MAAC 24FPS 2017 doffs hat to best works of Indian & international cinema

Over 4000 students participate in the annual international animation awards

Mumbai, December 22,, 2017: At its 15th edition of the annual 24 FPS International Animation Awards 2017, Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics (MAAC), the leader in 3D Animation and VFX training doffed its hat in the honour of the best works from the Indian and International cinema. The annual technical awards celebrating the media and entertainment industry was held at the Sahara Star in Mumbai in the presence of over 4000 students from various centres of MAAC who had travelled to the City of Dreams to partake in the event.
24 FPS awards honours excellence and recognize animation talent across the globe and rewards young artists and MAAC students for their creativity. The award is an initiative to promote the work done by young animation film makers and give them a boost in the industry.
The jury panel comprising industry from leading media and entertainment companies such as Tata Elxsi, DQ, Assemblage, Xentrix, Toonz, Double Negative, MPC, Prana Studios, Prime Focus and others adjudged over 113 submissions to select winners under various categories.
Commenting over the 15th edition of the annual awards, Anil Pant, MD & CEO of Aptech Ltd, said, “Every year MAAC gifts the media and entertainment industry with large pool of creative individuals who go on to create a name for themselves in the global media and entertainment space. The participation from record breaking number of students, and the fantastic submissions made under various categories, continues to leave me spellbound. This sends out a strong signal to the industry that media and entertainment industry is growing at a healthy rate and there will be no dearth of opportunities for talented professionals. It also instills us with a strong sense of pride that our aim of creating an institution driven by the motto of employment driven education has been nurturing careers of many aspiring stars of tomorrow.”
Anuj Kacker, Director, Aptech Ltd, added, “The media and entertainment industry is expected to grow at a healthy rate of over 9% in the coming few years, and touch market worth of Rs 23 billion by 2020. With such high growth prospect, the industry will continue to scout for talented resources. The 24FPS Awards this year also highlighted the increasing interest among the students to venture into new careers such as gaming character and landscape rendering artist, as well as Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), simulation artists.”
Ram Warrier, Executive Vice President, Aptech Ltd said, “Every year the submissions at the 24FPS have been raising the bar in terms of excellence in thought, creativity and execution. The jury comprising of one of the biggest technical stalwarts of the media and entertainment have been finding it increasingly difficult to choose winners in each category. These awards are a way of appreciating the efforts of talented students and help them connect with the leading names of the industry.” 

LUNG CARE FOUNDATION & PETRONET LNG AWARDED WITH GUINNESS WORLD RECORDTM OF CREATING THE ‘LARGEST HUMAN IMAGE OF AN ORGAN (LUNG)’

·         The program was organized by Lung Care Foundation to Create Awareness About Ill-Effects of Pollution on Lung Health and motivate individuals to People Driven Solutions.

·         5300+ (exact number to be shared) school children from over 35 schools of Delhi-NCR got together to create this record, the previous records were created by Beijing and Abu Dhabi

·         President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind ((in a message) expressed his joy on this initiative of "Sankalp Se Siddhi Programme for Clean Air" being organised by the Lung Care Foundation.

·         Honorable Prime Minster Shri Narendra Modi (in a message) congratulated Lung Care Foundation on this unique initiative in galvanizing the support of the youth and creating awareness on a vital subject, which impacts every individual.

§  The event was graced by H.E Lt. Governor of Delhi, Shri Anil Baijal, Shri Anil Swarup, Secretary, School Education, Government of India, top officers of BSF and Delhi police, Senior Lawyers of Delhi High Court and Supreme Court and CMDs of many PSUs.

Mumbai , December 23, 2017: In an endeavor to create awareness around ill-effects of air pollution and generating people's attention towards its medical impact, Lung Care Foundation today organized World’s largest air pollution awareness program #MySolutionToPollution: ‘I care for Lungs’. Under this campaign, Lung Care Foundation created various touchpoints and have successfully managed to impact around 7000 plus lives across Delhi-NCR by making them brand ambassadors of the campaign

The program also witnessed one-of-its-kind activity, where Lung Care Foundation brought forward 5100 plus school children from 35 plus schools from Delhi-NCR to form the largest human image of an organ (lung).

