By: Mohnish Singh
Filmmaker Aditya Dhar, who shot to overnight fame after the huge success of his debut directorial Uri: The Surgical Strike (2019), is set to helm his next, titled The Immortal Ashwatthama. Starring Vicky Kaushal in the lead role, the high-profile project was announced some time ago, but it could not take off for a variety of reasons, including the sudden outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic earlier this year.
Now, it looks like the film is finally making some development as the casting for the female lead opposite Vicky Kaushal has just begun. According to reports, Sara Ali Khan is in advanced talks with the makers of The Immortal Ashwatthama and if things fall into place, she might even sign the film on the dotted line soon.
An Indian publication reports that director Aditya Dhar has been looking for a leading lady for the past year. “The makers feel that Sara fits the bill. They are excited as Vicky and Sara will be a novel on-screen pairing. However, she has yet to sign on the dotted line. The shoot of Aanand L Rai’s Atrangi Re, which sees her team up with Akshay Kumar and Dhanush, was delayed due to the pandemic. So, Sara has to work out her dates for The Immortal Ashwatthama such that she can honour her pending commitments,” a source in the know tells the publication.
We also hear that the makers are planning to develop The Immortal Ashwatthama as a franchise with three parts.
Meanwhile, Sara Ali Khan is gearing up for the release of her next film Coolie No. 1. Also starring Varun Dhawan, the comic-caper is an official remake of Govinda and Karisma Kapoor’s cult comedy film of the same name. Both films have been directed by renowned filmmaker David Dhawan.
Coolie No. 1 is scheduled for its digital premiere on 25th December on Amazon Prime Video.
Alia Bhatt at the Red Sea Film Festival where she spoke about the scale of Alpha Getty Images 
