Exclusive | How are Ghost & Birbal Trilogy linked? MG Srinivas answers...

MG Srinivas' next film as a director, Ghost, has got everybody talking and for all the positive reasons. His previous outings such as Old Monk and Birbal Trilogy Case 1: Finding Vajramuni have allowed him to make a niche for himself in Kannada cinema but with Ghost, he is quite evidently trying something newer and much bigger. The scale of the project is bigger than usual and he has got the services of some of the most seasoned and well-known actors of the country in the form of Shiva Rajkumar, Anupam Kher and Jayaram. 

Of course, Shiva Rajkumar, or Shivanna, leads the pack as The Big Daddy and the recent promo that the makers released on his birthday (July 12) suggests that Ghost is a high-stakes affair brimming with action and thrills. 

What the project also includes is ambition and vision on MG Srinivas' part, and the filmmaker has already made it clear that Ghost is only a part of a much larger canvas. It's Srini's own Cinematic Universe is what it is which will comprise Ghost (as a two-part film), The Birbal Trilogy and spin-offs based on exciting characters we get to see in these films.

Also Read:
Exclusive! Shiva Rajkumar to undergo digital de-aging seen in Laal Singh Chaddha, The Irishman for M.G. Srinivas' 'Ghost' 

"The blueprint, so to speak, for this universe, is laid out but it will evolve over time and we will improvise along the way. The idea to combine Ghost and Birbal worlds occurred to us (the creative team) right when we began working on the former but you need it to be a necessity and not just some kind of a gimmick. That initial excitement when you chase a thought such as this is important and we went ahead once we got that 'kick'," says Srini.

More importantly, one wonders what the status of Birbal 2 is. Srini had shared the first glimpse of the much-awaited second instalment of the trilogy with an alluring poster and announced that the film would most likely arrive in cinemas in 2023. However, with Ghost demanding all his time and effort, it would seem that the wait for Birbal Case 2 will get a bit longer.

"We are working on the script and are planning on taking the film on floors right after Ghost is out. But unlike what was initially planned, Birbal 2 will not be a 2023 but a 2024 release. It will be bigger in terms of scale compared to the first part and we are in the pursuit of achieving it. The cast is yet to fall into place but as soon it does, I will be happy to share," says MG Srinivas before signing off.

Ghost is set to arrive in theatres worldwide this Dasara and will release as a pan-Indian film in multiple languages. Sandesh Nagaraj produces the film with Arjun Janya scoring the music.