The Heeramandi Effect

Sometimes it takes an ensemble piece to highlight a particular talent. Aditi Rao Hydari has worked with some of the coun­try’s finest filmmakers, begin­ning with Mani Ratnam in Kaatru Veliyidai (2017) doing excellent work, but she never quite got her due in Hindi cinema. That was until last year, when Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Netflix series Heeramandi gave her a part she could inhabit fully. Hydari’s character Bibbojaan was wily and beautiful, and would stop at nothing to help the growing movement for independence. Now comes news that she will be working with Pankaj Tripathi in what promises to be a social comedy, ‘Parivarik ManuRanjan’.

Rasha’s Rise

After sharing screen space with Aaman Devgan and his horse in her debut movie Azaad, Rasha Thadani, all of 20, is set for her second movie collaboration with rising star, Abhay Verma in ‘Layka, Layki’. Thadani, Raveena Tandon’s daughter, already has 3.2 million followers on Instagram and her dance moves mimic her mother’s. Her screen union with Verma, who has come up in the Mumbai film industry the hard way and had a big hit last year in Munjya, may well elevate her career from social media celebrity to movie star in the making.

Sunny Days

After going head-to-head with Tom Hardy in this year’s Havoc, action star Sunny Pang will be making his Indian film debut in Anshuman Jha’s ‘Lakadbaggha 2: The Monkey Business’. Jha, an actor and director, makes independent movies, a rare achievement in the crowded world of status quoists. He directed Lord Curzon ki Haveli (2023), a festival favourite, which has still not been released theatrically in India, and is now producing and directing ‘Lakadbaggha 2’. Sometimes the best way to make things happen is to take charge.

Aditi Rao HydariBollywoodcinemaRasha ThadaniSunny Pang