Vikramaditya Motwane

In an exciting development for Indian content on the global stage, Suncity, Sunny Leones production company, and Andolan Films, led by acclaimed filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane, have announced a co-production deal for an upcoming international web series. The project will be a biopic, with Suncity having earlier acquired the rights to the story. Sunny Leone and Vikramaditya Motwane join forces for international biopic series Sunny Leone expressed her enthusiasm about the collaboration, saying, Im thrilled about this collaboration. This biopic is based on a story that truly inspired me, and I cant wait for audiences to experience it. While details about the series remain scarce, the partnership marks an intriguing union of creative forces. Leone, who recently produced Badass Ravikumar starring Himesh Reshammiya, has been steadily expanding her footprint in the content production space. Motwane, on the other hand, has garnered acclaim for his 2025 Netflix series Black Warrant, which was an instant hit and has already been confirmed for a second season. Black Warrant captivated audiences with its intense storytelling and layered characters, set against the backdrop of Delhis notorious Tihar Jail. Season 2 is expected to delve even deeper into the moral complexities faced by the jailer and explore the psyche of some of Indias most dangerous inmates.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 19 : As the trend of re-releasing classic films continues, the 2013 period romantic drama starring Ranveer Singh and Sonakshi Sinha, 'Lootera' is returning to the big screen.Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, 'Lootera' was originally released in 2013 and has since gained a loyal fan base. Nearly 12 years later, moviegoers will get a chance to relive this cinematic experience in theaters once again, as the film is set to be re-released on March 7.PVR Cinemas announced the re-release on their Instagram account on Wednesday, with a poster featuring Ranveer and Sonakshi."It's time, everyone! Experience the magic of Lootera once again on the big screen, starting March 7. Re-releasing at PVR INOX on March 7!" the caption read.Take a look View this post on InstagramA post shared by PVR Cinemas (@pvrcinemas_official)Lootera is a 2013 Indian period romance film directed by Vikramaditya Motwane. Set in the 1950s, the film stars Ranveer Singh and Sonakshi Sinha in lead roles, with Vikrant Massey and Barun Chanda in supporting roles.The story follows Varun Shrivastav (played by Ranveer Singh), a charming conman who enters the life of Pakhi Roy Chaudhary (played by Sonakshi Sinha), the daughter of a wealthy landlord. Posing as an archaeologist, Varun gains access to the Roy Chaudhary household with plans to carry out a heist. However, when Varun's true identity is revealed, a series of tragic events unfold.Lootera is inspired by O. Henry's short story "The Last Leaf" and is known for its emotional depth and poetic storytelling. While the film was a commercial success, it gained an even stronger following over time, becoming a beloved film among both audiences and critics.

New Delhi [India], February 18 : Acclaimed filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane recently shared his insights on the challenges of creating historical films in India, where controversy and self-censorship often come into play. Speaking with ANI, Motwane discussed the impact of these challenges on the creative process. Motwane's remarks come in the wake of the controversy surrounding the period drama "Chhaava," which was forced to delete a dance sequence featuring Vicky Kaushal's character Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj doing a lezim dance after politicians raised objections. This incident highlights the delicate balance between artistic expression and cultural sensitivities in India."Of course, it is challenging. Because then you have to think of self-censorship before you do it because you don't know who you're going to offend at some point in time. So from a purely creative perspective, yes, it does affect the process of creativity," he said.When asked about the trend of re-releasing films in theatres, Motwane expressed his desire to bring back his 2018 film "Bhavesh Joshi Superhero" to the big screen. He believes the film's themes of corruption and social justice are more relevant now than ever.In the past few years, there has been a trend of re-releasing films in theatres, and audiences enjoy watching their favourite films.He said that the right time to re-release "'Bhavesh Joshi Superhero," saying "the superhero film targeting corruption and that sort of stuff." 