Zaid Khan goes from sci-fi to all out mass with his second film, Cult

Zaid Khan, the son of politician Zameer Ahmed Khan, is gearing up for his second film. The actor, who debuted with the experimental sci-fi romantic drama Banaras, directed by Jayathirtha, is set to do yet another love story. This time, though, going by the first look that’s been revealed along with the title, Cult, Zaid is going for a more commercial massy approach, than what he did in his debut.

To be directed by Anil Kumar, whose latest, Upadhyaksha was a box office success, Cult, which will have music by Arjun Janya, will go on floors in June. The title announcement poster features Zaid in a rugged and bearded avatar with a wound on his cheek. His face is straddled by the feet of a woman, with the cigarette he’s smoking, wedged firmly between the toes.

Banaras actor Zaid Khan on Bollywood: 'I am a Kannadiga and I want to be part of Kannada Cinema" 

Speaking to the media earlier, Zaid had said that Cult would be a romantic drama meant for today’s youth. The poster, though, had netizens wondering if the film would have elements of toxic masculinity, violence and sex, with some saying that it had vibes of the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Animal. The film’s tagline is ‘Bloody Love’, which should explain the wound on Zaid’s face.

It is still early days to speculate about the subject, but it appears that Anil Kumar’s got a raw and intense love story planned for the actor. Zaid’s debut film, Banaras, paired him with Sonal Monteiro and involved the concept of a time loop. While his efforts were appreciated, the film didn’t click. The actor had not dubbed for himself as he was not confident about his Kannada diction at the time, something that he is working on and hoping to remedy in time for Cult.

Banaras movie review: Jayathirtha's promising time loop saga is meandering, indecisive 

Many years ago, Indrajit Lankesh had announced he would introduce Zaid in cinema, but that fell through and the responsibility eventually came to Jayathirtha. Banaras is available to stream on Zee5.