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By:

Bharati Dubey

17 May 2026 at 1:38:10 am

After Don-3 controversy, Ranveer’s next film goes on floors

Mumbai: After months of attention surrounding his reported exit from Don 3, Ranveer Singh has finally moved on to his next major cinematic venture. The actor’s ambitious survival spectacle Pralay has officially gone on floors in Mumbai today, marking the beginning of filming on one of the most ambitious and scale-driven projects in Indian cinema. Headlined by Ranveer Singh and directed by Jai Mehta, Pralay is an original end-of-the-world action thriller that promises to take audiences into a...

After Don-3 controversy, Ranveer’s next film goes on floors

Mumbai: After months of attention surrounding his reported exit from Don 3, Ranveer Singh has finally moved on to his next major cinematic venture. The actor’s ambitious survival spectacle Pralay has officially gone on floors in Mumbai today, marking the beginning of filming on one of the most ambitious and scale-driven projects in Indian cinema. Headlined by Ranveer Singh and directed by Jai Mehta, Pralay is an original end-of-the-world action thriller that promises to take audiences into a world on the brink of annihilation. Produced by Ananya Birla’s Birla Studios, Hansal Mehta and Sahil Saigal’s True Story Films, and Maa Kasam Films, the film combines large-scale spectacle with a deeply human story of survival, courage and the instinct to fight for what matters most. The film marks Ranveer’s next major motion picture following Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar – The Revenge, which emerged as the highest-grossing film of all time. With Pralay, the actor once again ventures into unexplored cinematic territory, taking on a disruptive new concept that demands both physical intensity and emotional conviction. Ranveer will also serve as a producer on the film. The project comes at an important point in the actor’s career. His reported exit from Don 3 had generated considerable buzz, particularly as he was expected to carry forward one of Indian cinema’s most iconic franchises. With Pralay, Ranveer now turns the page with an entirely original story rather than stepping into another established universe. Joining him is Lokah breakout actress Kalyani Priyadarshan, who plays a pivotal role in the film and brings together another exciting performer from the new generation of Indian talent. For Ananya Birla, Pralay represents Birla Studios’ ambition to push the boundaries of mainstream Indian cinema by collaborating with contemporary creative forces. For True Story Films’ Hansal Mehta and Sahil Saigal, the project reflects their commitment to disruptive storytelling and content-driven cinema. Behind the camera, Jai Mehta leads the ambitious project. His work on Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story, which he co-directed with Hansal Mehta, and Lootere has earned widespread acclaim. With Pralay, he steps into a significantly larger canvas, bringing together an ensemble of creative and technical talent from India and around the world. Set against the unmistakable pulse and landscape of Mumbai, Pralay follows a relentless journey of survival against the terrifying possibility of an end-of-the-world catastrophe. The film aims to marry breathtaking spectacle with an emotional core, exploring what people are willing to do to survive when the world as they know it begins to collapse. The makers are shooting extensively at live locations in and around Mumbai, embracing the physicality and unpredictability of real-world environments. The approach is designed to add scale, texture and realism to the apocalyptic world while creating an immersive theatrical experience. The film had already undergone several months of highly technical and intensive pre-production before cameras began rolling. Its ambitious mounting and unusual premise have made Pralay one of the most talked-about upcoming projects in Indian cinema.

Pleasant engagement with the maestro

There's a lot to learn from Ustad Zakir Hussain and artists like Pt. Jasraj who shared one stage and congratulated each other with clean mind for the masterpieces that invited audience applause

Ustad Zakir Hussain

During my Engineering college days in Banaras, my first encounter with Indian classical music was mesmerizing. It was Banaras Hindu University and a pure hub of musical stalwarts exchanging their knowledge with each other and the students. The music college affiliated to BHU had frequent artist visitors daily. It was the platform that introduced me to different avenues of music, like violin by Padmabhushan Dr. N. Rajam, veena by Dr LalMani Mishra appointed by great P. Omkarnath Thakur, sitar, sarangi, jaltarang, santur, outstanding tabla players like Ishwarlal / Chotelal / Ramji Mishras - all disciples of legendary tabla player Anokhelal.


Returning to Mumbai after completing Engineering it was a disappointment as music programs were found to be difficult to book the tickets for, too expensive & not as frequent as we came across in Banaras. The surprise element was Zakir Hussain’s solo recital in the mood indigo event of IIT Bombay.


He was a new artist and I was sceptical if there would be any audience. To my surprise the theatre was overcrowded. Zakirji performed in such a way that the entire youthful audience with purely technical & engineering silhouette, with strong orientation of migrating to the US, was repeatedly giving tumultuous applause. Zakirji made some innovation to demonstrate a composition on Tabla, by striking a similarity of that rhythmical piece to that of the beauty of a jumpy running of a dear, galloping horse & so on, making him a unique illustrator.


While the youth was appearing to be drifting away from classical music, the mood indigo program clearly showed Zakirji’s ability to pull back the youth to our cultural ethos. I anxiously used to wait for Zakirji’s concert either solo or an accompaniment to another artist both spellbinding. Once he was accompanying Pt Jasraj Ji. Generally, the main artist, particularly a vocal artist doesn’t give much scope to an accompanying tabla player or a harmonium player. The chemistry of Pt. Jasraj & Zakirji seemed to be totally different. Jasrajji was slowly rendering upper notes & encouraging Zakirji to reproduce it on Tabla.


To my astonishment, for the first time I heard two or three matching notes at the end of the mukhda produced on tabla. He actually produced a tune on Tabla and took the audience to another level of bliss. At the upper notes in “atitaarsaptak”, Zakirji shook his head expressing inability, drawing roaring applause from the audience. Considering Zakirji’s potential, Jasrajji had no option but to give a free hand to Zakirji amid performances. It was a legendary concert, devoid of ego, domination and complete dedication and evolution of art.


Another memory which I wish to mention here is when Zakirji and his father and guru Ustad Alla Rakha khan once performed at Shivaji Park in Dadar. The host was Rani Varma, daughter of great vocalist Manik Varma. She had rightly said that listening to the performance of tabla by the Guru-Shishya duo is like acquiring A to Z knowledge of tabla. What an apt compliment it was indeed!


Needless to say, the sad demise of such a flawless yet humble artist is a great loss to the field of music. My friend residing in the US was shocked to hear the sad news as his memory of hearing him play at a concert of Santoor player Shivkumar Sharma’s son just two weeks ago. Little did we know, it would be his last performance!


(Writer is B-Tech (Electrical) and a fan of late Ustad Zakir Hussain. Views Personal.)

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