Latest news with #Yash
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
India's ‘Kantara: Chapter 1' Producer Calls Prequel ‘Our Most Ambitious Project to Date,' Unveils Behind-the-Scenes Video (EXCLUSIVE)
2022 Indian sleeper hit 'Kantara' may have started as a regional Kannada-language film, but its massive success transformed Hombale Films' trajectory overnight. Now, producer Vijay Kiragandur is doubling down with 'Kantara: Chapter 1,' a prequel that he says pushes every boundary the company has previously set. Kiragandur has also shared a behind-the-scenes video with Variety. More from Variety Hrithik Roshan Teams With 'K.G.F.,' 'Kantara' Producer Hombale Films for Major Pan-India Project (EXCLUSIVE) Yash's 'Toxic' Sets 2026 Release Date (EXCLUSIVE) Yash Unveils First-Look Video of 'Toxic' (EXCLUSIVE) Made on a modest budget of $1.96 million, 'Kantara,' written, directed by and starring Rishab Shetty, went on to amass some $50 million with dubbed versions in several Indian languages. The decision to construct an entire studio for the prequel speaks to the scale of ambition driving this project. 'The studio was born out of both creative necessity and practical limitations,' Kiragandur explains. 'We scoured Karnataka for a facility that could house an elaborate palace set with intricate interiors, but none met our requirements in terms of scale or infrastructure. What began as one studio floor quickly expanded into a full-fledged facility.' The investment proved strategic beyond mere logistics. 'Building our own studio allowed us complete creative control, streamlined production timelines, reduced travel costs — and most importantly — gave our director, Rishab Shetty the peace of mind to realize his vision uncompromised. It became a catalyst for the film's authenticity.' That authenticity extends to the film's core themes, which dig deeper into the spiritual and mythological elements that resonated so powerfully in the original. 'The spiritual resonance of the first film was a guiding force as we shaped 'Chapter 1,'' Kiragandur notes. 'The audience's response to 'Kantara' gave us clarity — we knew we had to honor that legacy with focused storytelling.' 'Instead of pursuing multiple projects simultaneously, we chose to channel all our energy into this one,' Kiragandur adds. 'Though we're in advanced stages with other pan-India films, our commitment to 'Kantara: Chapter 1' took precedence.' The upcoming pan-India projects include 'Salaar: Part 2 – Shouryaanga Parvam,' the sequel to Prashanth Neel's 2023 blockbuster 'Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire,' starring Prabhas, which was one of the biggest Indian hits of 2023. Hombale is no stranger to blockbusters, being the studio behind Neel's Yash starrers 'K.G.F: Chapter 1' (2018) and 'K.G.F: Chapter 2' (2022), with the latter being the fifth highest-grossing Indian film of all time. Kiragandur produces for Hombale alongside Chaluve Gowda. Kiragandur acknowledges the inherent challenge of balancing cultural authenticity with commercial ambitions, but frames it as an opportunity rather than a constraint. 'Cultural legacy isn't a pressure point for us — it's a compass,' he says. 'By staying true to our narrative, the talent behind it, and the emotions it carries, we're confident that authenticity will shine through on screen.' Central to that confidence is writer-director-star Rishab Shetty, whose multifaceted involvement mirrors his approach to the original film. 'We had full faith in Rishab Shetty, the driving force behind 'Kantara: Chapter 1.' Whether it was his acting, writing, or direction, his talent played a pivotal role in shaping everything we created.' The project's scope extends beyond entertainment into cultural preservation, addressing themes that Kiragandur considers essential to contemporary discourse. 'One of the most important aspects of 'Kantara' is its focus on preserving nature and raising the conversation around land ownership — a subject deeply meaningful to us.' This commitment to cultural storytelling positions the film within Hombale's broader mission to elevate Indian narratives on a global stage. 