This image has created history and has been awarded by the Guinness World Record^TM of creating the ‘largest human image of an organ’.

With the help of choreography with 5000+ school children, the lung formation further transformed to show the effects of pollution: pink lungs turning into irreversible black lungs. Not only this, through this campaign Lung Care Foundation aims to bring in a people movement where, the citizens, corporates and children come together to start a new revolution “#MySolutionToPollution” of green ccommitments.

Congratulating on the success of the event and achievement, President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, (in a message)extended his warm greetings and felicitations to all Children who took the pledge to work for a cleaner environment as a people's movement. He further expressed his joy on this initiative of "Sankalp Se Siddhi Programme for Clean Air" being organised by the Lung Care Foundation. Adding to this, the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, (in a message) said, “It is a pleasure to know that the campaign ‘I care for Lungs’ is being launched by the Lung Care Foundation in Delhi to create awareness against air pollution and related lung disorders. Congratulations for organizing the unique initiative in galvanizing the support of the youth and creating awareness on a vital subject which impacts every individual”.

Delighted at the cause opined Honourable Lt. Governor of Delhi, Shri Anil Baijal, “It is gratifying to note that in this campaign, 5100+ school children gathered inside Thyagaraj Stadium and established a record for the largest Human Image Lung Formation. I’m confident that this movement will help in Initiating a people’s movement for clean Air. I must emphasize that the measures taken to combat Air Pollution cannot succeed without active participation and contribution by the community. In this regard, children are our best ambassadors for a positive change that we wish to achieve.”

Sharing his thoughts on the occasion said, Prof. Dr Arvind Kumar, Chairman Centre for Chest Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Founder & Managing Trustee, Lung Care Foundation “With 1.2 Million dead, India saw world's most pollution-related deaths in 2015, says Lancet Commission study. We believe it’s time that the citizens themselves takes care of their action and be responsible in their deeds. We are confident that our I care for Lungs program clubbed with Governments initiative of “Sankalp Se Siddhi” (Attainment through Resolve) will bring change in the country for the betterment of country’s economy, citizens, society, governance, security and other verticals”.

The program was based on Dr. Arvind Kumar (Founder & Managing Trustee Lung Care Foundation) vision of reaching the Pink Lung- Black Lung image to the last man in the village, it was conceptualized by the youngest Trustee & CEO of Lung Care Foundation, Abhishek Kumar and Presented by Mr. Rajiv Khurana (Founder Trustee). Corporates like Petronet LNG, GAIL, IOCL, BHEL, NBCC, NTPC, Sonalika Tractors, Droom, Oyo Rooms, Paytm, Aditya Birla Group have come together to associate with this World’s largest air pollution awareness program – ‘I care for Lungs’ and also committed to one measure each. The program’s title sponsor was Petronet LNG which is working towards changing the majority of HMV running on Diesel to LNG (A clean fuel).

About Lung Care Foundation

In view of the rapidly deteriorating lung health due to alarming air pollution, Lung Care Foundation was set up as a not-for-profit organisation on 25th May, 2015 at New Delhi. The present levels of pollution are a serious threat to our Lung Health.

In the WHO’s list of 20 top most polluted cities of the world, 17 cities are Indian. The pollution level in our metros is already making the air unfit for human consumption with such serious threat to our Lung Health.

There is a need for an organisation like Lung Care Foundation. The foundation proposes to “touch all” (irrespective of their paying capacity) to ensure ‘Healthy Happy Lungs’

The Foundation is working to achieve its aims by three means namely Education, Research and Clinical Care.

About Prof. Dr. Arvind Kumar

Founder & Managing Trustee, Lung Care Foundation

Prof. (Dr.) Arvind Kumar is a leading Thoracic Surgeon who has been practicing Chest Surgery for the last 35 years. He has been a witness to changing colour of the lungs of people over the years. When he operated patients with lung diseases in the 1980s, colour of the lungs of a non-smoker in urban India was found to be pink whereas black spotted lungs were typically found to be only among the smokers.

