Saif Ali Khan is set to have an exciting 2024. The Vikram Vedha star starts the year shooting a Netflix survival thriller for Pathaan director Siddharth Anand’s banner and will follow that up with two releases: Jr. NTR’s pan-India action entertainer, Devara Part 1, and the investigative drama, Kartavya, produced by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment.
Adding to his already impressive lineup, Saif has now signed a film with Junglee Pictures, widely recognized for backing content-driven cinema like Raazi, Bareilly Ki Barfi, Badhaai Ho, and Doctor G. Peepingmoon.com has exclusively learned that Saif will headline its commercial thriller, Click Shankar. Tamil filmmaker Balaji Mohan, popularly known for directing the Dhanush-starrer Maari franchise, will make his Hindi cinema debut with this spine-tingling drama. Binky Mendez and Balaji Mohan have written the screenplay, with Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta fame Karan Vyas penning the dialogue.
Envisioned as a franchise, Click Shankar stars Saif as Shankar Rebeiro, a witty yet troubled inspector who remembers everything, which is both a boon and a curse for him. His character has a rare condition called hyperthymesia, which enables him to remember every event of his life, ensuring that the past is never quite behind him. The film revolves around Shankar unravelling a mystery that challenges his wit and photographic memory.
“Click Shankar is a brilliantly-written, character-driven subject with a perfect blend of suspense, humor, and emotions. Saif perfectly fits the role and will add an essence of intrigue to the narrative with his sharp charisma and confidence. It’s a role unlike any Saif has played before, and there is no way he could have passed up the opportunity to be a part of this incredibly creative and ambitious project. Saif will begin shooting for this film in May,” a source close to the development told us.
Saif’s film is the latest addition to Junglee Pictures’ robust lineup for 2024-25. The creative studio presently has multiple projects in various stages of development with renowned directors like Jeethu Joseph, Meghna Gulzar, and TJ Gnanavel. Additionally, they have Sudhanshu Saria’s Ulajh, starring Janhvi Kapoor, Roshan Mathew and Gulshan Devaiah, scheduled for release in cinemas this year. The gripping thriller follows the journey of a young IFS officer, belonging to a prominent family of patriots, who gets embroiled in a dangerous personal conspiracy while far from her home turf, at a career-defining post.