Hindi
Lola Montes launches IFFI Film Heritage Section
MUMBAI: IFFI Film Heritage Section of the 39th International Film Festival
Highlighting the theme ‘Women,’ other films in the section are Cluny Brown (Ernst Lubitsch), Subarnarekha (Ritwik Ghatak), Floating Clouds (Mikio Naruse), Loulou (Maurice Pialat), My Life to Live (Jean-Luc Godard), The Women (George Cukor) and Imitation of Life (Douglas Sirk).
Cinematheque francaise director of Programming Jean-Francois Rauger while addressing the press said that the idea of cinema as an art form and the notion of preservation of this perceived “Low Culture” took some time to develop but gradually the preservation of cinema has acquired a mainstream acceptance.
Wemaere said that Lola Montes is our best ambassador. “There are many movies, which are not accessible but should be available and our endeavour is to sensitise and promote awareness among the audience and the people involved in cinema about the importance of restoring and preserving film heritage,” Wemaere added.
On the theme, film director Mani Kaul said that our cultural civilisational evolution has been dominated a masculine sensibility and it will be interesting to see the changes brought about by women taking charge of the various aspects.
Under the Section, there will be a workshop on restoration project of Lola Montes and the seminar on women in cinema.
IFFI-Film Heritage Section is entirely dedicated to worldwide film heritage, representing significant cultural and historical documents as well as treasures of inspiration for future cinematic creations.
Hindi
Jio Studios, Sanjay Dutt team up to revive Khal Nayak
Rights acquired for new version, format under wraps as remake plans take shape.
MUMBAI: The villain is back and this time, he’s rewriting his own script. Jio Studios has partnered with Three Dimension Motion Pictures and Aspect Entertainment to revive the 1993 cult classic Khal Nayak, marking a fresh chapter for one of Bollywood’s most iconic anti-hero stories. The original film, directed by Subhash Ghai under Mukta Arts, was a commercial and cultural milestone, with Sanjay Dutt’s portrayal of Ballu becoming one of Hindi cinema’s most memorable performances.
Dutt, along with Aksha Kamboj, has now acquired the rights from the original creators, bringing on board Jio Studios and its President Jyoti Deshpande to steer the project creatively.
While the exact format whether remake, sequel, prequel, or a completely new narrative remains undisclosed, the collaboration aims to reinterpret the story for contemporary audiences while retaining the essence that made the original a defining film of the 1990s.
The move taps into a broader industry trend of reviving legacy intellectual property, particularly characters with strong recall value. “Khal Nayak” was notable for pushing mainstream Hindi cinema into morally grey territory at a time when heroes were largely one-dimensional, making Ballu’s character a standout.
The project also marks the film production debut of Aspect Entertainment, signalling a push towards more technology-led storytelling frameworks. Meanwhile, Jio Studios continues to expand its slate, having built a library of over 200 films and series, with more than 60 titles collectively winning 500-plus awards.
For Dutt, the revival is as much personal as it is strategic, a return to a role that reshaped his career. For the industry, it is another sign that nostalgia, when paired with scale, remains a powerful box-office proposition.
Because in Bollywood, some villains never fade, they just wait for the perfect comeback.
