R Madhavan dedicated the last many months to Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, the biopic on former ISRO scientist S Nambi Narayanan. However, he juggled the film with the shoot of his next, Dhokha Round D Corner that revolves around an urban couple. Giving finishing touches to the film, director Kookie Gulati says he has explored his favourite genre — psychological thrillers. 

“It tells the story of a couple, played by Madhavan and Khushalii Kumar, whose lives change in the course of a day. Aparshakti Khurana plays a terrorist who enters their home, and the film traces how their lives become intertwined. The movie is about how we perceive certain things, when the reality could be [different]. It revolves around mind games,” says Gulati, who helmed The Big Bull last year.

Dhokha Round D Corner, which also stars Darshan Kumaar and is backed by Ajay Devgn’s cousins Dharmendra and Vikrant Sharma, is lined up for a September release.

For the project, Madhavan was the director’s first choice. Gulati reveals that the two had been in talks for long. “He had liked the story. He and Khushalii were to do another film for Bhushan Kumar, which didn’t happen. So, I got those dates. Madhavan’s professionalism makes him a class apart. We completed the shoot in 29 days.”