From FaceTime to Houseparty, there is no shortage of platforms for work and play as you shelter in place

With offices and schools around the world temporarily shut amid the coronavirus crisis, the video platform Zoom has seen overnight success. But growing concerns over security across the platform have many consumers wondering about tech alternatives.

Privacy-minded consumers should consider video chat options carefully, said Arvind Narayanan, an associate computer science professor at Princeton University who has been outspoken about the security concerns surrounding Zoom.

Related: ‘Zoom is malware’: why experts worry about the video conferencing platform

Nice

Tumblr is a website of thoughts bouncing from one thing to another, filled with Tumblr rabbit holes to fill time and wildly creative thoughts like the idea of an alien invasion being fought off by wildlife. That said, a lot of it is silly puns, weird facts and people being dumb for dumbness sake.

Man, we love the Scottish Twitter. It's clearly the best Twitter. One can really get a taste for the Scottish culture through their tweets. It's particularly fun to read the tweets out loud. If you really commit to it, you might actually sound Scottish for a hot second. While, of course, you have no idea what you're saying. 

Finland’s two-year test of universal basic income has concluded that it doesn't seem to disincentivise working, and improves recipients’ mental and financial well-being

Yesenia Perez-Cruz started her career as a designer at Happy Cog Philadelphia. From the first day, her design gifts were unmistakable. As her career progressed, she moved from one challenging role to another. At companies like Vox Media and Shopify, and at conferences around the world, she has been a design team leader, a popular […]

The post Expressive Design Systems appeared first on Zeldman on Web & Interaction Design.

Cheese shops and gun stores are among the services still open in locked down places around the world.

India badminton star Jwala Gutta posted this picture to her 1.5 million Twitter followers on Wednesday as she distributed food items and medical supplies near her Hyderabad home.

“During these unprecedented times we chose to contribute some basic essentials like rice, pulses, oil, sugar, masks n more to daily wage migrants near our residence!! #lockdown #migrantworkers ##coronavirus #unitedindia #standtogether #wewillgetthroughthis #WeAreOne,” the World Championships medal-winner captioned her post.

 

 

 

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During these unprecedented times We chose to contribute some basic essentials Like rice,pulses,oil,sugar,masks n more to daily wage migrants near our residence!! #lockdown #migrantworkers ##coronavirus #unitedindia ##wewillgetthroughthis #wewillgetthroughthistogether

A post shared by Jwala Gutta (@jwalagutta1) onApr 21, 2020 at 9:28pm PDT

The 36-year-old badminton player has been a prominent player in the sport over the past two decades. Jwala Gutta is known for her fierce gameplay and even fiercer attitude.

Jwala Gutta formed a dominant force alongside Ashwini Ponnappa in women's doubles over the years. At the Commonwealth Games, Jwala has won a gold, two silver and a bronze medal. She also has a bronze medal at the Asian Championships. Gutta has won 5 gold medals at South Asian Games.

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Poets possess keys to aspects of the world that are often hidden from our collective view. It is why I turn to them as often as I do whenever I find myself treading water, trying to make sense of things that make me question everything I think I have known. Like our global pandemic, for instance. Nothing prepared us for the weeks of forced isolation, the overwhelming insecurities that bubbled up from within, or the creeping doubt that nothing we really did for a living was of any actual significance. And so, I turned to poetry.

I began with Ilya Kaminsky, whose work I have spent many hours over, grateful for their existence and troubled by how they came into being. Kaminsky's latest collection, Deaf Republic — and only his second in 15 years — seemed to come from a place of startling familiarity, despite the poems being set in a fictional city called Vasenka. They seemed recognisable because of what they described: citizens who lived happily during a war. 'And when they bombed other people's houses,' he writes, 'we protested / but not enough, we opposed them but not / enough.' It moved and angered me, as he spoke of people living 'in the street of money in the city of money in the country of money, our great country of money…' because so much of it resonated with what we have been living through.

