Karan Johar, the Hindi director and producer, is all set to return to direction after five years with his next titled Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani. The film will star actors Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt in the lead roles and is scheduled for a theatrical release in 2022.
Johar took to Instagram and made the announcement on the occasion of Singh’s birthday on Tuesday.
Singh then announced that apart from him and Bhatt, Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani will also see veteran actors Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan, and Shabana Azmi coming together for the first time.
Singh and Bhatt have previously worked together on Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy.
While Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani is also produced by Johar through his Dharma Productions, in association with Viacom18, the story is written by Ishita Moitra, Shashank Khaitan, and Sumit Roy.
Johar mentioned that as the title suggests, the film will be a love story.
Taking to his social media account on Monday, Johar had shared a video talking about his return to the director’s chair. “A very special story, truly immersed in the roots of love and family,” the filmmaker wrote.
Johar made his debut as a director in 1998 with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. This was followed by films such as Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, My Name Is Khan and Student Of The Year. His last feature directorial was Ae Dil Hai Mushkil in 2016. He also directed segments in anthologies such as Bombay Talkies, Lust Stories, and Ghost Stories.
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Apart from Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani, Johar is also producing films such as Sooryavanshi, Brahmastra, Dostana 2 and Meenakshi Sundareshwar. He also has two upcoming web series — Madhuri Dixit-starrer Finding Anamika and season two of Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives.
On the directorial front, he has the period drama Takht, also starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, alongside Vicky Kaushal, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Anil Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor, and Bhumi Pednekar. The film is currently on hold.
Meanwhile, Singh is currently awaiting the release of his sports biopic 83, which is based on the life of Indian cricketer Kapil Dev. Bhatt, on the other hand, has started work on her next Darlings, which also marks her debut as a producer.