Beverly Hills, California, USA from the 22nd to the 28th of September, 2023.

Director Asmit Pathare had this to say about the film, “We have been advancing with every step. Initially, we won the Best Director at Pune Short Film Festival which had films from all over Maharashtra. Then we won the V Shantaram Award at the South Asian Short Film Festival that had films from all over South Asia.

India’s Hansal Mehta has scored his second successive streaming hit of the year with SonyLIV series “Scam 2003 – The Telgi Story.” This follows his earlier success with Netflix show “Scoop.”

Based on Sanjay Singh’s book “Telgi: A Reporter’s Diary,” “Scam 2003” is written by Kiran Yadnyopavit, Kedar Patankar and Karan Vyas. It follows the story of Abdul Karim Telgi, the mastermind behind a scam printing counterfeit stamp paper in India, which earned $3.8 billion. A stamp paper is a government-issued blank document with headers of varying financial values that are used to validate most business transactions in India.

The show is the second in the “Scam” series after SonyLIV’s “Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story,” also created by Mehta. This time around, Mehta entrusted directing duties to Tushar Hiranandani as he wanted fresh eyes on the material. Mehta was also busy wrapping “Scoop.”

“‘Scam,’ ‘Scoop,’ all of...

Actor Gagan Dev Riar, who is receiving a lot of positive response for his work in the recently released streaming series, ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’, has shared that pulling up his pants during the course of the series is a character trait that happened by accident.

For the show, Gagan put on extra pounds to lend authenticity to his titular character of the Indian counterfeiter Abdul Karim Telgi. While filming, the director noticed that Gagan’s pants seemed a bit loose, and he even thought of it to be a wardrobe malfunction. But the truth is far more interesting.

The extra pounds packed on for the role caused his pants to constantly slide down during filming. The actor then decided to turn this mishap into Telgi’s signature move, constantly pulling up those rebellious trousers in scenes.

Talking about the same, Gagan said: “Due to my fluctuating weight, there...

Actor Gagan Dev Riar, who is receiving a lot of positive response for his work in the recently released streaming series, ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’, has shared that pulling up his pants during the course of the series is a character trait that happened by accident.

For the show, Gagan put on extra pounds to lend authenticity to his titular character of the Indian counterfeiter Abdul Karim Telgi. While filming, the director noticed that Gagan’s pants seemed a bit loose, and he even thought of it to be a wardrobe malfunction. But the truth is far more interesting.

The extra pounds packed on for the role caused his pants to constantly slide down during filming. The actor then decided to turn this mishap into Telgi’s signature move, constantly pulling up those rebellious trousers in scenes.

Talking about the same, Gagan said: “Due to my fluctuating weight, there...

The trailer of the highly anticipated series ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’ was unveiled on August 22. Co-directed by Hansal Mehta and Tushar Hiranandani, the series features Gagan dev Riar as Abdul Karim Telgi.

The trailer of ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’ was released on Tuesday, August 22. Directed by Hansal Mehta and Tushar Hiranandani, the series features actor Gagan Dev Riar in the lead role.

‘Scam 2003’ is based on one of India’s biggest scams by Abdul Karim Telgi. The franchise earlier showcased the story of Harshad Mehta in ‘Scam 1992’.

The makers of ‘Scam 2003’ released its trailer on August 22. The series is about India’s biggest stamp paper scam and the man behind it – Abdul Karim Telgi. The series will begin streaming on September 1 on SonyLiv. Actor Gagan Dev Riar is impressive as Telgi in the trailer.

The scam of 2003 is one of the incidents which shocked the entire nation on a massive scale.

When Scam 1992 broke into the Indian Ott space three years ago, the web series scene in this country didn’t have much to offer other than Sacred Games or Made in Heaven. Upon its arrival, Hansal Mehta’s biographical epic on the convicted stockbroker Harshad Mehta not only became a rage among the audience, but it also made people take the Indian Ott space seriously. Three years later, its lead star, Pratik Gandhi, a relatively unknown face back then, is a household name who we regularly see in commercials where the now iconic Scam 1992 intro music plays in the background. Hansal Mehta, already a prolific director at the time of the show’s arrival, is on a career-high after delivering the Netflix thriller series Scoop only a few months ago. Considering all that, the second installment of the Scam franchise, titled Scam 2003: The Telgi Story, is possibly the most...