The impact of reading this while in isolation was powerful because Kaminsky lost his hearing at the age of four in Ukraine. He lived in silence until he turned 16 in America and was fitted with hearing aids. I thought about what he had once referred to as 'seeing in a language of images,' and what it meant for me, as a reader, to look at his world from that prism. As cities outside my window began shutting down, his poems set me free.

I was given access to another worldview by the English poet Fiona Benson and her (coincidental) second collection, Vertigo & Ghost.

This one was dark too, relying on Greek myth to somehow shine a light on the sexual violence that women have always had to contend with. Benson did this by portraying
the god Zeus as a sexual predator, a man 'who shoved a sawn-off shotgun / through the letterbox calling softly /like he was calling to the cat / that terrible croon, / SWEETHEART, / I'M HOME.' It was unsettling because it forced me to unlearn everything I thought I knew about a divine figure we had been trained to respect, a god of lightning and thunder who was married to goddesses and somehow given a pass to violate them.

Benson's Zeus has no morals, stalking his victims, praising Presidents who live in shiny gold towers, a flawed deity who would fit into India's current Parliament like a glove.

Another collection, an older one by American poet Claudia Rankine titled Citizen, forced me to look at the thorny subject of race, which, as any residential society's WhatsApp group can show, is alive and well in modern India. On the surface, Rankine's exploration of the covert and overt ways in which bigotry rears its head in America shouldn't find parallels in the country we call home. And yet, the minute we replace skin colour with caste, cracks start to appear in our carefully constructed façade of a tolerant, peaceful civilization.

What Rankine does is focus on microaggression — the thousands of minor, daily acts of prejudice, intentional or unintentional, that people of colour must grow accustomed to and accept as they go about the simple business of living. It compelled me to think of our own responses to the COVID-19 lockdown and the hypocrisy with which so many of us chose to vilify poor Indians whose only fault was walking home to meet a primal need for safety.

I recognise that the act of reading poetry is not only a private one, it is also one of privilege, given the implication that I need not worryabout shelter or where my next meal must come from. I believe it is important though because isolation creates an atmosphere of extreme scrutiny, allowing us to make changes to who we are and what we believe in.

No one doubts that the world emerging blinking into the daylight at the end of this pandemic will be a new one; all one can hope for is that the changes we must wakeup to will be for the better.

When he isn't ranting about all things Mumbai, Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet. He tweets @lindsaypereira
Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper

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The Centre and state governments' relief plan for migrants involving transportation home seems to have failed to convince migrants who are continuing to set out with their kids and meagre belongings for their hometowns in the scorching heat. Daily wagers are facing all kinds of hardships ranging from lack of food and footwear, to carrying heavy loads over hundreds of kilometres.

Between Bhiwandi and Vasai was where mid-day met these workers, some of who are taking the assistance of Google Maps for shortest routes, on Tuesday morning.

Migrants spend all night walking and the sweltering days under the shade of trees lining the highways on their way to their hometowns. Pics/Hanif Patel

A group of migrants, who used to work at a brick kiln in Vasai, began their journey in the wee hours of Monday, claiming that they were not approached by any government authority for transport back home, nor are they allowed to get tested for COVID-19.

"All the doctors are scared to touch us. They think we might be COVID-19 positive. Also, we were told that we will have to pay for the train journey to Prayagraj. How can we pay the government if we don't have a single penny in our pocket?" said Rajkumar, who worked in a brick kiln in Gorai pada, Vasai with his family members.

The distance between Mumbai and Prayagraj is 1,387 kilometres.

No work here
"We all were patiently waiting for the lockdown to end on May 3, but it was extended again. People have been saying that Coronavirus cases are increasing rapidly in Mumbai and Vasai-Virar area. I am worried about the well-being of my family. What will we do if we continue to stay in Vasai? There is no work," said Rajkumar, who has been walking on foot with his family members including women and toddlers who are barefoot.

They only have a few packets of biscuits and a water jar and are depending completely on help from Good Samaritans en route.

"We will starve here, and we will starve in our village too. Better that we die in our village," said Rajkumar.

