They are the biggest actresses in Bollywood and have turned to production with quiet confidence. Now, the three of them will be producing original Netflix films. The streaming giant has announced nine new Indian original films at the What’s Next event in Singapore. Unveiling projects from Priyanka Chopra, Madhuri Dixit and Anushka Sharma, Netflix chief content officer, Ted Sarandos said that Asia, and in particular India, is a territory of key importance in the streaming service’s future plans.
Firebrand is being produced by Priyanka Chopra and mother Madhu Chopra. It is a Marathi film that follows a successful lawyer, a sexual assault victim played by Usha Jadhav, as she tackles difficult family cases while also dealing with intimacy issues in her own marriage. Girish Kulkarni essays the role of her husband Madhav Patkar, an architect by profession. Sachin Khedekar and Rajeshwari Sachdev play a couple in the movie which is high on drama.
Yesteryear's dancing queen, Madhuri Dixit is also producing a Marathi film titled 15th August. The film is set in a chawl and is a satire about the struggles of middle class India.
Bengaluru girl and Mrs. Kohli now is all set to produce Bulbul. Anushka Sharma and Karnesh Sharma’s Clean Slate Films will make this period piece which is set in a vibrant atmosphere amidst age-old beliefs and superstitions.
There are also other films on the agenda like Hotel Mumbai, directed by Anthony Marras, starring an ensemble international cast of Dev Patel, Armie Hammer and Jason Isaacs. The film, about the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, premiered to positive reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Yet another project is Rajma Chawal, directed by Leena Yadav and starring Rishi Kapoor. The film will be released in November 2018.
Manav Kaul will play an emotionally troubled music teacher in Music Teacher, which will also star Neena Gupta and Divya Dutta. Chopsticks, starring Abhay Deol and Little Things’ Mithila Palkar is currently also in production. It’s about an under-confident but talented girl, sidestepped at every stage of her life, who seeks out an enigmatic con to help recover her stolen car from a goat-loving, crazy Mumbai gangster. “Our first foray was Sacred Games, which found an audience across the world. That was 2018, but today we’re here to talk about 2019,” Simran Sethi the creative executive of Netflix India said. “Right now we’re shooting six originals in India, from Leh to Kerala,” she added.
