Since its inception in 2013, Karnesh Ssharma’s Clean Slate Filmz has gained a reputation for producing relevant, entertaining, and clutter-breaking content across platforms. The production company, co-founded by Anushka Sharma, achieved unprecedented creative heights through collaboration with Netflix India, delivering critically acclaimed movies and shows such as Bulbbul, Qala, and Mai: A Mother's Rage. Their most recent joint venture was last year's streaming hit, Kohrra, starring Suvinder Vicky and Barun Sobti as two cops investigating the murder of an NRI just before his wedding in the countryside of Punjab.
However, the successful partnership between Clean Slate Filmz and Netflix India seems to have now hit a roadblock. PeepingMoon.com has exclusively learned that the Karnesh Ssharma-led content company has parted ways with the streaming giant, terminating their four-year strategic partnership. The exact reason for this departure is not clear yet, but sources close to the development attribute “creative disagreement” and “budgetary issues” to it. Our request for comment to Netflix representatives remained unanswered at the time of publication.
This split has left Clean Slate Filmz’s two completed movies – Anushka Sharma’s Chakda Xpress and Vijay Varma and Triptii Dimri’s Afghaani Snow – in limbo regarding their release. Despite production being finished, the fate of these projects, which were made in collaboration with Netflix, is now uncertain following the dissolution of the partnership. CSF will now reportedly repurchase the films from Netflix to release them on another platform.
Concerns were raised when Netflix India omitted any mention of Chakda Xpress and Afghaani Snow in their recently announced lineup. The Netflix link that led to the placeholder card for the Anushka Sharma film is not working anymore, while the post-production of Afghaani Snow has abruptly been halted, further adding to the uncertainty surrounding the film’s future. These two projects are the latest instances of Netflix withdrawing support despite production completion, following similar occurrences with Abhishek Bachchan’s Bob Biswas and Abbas Mustan’s Penthouse. While the former eventually found a home for release on Zee5, the latter still remains unreleased.
Clean Slate Filmz was founded by Anushka Sharma and her brother Karnesh Ssharma in 2013, making their production debut with the critically acclaimed action thriller NH10 in 2015. Over the years, the company has produced notable films such as Philauri, Pari, Bulbbul, and Qala, as well as acclaimed shows like Paatal Lok, Mai, and Kohrra. In March 2022, Anushka stepped away from the company to focus on her acting career and family. Chakda Xpress, inspired by the journey of the former Indian cricketer Jhulan Goswami, was supposed to mark her acting comeback after six years, but the wait to see her on screen will now get a little longer due to uncertainties surrounding its release. Additionally, the banner also has the second season of Paatal Lok up for release this year on Amazon Prime Video.
