Hindi
Drishyam’s Dhanak is ‘Best Children’s Film’, new ‘Kadvi Hawa’ gets special mention
MUMBAI: Drishyam Films’ much loved film Dhanak has won the 64th National Film Award for Best Children’s Film and their upcoming film, Kadvi Hawa has received a ‘Special Mention’ by the National Awards jury.
Drishyam Films’ next, Kadvi Hawa is directed by acclaimed filmmaker Nila Madhab Panda (of I am Kalam fame) and is a powerful and heartrending take on climate change. It stars Ranvir Shorey as a young bank loan recovery agent and Sanjay Mishra as a blind old farmer, two ordinary people fighting for survival in two extreme weather conditions not of their making. The film is slated for a nationwide theatrical release later this year and the producers have just released a first look poster of the film (attached below).
Directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, Dhanak stars Krrish Chhabria and Hetal Gada as the loveable siblings who set out on a magical, life-altering journey across Rajasthan. The film made its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival 2015 where it won two prestigious awards. It was released to critical and commercial acclaim on June 17, 2016.
Drishyam Films founder and producer of Dhanak and Kadvi Hawa Manish Mundra: “Even though all of our films have premiered and won awards at various prestigious international film festivals, the National Awards are the biggest honour for us. For me, as an Indian producer, there is no greater joy than being recognised by the government for our efforts to produce quality content-driven cinema. We are very excited to bring our films Rukh, Newton and Kadvi Hawa to the Indian audiences later this year.”
Kadvi Hawa: Once famous for farming, the people of Mahua in Rajasthan have forgotten the scent of rainfall on their soil. Lack of rainfall has led many farmers into debt traps set out as bank loans. Unable to grow food grain anymore and to escape repayments, many farmers have committed suicides. Hedu, the blind father of a farmer finds his son’s life threatened by the same pressure. Gunu Baba, a ruthless bank agent arrives with a growing list of suicides in his wake. But frequent cyclones threaten his family in a coastal village in Odisha. Each wanting to save their own family, they end up helping one another.
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.