'More than regional, 'Kantara: Chapter 1' is about Indian storytelling,' Kiragandur emphasizes. 'Our research frequently led us to marvel at the vast cultural and narrative tapestry this country holds. We could create years of content purely from its untold stories.' The producer sees untapped potential in India's rich heritage, noting that 'very few filmmakers have dared to explore this territory — perhaps because there's no Western blueprint to follow. But we don't see that as a limitation. We see it as a calling.' While remaining modest about specific production moments that crystallized the film's exceptional scope, Kiragandur expresses confidence that audiences will recognize the achievement. 'There have been several moments, but we'll let the film speak for itself. We genuinely believe it will leave audiences stunned — not just by the scale, but by the soul.' When pressed about what distinguishes this production from Hombale's previous efforts, Kiragandur's response captures the full weight of the undertaking: ''Kantara: Chapter 1' is undoubtedly our most ambitious project to date — and there are several reasons why. The scale of effort, from the number of shoot days to the sheer volume of manpower, far surpasses anything we've undertaken before. But beyond logistics, this film holds a deeply personal place in our hearts. It's the kind of cinema we've always dreamed of creating. At Hombale, our vision has always been to bring Indian cultural roots to life through storytelling. We've long aspired to create something for this generation — and for generations to come — that makes them proud of India's rich heritage.' 'Kantara: Chapter 1' releases Oct. 2 in the Kannada, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Bengali and English languages. Watch the behind-the-scenes video here: Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? Final Emmy Predictions: Talk Series and Scripted Variety - New Blood Looks to Tackle Late Night Staples
NDTV
2 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
Meet Yash Kumar, The Lead Behind OpenAI's ChatGPT Agent That Works By Self
Yash Kumar's Chatgpt Agent 2025: OpenAI recently introduced a new capability in its chatbot ChatGPT - the ChatGPT Agent, which can semi-autonomously perform digital tasks without requiring constant user intervention. The project is currently being led by Yash Kumar, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad. The new ChatGPT Agent is designed to handle tasks from start to finish - whether it's preparing meal plans, booking tickets, or summarizing meetings on your calendar. The agent can think, plan, and act on the user's behalf using its own virtual computer. It switches between browsers, applications, and terminals to complete tasks end-to-end. The tool is now available to users, but it remains a work in progress and continues to be improved. All About Yash Kumar- Educational and Corporate Background Yash Kumar, an Indian-origin technologist, is a Member of Technical Staff at OpenAI's San Francisco headquarters and currently serves as the project lead for the ChatGPT Agent. He joined OpenAI in 2023 and previously worked at several well-known companies, including Google, where he spent eight years, and DoorDash. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from IIT Hyderabad in 2011. In his previous roles, Yash primarily led engineering teams - including serving as head of the merchant engineering division at DoorDash and overseeing engineering, product, and design teams at Scratch. While the ChatGPT Agent is nearly autonomous, it still requires user approval for high-stakes actions such as purchases or logging into certain websites.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Thalassa on top in Gamble For Love Trophy