Kids ask for food
"Children ask for food. Also, they can't walk for long distances. We have to carry them and our belongings," said Ashok, who has been leading his family and other migrant workers using Google Maps for the shortest possible route to Prayagraj.

And if the network becomes poor, Ashok said, "I will ask local people to suggest the best route."

A 10-year-old boy from a different family walking to Prayagraj was seen carrying a pressure cooker on his head. Lalman, the boy's relative, said, "The government has not done anything for us. Doctors pe helicopter se phool barasaye jaa rahe hain, aur hum logon ko khana bhi naseeb me nahin hai."

Another family, which was working as construction labourers in Vasai, told mid-day that they had been living in makeshift tents in an open field. "The rainy season is about to come. How and where will we take shelter during monsoon? Our tents will be inundated. So, it is wise to reach our village in Jalna district before the rainy season starts," said Gajanand.

Migrant worker Ramlal twisted his foot while walking. "It has been paining a lot but there is no other option than to walk home. We labourers mean nothing to the government. Otherwise, we too would have been showered with flower petals from a helicopter. We are paying for being poor," said Ramlal, who walks for a few metres and then stops to rest his foot.

1,387
Distance in km between Vasai and Prayagraj in UP

1,387km
Distance between Vasai and Prayagraj

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What is so fascinating about the world of crime that filmmakers keep exploring its grit and gore? And how does a filmmaker ensure he attempts to say something nobody has said before? Paatal Lok walks on a tight rope, a show that has been created by Sudip Sharma and produced by Anushka Sharma's Clean Slate Filmz.

The ensemble is solid- Jaideep Ahlawat, Gul Panag, Abhishek Banerjee, Neeraj Kabi, and Vipin Sharma. The biggest surprise package seems to be Banerjee, who was only exploited for his comic chops but plays a dreaded gangster in this show. He has all the opportunity to explode with such a delicious character that seems to be menacing and merciless. And of course, the always reliable Ahlawat seems to be having the time of his life in such ferocious characters.

Have a look at the trailer right here:

The plot of four assassins arrested on the charges of attempting to eliminate a journalist sounds crackling, and so does the milieu, and so does the fact that Anushka Sharma proves why she's one of the most fearless and fascinating producers in the business currently. The trailer also indicates this isn't going to be an easy watch and echoes the same narrative that the production house adapted in Sharma's NH10. But it also seems to be a show that makes you want to discover its language at least once, even if you have seen the world and the people before, albeit differently yet similarly. Let the lawlessness take over on May 15!

Talking about the show, Sudip Sharma stated, "Paatal Lok is every creator's dream. This is an Indian story at heart but with great global appeal thanks to the themes it portrays and the characters it presents. I am pleased that alongside Clean Slate Filmz, I get to make my digital debut on Amazon Prime Video, a global streaming service that is home to some of the best creators of our time, making award-winning content. I am positive Paatal Lok will keep viewers from around the world at the edge of their seats till the very end."

Karnesh Sharma, Producer, Clean Slate Filmz, added, "It has been our consistent endeavor to disrupt Indian entertainment space with breakthrough content. This year, as Clean Slate Filmz completes 5 years, we are happy to announce our upcoming Amazon Original Series Paatal Lok, in association with Amazon Prime Video. The show has been a labor of love, and I hope audiences across the globe experience the same joy we did creating it!"

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Treating all 'Extraction' fans with a little extra dose of action, actor Randeep Hooda on Monday shared a rehearsal video featuring himself and Hollywood actor Chris Hemsworth.

The video is from a rehearsal for an action sequence of Netflix's action-thriller flick 'Extraction'.

 

 

 

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👊🏽👊🏽💪🏽💪🏽 . . #Repost @thesamhargrave You perform how you practice. @randeephooda and @chrishemsworth putting in the rehearsal time for #Extraction @netflix @netflixfilm

A post shared by Randeep Hooda (@randeephooda) onMay 4, 2020 at 12:01am PDT

The clip features both Hooda and Hemsworth in high-energy mode while rehearsing the scene in which they are seen fighting against each other.

