Around 6.30 pm on October 20, the makers of Ramayana: Rise Of A Legend announced that the movie’s advance bookings had opened in leading theatre chains, removing the cloud of uncertainty that loomed over the Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, and Yash-starrer in the preceding hours. The delay in the advance booking’s opening, it turns out, was due to a tussle between the exhibitors and Dharma Productions, which is the North India distributor of filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari’s magnum opus. Dharma Productions reportedly demanded a 60 per cent profit share for the first week, in a departure from the usual 50-50 per cent share between distributors and exhibitors.

Happy that the exhibitors and the distributor found common ground, leading to bookings opening in PVR-Inox and Cinepolis, exhibitor Akshaye Rathi told mid-day, “The commercial terms that have been agreed upon are on similar lines as those in the case of event films. The negotiations with the rest of the theatre chains are underway.” It’s not known yet if the exhibitors agreed to Dharma’s demands or the latter relented.

But one thing is for certain — the demand has left the exhibitor community worried. Bihar-based exhibitor Vishek Chauhan shared, “Dharma was trying to arm-twist cinemas by saying, ‘This is a big film. We have paid a bomb [to buy it], now you pay us more in the first week.’ Assume the film makes Rs. 300-400 crore in the first week, Dharma will generate anywhere between Rs 25-30 crore of extra revenue. In the second week, they are asking for 50 per cent share. My contention is that if Ramayana merits a 60 per cent profit share because it’s a big movie, then how much should we pay Udta Teer, which is [a smaller film] distributed by Dharma? Then we should give a low share to them.”

Chauhan further argued that such a demand may leave exhibitors open to being arm-twisted by bigger players in the future. “Avengers: Doomsday is a bigger film than Ramayana. So, should we pay the distributor 70 per cent? Should we give 65 per cent share to Shah Rukh Khan’s King? One film cannot destroy a set [practice].”

A day after we reported that Saif Ali Khan and filmmaker Ritesh Batra were set to collaborate on a yet-untitled period drama (Making way for period drama, Oct 20), a casting change has emerged in the project. Sources close to the production have told mid-day that Priyanka Chopra, who was originally expected to play the female lead, is no longer part of the film.

This development comes as the movie rolls today, October 21, at a museum in Byculla, Mumbai. A source close to the project revealed, “Priyanka was expected to join the Mumbai shoot. However, she had to bow out of the film. She was keen to headline it, and work with both Saif and Ritesh. Her existing professional commitments, however, led to a scheduling conflict. The team explored the possibility of working the dates around, but it just didn’t work out.”

From what we’ve heard, the makers are now in talks with two leading actors for the role. Considering the shoot has begun, they will lock one soon. For now, Batra and the unit are moving ahead with Khan, filming his portions for the first few days. The movie will apparently be shot in a start-to-finish schedule in different parts of South Mumbai. 

mid-day reached out to Batra and Chopra’s team. Both didn’t respond till press time.

DRISHYAM THE CONCLUSION remains the top film this week as it kept the new films at bay with collections of 3.25 crore nett. This film has dropped around 20% from the previous day but stands at a huge 326.50 crore nett and this Friday ensures that the 350 crore nett mark is crossed comfortably. The growth on Saturday will no doubt be more than the new releases.

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DRISHYAM THE CONCLUSION had a good third weekend as it collected 14 crore nett and the film should do well over the weekdays with the Monday and Tuesday being holidays. The film should have the potential to bring in 25 crore nett plus over the week due to the holidays. It will still be a 70% drop week on week but the film had an extraordinary first weekend. So, these drops don't really matter much as the business remains high.

The film has a total of 337 crore nett so far and will cross 350 crore nett by the end of the week. There will still be two weeks left till the release of Diwali biggie RAMAYANA, and it should another add 15 crore at least. The film remained the top Hindi film as it performed better than RAJINI: THE JAILER 2 over the traditional weekend though if you count the four day weekend of the dubbed South film, then that his higher.

