It may be a while before fans see Hrithik Roshan back on screen, but the superstar has ensured that work behind the scenes is well underway. Roshan, who announced his entry into the streaming space as a producer on October 10, 2025, has taken his first production, Storm, on floors. Sources tell mid-day that the thriller series began shooting in Mumbai in November 2025.

“The shooting for Storm is in full swing. Ajitpal Singh serves as the show’s director, writer, and creator. It’s largely a start-to-end schedule. Ajit is looking at wrapping it by February,” says a source of the series, which stars Parvathy Thiruvothu, Alaya F, Saba Azad, Srishti Shrivastava, Rrama Sharma, Ashish Vidyarthi, and Rajit Kapur.

The show marks the first of many collaborations between Prime Video and Roshan’s HRX Films, a division of his FilmKraft Productions. The makers worked on the script for over three years before taking the series on floors.

“Hrithik and Ajitpal have spent considerable time exchanging ideas through the scripting and pre-production stage. Hrithik is kicked about the show’s script. He loved Ajit’s directorial venture Tabbar (2021). So, he knows the filmmaker will bring his unique flavour to the genre, where style, substance, and sensitivity will unite,” shares another insider.

Badhaai Ho transformed the course of Gajraj Rao’s career. Ever since, the actor has been impressing us with his immense talent. He now stars alongside Madhuri Dixit in Anand Tiwari’s film Maja Ma, which is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. In a candid chat, he talks about his journey, the zone of cinema he belongs to, and his motivation to work in Maja Ma — Madhuri Dixit. Excerpts:

It’s a family drama and though the colours and spirit have a Gujarati vibe, it isn’t stereotypical or language-centric. The name Madhuri Dixit was enough for me to do this film. The greatest motivation was her presence in the film. Unko itna dekha hua hai, unko itna admire karte hai, so to be able to work with her and be offered an important part alongside her was a big deal for me. I am from Delhi, and since the time I was doing theatre there, I remember flocking to cinemas to watch her movies like Hum Aapke Hain Koun and Prahaar. I feel Madhuri ji’s journey is reminiscent of Rekha ji as both were able to strike a fine balance between stylized commercial cinema and hard-hitting films (like Mrityudand). The way they smoothly switched their persona for different kinds of cinema was admirable.

I never thought it was possible. When Anand Tiwari first offered the role to me, I thought it must be some part, but when I read the script, I figured it was Madhuri ji’s husband’s role! My friends in the US couldn’t believe it. They called to ask, “Gajju, are you sure that you have been paired alongside Madhuri Dixit as her husband? You are her hero!” I told them it’s not a hero-heroine story. It’s a family story. I don’t belong to the Shah Rukh Khan, Anil Kapoor hero zone. You need a certain talent and traits for those roles, and I don’t have it. I can act a little, and I am glad I got this part. I come from a theatre background, and the universe I belonged to only permitted me to admire someone like her from a distance.

Agar aap gully cricket khelte ho with a tennis ball, and someone tells you, ‘Gajraj, now you get to play a proper match with Sachin Tendulkar at the Wankhede Stadium’, this was that feeling. Madhuri ji is to films what Tendulkar is to cricket. They both have excelled in their craft. The experience of working with her and being around her for promotions surpassed my expectations. When she enters a set, she ceases to be Madhuri Dixit. On set, she was Pallavi Patel (her character in Maja Ma). She is aligned with her character on and off the camera.

Event films, like Baahubali, demand larger-than-life characters because they are made on a certain scale. I like what Tom Cruise, Shah Rukh Khan or Tiger Shroff bring to the table. You need that hero-like charisma for these big-ticket entertainers, and we need such stories, too, because they are aspirational. Aap hero ko filmon se hata nahi sakte because real life mein hero bahut kam hote hai. Like a parallel universe, two kinds of cinema can co-exist. Amitabh Bachchan ruled as a superstar, but at the same time, there was also Amol Palekar who the common man could identify with. Rekha ji did potboilers, but also did Umrao Jaan. There is space for both kinds of cinema.

OTT has democratized things because there is no Friday pressure. Theatres need big faces for big openings. Audience shaayad Gajraj Rao, Ritwik Bhowmik, ya Srishti Shrivastava ke naam pe theatre mein nahi jayegi. Niche audience aayegi, but most may not turn up. So, theatres need actors who are talented and have certain stardom. OTT doesn’t have those restrictions, so you can tell a story freely. You can cast actors strictly on the basis of their acting calibre and not stardom. The script is the new hero on the web because people have the power of a remote. It’s a golden period for actors and technicians. Look at Raveena Tandon, Sushmita Sen and Juhi Chawla…they are doing such good work on OTT. Maybe it was difficult to write relevant parts for them in commercial cinema due to box office demands. Good writers are now in demand because they have that freedom.

