While speculations about Alia Bhatt joining the blockbuster YRF Spy Universe has been hitting headlines for nearly 6 months now, Yash Raj Films’ CEO Akshaye Widhani confirmed this huge development today at FICCI Frames!
When prodded constantly to reveal one new development within the YRF Spy Universe, Akshaye said, “I'll share the worst kept secret in the industry, which is, Alia Bhatt is headlining a Spy Universe film and that the schedule starts later this year. But you know, talking about this spy universe, we are actually just so thrilled and excited about having this IP in the studio.”
He added, “I think the YRF Spy Universe is a financial and cultural juggernaut. And as one of the most prized IPs, we take a lot of pride in it. So there's a lot of stuff that's going to come on the spy universe. We're going to see more and more films getting made under it. But of course, not going to share everything here. But we will talk about it at a more opportune time. But for now, I can just say that Alia Bhatt is headlining a spy universe film.”
Alia Bhatt is set to team up with young and rising Bollywood star Sharvari Wagh in the yet-to-be-titled film. They will play super-agents in the action entertainer!
The YRF Spy Universe kicked off with Salman Khan’s Ek Tha Tiger (2012) then followed by Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), and War (2019), starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff. It was taken forward with Pathaan, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and John Abraham and then Tiger 3 with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif. Now, the next project will be War 2 starring Hrithik Roshan, NTR Jr. and Kiara Advani and directed by Ayan Mukerji.
Akshaye also touched upon the super successful year YRF has had on streaming with The Railway Men, about the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, being a global hit show! It trended at Number three on Netflix! The Romantics, a docu-series on YRF and its impact on Pop culture for 50 years, also became a global success story.
Akshaye said, “The Railway Men trended in over 36 countries, but you feel the success of content when you know people who don't speak your language, are watching the content and appreciating it. For me, that is a huge definition of success. We are a company that is not afraid to fail. We want to be able to do disruptive content.
He added, “India loves the movies. It's a big part of our culture, it's a big part of our team. And I think The Romantics was a journey that every viewer went on. So everybody has a YRF story in their life. My parents had a YRF story from Yash Ji's times. I had a YRF story from Adi's times. So like me, there are other people who all have a YRF story. There is a song that played at your wedding, which was from a YRF movie. There was a time in life when you went watch a movie and that was a YRF movie and you went with that certain someone which you might be with or might not be with, but you still have fond memories of.”
Akshaye further said, “I think, because of that connect, and connect with this company, and the studio has had it, it's a cultural connect with audiences. And I think that's what excited people and drew people to watch the Romantics that would make them love it more. The sheer nostalgia here, as to the youth connected to them, because again, there was a story about their family, or a movie that they have watched and loved. Not to forget, it also had Aditya Chopra making his debut on screen and that gave us incredible amount of eyeballs!”