Despite the Navratri factor, the film has maintained best in Mumbai circuit and is looking to cross the likes of ANIMAL, JAWAN and PATHAAN in this circuit and maybe even TANHAJI: THE UNSUNG WARRIOR. It will not cross the admits of TANHAJI: THE UNSUNG WARRIOR and probably wont reach the level of GOLMAAL AGAIN as well.

The collections of DRISHYAM THE CONCLUSION till date are as follows.

Friday - 62,50,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 51,00,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 59,00,00,000 apprx

Monday - 20,00,00,000 apprx

Tuesday 19,00,00,000 apprx

Wednesday - 15,00,00,000 apprx

Thursday - 12,50,00,000 apprx

Friday - 14,00,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 26,50,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 22,50,00,000 apprx

Monday - 5,25,00,000 apprx

Tuesday - 7,25,00,000 apprx

Wednesday - 4,75,00,000 apprx

Thursday - 4,00,00,000 apprx

Friday - 3,00,00,000  apprx

Saturday - 5,00,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 6,00,00,000 apprx

It is a moment of terror for Tiger Shroff, who was shot at by gangsters on Sunday (October 18), and the film fraternity at large. While Shroff remains unharmed, the Bishnoi gang’s threats against those who allegedly refuse to meet their demands and continue associating with Salman Khan have raised fresh concerns about the industry’s safety.

This is not the first time Bollywood has faced such threats. The Bishnoi syndicate has been threatening Salman since 2022, sending intimidating letters, emails, and videos on social media. In 2024, gunmen fired shots at his Galaxy Apartments residence. The syndicate has also threatened Rohit Shetty, Ranveer Singh, Aamir Khan, and Aayush Sharma, among others.

With safety concerns mounting, factions of the film industry plan to approach Home Minister Amit Shah for better security. “We have been saying it’s a serious matter since the firing outside Rohit Shetty’s home,” says filmmaker and Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) chief adviser Ashoke Pandit. He believes the government must step in.

“What else can we do besides writing letters and speaking officially? But it has no meaning right now. It is happening two minutes away from Juhu police station, during Navratri. It is scary [to see this] happening in Bollywood again today,” he laments.

Pandit fears a return of the 1990s, when Bollywood struggled to escape the underworld’s grip. “Gopinath Pandurang Munde, [during his tenure] as the Home Minister of Maharashtra, had severely cracked down on Mumbai’s mafia. We thought that era was over. Tiger’s incident makes the law and order machinery look weak,” shares Pandit.

Suresh Gupta, president of the All India Cine Workers Association (AICWA), has urged the industry to unite. “If we stay apart, everything will fall apart. Everyone will be targeted,” he says. The association has emailed the home minister and is planning a delegation meeting with representatives from across the industry.

“The plan is to take a Bollywood delegation to meet Amit Shah, with representatives from each sector. We’d like actors like Sushant Singh, Ajay Devgn, and other film industry bigwigs to be a part of this meeting,” Gupta explains.

Meanwhile, the industry continues to work while tightening security. Madhu Bhojwani of the Producers Guild of India says high-risk individuals “need to reinforce security measures and work closely with the police and intelligence agencies to ensure a high level of preparedness and vigilance”. 

Cine & TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA) president Poonam Dhillon acknowledges the challenge of protecting everyone. “The Hindi film industry is large, and every actor is shooting in different places and at varied times. It’s challenging for the government and the police to give security to every actor,” she says. However, staying home out of fear is not an option. “You can’t live in fear. We have to work on a solution together,” she insists.

Security for the Shroffs, NIA and central agencies to probe the gang networks, fast-track trials under strict laws, a dedicated task force for the safety of artistes, a permanent end to the fear of gangsters, and a time-bound report on the action taken.

- June 2022–2026: Salman Khan remains a key target, facing repeated threats and security breaches, including gunfire

- November 2023: Gunshots were fired outside Gippy Grewal’s Canadian home allegedly over his association with Salman

. July–August 2025: Kapil Sharma’s Canadian café was attacked twice after he invited Salman on his show

- February 2026: Ranveer Singh received an audio message demanding Rs 10 crore

- February 2026: Gunshots were fired outside Rohit Shetty’s Juhu residence

- February 2026: Aayush Sharma received an email demanding ransom

- July 2026: Aamir Khan received threats via videos on social media

More than a month after audiences saw him in the intense thriller ‘Haiwaan’, Saif Ali Khan is stepping into the world of a period drama. mid-day has learnt that the actor is collaborating with filmmaker Ritesh Batra of ‘The Lunchbox’ (2013) fame for his next film.

