Hindi
‘Water’ to be the opening film at 4th Jagran Film Festival
MUMBAI: The 4th edition of the Jagran Film Festival, Mumbai 2013 will begin with the film Water and will be screened on 24 September at Fun Republic in Andheri, Mumbai. Water is a 120 minute feature film born out of a unique Israeli-Palestinian cinematic cooperation. Produced by the Film and Television department of the Tel Aviv University in association with Tu Vas Voir, the project Water is made in HD, colour. Yael Perlov had initiated this project and is also the artistic director of Water. Its original version is in Arabic, Hebrew, and English.
Taking complete artistic freedom, in 2012, a small group of Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers directed a feature film that explored a strong unifying subject – Water. Besides being a highly poetic and pastoral subject, Water is also a very political and violent subject with respect to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Water is about two conflicting populations, which couldn’t overcome the prejudice and political intimidations, but ultimately finds a platform for a unique collaboration, in the form of this feature film. This is one of the reasons why Water is so special.
Cinema always has the ability to penetrate forbidden zones and Water exemplifies that. It has made all of us realise that we all yearn for a solution to this long-going on conflict. Several Directors have interpreted this subject in their own creative way, which together has given shape to Water.
The film, a unique piece of art has been screened at various international film festivals, Venice International Film Festival, Jerusalem Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival, Mostra International de Cine de Sa? Paulo, Brazil, Stockholm International Film Festival, Swedenand many others. This is the Asian Premiere of the film.
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.
