Sanjay Leela Bhansali has left everyone in a frenzy announcing its next big project with a casting coup of Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, and Vicky Kaushal. The filmmaker is set to direct an epic saga titled Love & War bringing stellar talents together in a film. Following the success of Heermandi this is SLB’s most awaited project. Recently the makers announced a change in dates pushing the release to March 20, 2026. 

Now reports are rife that Sanjay Leela Bhansali has inked a big nontheatrical deal for Love & War. Allegedly he has booked an immense monetary deal with streaming giant Netflix before the release for a post-theatrical digital run. Also, he has made a record music deal with Saregama. The filmmaker aims to go YRF and Red Chillies’ way self producing the movie with no studio partner.  

According to Pinkvilla, a source close to the development said, “SLB has decided to self-finance Love And War, opting for the model followed by studios like YRF and Red Chillies. Even before the film going on floors, he has signed a massive post-theatrical deal with Netflix, and a near-record music deal with Saregama.”

Reportedly, Netflix has purchased the film for a premium price while its base price for a deal is Rs 130 crore. If reports are to be believed the streaming giant has taken this step due to Heeramandi's success which was also a SLB  web series. As per the source, “the overall non-theatrical revenue for Love And War is expected to be in the range of Rs 215 crore, with the possibility of going higher based on the theatrical performance.” “SLB has fetched Rs 35 crore for music from Saregama, whereas the talks are going on for a satellite deal with a leading network in the vicinity of Rs 50 crore,” the source added. 

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is mounting Love & War at a massive scale with a production cost of around Rs 200 excluding talent fees. The filmmaker chose a no-studio plan despite receiving a Rs 350 crore deal from other production studios. According to source, “The three leading actors – Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal – have gone for backend deals with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, with Ranbir getting a lion’s share from the set of theatrical revenue. SLB is looking to sell the global distribution rights too for a certain price keeping the overflow share clause intact for himself ahead of the film’s release. The theatrical rights/share could act as the acting fees for the trio, as the non-theatrical rights have taken care of the cost of production.”

Love & War is expected to be a humongous hit coming from ace director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. The casting trio of Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, and Vicky Kaushal promises an exciting big-screen cinematic experience. The love saga is expected to go on floors in October 2024.