“The film has been in pre-production for some time. Both Saif and Ritesh are huge admirers of each other’s work. And Saif is the perfect fit for Ritesh’s soft, subtle stories,” reveals a source.

The project is set to go on floors later this week in Mumbai. Sources say the team plans to shoot on a tight schedule and “wrap up the intimate period drama in one go”.

Apart from the yet-untitled drama, Batra is also putting the finishing touches to the first two episodes of the upcoming Netflix series ‘Unaccustomed Earth’, starring Freida Pinto and Siddharth.

Batra was previously set to helm a cross-country romance starring Anil Kapoor, which was later put on hold. While details of his film with Khan remain under wraps, it is unclear whether the period drama is the same project.

Mumbai: Actor Aamir Khan met MNS chief Raj Thackeray at his residence, Shivtirth, in Dadar on Sunday. The meeting created a buzz in political circles as it came amid his nephew, actor and US national Imran Khan, being issued a leave India notice following his brief detention from the site of a protest held in the city on October 10 against chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Imran on Saturday challenged in Bombay High Court the notice issued by Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), Mumbai, directing him to leave the country by October 28, calling it “arbitrary, unreasoned and wholly misconceived” and against the principles of natural justice. He said in his petition that it was issued without giving him a hearing and it flouts his fundamental rights to equality under Article 14 and to life under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The same day, FRRO issued a show-cause notice to Imran as to why his citizen of India (OCI) status should not be cancelled. It acknowledged that participation in a protest, detention and FIR by themselves are not conclusive proof of allegations or automatic grounds for cancellation of his OCI registration.

Mumbai: BMC on October 12 demolished portions of ongoing work at a bungalow in Juhu after it rejected a reply from the owners, who failed to produce documents establishing that the work had been approved by the civic body. Film actor Ajay Devgn and his mother, Veena Devgn, own the property. The bungalow is located in Kapol Cooperative Housing Society in Juhu.

In a speaking order dated Oct 6, the BMC’s K/West ward office said the owner’s reply, submitted on September 15, did not include any documents proving authorisation for the construction or a copy of the permission granted by the competent authority.

“The civic body had issued a stop-work notice under Section 354A of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act on September 10, with regard to unauthorised additions and alterations using Siporex blocks at CTS No. 841, Plot No. 10, Kapol CHS Ltd, on N S Road No. 11, JVPD, Vile Parle (West),” said a civic official in a statement.

The notice directed the owner or occupier to stop the work immediately and submit the relevant permissions within 24 hours. It warned that the unauthorised structure and construction materials could be removed at the owner’s risk and cost if the directions were not complied with. Police were also directed to keep watch at the site and remove persons carrying out the work, if required.

In its speaking order, the BMC said that since the construction was ongoing, the owner was required to possess permission from the competent authority. As no such documents had been furnished, the reply could not be accepted and the work was treated as unauthorised.

A statement from the actor Ajay Devgn’s Office said, “We would like to clarify that the property in question is not Ajay Devgn’s residence, but a separate property that has been rented out. We have applied to the BMC for the requisite permissions in respect of one of our properties and are duly complying with all applicable BMC rules, regulations and guidelines. The necessary changes, alterations and modifications, as required by the BMC, have been carried out.”

Sources said that property where demolition action was carried out by the BMC was to be rented out by the actor to a salon to which the society residents had also raised objections fearing it could open a private society premises to the public at large who would come visiting the salon.

Gunmaaster G9’s recent climax shoot turned into a wake-up call for its makers as well as other productions, as far as risks involved in action sequences are concerned. On October 13, as leading man Emraan Hashmi was filming the climax — which included an SUV and a fleet of cars — in Bengaluru, the SUV came loose from its rigging and nearly crashed on the van that was passing by. Fortunately, Hashmi and others in the frame escaped without any injury. 

