Hindi
Rajshri forays into detective movie space
MUMBAI: It is no longer a banner that once made family dramas. Rajshri Production, renowned for movies like Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and Hum Saath Saath Hain is all set to take a big leap through its upcoming movie Samrat & Co. Produced by debutante Kavita Barjatya, the movie is the first detective film under the Rajshri banner. The movie has been helmed by Kaushik Ghatak and hits the screens on 25 April.
The film’s unique and intriguing trailer was launched with great fanfare at a suburban multiplex in Mumbai with not only the entire cast and crew but the Barjatya scions as well!
“This subject is unconventional as compared to the films we have made at Rajshri earlier, so that whole mounting and canvas had to be different. The grey characters were the requirement of the story. I am happy that when we narrated the story to my father, he understood and supported me in venturing into this. Every character in the movie is intriguing and has some hidden agenda,” says Kavita Barjatya.
The movie targets the youth and is the first of its kind detective franchisee, wherein the very nuances of crime solving, human nature and the world of standalone private investigators will be presented on the big screen on a pure entertainment platform.
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The poster and trailer of Samrat & Co were launched amidst the presence of Kamal Barjatya, Sooraj Barjatya, producer Kavita Barjatya, director Kaushik Ghatak, main leads Rajeev Khandelwal (who plays Samrat), Madalsa Sharma, Rajniesh Duggal, Smita Jaykar,Bhoumik Sampat, Naveen Prabhakar, Gufi Paintal, Shreya Narayan amongst others.
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.