However, now after 35 years and countless Chest Surgeries later, he is observing a shocking site wherein lungs of most of the residents of urban areas like Delhi resemble smoker’s lungs. The site upset him severely and he kept talking about it to others.

Dr. Kumar thought that since he has been a witness to this unfortunate change (that others can’t see), it is his duty to share this information with all the countrymen and work for the ‘Care of 2.5 billion Lungs in India’. He shared this vision with Mr. Rajiv Khurana, Dr. Belal Bin Asaf and Mr. Abhishek Kumar and this was the beginning of ‘Lung Care Foundation’.

Mr. Rajiv Khurana, CMC, FIMC

Founder Trustee, Lung Care Foundation

Mr. Rajiv Khurana, is the CEO & Founder, The Personnel Lab; Founder, RETYREMENT and Founder & Managing Trustee, International Consulting Professionals’ Institute (ICPI). He has over 36 years of Industry and consulting experience in corporate world. He is an International Consultant & Trainer, Venture Mentor, Executive Coach, Author, Blogger and Social Entrepreneur. He is the author of 9 books and over 2000 columns & articles for newspaper. He is also a regular TV guest and Vlogger for Career Shows.

Dr. Belal Bin Asaf, MBBS, MS

Founder Trustee, Lung Care Foundation

Dr. Belal Bin Asaf has been actively contributing in the field of Medical Sciences for more than 10 years. Presently, he is a Consultant at Centre for Chest Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and has a vast experience of providing surgical care to patients suffering from various chest diseases. He is an established Thoracic Surgeon with special interest in managing lung cancer and is an expert in minimally invasive (keyhole) surgery for lung cancer.

Mr. Abhishek Kumar, B.Tech Computer Science, VIT University, Summer Institute of General Management, Stanford, USA

Founder Trustee, Lung Care Foundation

Abhishek, is a young passionate citizen of Delhi, with a keen desire to serve the society.

National Conference for CA Students held at Mumbai

The Students Association of the Western Region of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India hosted and witnessed the National Conference for CA Students at Birla Matoshree, Mumbai which saw CA students from across the world in presence. The Chief Guest Shri Rajendra Hon'ble ITAT, Mumbai, CA Prafulla Chhajed Central Council Member Chairman of WIRC CA Vishnu Agarwal, Office Bearers of WIRC and CA Balkishan Agarwal, Chairman, WICASA addressed more than 1200 students on the bright prospects and opportunities in future for profession, his views boosted the morale of one and all.

Neeta Lulla To Design Outfits For Wiz Khalifa & Jason Derulo On Their Debut India Tour.

After being a part of cult films like Jodha Akhbar, Devdas, Mohenjo Daro, Manikarnika – master couturier Neeta Lulla has been roped in to design an indigenous outfit for Wiz Khalifa, Jason Derulo and Martin Garrix who will be performing at multi-genre music festival TIMEOUT 72 scheduled to be held between the 27^th to the 30^th of December this year in Vagator, Goa.

This won’t be the first time India’s only 4 time national award winner will be designing for international artists as she has previously designed for  Akon, Steven Seagal , Tyra Banks, The Chainsmokers, KSHMR amongst others.

While designing for American rapper, singer-songwriter and actor Wiz Khalifa, Neeta Lulla has used a bottle green colour base with digitized Kutchi mirror work butis astutely placed all over the classic asymmetric kurta in silk.

For multi platinum pop star, Jason Derulo, Neeta Lulla has created an asymmetrical grey kurta in jersey fabric using the ‘Rudraveena’ print. Inspired from the Raas Leela saga of the Vrindavan gardens, musical instrument motifs are weaved brilliantly into the outfit.