'Bhavesh Joshi Superhero' was released in 2018. It stars Harshvardhan Kapoor in the lead role along with Priyanshu Painyuli, Ashish Verma and Nishikant Kamat in the supporting roles.Motwane's filmography is characterized by its diversity, ranging from coming-of-age dramas like "Udaan" to experimental projects like "CTRL," which explores the intersection of artificial intelligence and social media. For Motwane, the key to his creative process is excitement and a willingness to take risks.From 'Udaan', 'Lootera', 'CTRL', and 'Sacred Games' to the recent one, 'Black Warrant', Motwane never seems to follow any particular legacy or stick to the genre, as his only criterion behind any project is "excitement"."If I am excited about something, then I can spend months or years on that project. It is essential that if I am giving my time and putting my energy into any story, it should excite me as a filmmaker or as a creator. I'm always happy to make as many different kinds of films as possible," said Motwane.The director ventured into the digital space with his film 'CTRL', which stars Ananya Panday in the lead role. He shared his perspective on artificial intelligence and social media, saying, "So, I think AI, if we use it as a tool, which is an effective tool, to be able to help creative people or help the medical industry or assist in making life easier or making your job easier, I understand that, and I'm all for it. My problem with AI is when AI is going to be used, and the problem is that that decision is not going to be left up to the creative people alone. And always, it's always, as always, the decision to adopt AI or to use it or to do anything is left with the people who actually have the money, and they always use it to make more money.""And my concern becomes when AI is used and people lose their jobs, or that AI is used to spread misinformation, or that AI is used for any of the wrong reasons that it's being used for. For me, that's a problem. I think that we need to find out and figure out how to use it in a better way."He also talked about his debut project 'Udaan', which is going to be part of the Red Lorry Film Festival. It will also commemorate 15 years of the film, which was released in 2010. The film stars Rajat Barmecha, Ronit Roy and Ram Kapoor."It's the first film, first child, first baby, and the fact that it's still got an interest level going 15 years after release, I think, is a great thing. So I'm, as always, excited to show the film to an audience who's maybe never seen it or to show it to people again who have seen it and appreciate it and love it."Red Lorry Film Festival, India's premiere international film festival curated by BookMyShow, is set to return with its second edition from March 21 to 23, 2025, in Mumbai as Red Lorry Film Festival: Take 2 and for the first time in Hyderabad as an exciting new chapter titled Red Lorry Film Festival: Parallel Verse.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 10 : The screening of Vikramaditya Motwane's upcoming release, 'Black Warrant', took place in Mumbai on Thursday evening and was attended by several celebs from B-town. The prison drama, starring Zahan Kapoor, the grandson of late Bollywood legend Shashi Kapoor, will premiere on Netflix today.Among the attendees was actor Ranbir Kapoor, Zahan's cousin, who arrived to support his family member. Ranbir posed for photos alongside Zahan and director Vikramaditya Motwane. The 'Brahmastra' actor looked dapper in a casual yet stylish denim-on-denim outfit. He wore a classic white T-shirt paired with a denim jacket and matching jeans, completing his look with white sneakers.The event was a star-studded affair with notable celebrities such as Ananya Panday, Pratik Gandhi, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Ali Fazal, and others in attendance.Talking about Black Warrant, the makers released the teaser in December last year.The teaser shows Zahan trying to survive as he learns to navigate the harsh realities of prison life, while his colleagues ask him to toughen up. The teaser also shows Rahul Bhatt, who appears to be playing the role of an authoritative cop. The series marks Zahan's debut in the world of web series.The film is directed by Motwane and Satyanshu Singh, along with co-directors Ambiecka Pandit, Arkesh Ajay and Rohin Raveendran Nair.Paramvir Singh Cheema, Anurag Thakur and Sidhant Gupta, also play key roles.Presented by Applause Entertainment in collaboration with Andolan Production and Confluence Media, the series is inspired by true events and is based on the book 'Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer' by Sunil Gupta, a former Tihar Jail superintendent, and journalist-author Sunetra Choudhury. The series will premiere on Netflix on January 10, 2025.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 19 : After basking in the success of his previous projects 'Sacred Games' and 'CTRL', Vikramaditya Motwane is now set to take fans inside the harsh realities of India's most infamous prison with his upcoming web series, 'Black Warrant'.Netflix, on Thursday, released the teaser for the prison drama, which stars actor Zahan Kapoor as a newly appointed jailer struggling to adapt to the tough environment of Tihar Jail.The teaser shows Zahan trying to survive as he learns to navigate the harsh realities of prison life, while his colleagues ask him to toughen up. The teaser also shows Rahul Bhatt, who appears to be playing the role of an authoritative cop. The series marks Zahan's debut in the world of web series. The actor is the grandson of late Bollywood legend Shashi Kapoor. Check out the teaser: View this post on InstagramA post shared by Vikramaditya Motwane (@motwayne)The film is directed by Motwane and Satyanshu Singh, along with co-directors Ambiecka Pandit, Arkesh Ajay and Rohin Raveendran Nair. Paramvir Singh Cheema, Anurag Thakur and Sidhant Gupta, also play key roles. Presented by Applause Entertainment in collaboration with Andolan Production and Confluence Media, the series is inspired by true events and is based on the book 'Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer' by Sunil Gupta, a former Tihar Jail superintendent, and journalist-author Sunetra Choudhury.The series will premiere on Netflix on January 10, 2025.Meanwhile, Motwane recently received praise for his cyber-thriller film 'CTRL', which starred Ananya Panday and Vihaan Samat. The movie also marked Ananya Panday's second OTT release this year, following her debut in the series 'Call Me Bae' in September. The cyberthriller was released on October 4 on Netflix.