The video was originally shared by the director of the film Sam Hargrave and Hooda later re-posted it on his Instagram profile.

"You perform how you practice. @randeephooda and @chrishemsworth putting in the rehearsal time for #Extraction @netflixfilm @netflixfilm," Hargrave wrote in the caption.

The film that marks 'Highway' actor's debut on the online video streaming platform Netflix has been largely shot in India.

Besides Hooda, the film features several other Indian actors including Pankaj Tripathi.

Produced by Russo brothers, the film was released on Netflix on April 24 and has been receiving good response from fans.

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The government on Sunday prohibited the sale of non-essential items through e-commerce platforms during the ongoing lockdown, four days after allowing such companies to sale mobile phones, refrigerators and ready-made garments. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla issued an order excluding the non-essential items from sale by the e-commerce companies from the consolidated revised guidelines, which listed the exemption given to the services and people from the purview of the lockdown.

The order said the following clause -- "E-commerce companies. Vehicles used by e-commerce operators will be allowed to ply with necessary permissions" -- is excluded from the guidelines.

The previous order had said such items were allowed for sale through e-commerce platforms from April 20. However, the reason for reversing the order is not known immediately.

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, on Sunday, addressed the state and said that there are 3,651 coronavirus cases in Maharashtra. While addressing via video message, Thackeray said the state government will allow the industries from green and orange zones to start production and processing activities in a restricted manner from April 20.

"The state government is allowing the industries from green and orange zones to start production and processing activities in a restricted manner. The industries will have to arrange the accommodation for their workers. They would not travel long distance for work," he said

Suggesting that few districts in Maharashtra have shown decrease in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases, CM Uddhav Thackeray said that the districts will be divided into red, orange and green zones. He further highlighted that district borders will remain closed.

CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray addressing the State https://t.co/53JPZcmu13

— CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) April 19, 2020

He furthur urged the people with milder syptoms to get themselves checked and not hide their symptoms as 70-75 percent cases in the state are asymptomatic while, 52 percent are in serious conditions.He mentioned that lockdown measures in the state will be relaxed in graded manner.

Thackeray requested the public not to venture out even though the commercial and industrial activities have been allowed to resume.

He issued a helpline on Sunday for those facing mental health issues. Thackeray said: "If you are feeling any mental health issue, do call 1800 120 820050."

Thackeray added that doorstep delivery of newspapers will be prohibited in red zones. He also said that the state government has allowed certain economic activities in orange and green zones. 

"Intra-district movement in green and orange zones may be allowed," said Thackeray.

With inputs from Agencies

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We're asked to first wait at the Breakout Room, before being led to the Vetting Room (have spelt that right). After quite a few minutes, finally, allowed in to the Interview Suite. Felt like going past check-in, through security, into immigration.

Except, this passage to the Hollywood home of Australian-born superstar Chris Hemsworth — globally, best-known as the superhero Thor — with various check-points in place, is happening over Zoom, the video-conferencing app. There's a posse of international press logging in at their designated time-slots, from respective homes, across the world. All of them, like Hemsworth at his place, it appears, are living under lockdown, due to COVID-19 spread/scare.

"If you think about it, what we're doing is unbelievable," says Sam Hargrave, referring to the unusual manner of this junket. This is before formal conversations begin, with a moderator rotating questions, as per a pre-decided order. Everyone but the specific questioner's microphone is on mute. No doubt, these are extraordinary times.

Chris Hemsworth and Sam Hargrave (encircled) during the interview  

Hargrave, placed in the window to my right, is the director of the Netflix film Extraction, starring Hemsworth, that drops on April 24. If it wasn't for the pandemic, they'd both have been in Mumbai promoting this film. Which is where I am. And where, along with Ahmedabad, mostly, Extraction was shot.

