Upala KBR (MID-DAY; January 12, 2018)

Bollywood stars’ fascination with Marathi cinema continues to grow. After Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Ajay Devgn and Priyanka Chopra, it is Rohit Shetty’s turn to venture into Marathi cinema. mid- day has learnt that the filmmaker, whose last directorial Golmaal Again (2017) was a blockbuster, is all set to produce a slice-of-life film titled School College Aani Life. The project will be helmed by debutant director Vihan Suryavanshi.

While Shetty may be associated with larger-than-life entertainers, a source associated with the project reveals that it will be a departure from his style of films. Says an insider, “School College Aani Life will be a light-hearted take on life. Though Rohit is busy with the pre-production of Simmba, he is involved in the scripting of the Marathi film.”

Over the last few years, Shetty has, on several occasions, expressed his wish to explore avenues beyond Hindi cinema. In 2014, reports stated that he would be producing a Marathi film with his Chennai Express (2013) star Shah Rukh Khan. However, the project, with Sanjay Jadhav as the director, didn’t materialise.

The source adds that the film is likely to go on floors in March. “The team is writing the script’s final draft after which the casting will be finalised.”