Hindi
Ajai Sinha film stopped from screening in Haryana, Punjab
MUMBAI: Ajai Sinha‘s film on honour killing Khap–A Story of Honour Killing was banned in theatres across Punjab and Haryana while the Khaps in Uttar Pradesh have called for a ban on the film with immediate effect.
In Haryana, the film could not get a proper release, having opened for limited screening in three cities while the rest of Haryana‘s exhibitors stayed away from the film for fear of retaliation from sections of Haryana‘s protestors. The current situation is that all the theatres in Punjab and Haryana have boycotted the film.
Meanwhile, following their brethren in Haryana and Punjab, heads of various Khap councils in Uttar Pradesh have threatened to start an agitation if Ajai Sinha‘s Khap–A Story of Honour Killing is not banned.
Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) and Baliyan khap leader Naresh Tikait alleges that the film is a ‘conspiracy to dishonour‘ the Khaps and follows it up by demanding that the film be banned. Such a film would be harmful to brother and sister relations, he observed.
Har Kishan Malic, the head of Gadwala khap, and the leader of Battisa khap Choudhry Suraj Mal have also opposed the film and threatened to launch an agitation. The film that deals with ‘honour‘ killings generated a controversy with members of the BKU that resulted in forcing a cinema hall to stop screening the film.
Khap-A story of honour killing revolves around two different worlds colliding each other over a love story which we take as a norm in our world.
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.