What was that like? Hemsworth offers the common adjectives — life, energy, people, positivity —that the uninitiated usually refer to mean an overwhelming experience, which India, without a national curfew, can certainly be. He recalls, "The [crowds] couldn't have been more accommodating, supportive — thousands of people standing in buildings and bridges, watching and applauding. The shoot felt like being in a coliseum, or live theatre!"

For Hargrave though, besides sanity, there was also the question of maintaining safety: "We were doing intricate action sequences, with cars flying over locked-up streets, at 50 miles per hour. [At any point in time], you'd have 300 people for security personnel alone, to make sure no one got hurt."

A working still of Extraction

Hargrave is one of Hollywood's top stunt-coordinators, with films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe under his belt, including the Avengers blockbusters directed-produced by (Anthony and Joe) Russo Brothers.

Extraction however is Hargrave's first film as director, and evidently furthest from his comfort zone, given its setting to start with: "Joe Russo, who wrote the script, actually set the film in Dhaka [Bangladesh] and India. Because western audiences haven't seen much of that side of the world. It offered lots of opportunities, visually."

Directing, as a job, is challenging enough. Double whammy for the debutant was, as he puts it, "Directing actors in two different languages — Hindi and Bengali. Neither of which I speak! We had an interpreter with us. But because of the prep we'd put in during rehearsals, while I couldn't understand what they were saying [in the dialogue], I could tell the intention.

Randeep Hooda

"I knew when we'd nailed a take. And if something was off, I knew if we'd missed a line. With cinema, you can tell the scenario. Especially with action — once you've set up the hero and the villain, and they're at odds — the film speaks for itself."

One of the major Indian actors Hargrave directed for Extraction was Randeep Hooda, who comes up rather often in this conversation, as Hemsworth specifically refers to the "major [fight scene], involving hand-to-hand combat. It was so exhausting for both [Randeep and I]. Yet, when you've got an actor who's putting in a 110 per cent, neither of you is willing to quit, it's the best."

Which gives you fair sense of the film's genre — sort of a pure, street-style actioner in the old-world, Western mould. Hemsworth elaborates, "[It's] everything they used to do in the '80s and prior, [without] relying on special effects and green screen, because you couldn't. It was refreshing and rewarding to shoot like that."

Hargrave recalls, "When Randeep and I met, we spoke about the characters, relating them to the classic Westerns — Once Upon a Time in the West, The Good the Bad the Ugly..." Randeep has come again — maybe we could go further on that route (him and I went to the same school).

Or talk more about other Indian actors Hemsworth was referring to hanging out a lot with, while he was here. Or, perhaps mildly pick his brains on his last huge release, Avengers: Endgame — hugest one in the history of films!

Oh, I'm on mute. Chatting on a screen through a moderator is at best interviewing an interpreter, with a dysfunctional hearing aid. Feels rather distant. Upside? Could casually roll out of bed in boxers in Bombay, find myself seated opposite Thor for a few minutes, and then back to bed again. Done. Hoping it's not the new 'normal' though.

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Actor Chris Hemsworth found shooting in India "overwhelming" because of the positivity and enthusiasm that he experienced while filming the upcoming Netflix film "Extraction" in the country.

"I loved shooting in India. The people were incredible. I didn't realise how popular the Marvel films were in India. So that was, at times, overwhelming," Hemsworth told IANS during a special video call before the release of his Netflix movie.

"There was such positivity and enthusiasm for all of us and our crew… During shooting, we had hundreds and thousands of people on certain days lining up on the streets and up on top of bridges and in buildings, you know, after every takes, cheering and applauding. I've never experienced anything like it. And as I said, I have such fond memories of India and the people there," he added while recounting his time in India.

Hemsworth shot for the Netflix film in India in 2018. He shot in Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The "Thor" star was scheduled to be in Mumbai on March 16 to promote the film that has been shot in India. The promotional tour was called off due to the global coronavirus outbreak.

Earlier in an interview to IANS, Hemsworth, whose daughter is named India, revealed the reason behind naming his daughter after the country.

