Gauri Khan’s restaurant, ‘Torii,’ recently became embroiled in controversy due to allegations made by YouTuber Sarthak Sachdeva. In a video where he explored various celebrity-owned eateries, including Virat Kohli’s One8 Commune and Shilpa Shetty’s Bastian, Sachdeva claimed that the paneer at Torii was fake. This assertion quickly gained traction online, sparking significant discussion. In response, Michelin-star chef Vikas Khanna weighed in, offering a defense of the restaurant and correcting the misinformation spread by the YouTuber.

In his video, Sarthak claimed that Torii served synthetic paneer, demonstrating an iodine test which purportedly showed a color change in the paneer as evidence of added starch. He suggested that this reaction indicated the presence of artificial ingredients. The video quickly went viral, prompting Torii to issue a statement standing by their use of high-quality ingredients.

The restaurant clarified, “The iodine test shows the presence of starch, but it does not determine the authenticity of the paneer. As our dish contains soy-based components, the reaction is expected. We uphold the quality of our paneer and the integrity of our ingredients at Torii.” They also expressed their surprise at the claims, emphasizing their rigorous quality control throughout the sourcing and preparation processes.

As the debate surrounding the alleged fake paneer gained momentum on social media, chef Vikas Khanna took to Instagram Stories to defend Gauri Khan’s establishment. He criticized the spread of misinformation, stating, “I’ve never encountered such egregious misconceptions like a YouTuber calling himself a food scientist.” He clarified that the blue-black color produced by the iodine test indicates the presence of starch, a common ingredient found in everyday foods such as potatoes, bread, and flour, and noted that cross-contamination from soy-based items could result in similar reactions.

Vicky Kaushal’s film ‘Chhaava’ continues to perform impressively at the box office, having premiered on February 14. After 66 days of its release, it has surpassed the 600 crore milestone in domestic earnings. In ‘Chhaava,’ Vicky stars alongside Rashmika Mandanna and Akshaye Khanna, with Laxman Utekar directing and Dinesh Vijan producing under the Maddock banner. This achievement marks it as the first non-sequel Bollywood film to reach this benchmark.

The film tells the story of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, a revered Maratha warrior. ‘Chhaava’ is now the third Indian film to exceed 600 crores domestically, joining the ranks of ‘Pushpa 2’ and ‘Stree 2’. Remarkably, it reached this milestone based solely on its merits and is distinguishable as the first non-sequel film to do so. Despite having an OTT release, its theatrical performance remains robust.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared the exciting news on social media, detailing the film’s week-by-week box office collections. He noted, “600 NOT OUT… #Chhaava storms past the ₹ 600 cr mark… Following #Pushpa2 #Hindi and #Stree2, #Chhaava becomes the third film to achieve this milestone… ALL TIME BLOCKBUSTER.” He highlighted that in its initial four weeks, the film garnered ₹ 225.28 crores, ₹ 186.18 crores, ₹ 84.94 crores, and ₹ 43.98 crores, respectively. In the subsequent four weeks, it added ₹ 31.02 crores, ₹ 15.60 crores, ₹ 7 crores, and ₹ 3.50 crores. In its ninth week, ‘Chhaava’ earned an additional ₹ 2.30 crores and ₹ 30 lakhs in its tenth week, bringing the domestic total to ₹ 600.10 crores.

Moreover, while the film’s earnings in India have exceeded 600 crores, its global revenue is significantly higher. According to the aggregator site Sacnilk, ‘Chhaava’ has surpassed the 800-crore mark worldwide, amassing ₹ 807.6 crores in total. The action-packed historical drama is now available for streaming on Netflix.

The highly-anticipated Chinese animated film, ‘Ne Zha 2,’ is set to premiere in Indian theaters on April 25. Directed by Jiaozi, this blockbuster has been breaking records since its release. With a production budget of $80 million, it has already amassed over $2 billion globally, surpassing the impressive earnings of ‘Inside Out 2’ to become the all-time highest-grossing animated film. Furthermore, it stands as the fifth highest-grossing film in history, outpacing the legendary ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens.’

Warner Bros. Studios made the announcement about the Indian release via Instagram, featuring the film’s poster and stating, “The epic battle of dragons, immortals, and humans. Will Ne Zha prevail? Experience the world’s number one animated movie – Ne Zha 2, in theaters from April 25.” The film is being distributed in India by Encore Films and Warner Bros. Discovery, under Jiaozi’s direction.

Since its debut, ‘Ne Zha 2’ has successfully shattered box office records, earning a staggering $2 billion worldwide, predominantly from domestic sales. This accomplishment marks it as the highest-grossing film ever within a single market and places it as the fifth-biggest film of all time, trailing only behind ‘Titanic’ ($2.2 billion). Other films that outpace it include ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ ($2.3 billion), ‘Avengers: Endgame’ ($2.7 billion), and ‘Avatar’ ($2.9 billion). Additionally, ‘Ne Zha 2’ ranks as the sixth largest IMAX release in history.

Continuing the legacy of the 2019 hit, ‘Ne Zha 2’ follows a young hero endowed with magical powers and embarks on a captivating adventure inspired by Xu Zhonglin’s 16th-century novel ‘Investiture of the Gods.’ Rooted in Chinese mythology, the film invites audiences into a vivid, intricately animated world. Even those unfamiliar with the original film can easily grasp the storyline, as the sequel provides a swift recap of previous events.