The Immortal Ashwatthama - Is 'Uri' director Aditya Dhar's loss, this Kannada filmmaker's gain?

Speculations have been rife about Shahid Kapoor taking on another enterprising role of the mythological hero Ashwatthama in what is being termed an "ambitious project". The 'Kabir Singh' actor is currently touted to play the famed Mahabharatha character in a production backed by a major Hindi film production choice, with an interesting choice of a director at the helm of things.

Although there isn't an official confirmation about the same, the latest reports do state that Kannada's own Sachin B Ravi will direct the said project. Sachin B Ravi, of course, made his debut in 2019 with the action-adventure Avane Srimannarayana, which stars Rakshit Shetty in the lead, and since then has been busy developing the Ashwatthama film. 

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Aditya Dhar's loss is Sachin B Ravi's gain?

Many would also know that Aditya Dhar's passion project 'The Immortal Ashwatthama' has been stuck in "development hell", as it were, for quite some time and that budget has been a major constraint for the 'Uri' director. Dhar had sought Vicky Kaushal to play the titular role with Ronnie Screwvala's RSVP Productions originally meant to back the film. 

However, owing to the massive scale that the filmmaker envisioned for the project, the film would then move around within the industry and multiple other actors and producers would be approached, but all in vain. 

At one point, Telugu stars Allu Arjun and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, too, were attached to Aditya Dhar's project but one now hears that the filmmaker has chosen to focus on other films for the time being. 

So, with 'The Immortal Ashwatthama' now back-burnered, technically, one gathers that a different and more feasible project in the form of the Shahid Kapoor-led film could be brought to the fore. The new project is expected to go on floors sometime in mid-2024 with Kapoor potentially undergoing a stark physical change to fit the bill. Sachin B Ravi is also said to be penning the script based on an original idea.

What does this mean to the Shiva Rajkumar-led project?

Many would also know that Sachin B Ravi had designed another 'Ashwatthama' project envisioning Century Star Shiva Rajkumar in the lead role, which was to take off earlier this year. However, owing to various factors, that film still remains in the development stage. With the young filmmaker now potentially collaborating with Shahid Kapoor, it would be interesting to see what comes of the Kannada film. 

More about the Sachin B Ravi - Shiva Rajkumar film in the link below:

Exclusive! "If there's an epitome of immortality and agelessness for us Kannadigas, it has to be Shivanna," says filmmaker Sachin B. Ravi