The bonding and interaction between the family members in the film — Madhuri ji, Ritwik and Srishti (who play out children) and me is incredible. There was warmth, love and laughter on set. No one rushed home once the shoot was over. We played antakshari and dumb charades, and huge credit goes to MD for bringing that energy on set. With other stars, their entourage can be overwhelming, but her team is like a fly on the wall. They’d quietly sit in the corner. Unlike many successful stars, she doesn’t wear her superstar status on her sleeve. Working with her felt like a beautiful dream.

Time stands still when it comes to Madhuri Dixit. Even today, she makes you go dhak-dhak each time she appears on the screen, her latest being, Maja Ma. Ahead of the premiere of the film on October 6 on Prime Video, the beautiful actress talks about what piqued her interest in the story, her desire to push the envelope with every project, and how the OTT boom has changed the game for actors. Excerpts…

The film is set in a colourful festive season with the quintessential Indian wedding as the backdrop. It’s a story of a perfectly imperfect family, centred around Pallavi Patel, who is a doting mother and a perfect wife. She is someone the community looks up to, but somewhere she begins to lose her identity as can be seen in the trailer. She says, ‘Main ek maa hoon, ek biwi hoon, lekin uske alaawa bhi mera wajood hai’. It’s a beautiful, warm, and funny film, but with a message told in a simple and non-preachy manner.

The entire cast bonded like a family on the first day itself and the love reflects in the film. Even though there were emotional scenes, we enjoyed each other’s company. There was a lot of appreciation for each other and Gajraj ji especially. He is also a director with a string of commercials to his credit. I remember once after I completed a scene, I was confused about whether I got it right. I wanted to ask Anand (the director), but he was busy on the phone. Gajraj ji saw my face, came up to me, and said, ‘Bohot achha tha’. So, his attention to detail is admirable and his comic timing is terrific. One look at his face and you want to laugh. It was so difficult to keep a straight face while enacting certain scenes with him. I literally had to sing a sad song in my head or else, I would have burst out laughing!

We also have these bright young actors (Ritwik Bhowmik, Barkha Singh and Srishti Shrivastava) who are so good. Of course, Anand (Tiwari, the director), who is also an actor, producer Amritpal Singh Bindra, and the Leo Media Collective team make everything on the set so easy and comfortable. It was a cohesive unit. We shot during COVID, but we made sure to protect each other.

It’s very important to talk about love and relationships with friends, your husband and your family without feeling uncomfortable. It’s important to keep an open dialogue because without that, it is difficult to maintain joy and relationships in family or in life. Communication is important for any relationship to thrive.

By taking up challenging roles and going with my gut. I played a different character in my first web series, which dropped earlier this year. It’s the same with Maja Ma. I have to challenge myself with every role I select. That’s what I am trying to do. When you take on something challenging, it keeps you on your toes and pushes you to walk that extra mile. I also love exploring different art forms other than acting and dancing. I tried singing because I love it. What’s important to me basically is to be serious about my craft, but have fun while I am at it as well.

Dance for me is like breathing. It’s a very spiritual thing. Even now, if I want to work out, I dance, so it’s an extremely important part of my life. It makes me feel happy and connected with the universe. Everybody should try dancing, it changes not only your body but mind, soul... everything! There is a lot of beauty in it and there is a lot of joy you get from it.

Absolutely. You have a series being carried by actresses at the centre of it. I would say that life imitates art and art imitates life. There are all kinds of people and not just youngsters who make up society and life. There are many age groups that have stories to be told and that’s what is happening on OTT. Brilliant actors, who were struggling to find their place in cinema, are getting to show their talent on the web because there is space for everyday people and relatable characters. That’s the one thing I find really great about OTT is that everyone is getting to showcase their talent, which is amazing.

Talent has always been important. Talent nahi hoga toh how can you even make it on screen? You had to be talented, but you had to be a star as well. If you think about it, cinema was the only source of entertainment at that time. We didn’t have so many channels and OTT platforms. Today, there are stars everywhere, be it on Instagram, Twitter, OTT, or TV. If you are a star today, you have to manage your social media as well. Back then, stars had to have a certain mysteriousness around them. But today, they want to know all about you. So, things have changed and you have to adapt to changing times.