Maddock Films' ambitious Horror-Comedy Universe (MHCU) is set to witness its first major shake-up. PeepingMoon.com has learned that Dinesh Vijan’s ‘Shakti Shalini’, starring Kiara Advani, has been postponed by a year, significantly altering the timelines of MHCU’s recently announced eight interconnected films planned for release over the next four years.

The delay in ‘Shakti Shalini’ is attributed to Kiara’s pregnancy. She is expecting her first baby with husband Sidharth Malhotra this year and will return to work only mid-next year. Although there was speculation that the makers might recast the role, sources have confirmed that the project will move forward only with Kiara in the lead. The film, to be directed by ‘Tabbar’ fame Ajitpal Singh, was scheduled to start production in June. 

While Vijan’s decision to honor Kiara’s maternity break is commendable, it’s going to inevitably impact the release strategy for his multi-film Horror-Comedy Universe. ‘Shakti Shalini’, originally set for a December 31 release, will no longer premiere this year, leaving ‘Thama’ — a vampire comedy featuring Ayushmann Khurrana, Rashmika Mandanna, and Nawazuddin Siddiqui — as MHCU’s only release this year. The writing team is now revising the universe’s narrative arc to accommodate these changes.

 

 

 

 

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Given these developments, the MHCU's roadmap — to release eight films till 2028 — might extend to 2030. Most upcoming projects are likely to face rescheduling and production delays, making it difficult to meet their release targets. Varun Dhawan’s ‘Bhediya 2’ is not starting before the year-end, while Alia Bhatt’s ‘Chamunda’ is still in the scripting stage with no director attached yet. Considering they're heavily reliant on VFX and require at least six months of post-production each, it's unlikely for them to be ready for scheduled release, thereby pushing other interconnected films as well. 

Fueled by the massive box office successes of ‘Munjya’ and ‘Stree 2’ last year, Maddock Films had in January unveiled an ambitious lineup of eight interconnected films as part of the MHCU. The initial plan was to release two films per year through 2028: ‘Thama’ and ‘Shakti Shalini’ were slated for 2025; ‘Bhediya 2’ and ‘Chamunda’ for August 14 and December 4, 2026, respectively; followed by ‘Stree 3’ and ‘Maha Munjya’ on August 13 and December 24, 2027, respectively. The MHCU was intended to culminate with two final chapters, ‘Pehla Mahayudh’ and ‘Doosra Mahayudh’, scheduled for August 11 and October 18, 2028, respectively.

Meanwhile, Kiara has two films lined up. Hrithik Roshan and Jr. NTR’s anticipated ‘War 2’ is scheduled to release on August 14 this year, while ‘KGF’ star Yash’s ‘Toxic’ will hit cinemas on the Eid 2026 weekend. The actress was also set to star alongside Ranveer Singh in Farhan Akhtar's ‘Don 3’, but she opted out of the film due to her pregnancy.