Hindi
Eros joins hand with Excel & Dharma for ‘Baar Baar Dekho’
MUMBAI: Eros International has acquired the worldwide rights of Excel Entertainment and Dharma Production’s upcoming film Baar Baar Dekho. The film stars Katrina Kaif and Siddharth Malhotra and is the directorial debut of Nitya Mehra.
Eros International Media Group CEO Jyoti Deshpande said, ‘We are delighted to join forces with two of the most notable production houses, Excel and Dharma, for this very interesting love story. With such creative forces behind the project, audiences can only expect the very best. Through this partnership, we hope to drive together the strategy for creating, marketing and distributing the film on a global platform.”
Excel Entertainment producer Ritesh Sidhwani added, “We are happy to associate with Eros International once again and look forward to our film getting the best release platform through their unparalleled reach and network.”
Dharma Productions co-producer Karan Johar said, “We at Dharma are happy that we are joining hands with Excel for the first time and with Eros again, who make our old associates.”
The film goes on floor in London on 1 September. It will be shot across several international locations and will be released in 2016.
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.