While for the World’s No 1 DJ, Martin Garrix, Neeta Lulla has created a vibrant bomber jacket by intricately fusing digitized Kutch mirror embroidery and digital geometric patterns with a western silhouette.

Speaking about her inspiration Neeta Lulla states, “I wanted to give a lot of focus to Indian heritage and craftsmanship.  I was inspired by the bold shapes, geometrical motifs and ethnic designs from an era that articulates lineage and have utilised them in the outfits in a more contemporary fashion.”

Adding on she states, “For the outfits created for Wiz Khalifa and Martin Garrix, we derived our muse from Rabari women who are an indigenous tribal caste from Gujarat. They diligently do embroidery on textiles as an expression of creativity, aesthetics and identity. For Jason Derulo we have focussed on our Vrindavan Symphony collection which highlights the  Radha-Krishna narrative. The floral temple motifs inspired from the Vrindavan forests and the musical instruments like tabla, sarangi sitar are the motifs synthesised to create a youthful contemporary outfit. “

Indulge in exquisite, exclusive Kurtas from Avishya.Com

   

Avishya.Com, the home of hand-woven, specially curated ethnic wear brings you an enchanting array of exclusive kurtas in a variety of designs, cuts and styles that will make you exclaim with joy. The ravishing collection of Kurtas from Avishya.Com gives you a superb selection of hand-embroidered all-occasion Kurtas in the finest pure silk, silk-cotton blends, pure cottons and cotton khadi. These intricately hand-embroidered, hand-painted ethnic Kurtas please the senses with gorgeous colours, ranging from deep cobalt blue to soft shimmery powder pink, or from refreshing pista green to muted golden-beige. What sets these Kurtas apart is that you will feel like a princess as these one of a kind creations are exclusive to you: no one else will be wearing your exact same outfit.

You will love the styles that will enhance your looks: from the flowy Angrakha drape to the pretty Princess cut. Truly, there is something for every taste. Beautifully hand-crafted, styled with appliqué embroidery and kalamkari, replete with sequins, resham or zari work adds a delicate finishing touch to every outfit. These elegant pieces from the Avishya.Com transform from being office wear formals into sophisticated evening wear with a small change of jewellery or the addition of matching stilettos. From intricate block-prints to exotic Ikat weaves, from flattering necklines with stunning mirror work to sheer sleeves adorning attractively detailed Kurtas: the choices are truly mesmerizing. The different cuts will accentuate your figure or give you volume if you prefer.

With sizes from XS to XL and so many different cuts to give you the perfect fit: the Kurtas come in Regular Fit and Slim Fit choices with Prices ranging from Rs.1,520/- to Rs.11,200/-

Explore the collection here: Kurta Collection

About Avishya.Com:

Avishya.com is an Online Store that sources and showcases beautiful Indian Ethnic Wear for Women ranging from Sarees, Salwars and Dupattas to Kurtas, Fitted Garments and Fashion Jewellery. Produced by the finest weavers, artisans & designers (in multiple weaving clusters across India), most of Avishya’s products are handloom or handcrafted.

Avishya.Com was born out of a passion for beautiful Indian ethnic wear. It offers a pleasurable online browsing and shopping experience to women looking for top quality Indian Ethnic Wear. Avishya.Com’s mission is to democratize access to the ever green appeal and unique beauty of India's handcrafted products. Its products are sourced from across the country. Being handmade, each product on Avishya.Com is “one-of-a-kind” and helps the wearer make a unique style statement.

Their primary goal is to create a platform on the internet which can bring together in one place the finest handcrafted ethnic wear made by Indian weavers, artisans and craftsmen and offer consumers in India and around the world the option of browsing and shopping for these products from the comfort of their living rooms and bedrooms.

With its worldwide reach and easy access, a world class online platform could be the perfect solution for creating a sustainable living for these fine Indian artisans & weavers. Thus the Avishya story began..