For Deepak Mukut, who is producing the Aditya Datt-directed venture, the episode has highlighted the responsibility that comes with mounting an action-heavy film and the importance of safety protocols. 

He told mid-day, “Action cinema demands a certain physicality and scale, and we want to bring that experience to the big screen. But our responsibility towards the people working on the film is equally important. The safety of our actors, technicians, and crew must always remain paramount. Every action sequence requires careful planning and coordination, and we take that responsibility seriously.”

The video leaked from the set showed crew members gathered around the set-up as a countdown was called for the shot, before the SUV came inches away from landing on the van. After the episode, we’re told Datt, Mukut, and the action team reviewed every arrangement on set.

A source said, “Following the incident, we are reinforcing the checks required before any such stunt is attempted. It includes checking all securing points and ensuring that the action team and crew are aligned on movement, positioning, and clearance zones. We want to get a sense of what additional precautions may be required before proceeding with similar shots.” 

Mukut added, “We double check every arrangement on set — from loose wires to all moving parts of a stunt. An action film [entails] bringing realism, energy, and intensity to the screen so that audiences feel immersed in the story. But realism on screen should never mean taking safety lightly.”

A bike-borne gunman opened fire on actor Tiger Shroff’s vehicle near Pushpa Park in Juhu on Sunday evening, leaving his driver and an autorickshaw driver injured. Shroff, who was leaving the area after playing a football match around 7 pm, escaped unhurt.

Police have formed 15 teams to track down the three unidentified attackers and are investigating an audio message purportedly issued in the name of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang claiming responsibility for the shooting.

According to a senior police officer, three men arrived on a motorcycle, with one of them firing four to five rounds at the actor’s vehicle before the assailants fled. The shooter was wearing a white shirt, the officer said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Dr Mohit Garg confirmed that Shroff was not injured in the attack. His driver, identified as Firdous, sustained a bullet injury to his left arm, while the second injured person, Umesh Chauhan, was an autorickshaw driver. Both were taken to hospital for treatment.

Teams from Juhu police and the Mumbai Crime Branch reached the scene and began examining CCTV footage from the surrounding area to identify the suspects and trace their movements. Checkpoints were also set up following the attack. Investigators are working to establish the motive behind the shooting and whether the attackers had specifically targeted Shroff.

The investigation has taken on another dimension after an audio recording circulated on social media, purportedly claiming responsibility for the attack in the names of Anil Pandit and Anmol Bishnoi. The recording alleged that Shroff had been targeted for disregarding an earlier warning and also threatened others in the film industry over their association with actor Salman Khan. Police are verifying the authenticity of the recording.

According to security agency inputs and details emerging from investigations into cases linked to the Bishnoi network, Pandit and Harman Sandhu are suspected coordinating criminal activities from abroad and intimidating businessmen and people in the entertainment industry.

Pandit has been described in agency inputs as a Bishnoi gang operative based in the US. His name has come up in threats and extortion targeting businessmen and celebrities and for working with overseas gangster Randeep Malik and Delhi-based Harry Boxer. Investigators have examined how social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, are allegedly used by members of the network to issue threats, publicize attacks, and circulate claims of responsibility.

Pandit’s name had also surfaced in connection with a firing incident outside Punjabi singer Guru Randhawa’s gym in Delhi’s Paschim Vihar in June 2026. A social media post attributed to him claimed responsibility for the attack, described it as a “trailer” and referred to the singer’s proximity to Salman Khan.

Delhi Police’s Special Cell reportedly arrested two alleged shooters, identified as Haqiqat and Sagar, following an exchange of fire in connection with that case. They were described as operatives linked to Pandit.

Sandhu, also identified in the supplied case details as Hari Gautam, has been described as an alleged associate of the Bishnoi gang’s North American network, who is known to manage logistics and other activities for the bank. His alleged connections have also come under scrutiny in cases involving threats to regional singers and people associated with the film industry, as well as inquiries into firing incidents near residences or vehicles.