Scam 2003: The Telgi Story

From the way the astonishing Gagan Dev Riar portrays him, Abdul Karim Telgi was not a charming man to know.

Then what made him bribe his way through the most catastrophic stamp-paper forging scandal in India’s financial history? Not too educated, minimally charming, not a great talker either and certainly no Charles Sobhraj when it came to seducing favour providers, Telgi was just a luck-pushing lout who got his way through bureaucracy by greasing palms.

One of the things I find incredibly hard to believe in this powerful story of absolute corruption is how easily Telgi manages to bribe the emtire bureaucracy. Even the seemingly incorruptible, succumb easily when Telgi gets to tap the greed nerves, first nervously then more confidently.

The case of Madhusudan Mishra in Episode 4 is specially ponderable. At first the seemingly incorruptible Mishra refuses to be bribed. Then Telgu gets...

New Delhi, Aug 31 (Ians) The month of September is all set to bring an exciting slate of titles on the Ott, filled with thriller, crime, action, and comedy drama.

Ians has brought an enthralling slate, which will captivate audiences of varied choices with titles spanning across genres and languages. Presenting a list of five titles on various Ott platforms:

‘Friday Night Plan’

Directed by Vatsal Neelakantan, ‘Friday Night Plan’ stars Babil Khan and Amrith Jayan and is produced by Excel Entertainment. The film is a tale of self discovery, companionship, packed with a lot of fun and a ton of chaos. Produced by Ritesh Sidhwani, Kassim Jagmagia & Farhan Akhtar’s Excel Entertainment, this heartwarming story also stars Medha Rana, Aadhya Anand, Ninad Kamath, and Juhi Chawla in a special appearance. It will premiere on Netflix starting September 1.

‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’

Actor Gagan Dev Riar is set to essay...

Actor Gagan Dev Riar, who will be soon seen essaying the role of convicted Indian counterfeiter Abdul Karim Telgi in the upcoming streaming show ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’, has shared that he perceived the character as Robinhood.

He also shared that he was advised by the show’s creative director Hansal Mehta to not to read the book on which the story and the character is based.

Gagan said: “Hansal sir told me not to read the book on which the story and the character is based or even the media stories on Abdul Karim Telgi because that would affect my process of understanding the character. He asked me to stick to the script.”

The reason behind the same is that the character from its own point of view is very honest and that honesty needed to reflect in Gagan’s performance because for Abdul, he himself is a hero.

Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story was probably one of the best television crime dramas to have come out of the Indian Ott space. Hansal Mehta has cemented himself as one of the most sought-after writers and directors in the industry. Scam 1992 introduced the audience to a realistic take on what led to the ultimate downfall of Harshad Mehta, who was called the ‘Big Bull’ of the Indian stock markets.

A new addition to the Scam Series is Scam 2003: The Telgi Story, developed by Hansal Mehta. This Sony Liv original is based on Sanjay Singh’s book Telgi Scam: Reporter’s Diary. Abdul Karim Telgi was involved in the crore-worth counterfeit stamp paper scam, aka the Telgi Scam of 2003, which shocked the entire nation. The show is all set to take us through the repercussions of the scam and help us understand how the man went under the radar...

Mumbai, Aug 28 (Ians) Actor Gagan Dev Riar, who is set to essay the role of the convicted Indian counterfeiter, Abdul Karim Telgi in ‘Scam 2003’, was earlier supposed to play the part of Sitaraman, the Sbi manager at the centre of the whole securities scam in the first part of the ‘Scam’ series ‘Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story’.

However, despite being the first choice Gagan couldn’t take up the role because of date issues.

Talking about his connection with the first season of the show, Gagan Dev Riar said: “If not for date issues, I would have been part of the first season of Scam. I was the first choice for the character of Sitaraman, the Sbi manager who was at the centre of the whole securities scam, which was later exceptionally played by Jamini Pathak.”

