BOMBAY TIMES (June 20, 2020)

After entertainers like The Shaukeens, Mubarakan and The Notebook under his banner, Cine1 Studios, Kabir Singh marked a milestone in producer Murad Khetani’s Bollywood journey. The intense love story, starring Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advani as Kabir and Preeti respectively, was one of the biggest hits of 2019.

Apart from its box-office success, the film, directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, was applauded for its original music album, and later, it also enjoyed a successful television premiere. As Kabir Singh celebrates its first anniversary tomorrow, Murad says that he is looking forward to backing a variety of films, which will offer the audience a different cinematic experience.

The producer says, “There was immense excitement while we were making Kabir Singh. The challenge was to rediscover and recreate the magic without losing the soul of the original film (Arjun Reddy in Telugu). By the time Kabir Singh was made, I was certain that it would strike a chord with the audience. So, yes, somewhere I had a feeling that it would be a success, but the kind of response it received was overwhelming to say the least.”

He adds, “I always knew that music was the heart of this film and that is why we went for an original album, where each song was chosen diligently, keeping in mind how the protagonist was feeling at that moment. That is why it worked and continues to be popular.” The movie’s album was composed by Mithoon, Amaal Mallik, Vishal Mishra, Sachet–Parampara and Akhil Sachdeva.

As a producer, Murad says that he chooses content that he feels will resonate with the audience. About his future projects, he shares, “After Kabir Singh, Bhushan ji (Bhushan Kumar) and I are looking forward to collaborating again. Cine1 Studios and T-Series will produce Sandeep Vanga’s next, which he is currently working on. We are also backing Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, starring Kartik Aaryan, Kiara and Tabu, and the Hindi remake of the Tamil hit, Thadam, toplining Sidharth Malhotra. There are a few more, which I will talk about when the time is right.”