While promoting Maa (2025), Kajol had remarked that she would be open to a sequel if the horror film fared well at the box office. That was our first question when we met the actor months after the Vishal Furia-directed movie’s release. Has she set the ball rolling on the sequel?

“You have to ask Ajay Devgn this because he is the one producing it. But honestly, we’re just thinking about it. There’s nothing concrete,” she shared.

Maa, set to première on Star Gold tomorrow, revolves around Kajol’s character who has to rescue her daughter from a demonic force. As much as she relishes the idea of a sequel, she admitted to reeling from the after-effects of the film. “I have PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder] from the climax shoot. I think when we shoot [such intense] films, they alter us.”

The makers had positioned Maa as part of the same horror universe as Devgn’s Shaitaan (2024). When asked if there are plans to unite the two worlds, Kajol said, “We’ve thought about it. Everything is up in the air right now.”

Reports suggest that Karan Johar is planning a sequel to ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’. Has Kajol heard anything from Johar? She laughed and replied, “I haven’t heard about it, but thank you for telling me. Naturally, I cannot confirm or deny it.”

Going by the first look and date announcement video of ‘King’, the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer promises to be an action spectacle. The superstar and his daughter Suhana Khan recently wrapped up an eight-day action schedule of filmmaker Siddharth Anand’s thriller at Ellora Studios in Bhayandar.

Sources told mid-day that the sequence plays out against the backdrop of Vijayadashami celebrations, and an elaborate set was designed for it.

A source close to the production revealed, “The team recreated the scale and energy of a Vijayadashami procession with drums, colours, and the frenzy that is seen on the immersion day. Shah Rukh and Suhana shot with a huge crowd, consisting of hundreds of background performers, across eight nights. Suhana also performed several stunts.”

\After Jalsa (2022), director Suresh Triveni was seeking a light-hearted subject. From that wish was born his upcoming film, Maa Behen. Understandably, when Netflix unveiled its teaser in February, what excited everyone was the enviable casting of Madhuri Dixit-Nene and Triptii Dimri. “The casting was obviously ambitious,” admitted Triveni, when talking about his dark comedy that also stars Ravi Kishan and Dharna Durga.

“We wanted to have three terrific women, and we were clear from day one that we would approach Madhuri ma’am for it. She readily agreed in the first narration. So did Triptii, Dharna, and Ravi Kishan. I was fortunate,” he smiled.

In Maa Behen, Dixit plays a free-spirited mother, at odds with her grounded and inhibited elder daughter portrayed by Dimri. As an ardent admirer of the senior actor’s comic timing, the director wanted to see her in the space. “As a viewer, I was dying to see how beautiful Madhuri ma’am is with comedy. We wanted to see her in that comic avatar, and we chased it.”

With the Anil Kapoor-led Subedaar, and Maa Behen, Triveni has collaborated with two of the biggest 1990’s stars. How was the experience? He was left in awe by their appetite to learn.

“Why we call them the OGs is that they are not done yet. They are still learning. For example, we did at least 14 workshop sessions with the three leads together for Maa Behen. Madhuri ma’am showed up. She didn’t say, ‘Since I have done so much work, I don’t need it.’ She learnt the required dialect. These stars aren’t complacent at all.”

Amid the growing unrest, Iranian-German actor Elnaaz Norouzi speaks exclusively to mid-day about the global turmoil, her stance on assassination, and the deep emotional impact of the conflict. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was reportedly assassinated on February 28 in a joint strike by the United States and Israel, dramatically escalating tensions across the West Asia. In response, Iran launched retaliatory attacks on US bases in the region, intensifying the crisis.

The freedom of speech never really existed in Iran and that is why we have so many political prisoners in Iran as well. There are thousands of innocent people who have been imprisoned, tortured, raped because they have spoken against the government. At this point it has surpassed the point of women and men but yes if we talk about specifically about women, women have almost no rights in Iran starting from the morality police going after them constantly, starting with the fact that as a woman you're not allowed in stadiums. As a woman in court your statement is half as worth of what a man says. As a woman you're not allowed to travel without your husband's permission.  As a woman you cannot ask for a divorce easily.

If you ask me as an Iranian who has who was born in Iran who has lived in Iran who has lived under his real leadership who has family who's living under his leadership who has friends who are living under his leadership I will tell you that a dictator has been taken out a terrorist that has taken many many people's lives has been taken out a person who has chanted and has made millions of Iranians chant death to America for 47 years has been taken out a person who's been building nuclear bombs in hiding. To attack the American people and America and the Israelian people in Israel for years and years has been taken out this is a big win for the whole world it's just that the world doesn't understand we understand it because we've lived with it and we know it but unfortunately the people just look at it from one lens and that is oh he was a religious leader but being a religious leader doesn't make you right when you do wrong right.