"My wife (Elsa Pataky) spent a lot of time in India and that was where the name originally came from," Hemsworth said in that interview, adding: "I love the place and the people. It was sort of intimidating as it was exciting because there were so many people… We felt like rock stars in a stadium. But the warmth and support we got while shooting there, no matter how disruptive we were to their daily lives, it was so good. "

Originally titled "Dhaka", the film also stars Indian actors Randeep Hooda, Pankaj Tripathi, Priyanshu Painyulli, and Rudraksh Jaiswal. It revolves around Tyler Rake (essayed by Hemsworth), a fearless, black market mercenary, who embarks on the most deadly extraction of his career when he is enlisted to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime lord. The film, directed by Sam Hargrave, will release on Netflix on April 24.

Talking about working for a streaming platform for the first time, Hemsworth said: "It's my first time working on a streaming platform. I was excited to do it, strangely enough, you know, it's probably the best place to be at this point.

"We put in, you know, the same amount of commitment and passion and enthusiasm as we would with anything else, whether it was a cinema release or a streaming space. I am beyond proud of the film. From the very beginning, I loved the script. I love the story that we were able to tell and the opportunity to shoot action, unlike anything I'd certainly been a part of before."

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Australian actor Chris Hemsworth recently revealed what made him move back to Australia and spoke of the time when he felt "suffocated" in Hollywood. According to Fox News, the 36-year-old star in an interview with The Sunday Telegraph opened up about what made him move back from California to his native Australia.

The 'Avengers: Endgame' star said, "When you're suffocated by the work, every conversation that you're having and every billboard you're seeing is to do with a movie or whatever around the industry. You lose perspective."

Hemsworth, packed up and moved back to Australia with his wife Elsa, daughter 7-year-old daughter India and twin six-year-old boys Tristan and Sasha.

The actor said, "There's not a single person [in Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia] that I interact with, or close friends of mine, that are really in the industry and so that's hugely refreshing. It's great for my kids and my wife."

The star also shared that with a number of high-profile projects under his belt including 'Ghostbusters,' 'Men in Black: International' and the Marvel franchise to name a few, Hemsworth said that he is ready for things to slow down for a bit.

The actor noted, "I just want to stop for a while. I need to be home for a minute. Just enjoy. It all flies by."

Previously, Hemsworth spoke with OK! magazine about his struggles living in Hollywood, and noted that while living there, "you just kind of lose touch with reality."

The 'Thor' shared of living in Australia, "It's nice to be a part of a community that doesn't live and breathe that world."

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Australian actor Chris Hemsworth shared the details on a very relatable first introduction. According to Fox News, the 36-year-old actor told People magazine about meeting actor Brad Pitt at the star's premiere for his 2019 film, 'Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood'.

As per the outlet, Hemsworth was a little starstruck by Pitt and that's when things got bit awkward. The 'Star Trek' actor shared: "He went to do a handshake and I went for the hug, he was fine with it," Hemsworth recalled, noting that he "didn't get attacked" by Pitt's "security team or anything."

Hemsworth said of the actor, "It was fantastic. He was as wonderful and pleasant as I'd hoped and imagined." In the Quentin Tarantino-directed film, Pitt co-starred alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and the film was sei in the final years of Hollywood's Golden age.

Although Hemsworth didn't appear in the movie, a lot of stars attended its Los Angeles premiere to be one of the first to view the movie, reported People magazine.

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Hollywood star Chris Hemsworth has thanked everyone for loving his digital movie "Extraction", which is on its way to become Netflix's "biggest film of all time". Hemsworth took to Instagram to post a video to express his gratitude about the response to the film, reports hollywoodreporter.com.

 

 

 

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🙏🙏🙏 EXTRACTION @thesamhargrave @therussobrothers @netflix @netflixfilm

A post shared by Chris Hemsworth (@chrishemsworth) onMay 2, 2020 at 4:14pm PDT

"Hey, what's up guys, I hope you're doing well. I just want to say a massive thank you to everyone who checked out 'Extraction', you've made it the number one film on the planet right now," said the actor from his gym.