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 9 : Filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane, best known for his projects 'Udaan', 'Lootera' and 'Ctrl', is now all set to come up with a series titled 'Black Warrant'.It presents the series based on the dramatized book Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer by Sunil Gupta and Sunetra Choudhury.Set in the 1980s, Black Warrant is a fictionalised retelling of certain true events told from the perspective of Sunil Gupta, a timid rookie jailer at Tihar Jail, as he confronts the brutal realities, high-profile cases and complex power dynamics within Tihar's walls, as per the makers.Excited about the project, Vikramaditya Motwane in a press note shared, "Black Warrant is a book that is raw, intense, and authentic and immediately demands to be brought to life. Collaborating with Netflix, Applause Entertainment, and Confluence has been incredible, and I'm grateful to have had partners who have supported me and the team in telling this story the way it deserves to be told."'Black Warrant' will be out on Netflix.Sameer Nair, Managing Director of Applause Entertainment, added," "Black Warrant delves into the untold contemporary history of Tihar Jail--a world rarely explored with such depth and authenticity. Collaborating with a visionary like Vikramaditya Motwane has brought a unique perspective, infusing the story with both nuance and realism. Partnering with Netflix allows us to share this powerful and resonant tale with a global audience, offering a rare glimpse into a hidden world that leaves a lasting impact."Cast of the project has not been announced yet.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 7 : Vikramaditya Motwane, who is best known for pushing boundaries in Indian cinema with his diverse films across genres, has now ventured into the digital space with his latest film CTRL, which stars Ananya Panday in the lead role. The director, who has previously worked on films like Udaan, Lootera, and Trapped, brings India's first screenlife thriller -- a story told entirely through the lens of Artificial Intelligence.In the film, Ananya plays Nella Awasthi, an influencer who, after a painful breakup, turns to Artificial Intelligence (AI) to erase her ex-boyfriend Joe from her life.While speaking to ANI, Motwane shared what made him choose the 'Gehraiyaan' actress as the perfect fit for the role. When asked why he believed Ananya was the ideal choice, Motwane said he was looking for someone who could connect with today's generation, someone who is young, someone who is "internet savvy," and also someone who "gets trolled a little bit.""I saw her performance in 'Gehraiyaan' and really liked it. She was so special in that film -- so unique and so present. I loved it. So, the moment the script was ready, it was a no-brainer to approach her. I wanted someone young, someone social media savvy, internet savvy, and Instagram savvy, who has a strong presence, you know? Someone who comes across as youthful and a youth icon. She also, in a way, gets trolled a little bit, and maybe that played a part in it. But mainly, I just love her as an actress."Motwane also shared how the idea for CTRL came about, saying he has always been a big fan of screenlife films, drawing inspiration from movies like "Searching and Unfriended"."I think it was just the idea of making this really interesting thriller. I've been a big fan of previous screen-life films. I think the inspiration, in that sense, has come from movies like Searching and Unfriended, which have used this screen life format -- this voyeuristic way of looking at someone's computer. That has been a huge inspiration, Motwane shared"Avinash Sampath and I worked on this. He came up with the story, and we liked it right away. It felt like a very cool thriller for the new audience, you know, the one that spends so much of their lives on social media and online. From there, one thing led to another, and it eventually turned into this film," he added.The movie marks Ananya Panday's second OTT release this year, following her debut in the series 'Call Me Bae' in September. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, the film also stars Vihaan Samat, best known for his role in 'Mismatched'.The cyberthriller was released on October 4 on Netflix and is now available for streaming.