I receive a lot of death threats and many people disagree with me, but that brings us back to freedom of speech and the idea of live and let live. That’s all the Iranian people are asking for. We want to live the way we choose, and we are okay letting others live as they wish. The problem is that a narrow mindset is forcing everyone to follow one way of life. This is not against religion. I have many Muslim friends whom I love and respect. Iran is home to Muslims, Christians, Baha’is, Zoroastrians and more. Everyone simply wants equal respect and the freedom to decide for themselves.

Mojtaba becoming the new leader. He is the son of Ali Khamenei he is another person that was not elected by the Iranian people again the safety is still at the mark yes because he has the same views. He supports the same barbaric thoughts that his father had and besides any of that Iranians are saying we would like to choose our leader ourselves we don't want supreme leaders we don't want somebody who we have not chosen that's the only thing why since when in a  democratic world in 2026 should anybody else decide who rules over 90 million people the people should be deciding that for themselves and the people have decided they want the crown prince Reza Pahlavi back.

The end of the wars in the West Aisa will come with the end of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This regime has created unrest across the region by funding proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis with billions taken from our oil and tax money. Iranians don’t benefit from our own resources. When people protested high gas prices in 2019, it was because that wealth was being diverted to Hamas. So once you remove the Islamic Republic of Iran this regime the Ayatollahs once you remove the clerics there will be peace all over the West Asia because all the funding is going to be gone and all of those terrorist groups will crumble right because they'll not have any resource.

Rochelle Rao, former Miss India and TV presenter, who was on a vacation in Dubai with actor-husband Keith Sequeira and two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Josephine, landed in Mumbai on March 4 in an evacuation flight. In an exclusive interaction with mid-day, Rochelle recounts her stay in the UAE amid the ongoing Iran-Israel war.

Rochelle feels lucky to have entered Dubai a day before chaos ensued. She had booked her stay for a week in Al Barsha. On the first day of their holiday, Rochelle stepped out to walk down the Marina and saw a missile being detonated overhead.

She recalls, “We were confused because we didn’t know whether it was really it since we had just heard about the conflict. We could hear loud booms and see clouds of smoke and shrapnel from the missiles falling. It was very nerve-wracking and scary.”

That being said, once Ali Khamenei, the cleric and former supreme leader of Iran, was assassinated, Rochelle states that she received an SOS message on her phone, which started beeping loudly. The alert suggested moving away from windows, following which they heard a few missiles go off. 

Rochelle asserts that their stay was comfortable. “There was more panic for Indians outside of Dubai listening to the news than for those of us who were within the country.”

She also mentions that messages were coming from the UAE government, such as not posting any misinformation on social media. “Even though it was a highly stressful situation, things were kept calm. There wasn’t immediate police showing up or any of that,” she adds. 

Rochelle hopped on an evacuation flight to Mumbai with her husband and daughter on March 4. While she doesn’t want to reveal details about the flight or carrier for security reasons, she states it was the only flight preparing to take off from Dubai at that point.

“The airport was practically shut, and it was just us. I was amazed at how the staff were functioning like any other day, even if it was just for one flight. It wasn’t like a refugee situation. However, there were some technical issues with our plane. We actually sat on the runway for about 4-5 hours before it could take off. The minute the pilot said, ‘We’re in the Indian airspace,’ we all started clapping,” she shares. 

Rochelle emphasizes that despite an ongoing war, it was heartwarming to see that she was surrounded by people from different countries, who simply wanted peace. “I'm sorry, I might be politically incorrect, but there were Pakistanis and Bangladeshis with us, and no one felt like an enemy there,” she signs off.

Saurabh Shukla believed he would need Lady Luck to get his desired actors for his directorial venture, Jab Khuli Kitaab. Who knows whether it was good fortune or the power of a good script, but Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia agreed to front his family comedy in days.

Revealing that he went to Kapur’s Versova office to hand the script — that revolves around an aged couple whose marriage is shaken by the unravelling of a secret — to him, Shukla recalled, “Pankaj said, ‘I will read it and tell you.’ Within a week, he said yes.”

When Kapadia’s name was suggested for the female lead, the writer and director initially shot down the idea. He thought she would be too big to front his mid-size movie. “She is such a huge star! At that time, she had done [Christopher] Nolan’s film [Tenet] and would have had no shortage of films. I would give my right arm to get her! So, we sent her the script.”

Then came the twist in the tale. “On the third day, I got a call and she said in her beautiful, sexy voice, ‘Saurabh, I’m doing this film, nobody else will do it.’ I couldn’t believe it. Later, we had a chat where she discussed every nuance of the script. In her, I saw a woman who is not only talented, but has also lived a full life.”

Om Raut, best known for Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, is likely to come on board to helm an upcoming actioner featuring Tiger Shroff and Vidyut Jammwal. The project, backed by Bhushan Kumar, is in the early stages of development. A source close to the production reveals that Raut has already pitched a script to the actors. “He has pitched a script and they are currently jamming over it. It is at a nascent stage,” the source states.

Interestingly, Milap Zaveri was earlier rumoured to be directing the venture. However, he has since been announced as the director of another film with the same production house, starring Harshvardhan Rane.