To know more about Avishya: Visit www.avishya.com

Join the conversation: @avishyastyle |@avishya_style |facebook.com/avishyastyle |     Twitter@avishyastyle

Travel Trends for Christmas-New Year Long Weekends 2017

Rajeev Kale, President & Country Head Leisure Travel & M.I.C.E at Thomas Cook (India) Limited

International:

The upcoming Christmas and New Year long weekend offers impactful opportunity for short breaks and has further fuelled demand, witnessing an impressive upswing of over 20% for international holidays. As the Indian traveller is conventionally a last minute planner, we are expecting this number to increase further. As the clock ticks down to midnight, we have witnessed that a number of travellers are enthusiastic about beginning their New Year at exotic destinations.

Short haul destinations are in top demand due to easy access of an under 5 hour flight, hence impactful uptake to Singapore, Dubai, Thailand, and Maldives.

Our Product Teams have negotiated special deals for such weekend/short breaks and these include value options like free transfers, complimentary meals and upgraded accommodation; child free or companion discounts which work well to further inspire demand.

At Thomas Cook India, destinations that are trending with our consumers this season for long hauls are our group departures toFinland and Sweden (White Christmas).

Recent trends also indicate an emerging interest for fresh options like Rome (Christmas Mass), Switzerland, Amsterdam (Festival of Lights), Germany, Austria, France, Sweden, Finland and Parts of Italy, Abu Dhab,Fiji, Auckland, Adelaide, Bora Bora and Tahiti. 

Domestic:

The travel hungry Indian consumer has been quick to leverage festivals and the long weekends as an apt opportunity to escape from the hectic pace of daily work life and indulge in a short well-deserved getaway, to rejuvenate and recharge. Our customers are maximising this opportunity to plan short-haul vacations to explore domestic destinations- closer home and hence the increase in demand for regional destinations. For instance, domestic destinations such as Gujarat, Rann of Kutch, Kerala Goa, North East, Rajasthan and Bhutanholds strong allure for quick getaways. Our Domestic Teams have reported a significant increase of over 12 - 15% in bookings.

Since the upcoming long weekend for Christmas/ New Year has been on every traveller’s radar, given increasing demand, hotels rates have seen highs of 10-15% (surcharge is applied by hotels, our packages are priced accordingly) plus over standard rates. Our traditional value seeker Indian consumer seems immune to super peak pricing this year and despite the lack of offer promos or discounts from hotels, they are all set to make the most of this much-awaited break.

Arijit Singh lends his voice to Amazon Obhijaan’s first track ‘Chol Naa Jai’

Kolkata, December 18, 2017 – SVF, Eastern India’s largest movie production house today released the first song for its upcoming mega-budget film Amazon Obhijaan. Titled ‘Chol Naa Jai’, the song has been sung by popular playback singerArijit Singh, composed by ace music director Indraadip Dasgupta, and lyrics have been penned by Prasen.

‘Chol Naa Jai’ (which literally means Let’s Go) is full of vigor, curiosity, grit and zeal, all packed into a harmonic soundscape that blends aptly with the landscape that Shankar sets his foot on.

Watch the music video here: - http://bit.ly/CholNaaJaiAO

The song is also available on iTunes, Hungama, Spotify, Idea Music Lounge and Wynk. Subscribers of Vodafone, Idea and Airtel can also set it as their caller tune.

Set to release on December 22, 2017, Amazon Obhijaan is the sequel to the 2013 blockbuster Chander Pahar which, at the time, broke all records for being the most successful Bengali film ever made in Bengal. The story of Amazon Obhijaanwritten, scripted and directed by the doctor-turned-director Mr. Kamaleswar Mukherjee delves into the deep jungles of the Amazonia. The expedition led by the Bengali cinestar Dev playing the explorer Shankar Choudhury is touted as a visual treat to watch for families specially children who love adventure. Veteran Brazilian actor David James plays the role of Marco Florian and Indian based Russian actress Svetlana Gulakova plays Marco’s daughter Anna Florian who joins Shankar to the mysterious yet endearing journey to El Dorado.

