Hindi
Kahani Gudiya Ki being released despite protests
NEW DELHI: The makers of Kahani Gudiya Ki, based on the true story of the young Muslim woman whose first husband had come back after she had re-married under the presumption that he was dead, have said they will go ahead with the release of the film despite the threats they have been receiving from various quarters.
Prabhakar Shukla, debutante director of the film which had been screened at the Ninth Osian‘s Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema in Delhi in July last year, told indiantelevision.com that he had already received a ‘U‘ certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification and there was no reason for not releasing the film.
The film is first releasing in some territories and will avoid Meerut, Mumbai and Delhi. Depending on the response to the film, it may be released in the rest of the country next week.
The case had become headlines when Zee News in September 2004 aired the story of the young Gudiya whose first husband Mohammed Arif returned after being released as a Prisoner of War by Pakistan. By that time, she was married to Taufeeq and was in the eighth month of pregnancy. A village panchayat of Muslim clerics – telecast live by the news channel – ruled that she must go back to her first husband, leaving her second husband in shock.
Now more than three years later, Gudiya who lived in a village in Meerut district, is dead and neither of her two husbands – both re-married – wants to accept responsibility for the child, Shukla said.
The film stars actor Divya Dutta in the title role, with Rajpal Yadav, Seema Biswas, Arif Zakaria, and Akhilendra Mishra. It has music by Vivek Prakash, and had been choreographed by Saroj Khan. It had been shot in Mumbai and in Nago Thane village near the metropolis.
Shukla had conceived the film soon after he read about the case in 2004, and had even obtained Gudiya‘s written permission to make a film on her life. But he had to re-shoot the last portion again a few months earlier after she died. He had now not only raised the question of what she had gone through, but also about the fate of the child who is living with Gudiya‘s mother. “The issue therefore is one of human values and not merely the story of one woman,” Shukla said.
He said he was aware that a Muslim organization had held demonstrations at Janatar Mantar earlier this month and also given a memorandum to the Information and Broadcasting ministry seeking a ban on the film. He said he had also read news reports that Arif, the first husband, had filed a case against him charging him with making the film illegally. But he had not received any notice. In any case, he had in his possession Gudiya‘s written permission and also a recording of her interview with him. Even her father had given his consent.
After receiving threatening phone calls, he had filed an FIR in the Oshiwara Police Station in Mumbai.He had also sought police protection for the theatres where the film is released. The film had also been sold for overseas distribution.
Asked if he had taken liberties with the story, he said changes had only been made for cinematic effect ‘close to reality‘, but he had stuck to the original story.
He said Divya Datta and the other cast members had immediately agreed to act in the film when he approached them, and ghazal king Jagjit Singh had sung three ghazals in the film.
Shukla has made more then 275 commercials and has made two music videos for Crescendo Music. His next film is a comedy Main Tension Mein Hoon.
Hindi
GUEST COLUMN: Why film libraries & IPs are the new engines of growth
Unlocking value through catalogue strength and IP synergy
MUMBAI:In a media landscape defined by fragmentation, platform proliferation, and ever-evolving audience behavior, the economics of filmmaking are undergoing a fundamental shift. No longer confined to box office performance, a film’s true value is now measured across an extended lifecycle that spans digital platforms, syndication networks, and global markets. As content consumption becomes increasingly non-linear and algorithm-driven, film libraries and intellectual properties (IPs) are emerging as strategic assets, capable of delivering sustained, long-term returns. For Mohan Gopinath, head – bollywood business at Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd., this transformation signals a decisive move from hit-driven models to portfolio-led value creation. In this piece, Gopinath explores how legacy content, when intelligently repurposed and distributed, can unlock recurring revenue streams, why the interplay between catalogue and original IP is critical, and how media companies can build resilient, future-ready entertainment businesses.
For all these years, we thought that a film is successful if it performs well in theatres. There are opening weekend numbers, box office milestones, and distribution footprints that gave a good picture of how the movie has done commercially and also tell us about its cultural impact. However, there are multiple platforms today, always-on content ecosystem, which has caused a shift. Today, the theatrical performance is not the culmination of a film’s journey but merely the beginning of a much longer and more dynamic lifecycle.