“The story by Om is completely different. He has not stepped into Milap’s shoes. If everything goes well, the film will go on floors this year,” the source adds. This will mark Bhushan and Om's reunion post the debacle of Adipurush.

Earlier while talking about Adipurush's performance at the box office, Om in an interview said, “Our first day was Rs. 70 crore, and that’s just in India. Our total box office was over Rs. 400 crore. So, the numbers were very large… With Adipurush, there was a loss of perception, not a loss of revenue. If the perception was positive, if the perception was under control, we would’ve seen an exorbitant number, which we did not see. That was disappointing.”

Actor Tiger Shroff’s recent work includes big-budget action films such as Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (2024) and appearances in projects like Singham Again (2024), continuing his image as one of Bollywood’s most prominent action stars, though some of his recent films have struggled critically and commercially.

Meanwhile, martial-arts specialist Vidyut Jammwal was last seen headlining the sports-action film Crakk: Jeetegaa… Toh Jiyegaa (2024) and also appeared as an antagonist in the Tamil film Madharaasi (2025), maintaining his reputation for physically demanding action roles. Filmmaker Om Raut, on the other hand, last directed the mythological epic Adipurush (2023), starring Prabhas and Saif Ali Khan, a high-budget adaptation inspired by the Ramayana that generated massive buzz but received mixed to negative responses.

Yash’s much-anticipated action drama Toxic has a new date at the box office. For weeks, conversations around a potential clash between two big films — Toxic and Dhurandhar 2 — had been intensifying. On Thursday morning, the makers of Toxic announced that the film will skip its March 19 release date and instead hit screens on June 4, citing the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.

An official statement from KVN Productions and Monster Mind Creations read: “Filmed in Kannada and English, Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups is a film created for a global audience. We were excited to share our film with you all on March 19. However, the current uncertainty in the Middle East impacts our goal to connect with the widest possible audience. Therefore, in the interest of our partners and our audience, Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups will now be released in cinemas across the globe in English and Indian languages on June 4, 2026 (sic).”

While exhibitors believe there is space for multiple releases in theatres, averting a clash is often the best-case scenario for tentpole films.

“We have enough capacity for two films to co-exist. As far as exhibitors are concerned, handling the maara-mari that happens during screen sharing is part and parcel of our job, but overall, this does make everyone’s life more comfortable. I don’t think the reason to push the release of Toxic is an excuse. Yash is a big star in the Middle East, so it’s a fair decision. Dhurandhar 2 is 3 hours 55 minutes long, so now we can give it four slots easily. Since Dhurandhar never released in the Middle East, it won’t be affected anyway,” explains Kamal Gianchandani, CEO, PVR Pictures Limited, and President of the Multiplex Association of India (MAI).

Some exhibitors, however, believe the delay may have more to do with the looming box-office clash. Manoj Desai, Executive Director of G7 and Maratha Mandir, says, “As far as Toxic’s delay is concerned, the Middle East feels like an excuse. Dhurandhar 2 is one of the reasons, if not the only reason. However, I do think this is a good decision as the public won’t be divided.”

Speaking about Dhurandhar 2’s runtime, he adds, “The first film was 3 hours 34 minutes long, and now the second one is 3 hours 55 minutes. We can only have three shows a day in single screens, which itself is our loss. Our standard show timings are 12 pm, 3 pm, 6 pm and 9 pm. If a film is four hours long, with an interval, it becomes almost four and a half hours.”

Talking about how the industry stands to gain from spacing out big-ticket releases, Akkshay Rathie, Director, Ashirwad Theatres Pvt Ltd, says, “This will benefit both films by at least `75–100 crore of net box office business, which would have eroded from their collections had they come together. This puts us in a good state because it allows every quarter to have something big — Dhurandhar 2 in March, Bhoot Bangla in April and Toxic in June. Big films spreading out over months always helps the business.”

An exhibitor on condition of anonymity revealed how screen-sharing is a major issue when two big films go head to head. “Revenue share is never an issue between the producers and the exhibitors, that all is pre-decided. Bigger issue is screen sharing. It can get ugly as both films will demand more screens and prime time. The audience is also unlikely to watch two big films in the same week as going out for a movie is not cheap, especially with big families. By averting clash with Dhurandhar, Toxic has made sure that they don’t eat into each other’s business. No one will go on record saying they were not confident about clashing with Dhurandhar so the middle east excuse. Everyone wants to save their face and wants an upper hand.”

Ashish Kanakia, CEO, Moviemax Cinemas said, "The decision has been taken by the producers in view of the current situation in the Middle East, and averted clashes are naturally in the best interest of both producers and exhibitors. Both Toxic and Dhurandhar are highly anticipated, large-scale films with strong audience interest. Two major releases arriving on the same date is not ideal in the present scenario; with Toxic now moving to 4th June, we believe the business prospects for both films will be stronger, which is ultimately a positive for the industry as a whole.”