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 5 : Ananya Panday has left movie buffs mesmerised with her performance in her latest release, 'CTRL', a gripping cyberthriller directed by Vikramaditya Motwane.In the film, Ananya plays Nella Awasthi, an influencer who, after a painful breakup, turns to Artificial Intelligence (AI) to erase her ex-boyfriend Joe from her life. While the story takes a thrilling turn with AI going out of control, Ananya shared how she handles breakups in real life.Speaking to ANI, Ananya revealed that, unlike her character Nella, she leans on her "real friends" when going through tough times, especially breakups."I lean on my real-life friends only. As Nella proved in the film, it's not the best thing to rely on AI and all these digital things. I prefer to stick to physical friendships," she shared.The 'CTRL' actress also spoke about handling social media trolling, saying she's become more "thick-skinned" over time. "It affects me as much as it would affect any other person, but I think it also depends on the day. Sometimes I'm able to deal with stuff better, and some days it affects me a lot more. But in general, I'm a lot more thick-skinned than I was, and I don't let unnecessary, irrelevant voices reach me," she said.The movie marks her second OTT release this year, following her debut in the series 'Call Me Bae' in September. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, the film also stars Vihaan Samat, best known for his role in 'Mismatched'.The cyberthriller was released on October 4 on Netflix and is now available for streaming.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], September 25 : After entertaining the audience with her series 'Call Me Bae', actor Ananya Panday is now all set to surprise her fans with another captivating performance in Vikramaditya Motwane's directorial 'CTRL'.On Tuesday, the makers unveiled the intriguing trailer of the film.View this post on InstagramA post shared by Netflix India (@netflix_in)Pegged as a cutting-edge thriller on our rising dependency on technology, the trailer shows Ananya as Nella Awasthi and Vihaan Samat as Joe Mascarenhas, a romantic couple who create content together and are loved by their Internet audience.However, their perfect online life takes a dark turn when they break up and Ananya gives the steering wheel of her life to a social media application named "CTRL".Opening up about her character, Ananya in a press note shared by Netflix, said, "My character Nella, is like any of us. She's caught up in a world dominated by technology and social media. CTRL explores how we navigate the fine line between our online presence and who we are in real life. Working with Vikram sir and Nikhil sir has been an incredible journey, and I can't wait for you to watch it on Netflix and uncover the connection between Nella and Allen."Ruchikaa Kapoor Sheikh, Director, Original Films Netflix, also shared what audience can expect from the film."We think technology helps us have it all under control. But does it? CTRL navigates these vital questions in today's digital first age. We're excited to bring this thrilling Netflix original to audiences worldwide through Vikramaditya Motwane's unique lens. Ananya Panday's compelling performance elevates the film, making it nearly impossible to pause this gripping experience. We hope viewers across the globe will connect with CTRL and the diverse storytelling we strive for at Netflix," she said.As per Vikramaditya Motwane, 'CTRL' is "told in what we call the screen life format, which is telling a story in an almost voyeuristic way using the tech that we use literally every single day. Our goal has been to create this incredible immersive experience, and Netflix as a platform has really helped us in reaching our global audience."The film will be out on Netflix on October 4.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 31 : Veteran writers Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, who were the masterminds behind 'Sholay', came together for a special screening of the iconic film in Mumbai on Saturday. The screening at Regal Cinema was also attended by Shabana Azmi, Zoya Akhtar, Vikramaditya Motwane, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Kunal Roy Kapur, and more.Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) organised the screening of the nearly 50-year-old vintage 70 mm cinemascope print of the iconic blockbuster Sholay (1975). 'Sholay' revolves around the village of Ramgarh, where retired police chief Thakur Baldev Singh (Sanjeev Kumar) plots to bring down the notorious bandit Gabbar Singh (Amjad Khan) and enlists the help of two lesser criminals, Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra). When Gabbar attacks the village, Jai and Veeru wonder why Thakur does nothing to help them. They soon learn that he has no arms and that Gabbar was the one who cut them off. Enraged by this, they redouble their efforts to help Thakur.The special screening comes a few days after the legendary writer jodi opened up about their historic partnership in Prime Video's docuseries 'Angry Young Men'. It features interviews with celebrities like Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Karan Johar, Amitabh Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, and more.Directed by Namrata Rao, the three-part documentary is produced by Salman Khan Films, Excel Media and Entertainment, and Tiger Baby.