Ashim Ahluwalia, known as a director of edgy films such as John & Jane and Miss Lovely that have premiered at Toronto and Cannes film festivals, is not an obvious choice to direct a young adult drama series for Netflix . But when local production house Bodhitree Multimedia approached him with a proposal for a Hindi remake of Spanish show Elite , he jumped at the chance. “I’ve always been interested in making something on teenagers, especially wealthy urban teenagers, because that’s a world that I know,” says Ahluwalia, who grew up in the tony neighborhoods of south Mumbai. “I went to a school that was very different to the school in Elite , or in this series, but had the same elements of class conflict. So while I’d never thought about doing a series before, I thought this would be an interesting project to do.” Created by Carlos Montero and Dario Madrona, Elite follows three scholarship kids from a modest socioeconomic background who get placed in an … [Read more...] about Ashim Ahluwalia On Portraying The Extremes Of India’s Wealth Gap In Netflix Young Adult Drama ‘Class’
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U.S. Economy Added 517,000 Jobs In January; Unemployment Rate At 3.4%
The U.S. economy added 517,000 jobs in January, unexpectedly high employment growth after predictions that job growth would slow as the Federal Reserve continues to raise interest rates. The unemployment rate was 3.4%, falling slightly from December. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that job growth was spread across industries, including leisure and hospitality, professional and business services and health care. There also was a rise in the government payroll. The robust report belies some of the headlines of mass layoffs, particularly in the tech industry, as well as cutbacks in media. According to the seasonally adjusted figures, jobs in movies and sound recordings were unchanged from a month earlier, at 465,900. But jobs in broadcasting and among content providers fell 2.7% to 355,900. Publishing industry employment fell 1.3% to 952,600. Telecommunications jobs fell 1.4% to 656,700. Average hourly earnings on private payrolls rose by 10 cents to $33.03. … [Read more...] about U.S. Economy Added 517,000 Jobs In January; Unemployment Rate At 3.4%