52 August 2018 www.bahrainthismonth.com indiaindependence GFH, Bahrain, and India-based Wadhwa Group have introduced Wadhwa Wise City (‘Wise City’), the first Integrated Township Project in Navi Mumbai Airport Influence Notified Area (NAINA), at Panvel, India. A joint development between Wadhwa Group and the Indian subsidiary of GFH, Valuable Properties Pvt Ltd, it is intended that the first phase of the project will consist of up to 5,500 affordable homes, of which 900 were pre-sold prior to the launch. Invested parties expect this project to make Panvel the go-to region for affordable homes. Offering studios, and both one- and two-bedroom apartments, Wise City will be developed in different phases. A Wise Conjunction Following reports on April 18 that Qatar’s Elan Group has been working to sell Novo Cinemas’ UAE and Bahrain theatres, India’s Carnival Cinemas and a partner in the UAE are amidst talks to buy the theatres, aiming to segregate cross border business in the Gulf regions. Carnival Cinemas operates in more than 100 Indian cities. With the popularity of Bollywood films in the UAE and the Gulf, it has shown interest in being potential co-investors. Formerly known as Grand Cinemas, Novo Cinemas was first established under Gulf Film Group, which was incorporated with Elan Group in 2012. There are now over 114 screens in multiple cinemas across the GCC under the Novo Cinemas brand, according to Elan Group’s website. Director Soukarya Ghosal’s 2018 Bengali drama, Rainbow Jelly, made its Bahrain debut recently at the Summer Festival. The movie tells of the trials endured by a young boy and his personal fight against them. Rated 9.2 on imdb, this film features a special child, a grumpy uncle and a fairy aunt. The director brilliantly explores boyhood through Ghoton, the protagonist, played by child artiste Mahabrata Basu. Merging together fantasy and reality, local and global, Rainbow Jelly is the first food fantasy film in Bengali cinema. This is the first Indian film to be screened at Bahrain Summer Festival and Soukarya Ghosal, in a Facebook post, referred to its inclusion as a “kingly gesture”. Carnival Cinemas to Buy Novo Cinemas Festival First for Indian Film The Bahrain Red Crescent Society (BRCS) is heading a plan to fund welfare projects in India and Pakistan. From a standpoint of giving back to the two countries for contributing to Bahrain’s economy, the plan is to fund projects that aim to deliver clean water and sanitation to villages that need it. The BRCS, which has undertaken multiple humanitarian aid works in the past, in a host of different countries, was ranked among the 50 national societies around the world in 2017. Details of the latest project were brought to light during the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement Conference on Labour Migration, in Bangkok, in July, where there were talks with the relevant Indian and Pakistani representatives to explore clean water and sanitation projects. Humanitarian Effort in India and Pakistan Oman-born, Bahrain-raised model Sanjana Banerjee had always dreamed of becoming an actress. She first entered the limelight through a commercial ad. Proving that dreams can become reality, she is now appearing her debut film, Fidaa. Fidaa, a Bengali picture, is a realistic coming-of-age romance about the perception of ‘love’ by today’s youth, produced by Shrikant Mohta and directed by Pathikrit Basu. She will play the character of Khushi, a girl who believes in love yet understands practicality, opposite love interest Ishaan, played by Yash Dasgupta. In preparation for her role, she worked hard to improve her Bengali. The film has just been released. Bahrain to Bengali Cinema
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