There has been much anticipation around Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Karna, and for good reason. The mythological drama, which will offer a retelling of the Mahabharata from Karna’s point of view, is among the most ambitious projects in recent times. Suriya is tipped to lead the magnum opus, with Nayanthara said to portray Draupadi.

While director Mehra and novelist Anand Neelakantan locked the script, the team did extensive pre-production, including look tests over the past few months. But now, one hears that the makers have decided to put the project on pause, given the current box-office lull and market instability.

A source reveals, “Karna is a passion project for producers Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani. The makers realised that the making cost was going north of Rs. 500 crore; it could go higher with the VFX involved. Given how important the movie is to them, they don’t wish to cut corners. So, for now, they have put it on hold. Instead, they have taken a call to greenlight five small-size films and explore Karna at a later stage when the industry’s economic health improves.”

However, another insider closely involved with the project says that it is merely delayed. The source tells us, “It is slightly delayed because the locations and the leads have yet to be locked. Nevertheless, it will roll by the year-end.”