Recently the film set a world record by unveiling the biggest poster for a Bengali film ever pegged at 60,800 sq ft in size cover to cover. The film is also available in the graphic novel format for children to get a feel of the story. This film is thethe only Bengali movie ever made to be released simultaneously in six languages - Bengali, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Odia & Assamese.

Eros International signs four film co-production deal with Drishyam Films

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Kaamyaab starring Sanjay Mishra goes on floor

Mumbai, December 18, 2017: Eros International Media Ltd (Eros International), a leading global film company in the Indian film entertainment industry, has announced a four-film co-production deal with leading production house, Drishyam Films.

Drishyam has over the years made a mark by producing content driven films that have received worldwide acclaim including Masaan, Rukh, Kadvi Hawa and India’s entry to the Oscars in the Foreign Film category this year, the highly celebrated Newton. In 2018, Eros and Drishyam will jointly produce four films to pave way for presenting a new wave of cinema that the companies have come to stand for.

The first of the four projects, titled Kaamyaab starring Sanjay Mishra along with Deepak Dobriyal and directed by National-Award winning filmmaker Hardik Mehta has already gone on floor and commenced shooting on November 25.  The human drama is based on an interesting premise of a seasoned character actor who decides to come out of retirement and begin a quest for a record of some sorts, that elusive 500^th role, the one for which he shall be remembered forever.

Speaking on the alliance, Jyoti Deshpande, Group CEO, Eros International said, “We feel the kind of cinema Drishyam makes and the agenda we have for the next five years at Eros perfectly match. At Eros, we believe that our future slate should have a mix of blockbusters like Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Bajirao Mastani as well as beautiful stories made on smaller budgets like Aligarh, Nil Battey Sannata and Newton. We’ve already started our relationship with Drishyam by distributing Newton, Rukh and Kadvi Hawa and with this new co-production slate, we are hoping to present some very compelling stories to our audiences worldwide”.

Manish Mundra, founder of Drishyam Films added, “We are very excited to associate with a leading studio like Eros who are backing our kind of content-driven cinema, and happy that our stories have found a home here. It’s heartening that they have come forward to not only distribute our films but also create a vision to tell stories together. We at Drishyam have built a brand of cinema that we are very proud of and we hope the association with Eros will take our films to a much wider audience”.

DuPont Sustainable Solutions Recognized as Top EHS Consulting Brand

New Survey by Independent Research Firm Calls DuPont Sustainable Solutions the “Stand-Out Brand in the EHS Consulting Market”

Mumbai, 18^th Dec, 2017: DuPont Sustainable Solutions (DSS) has been ranked as the top global EHS (Environment, Health & Safety) consulting organization for brand awareness and preference, according to a new survey released in November by the independent research and consulting firm Verdantix. The survey calls DuPont Sustainable Solutions the “Stand-Out Brand in the EHS Consulting Market” and gave it top marks for awareness and preference among all EHS consulting brands worldwide.

“DuPont Sustainable Solutions is very appreciative of this recognition, which points to the trust and collaborative spirit shown by all of our clients as we help them improve the safety, productivity and profitability of their organizations,” said Davide Vassallo, Global Managing Director of DSS. “Our ambition at DSS is to be a world-class operations management consulting firm, and we thank both our clients and our employees for this significant milestone along our journey.”

According to the Verdantix ‘Global EHS Leaders Survey 2017: EHS Consulting Brands’ study released in November, 77 percent of responders rank DSS the No. 1 EHS consultant for brand awareness. Responders also gave DSS the highest rank for brand preference (32 percent) calling DSS’ capabilities “market-leading” or “strong,” higher than any other EHS consultant in the market.

The Verdantix survey was completed by 382 senior EHS decision-makers with direct responsibilities for corporate wide EHS management strategies and initiatives across 31 countries. All the respondents are from corporations with revenues of at least $250 million among 25 different industries. Thirty percent of respondents represent industries with high to very high EHS risk profiles including chemicals, mining and metals, and oil and gas.