The bottom-weighted filly Thalassa, ridden by apprentice Aditya Waydande, edged out Christophany in a thrilling finish to win the Gamble For Love Trophy, the feature event of the opening day's races of the Pune Racing Season here on Friday (July 18). The winner is owned by Mr. Cowas D. Bajan, Ajay Jalan rep. Ultimo Stud Farm Pvt. Ltd, M/s. Thanniru Srinivas, Ranjit Pai, Narendra Kumar Ambwani and Chanakaya Sanjeevkumar Gaur. Faisal Abbas trains the winner. 1. SEASON OPENER PLATE (Div. II) (1,000m): LORD ERIC (P. Trevor) 1, Lightning Mcqueen (Yash) 2, Menjou's Moustache (Ramswarup) 3 and Moment Of Madness (Siddharth) 4. Not run: Otello. 1-3/4, 1-1/4 and Short Head. 58.82s. ₹18 (w), 10, 16 and 29 (p). SHP: 41, FP: 83, Q: 54, Tanala: 478 and 380. Favourite: Lord Eric. Owners: Mr. Cyrus S. Poonawalla, Mr. Adar C. Poonawalla & Mrs. Natasha A. Poonawalla rep. Villoo Poonawalla Racing & Breeding Pvt. Ltd., M/s. D.R. Thacker rep. DT Racing & Breeders LLP, Karius Dadachanji, S.R. Sanas. Saleem Fazelbhoy & Mukul Sonawala. Trainer: Dallas Todywalla. 2. ELEGANCE PLATE (Div. II) (1,200m): BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY (Aditya Waydande) 1, Purple Martini (Nirmal) 2, Talking Point (Prasad) 3 and Leo The Lion (A. Prakash) 4. 1-1/4, 4 and 1-1/4. 1m, 10.44s. ₹25 (w), 10, 23 and 37 (p). SHP: 52, FP: 207, Q: 103, Tanala: 1,091 and 611. Favourite: Bohemian Rhapsody. Owners: M/s. Zaheer Lalkaka, Vikram Bachhawat rep. Bachhawat Farms Pvt. Ltd, Homi D. Bhagwagar, Arzaan H. Bhagwagar & Hosidar Daji. Trainer: Hosidar Daji. 3. VIBRANT PLATE (Div. II) (1,400m): FABLE (A. Sandesh) 1, Beyond Stars (Antony Raj) 2, Moonlight Kiss (C. Umesh) 3 and Golden Heart (S.J. Sunil) 4. Not run: AR First Star. 3-3/4, Head and 3/4. 1m, 26.30s. ₹16 (w), 12, 13 and 25 (p). SHP: 41, FP: 77, Q: 70, Tanala: 221 and 97. Favourite: Fable. Owners: Mr. Tegbir Singh Brar rep. Sarainaga Racing Pvt. Ltd. Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha. 4. SEASON OPENER PLATE (Div. I) (1,000m): BEE MAGICAL (Neeraj Rawal) 1, Zephyr (Yash) 2, Mojo (Merchant) 3 and Diligence (Trevor) 4. 2, Short Head and Short Neck. 58.73s. ₹22 (w), 20, 10 and 60 (p). SHP: 41, FP: 62, Q: 47, Tanala: 813 and 326. Favourite: Bee Magical. Owners: Equus Racing & Mr. Mukul Sonawala. Trainer: Imtiaz A. Sait. 5. ELEGANCE PLATE (Div. I) (1,200m): SHE'S A TEASER (Bhawani Singh) 1, Zip Along (C. Umesh) 2, Continental Drift (Santosh) 3 and Ma Cherie (Prasad) 4. 4-1/2, 3/4 and 2. 1m, 11.32s. ₹49 (w), 17, 12 and 20 (p). SHP: 34, FP: 130, Q: 63, Tanala: 573 and 476. Favourite: Zip Along. Owner: Mr. Ketan S. Wakkar. Trainer: S. Waheed. 6. D.K. ASHISH SALVER (1,200m): DARCY (A. Sandesh) 1, Merlet (Antony Raj) 2, Between Lands (Yash) 3 and Conjurer (V. Bunde) 4. 2, 2-1/4 and 2. 1m, 9.49s. ₹29 (w), 13, 10 and 16 (p). SHP: 43, FP: 96, Q: 38, Tanala: 383 and 263. Favourite: Merlet. Owners: M/s. Chanakya Sanjeevkumar Gaur & Narendra Kumar Ambwani. Trainer: Faisal A. Abbas. 7. GAMBLE FOR LOVE TROPHY (1,400m): THALASSA (Aditya Waydande) 1, Christophany (Neeraj) 2, Market King (Antony Raj) 3 and It's My Time (Sandesh) 4. Long Neck, 2 and 3/4. 1m, 24.55s. ₹96 (w), 28, 12 and 41 (p). SHP: 20, FP: 889, Q: 215, Tanala: 3,130 and 3,577. Favourite: Snowfall. Owners: M/s. Cowas D. Bajan, Ajay Jalan rep. Ultimo Stud Farm Pvt. Ltd., Thanniru Srinivas, Ranjit Pai, Narendra Kumar Ambwani & Chanakya Sanjeevkumar Gaur. Trainer: Faisal A. Abbas. 8. VIBRANT PLATE (Div. I) (1,400m): WIND DANCER (Navnath Bhosale) 1, Challenge Accepted (Antony Raj) 2, Pure (Parmar) 3 and Endurance (V. Bunde) 4. 3-1/4, Long Neck and 4-1/2. 1m, 25.95s. ₹89 (w), 16, 10 and 13 (p). SHP: 61, FP; 349, Q: 45, Tanala: 752 and 526. Favourite: Challenge Accepted. Owners: M/s. D.R. Thacker rep. DT Racing & Breeders LLP, Mukul Sonawala, Nozer Panthaky, P.J. Vazifdar & M. Rishad. Trainer: Dallas Todywalla. 9. COLUMBIA PLATE (1,200m): Declared null and void. Note: First favourite Fourth Wing had won the race by a short neck from Midnight Express, but an enquiry was held at the behest of the stipendiary stewards. The starter reported that multiple horses were restless at the gates, with Scaramouche (Aditya up) rearing and jumping out riderless, while Timeless Vision (Ramswarup) stumbled badly. A false start was signalled, but in the ensuing confusion, the jockeys continued the race. After interviewing riders and reviewing the incident, the stewards declared the race null and void. Jackpot: (i) 70%: ₹9,512 (14 tkts.) & 30%: 460 (124 (tkts.); (ii) 100% : 1,12,020 (5 tkts.). Treble: (i) 357 (41 tkts.), (ii) 3,363 ( 5 tkts.), (iii) 922 (25 tkts.). Super Jackpot: 100%: 37, 049 (c/f).
