‘COVID-19: INDIA’S WAR AGAINST THE VIRUS’, Chronicles Story of Country's Fight Against the Deadly Virus

Covid 19 Flight Documentary

* Actor Manoj Bajpayee to narrate the special documentary in Hindi while Writer-Director-Actor Gautham Vasudev Menon will narrate in Tamil

* The documentary will drop on Discovery Plus on 16th July at 8:00 pm; Discovery Channel and Discovery Channel HD will premiere it at 8:00 pm on 20th July

Discovery Plus, India’s first aggregated real-life entertainment streaming app, is all set to stream an exclusive documentary which will provide a rare glimpse into all the key steps being taken across the country to battle the Coronavirus pandemic. Titled ‘COVID-19: INDIA’S WAR AGAINST THE VIRUS’ the Discovery Plus special will follow both, the global and the Indian timeline, of how the virus spread and shine light on key developments that have taken place ever since India’s first Coronavirus victim was detected in Kerala.

Extensively shot during the period of lockdown, ‘COVID-19: INDIA’S WAR AGAINST THE VIRUS’ will traverse across the nation mapping the pandemic and tell the story through interviews with subject matter experts, front line workers, patients, migrant workers, and others working tirelessly behind the scenes to arrest the spread of this deadly disease. The film will also shed light on the innovations and the way technology is being used to combat the virus. The Hindi voiceover for which will be provided by Bollywood star Manoj Bajpayee and the Tamil voiceover by celebrated writer, director, actor Gautham Vasudev Menon.  The documentary, available in 7 languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Bengali, will drop exclusively on the Discovery Plus app, available on Android, IOS, Fire TV and on web, at 8:00 pm on July 16.  Following that, the documentary will premiere on July 20 at 8:00 pm on the Discovery Channel and Discovery Channel HD.

The documentary features scientists, doctors, ministers and government officials on the forefront of the Coronavirus battle including: Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, Govt of India, K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Bill Gates, Co-Chair and Trustee, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr. Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, World Health Organization, South-East Asia Region, Satyendra Jain, Health Minister, Govt of Delhi, K. K. Shailaja, Health Minister, Govt of Kerala, Rajesh Tope, Health Minister, Govt of Maharashtra, Economist Arun Kumar, Dr. Rajesh Malhotra, Chief, AIIMS Trauma Centre, Delhi, Dr. Atanu Basu, Deputy Director, National Institute of Virology, Dr Shiv Kumar Sarin, Chairperson, Delhi COVID-19 Task Force, Journalist Sanket Upadhyay, along with Sonu Sood, the Bollywood actor who has extensively worked on ground to help the migrant workers during the pandemic.

“Meaningful Cinema, meaningful projects have always endeared me, and I believe specials like Covid-19 India’s War Against The Virus are relevant not just for today but will continue to engage our future generations as well,” said, recipient of two National awards, Manoj Bajpayee. “This is an important story and needs to be told in an impactful manner. I and proud to be part of this monumental project and target to bring all my experience into play for the narration in Hindi language.”

“The fact that we all have been directly impacted by the pandemic makes this project different from others I have been part of. You almost relive part of your life as the reels go by but at the same time the documentary shines light on so much that you weren’t aware of.  That is why documentaries, as an entertainment tool, in my view, will always have a special pride of place,” said, Writer-Director-Actor Gautham Vasudev Menon. “It is a valiant effort. I could not have asked for a better debut as a narrator, especially in my mother tongue Tamil, and coincidentally this marks my first documentary ever. I urge everyone to watch it along with your family.”

“Discovery has been at the forefront of bringing international documentaries on Covid-19 to help Indian audiences understand deeper perspectives. This latest original, shot extensively during lockdown, captures key moments, developments that shaped India’s fight against Covid-19 over the past few months,” said, Megha Tata, Managing Director – South Asia, Discovery. “There’s more at work than what meets the eye as new challenges unfold every day with pandemic raging fire; our attempt is to bring it all together with a line-up of prominent experts and officials to provide a comprehensive view for our discerning audiences.”

The collection of Covid19 related documentaries on Discovery Plus continues to grow. The other 3 documentaries which explore this deadly disease include ‘Invisible Killer’, ‘Pandemic Covid-19’ & ‘The Zoo: Covid-19 & Animals’. Users can download the application to stream these shows.

‘COVID-19: INDIA’S WAR AGAINST THE VIRUS’ will premiere on Discovery Plus on 16th July 2020 followed by Discovery Channel and Discovery Channel HD on 20th July 2020 at 8.00 pm

India's $100-b defence pie eyed by American miliary contractors

Eyeing India's estimated $100 billion defence pie, major U.S. arms suppliers are wooing Indian defence agents and officials as New Delhi embarks on a major military shopping spree to modernise its Soviet-era arsenal, a US media report said.

At the U.S. embassy in New Delhi, defence contractors such as Northrop Grumman are sponsoring little league baseball teams, the companies' names stitched onto the uniforms, the Washington Post said in a report from New Delhi.

Almost every weekend, there are cocktails and closed-door presentations in the suites of New Delhi's five-star hotels, hosted by retired admirals and generals from the US armed forces who now work for defence firms, such as Raytheon and Northrop Grumman, it said.

"India will look back-generations down the road-at this period as a defining moment for its new, modern military," the Post cited Roger Rose, chief executive of Lockheed Martin India, which is renting half a wing of New Delhi's Taj Palace Hotel for a 12-person office.

"I think we can all see that there are a lot of threats shared between our two democracies."

With its growing military footprint, India is steering away from traditional ally Russia, its main weapons supplier, and looking toward the United States to help upgrade its weapons systems and troop gear, the Post said

India is also pushing the Obama administration to ease the acquisition of US weapons and technology. Already this year, a high-level US government group cleared the way for Lockheed and Boeing to offer India cutting-edge radar technology for fighter jets.

India now has a shopping list that includes 126 fighter jets, 155mm howitzers, long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, vast cargo planes used in long-distance conflicts, high-tech helicopters and deep-water submarines. Boeing is vying with Lockheed-along with French, Russian and Swedish companies and a European consortium-for a fighter jet deal worth about $10 billion.

India is holding flight tests for the fighter jets. Lockheed and Boeing have conducted demonstration flights for Indian celebrities and defence experts.

"America's relationship to India is maturing and expanding. India is an important global player now," the Post said citing William S. Cohen, a defence secretary during the Clinton administration who is a member of the US-India Business Council's board of directors.

Agencies