Ravindra Gurjar, Business Director, DSS India, said, “We are privileged to work closely with leading corporations in India, who are engaged in improving the safety and health of their organizations because it is the right thing to do. We would like to share this recognition with all the clients who have worked with us in implementing EHS best practices to save lives and livelihoods”.

The Verdantix survey can be seen in its entirety here: http://www.dupont.com/products-and-services/consulting-services-processtechnologies/articles/ehs-leaders-survey-verdantix.html 

Wipro Partners with and Invests in Headspin to Deliver Next-Generation Mobility Quality Solutions & Services

The joint offering will simplify testing and mobile experience for global mobile networks

East Brunswick, New Jersey, USA and Mumbai, India – December 15, 2017: Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, today announced a partnership with Headspin, a San Francisco-based powerful, easy-to-use mobile experience platform, to offer next-generation mobility quality engineering and testing solutions on global mobile networks.

Wipro Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Wipro Limited that is focused on investing in early- to mid-stage startups, made an investment in Headspin in October 2017.

This partnership will leverage Headspin’s network of 22,000 mobile devices deployed in carrier networks across 150 locations and Wipro’s industry leading quality assurance capabilities to bring significant value to customers by validating their mobile applications, devices and networks under real life conditions. The joint offering will enable continuous monitoring of applications, identification of performance bottlenecks and rectification of inefficient content delivery to ensure a seamless application experience for end users, across geographies.

“In today’s world, mobile is a critical channel for doing business and hence, the reliability and performance of mobile devices and applications are key to enabling a superior customer experience. This partnership will augment Wipro’s mobility-related quality engineering and testing services capabilities,” said Hiral Chandrana, Senior Vice President, Business Application Services, Wipro Limited.

“We are excited to partner with Wipro, a global leader in IT and consulting services, and offer our next-generation mobile experience platform (MEP) to Wipro's customer base. We are confident that our partnership with Wipro will help accelerate the adoption of our innovative solution by some of the largest enterprises in the world. In addition, Wipro’s investment in Headspin will give an impetus to our ongoing efforts in the mobile quality engineering space,” said Manish Lachwani, CEO & Co-founder of Headspin.

SONY MUSIC AND ESTATE OF MICHAEL JACKSON RENEW THEIR LANDMARK DEAL 42 YEAR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE KING OF POP IS EXTENDED IN A LONG TERM RECORDING AGREEMENT

Mumbai – December 15, 2017 – Sony Music and the Estate of Michael Jackson have agreed to a landmark recording deal that will continue the label’s 42-year relationship with Michael Jackson and his music, it was announced today by Rob Stringer, Sony Music CEO and John Branca and John McClain, co-executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson.  

Effective January 1, 2018, Sony Music will extend the term of their administration of Michael’s record catalog in a long term recording agreement.  Sony will also have the opportunity to partner on additional projects that the Estate may produce during the term of the agreement. 

Rob Stringer, Chief Executive Officer, Sony Music Entertainment comments, "Michael Jackson was an unsurpassed genius and an iconic force in music entertainment. The music—and videos—he made as an artist as part of the Sony Music family are essential to pop culture history. We're proud to be part of that history, and to find new innovative ways to make Michael's music available to future generations of fans.”

John Branca and John McClain commented, “We couldn’t ask for more creative and innovative partners than Sony and Rob Stringer (whose history working personally with Michael goes back to the 1990s).  Michael continues to inspire generations of artists who have come after him and attract new fans who understand that his music and message are more important than ever.  We look forward to continuing to preserve and develop his remarkable musical legacy with Sony.”

To date, Michael Jackson has achieved 40 RIAA certifications and 40 #1 chart positions and 102 Top 5 chart positions.   Michael Jackson's overall worldwide record sales exceed the 1 billion threshold including over 100 million sales of “Thriller” which remains the biggest selling album in history. 

The last seven years of the creative partnership between Sony and the Estate have been characterized by the same kind of record-setting achievements that Michael realized during his lifetime.  His recordings continue to meet new sales benchmarks:  Last year, Thriller became the first and only album in RIAA history to pass the triple Diamond mark with a 33X platinum certification; Bad also achieved Diamond status.

