Since the last eight months, Ajay Devgn has been managing the home front and looking after son Yug as wife Kajol flew off to Singapore in August to be with their daughter Nysa, who is schooling there. The actor used the time to lock the script of his next directorial, along with a couple of outside productions. He finally took off to Hyderabad last week to resume work on Bhuj: The Pride Of India from Tuesday at Ramoji Film City. He will be filming for almost two weeks till it’s a wrap for the patriotic war period drama.

“From December 11, Ajay jumps on to his directorial, Mayday, which reunites him with Amitabh Bachchan after almost eight years, with his De De Pyaar De co-star, Rakul Preet Singh, as his co-pilot. They will be shooting nonstop till January-end,” informed a source close to the development, adding that the edge-of-the-seat aerial drama will be shot indoors with a lot of visual effects. “Rakul will join the shoot from mid-December and the entire team will be stationed together in Hyderabad in a bio-bubble.”

The Hyderabad schedule will be followed by another one in Mumbai from January where Bachchan will be joining the team. It’s a prep-heavy film and the team has erected multiple sets in Hyderabad, under the supervision of their captain, Ajay. The film’s title is an internationally recognised distress signal used by pilots and sailors in case of a life-threatening emergency.

“After Mayday, Ajay is expected to resume work on the Syed Abdul Rahim biopic, Maidaan. While a lot of the film has already been shot, some football scenes are pending and should be shot in Mumbai where a football stadium will be recreated. “The film involves several global players as part of international football teams and an exact schedule will be chalked out once there is clarity on overseas travel protocol,” shared the source.

Directed by Amit Sharma, the sports drama will showcase the golden era of Indian football when we won gold at the Asian Games in 1951 and ’62, and also reached the semifinals of the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. The film kicked off in August 2019 with Ajay as the team coach, Rahim.

Just before the lockdown Ajay had completed his part in S S Rajamouli’s period drama, RRR in Hyderabad. It features Jr NTR and Ram Charan in the lead with Alia Bhatt.

-----------------------

Ajay Devgn made the most of the lockdown, reading scripts and conceptualising his directorial venture, Mayday. Now, after an eight-month break, the actor retraced his steps to a film set as he resumed the shoot of Bhuj: The Pride Of India in Hyderabad yesterday. "Considering major portions of the war drama were filmed well before the lockdown, the makers have charted out a 10-day schedule, following which they can call it a wrap. A set has been erected at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad, and the team will adhere to the on-set guidelines during the stint," reveals a source.

Set during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, the period drama sees Ajay Devgn play Indian Air Force Squadron Leader Vijay Karnik, who reconstructed the IAF airbase in Bhuj with the help of Sunderben Jetha Madharparya — essayed by Sonakshi Sinha — and 300 local women. Sanjay Dutt, who plays a civilian who helped the Indian forces during the war, is expected to join the unit today. The source adds, "After spending the past few weeks in Dubai with his family, Sanjay has returned to India. He has about three to four days' work on the film." The Abhishek Dudhaiya-directed venture will have its digital premiere on Disney+ Hotstar.

mid-day reached out to Devgn's team, who confirmed the report of the film's final schedule.