"And it looks like it's going to be Netflix's biggest feature film of all time, which is absolutely mind blowing" he added.

The "Thor" star went on to say: "We are blown away by the response and the support. On behalf of myself, the Russo Brothers, Netflix, our director Sam Hargrave, thank you so so much. We love you guys".

He also addressed the rumors of a sequel to "Extraction".

"There's been a lot of talk and questions about sequels and prequels and all sorts of things, and all I can say is who knows," said the actor, adding: "But with this amount of support, it's something I will be pretty stoked to jump back into."

The action thriller released on Netflix on April 24, and attracted viewership from "an estimated 90 million households in the first four weeks" of its release, according to Hemsworth's previous Instagram post.

With "Extraction", argrave graduated from being Chris Evans' stunt double in "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" for fight scenes and stunt coordinator in "Captain America: Civil War" to a feature director.

Hargrave was an additional second unit director in "Avengers: Infinity War".

For his first film, Hargrave reunited with his "Avengers" family. He got "Thor" star Hemsworth to lead the film, screenplay of which is done by Joe Russo. The film is produced by Russo Brothers (Joe and Anthony Russo), Mike Larocca, Chris Hemsworth, Eric Gitter, and Peter Schwerin.

It revolves around Tyler Rake (essayed by Hemsworth), a fearless, black market mercenary, who embarks on the most deadly extraction of his career when he is enlisted to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime lord.

It has been shot extensively in India, along with other places around the world.

Originally titled "Dhaka", the film also stars Indian actors Randeep Hooda, Pankaj Tripathi, Priyanshu Painyulli, and Rudraksh Jaiswal.

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Filmmaker Joe Russo has closed a deal to pen a sequel to the Chris Hemsworth action film 'Extraction.' As confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter, Russo wrote the script for the first instalment and produced it with his brother Anthony via their AGBO banner.

The Netflix film is a hit. Hemsworth revealed over the weekend that the movie is on track to be the streaming service's biggest movie of all time with an estimated 90 million households tuning into the film since its April 24 release. (Netflix does not release rating data, but counts viewership based on two minutes of viewing time.)

The action-thriller was directed by Sam Hargrave, a Marvel stunt coordinator turned filmmaker, who could return for the follow-up. While shooting for 'Avengers: Infinity War,' the Russos had put together the film and approached Hargrave and later Hemsworth.

Based on the graphic novel 'Ciudad', 'Extraction' stars Hemsworth as Tyler Rake, an Australian mercenary mourning the death of his son when he takes a job to rescue a 14-year-old boy (Rudhraksh Jaiswal), the kidnapped son of an imprisoned Indian drug kingpin.

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Hollywood star Chris Hemsworth says he likes to shoot non-stop action sequences so that he can keep up with the momentum. Recently, Hemsworth was seen doing some jaw-dropping action sequences in his digital film "Extraction". The film traces the journey of Tyler Rake (Hemsworth), a fearless black market mercenary, who is on a mission to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime lord. The film was shot in various different locations with the film's climactic sequence culminating in an epic gun battle over a bridge.

Talking about the action packed climax, Hemsworth said: "The action was non-stop but I like it that way. Sometimes on a film when you have long waiting times, you lose momentum, especially with something so physical.

"But using an actual bridge meant we could immerse ourselves in the action and the emotion. I've worked a lot with blue and green screens and your imagination has to do a lot of work to create the world. The bridge did a lot of that work for us," he added.

After scouting multiple bridges in India and Thailand for the final action sequence, the makers decided to shoot the climax at the Lat Bua Khao Bridge in Thailand's Ratchaburi. Once the bridge was secured, the art department began creating the blockade which is shown during the final escape sequence. The blockade consisted of a whole of 132 vehicles that were piled up on the bridge -- which included 14 pickups and SUVs, 40 sedans (including police cars), 19 light trucks and vans, 12 full-sized trucks (including an armoured military vehicle), 5 buses, 22 motorbikes, 18 tuk-tuks and 7 bicycle rickshaws.