He further mentioned: “However, at that time I was busy with a project...

The upcoming crime-drama series ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi story’ is one of the most anticipated Indian serials of this year, featuring a strong cast, renowned creative heads all the while telling the story of real life fraudster Abdul Karim Telgi. Popular radio jockey and TV actress Sana Amin Sheikh will also be seen in the drama and has shared details about her character in the series.

Detailing her character, the actress said: “In the show, I play Telgi’s wife Nasifa, who was an integral part of his life, who stood by him through thick and thin. The prep process was fascinating, for me to be in the shoes of someone so closely related to the mastermind behind such a huge scam in our country.”

“However, the equation they share adds more layers to their characters and brings to light a side unknown to the world. I am very excited...

The trailer of the second season of the hit streaming show ‘Scam’ — titled ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’ – was unveiled on Tuesday. It starts off with establishing the lead character of Abdul Karim Telgi through the curiosity and the dialogues of people.

The second season of the show tells the story of India’s biggest stamp paper scam plotted by Abdul Karim Telgi, which shocked the nation with its unimaginable scale.

It then goes on to reveal the actor playing Abdul Karim Telgi – Gagan Dev Riar – as a dialogue exchange reminiscent of ‘Guru’ takes place – “Kya naam tha?”, to which Riar replies, “Tha nahi madam… Hai, Abdul Karim Telgi”.

Telgi then explains what exactly is a stamp paper and it’s importance in the Indian economy as he says, “Agar desh ki arthvyavashta kuber khazana hai toh stamp paper uski chabi hai”, as a Garba tune plays in the background.

For all the theatre connoisseurs waiting with bated breath for a dramatic yet light-hearted delight, you can now look forward to ‘Baaghi Albele’ now in its second run produced by Aadyam Theatre for its 6th season. The Hindi-Punjabi play is a farce directed by the acclaimed theatre director Atul Kumar.

Set in Ludhiana, Punjab, in North India, Baaghi Albele showcases its narrative through a satirical comedy. The play explores the struggle of artists and intellectuals in a time of government repression and reflects on the relevance of art and artists in contemporary times. It follows the journey of husband and wife actors Johny and Minnie Makhija as they find themselves at the centre of a dangerous situation when a soldier from an underground rebel organisation seeks their help. With the threat of prosecution and death looming, the couple, along with their troupe of actors, must use their wit and theatrical...

Exclusive: SonyLIV has ordered its most ambitious original series to date, an adaptation of Indian independence non-fiction book Freedom at Midnight, as the streamer gears up to become a global service within three years.

News of the series order came in a wide ranging interview with SonyLIV Executive Vice President and Business Head Danish Khan, who also oversees Sony Entertainment Television and production arm Studio Next. During the chat he addressed several other new commissions, global expansion plans and the future of the popular Scam crime thriller brand.

Drama series Freedom of Midnight is based on a non-fiction book by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins and billed as an epic political thriller set in 1947, the year of Indian independence and partition. Abhinandan Gupta, Adwitiya Kareng Das and Gundeep Kaur are adapting the text as writers.

“Independence wasn’t just one shift from British rule to an Indian democratic system. It...

Indian streamer SonyLIV and Applause Entertainment are returning to the underworld of fraud. The pair are working on Scam 2003: The Telgi Story and cast Gagan Dev Riar to play the lead.

The second season of the franchise is a follow up to the lauded Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story, which transported star Pratik Gandhi — who is set to star at Mahatma Gandhi in an upcoming Applause-produced drama series — into the Indian A-list.

Scam 2003 will see veteran theater artist Dev Riar play Abdul Karim Telgi, a fruit seller who built a criminal empire by counterfeiting stamp papers.

Born in Khanapur in Karnataka, Telgi became the mastermind behind one of the most ingenious schemes in Indian history that spread across multiple states and shook the entire country.

The series will be adapted from the Hindi-language book Reporter Ki Diary from journalist Sanjay Singh, who broke the story in the early 2000s.