Time of India
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
AR Rahman on working with Hans Zimmer in Ranbir Kapoor-Yash starrer Ramayana: 'Who would've imagined me scoring with...'
AR Rahman teaming up with for Ramayana is a musical dream come true—one that's adding even more weight to what's already being called the biggest Indian film ever. As the epic unfolds under 's direction, Rahman opens up about his journey, the collaboration, and the pride of celebrating Indian culture on a global stage. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Evolving with the Times In an interview with Connect Cine, Rahman spoke about evolving with time and embracing the changes in Indian cinema, particularly in music and filmmaking. He expressed pride in being part of Ramayana, calling it a landmark project that celebrates Indian culture. Rahman also highlighted how special it is to collaborate with Hans Zimmer on such a grand film. AR Rahman also shared insights into the collaborative process with Hans Zimmer, revealing that their initial sessions took place across London, Los Angeles, and Dubai. He described Zimmer as culturally curious, open to feedback, and deeply engaged with the narrative—often offering a Western perspective to better shape the storytelling through music. An Epic in the Making Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra and Yash, Ramayana is set to release in two parts during Diwali 2026 and 2027. The epic stars as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, as Hanuman, and Ravie Dubey as Lakshman. The recently released first glimpse, featuring Ranbir and Yash in character, received an enthusiastic response from fans. At the special screening of the first look, Nitesh Tiwari grew emotional while discussing Ramayana . Rather than responding as a director, he spoke as a passionate movie lover. For him, the film's true success lies in capturing the deep emotion and pride associated with India's rich cultural heritage. He hopes the film not only resonates with Indian audiences but also showcases the nation's values to the world.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Meet Yash Kumar, the IIITan behind ChatGPT's Agent that brings AI out of your screen into real life
OpenAI's latest AI tool, ChatGPT Agent, is being developed under the leadership of Yash Kumar , a Member of Technical Staff at the company. Yash, who is also the product lead for the project, demonstrated the tool's capabilities during a recent briefing with The Verge. ChatGPT Agent functions like a virtual computer and can perform a wide range of tasks, from managing calendars and summarising meetings to planning meals. Indian engineer heads key OpenAI product Yash Kumar studied Computer Science at IIIT Hyderabad , one of India's top engineering institutions. He joined OpenAI in November 2023 and now works out of the company's San Francisco headquarters. At OpenAI, Yash is leading the development of ChatGPT Agent, a tool that extends beyond the browser to interact with an entire virtual operating system. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category Artificial Intelligence Others Cybersecurity healthcare Product Management Leadership Operations Management Healthcare Data Science MBA Digital Marketing Degree Project Management Public Policy others Technology Data Analytics Finance MCA Design Thinking CXO Data Science PGDM Management Skills you'll gain: Duration: 7 Months S P Jain Institute of Management and Research CERT-SPJIMR Exec Cert Prog in AI for Biz India Starts on undefined Get Details 'Optimising for hard tasks' Speaking to The Verge, Yash said the team is now focused on 'optimising for hard tasks' so that users have a smoother experience. The product is designed to carry out digital tasks while still checking with the user before performing critical actions like sending emails or booking appointments. The system can run tasks in the background, allowing users to return to completed work later. Isa Fulford, who leads research on the project, said, 'Even if it takes 15 minutes, half an hour, it's quite a big speed-up compared to how long it would take you to do it. It's one of those things where you can kick something off in the background and then come back to it.' Strong safeguards built in OpenAI has built strong security safeguards into the ChatGPT Agent system. These protections were originally developed for handling models with 'high biological and chemical capabilities.' The company stated there is currently no 'direct evidence that the model could meaningfully help a novice create severe biological or chemical harm.' Live Events MORE STORIES FOR YOU ✕ « Back to recommendation stories I don't want to see these stories because They are not relevant to me They disrupt the reading flow Others SUBMIT Earlier this year, AI company Anthropic activated similar safeguards while launching Opus 4, part of its Claude model line. Like OpenAI, Anthropic said safety remains a priority as AI systems gain more advanced capabilities.
