Hindi
Excel Entertainment lines up six films
MUMBAI: Head honchos of Excel Entertainment, Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar, have gone ahead and announced the making of six films in the coming 10 months for an investment of Rs 3 billion.
Sidhwani said Zoya Akhtar‘s next after Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara would go on floors by the yearend. The production house has almost finished the Aamir Khan-Kareena Kapoor-Rani Mukerji starrer Talaash that will release in November. The director Reema Kagti is already planning her next film jointly written by her and Zoya.
Farhan‘s next after Don 2 will go on floors in early 2013; he is translating the idea he has in mind into a script. Abhishek Kapoor has completed the script of Rock On 2, and has started working on its screenplay along with Pubali who wrote Rock On!
The fifth film is a story submitted by Abhinay Deo of Delhi Belly fame to Farhan and Ritesh. This film, about two friends, will have two stars in the lead.
The script by a new writer-director has been approved but Sidhwani refused to divulge the name, saying that a formal announcement will be made later.
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.