Film libraries today are emerging as high-value, constantly evolving assets that deliver sustained returns well beyond initial release cycles. This becomes a point of great advantage for legacy content owners with diverse catalogues, to shape long-term business outcomes.
According to FICCI-EY, the media and entertainment industry of India achieved a valuation of Rs 2.78 trillion in 2025 which is expected to reach Rs 3.3 trillion by 2028 through a compound annual growth rate of approximately 7 per cent and digital media will bring in more than Rs 1 trillion to become the biggest sector which generates about 36 per cent of overall market revenues.
This shift is the expansion of distribution endpoints. We know how satellite television was once the primary secondary window but today, it coexists with YouTube, OTT platforms, Connected TV, and FAST channels. Each of these platforms caters to distinct audience demographics and consumption behaviors, helping content owners to obtain more value from the same asset across multiple formats.
For instance, films that had great reruns, now find continuous engagement across digital platforms. On YouTube, classic Hindi cinema continues to attract significant viewership, reaching audiences across generations and geographies with remarkable consistency. At Shemaroo Entertainment, this is reflected in our film library shaped over decades as part of a long association with Indian entertainment. From classics such as Amar Akbar Anthony to much-loved entertainers like Jab We Met, Welcome, Dhamaal, Phir Hera Pheri, Dhol, Golmaal, and Bhagam Bhag, many of these titles continue finding new audiences while retaining their place in popular memory. Their enduring appeal reflects how culturally resonant stories can continue creating value over time. Similarly, FAST channels have created curated, always-on environments where catalogue content can continue to thrive through star-led and genre-based programming.
This multi-platform approach has very well transformed films into long-tail IP assets which are capable of generating recurring revenue across advertising, subscription, and syndication models.
The evolution of audience behavior is equally important. Nowadays, it’s more important to find what’s more relative than what’s recent as viewers are more influenced by mood, memories, and algorithmic suggestions than by release schedules. Even if a movie was released decades ago, it can trend alongside a newly released movie, if surfaced in the right context. Thoughtful packaging, whether through festival-based playlists, actor-driven collections, or genre clusters, allows catalogue content to remain dynamic and continuously discoverable. Shemaroo Entertainment has built extensive film libraries over decades and its focus has mostly been on recontextualizing content for the consumption of newer environments. This process doesn’t just include digitization and restoration, but also re-packaging of films as per platforms.
Syndication itself has evolved into a key growth driver. In perspective, when looking at the domestic market, curated content packages continue to find strong demand across broadcast and digital platforms. Meanwhile, in the international market, especially in markets like Middle East, North America and Southeast Asia, the appetite for Indian content is opening up new monetization avenues. Here, the ability to package and position catalogue content effectively becomes as important as the content itself.
Importantly, the need to re-package catalogue content does not diminish the role of new content. In fact, originals and fresh IP are essential to sustaining the long-term value of a film library because they act as discovery engines that bring audiences into the ecosystem, while catalogue content drives depth, retention, and repeat engagement.
This interplay between the “new” and the “known” is what defines a robust content strategy today. While new films generate spikes in consumption, catalogue titles offer familiarity and comfort. These are factors that are increasingly valuable in an era of content abundance and decision fatigue. This is also shaping our strategy, drawing value from both a deep catalogue assets and a growing focus on original IPs to strengthen long-term audience engagement and build more predictable revenue streams.
There is growing recognition that long-term value in entertainment will be shaped not only by how intelligently existing content continues to live, travel and find relevance, but also by how consistently new stories are created to renew that ecosystem. In that sense, film libraries and original IP are not parallel bets, but reinforcing engines of growth. For media companies, the opportunity lies in making these two forces work together, because that is increasingly where more resilient and predictable businesses are being shaped.
Note: The views expressed in this article are solely the author’s and do not necessarily reflect our own.
