EXCLUSIVE: Excel Entertainment teaming up with Kanika Dhillon for an intense thriller
Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani's Excel Entertainment is rapidly expanding its production pipeline following its definitive deal with Universal Music India (UMI) earlier this year. The banner is assembling a massive slate for the coming years, spanning genres and scales and featuring major stars, including Aamir Khan and Sunny Deol.
In the latest development, Excel Entertainment is teaming up with screenwriter Kanika Dhillon for an intense thriller. Kanika has written the script and will co-produce the project under her Kathha Pictures banner, marking her third production venture following the 2023 Kajol and Kriti Sanon-led mystery thriller Do Patti and the upcoming Taapsee Pannu starrer Gandhari, which is slated to premiere on Netflix later this year.
Details of the project are being kept under wraps, but sources say it will be an engaging thriller exploring themes of morality, ethics and complex societal issues, with two bold and complex characters at the centre of the story. Farhan and Kanika have been actively developing the project over the past few months and are in advanced discussions to finalise the lead cast. Although the director is yet to be locked, the producers are planning to take the film on floors by the end of this year or early 2027.
Kanika is widely known for writing critically acclaimed films centred around complex, bold and flawed female protagonists, including Haseen Dilruba, Manmarziyaan, Guilty and Judgementall Hai Kya. Her writing credits also include Dunki, Kedarnath and Raksha Bandhan. Up next, she has written and is producing Gandhari, a gripping action thriller starring Taapsee Pannu as a fierce mother on a mission. Joram and Bhonsle director Devashish Makhija is directing the Netflix film, which is currently in post-production.
Meanwhile, Excel Entertainment has half a dozen projects in various stages of production. The slate includes Lalkaara, an Aamir Khan starrer sports drama directed by Ashutosh Gowariker; Antony, a high-octane, suspense-driven action thriller starring Sunny Deol and Jyothika; and Mirzapur: The Film, the cinematic adaptation of the popular Prime Video series, which releases in theatres on September 4. Also in the works are Neeraj Pandey's R.D. Burman biopic and Abhishek Chaubey's next Prime Video series.
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