Jackson’s latest release, the compilation album, Scream was his 16th Billboard Top 40 Album and 30th charting album and its release kicked off the worldwide, first annual Michael Jackson Halloween campaign.  His previous release, 2014’s Xscape rocketed to #1 in 49 countries and produced the worldwide hit, “Love Never Felt So Good”.  In conjunction with the release of that album, the Estate astounded the world with the technical wizardry of a ‘virtual Michael Jackson' performance during the Billboard Music Awards, which gave the show its biggest ratings in years and became the topic of conversation worldwide.

Sony and the Estate have also partnered in the production of two critically acclaimed documentaries directed by Spike Lee:  Bad 25 and Michael Jackson’s Journey from Motown to Off the Wall.  

Other innovations created in conjunction with Sony include the first completely crowd-sourced music video for “Behind the Mask” (2010), the first Twitter music video premiere for “A Place With No Name” (2014) and a groundbreaking augmented reality campaign for Scream (2017).    

Michael Jackson’s star power and cultural relevancy continues with each passing year as his artistry, style, choreography and music continue to inspire generations of pop, soul, R&B and hip-hop artists and fans.   Even as audiences change how they access music, they continue to discover and consume Michael’s songs and albums.  Rob Stringer’s comment to the New York Times in 2010 that “you’ve got to bet on Michael Jackson in any new platform” proved prescient.  Michael Jackson is one of the premiere streaming artists in the global marketplace.  Michael ranks in the top five of all catalog artists for both audio streaming and video streaming for 2017, as well as in the top 5 of all artists for the combined audio and video streaming for 2013 – 2017, alongside contemporary artists Chainsmokers, One Direction, Beyonce and Sia.

To download Michael Jackson media assets, visit: http://dbaronmedia.com/?typenews=photo-michael-jackson-1997-blood-dance-floor

About Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment is a global recorded music company with a current roster that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars. The company boasts a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. It is home to premier record labels representing music from every genre, including Arista Nashville, Beach Street Records, Black Butter Records, BPG Music, Bystorm Entertainment, Century Media, Columbia Nashville, Columbia Records, Day 1, Descendant Records, Disruptor Records, Epic Records, Essential Records, Essential Worship, Fo Yo Soul Recordings, House of Iona Records, Insanity Records, Kemosabe Records, Legacy Recordings, Masterworks, Masterworks Broadway, Ministry of Sound Recordings, Monument Records, OKeh, Polo Grounds Music, Portrait, RCA Inspiration, RCA Nashville, RCA Records, Relentless Records, Reunion Records, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Star Time International, Syco Music and Verity Records. Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. 

About The Estate of Michael Jackson

The Estate of Michael Jackson continues to produce artistically exceptional and enormously successful ventures.  Earlier this year, Optimum Productions, owned by the Estate of Michael Jackson produced “Michael Jackson’s Halloween”, a new, one-hour perennial animated special.  At the 2017 Venice Film Festival and Toronto Film Festival, Optimum premiered Michael Jacksons Thriller 3D, a new 3d conversion of the acclaimed film directed by John Landis and written by Landis and Michael Jackson.  The Estate’s first project in 2009, "Michael Jackson's This is It" became the highest grossing music documentary of all time.  A history making touring show produced in partnership with Cirque du Soleil, Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour, played 4 continents, 157 cities, was seen by 3.7 million fans and became one of the top grossing tours of all time.  The second venture between the Estate and Cirque du Soleil, the critically acclaimed Michael Jackson ONE, a permanent show at Mandalay Bay Las Vegas, gave Cirque its biggest opening ever in Las Vegas and continues to be one of the top shows in the city.  In 2016, the Estate released the documentary MICHAEL JACKSON's Journey From Motown To Off The Wall, directed by Spike Lee.  The documentary made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2016, and its subsequent broadcast on SHOWTIME® became the channel's highest rated music documentary of all time and its second highest rated documentary ever.