Directed by Sam Hargrave, the film's screenplay is done by Joe Russo. The action thriller, which released on Netflix on April 24, also stars Indian actors Randeep Hooda, Pankaj Tripathi, Priyanshu Painyulli, and Rudraksh Jaiswal.

The film is produced by Russo Brothers (Joe and Anthony Russo), Mike Larocca, Hemsworth, Eric Gitter, and Peter Schwerin, and is on its way to becoming Netflix's most watched feature film ever.

Meanwhile, "Avengers: Endgame" co-director Joe Russo has confirmed that he will be working on a sequel to "Extraction". Hemsworth and Hargrave are expected to return in the new action adventure.

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Former skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq believes the difference between India and Pakistan teams during his playing days was that Indian players played for themselves while Pakistani players played for the team.

"When we played against India, their batting was more powerful than us on paper. But even our batsmen scored 30 or 40 runs, it was for the team, but for India, even if they scored 100 runs, they played for themselves," Inzamam said during the chat show with Ramiz Raja on YouTube.

"So, that was the difference between the two sides," he added.

Inzamam, who represented the national team in 120 Tests, 378 ODIs and 1 T20I between 1991 to 2007, played at a time when Pakistan used to dominate India on the cricket field.

However, in recent times, the tables have turned with India having an upper hand over their Asian neighbours.

Overall, Pakistan and India have played 59 Tests, 132 ODIs and 8 T20Is against each other in which India have won 9, 55 and 6 matches respectively while Pakistan have emerged victorious in 12, 73 and 1 games respectively.

When it comes to 50-over World Cup, India have won all the seven matches they have played against Pakistan. In T20 World Cup, India have won four out of five matches against Pakistan while the remaining one yielded no result.

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Wasim Akram has claimed that "some people" still use his name to "promote" themselves, a reference to ex-opener Aamir Sohail who has blamed the pace great for Pakistan not winning the World Cup since 1992. "Whenever I hear these negative things about myself I feel very sad that it has been 17 years since I retired but even today they are some people using my name to promote themselves," Akram said on a web show. Wasim said even he could say a lot of negative things about others but refrained from doing so.

"I can also make negative comments about these people but what purpose will it serve. That is why I keep quiet. I just think about the respect and love I have earned from the people over the years and even 17 years after retirement," he said. Sohail, who is also a former Pakistan captain, has claimed that Akram's job as captain in the 1996 and 19999 World Cup and as a senor player in the 2003 edition was to ensure that Pakistan never repeated their 1992 title-winning feat.

"It's very simple. Put the 1992 World Cup to one side and talk about the 1996 World Cup. In 1995, Ramiz Raja was captain. Saleem Malik was the captain before that, he was very successful and if he could have spent one more year as captain then Wasim would not have been leading the side," Sohail was quoted as saying by Dawn. "If you look at what happened till 2003, there was this persistence before every World Cup to remove the captain and put Wasim Akram in that role...Look, the biggest contribution by Wasim Akram for Pakistan cricket was making sure Pakistan does not win a World Cup after 92," he added.

Former Pakistan pacer Ata ur Rehman and former PCB chiefs, Khalid Mahmood and Lt General (retd) Tauqir Zia, have also mentioned Akram's name while discussing the match-fixing allegations of the 90s and the Justice Malik Qayyum report.

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The European Commission and the Swiss Federal Council have each approved proposals to link their emissions trading systems, meaning formal signature of a new agreement could take place by the end of the year.

Switzerland and the EU are to link their emissions trading systems from next year, after the Swiss Federal Council approved revisions to the country's Ordinance on the Reduction of CO2 Emissions.

Sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors which are primarily used to treat type 2 diabetes were found to lower the risk of serious kidney problems, revealed study published in The BMJ.

Switzerland and the EU are to link their emissions trading systems from next year, after the Swiss Federal Council approved revisions to the country's Ordinance on the Reduction of CO2 Emissions.

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