Alia Bhatt Joins YRF Spy universe, shooting to begin later this year

For over six months, news of Alia Bhatt's casting in the highly anticipated film YRF Spy Universe has been making waves. Akshaye Widhani, CEO of Yash Raj Films, now verified this momentous occurrence on March 5 at FICCI Frames.

When prodded constantly to reveal one new development within the YRF Spy Universe, Akshaye said, “I'll share the worst-kept secret in the industry, which is, Alia Bhatt is headlining a Spy Universe film and that the schedule starts later this year. But you know, talking about this spy universe, we actually just so thrilled and excited about having this IP (intellectual property) in the studio.”

He added, “I think the YRF Spy Universe is a financial and cultural juggernaut. And as one of the most prized IPs, we take a lot of pride in it. So there's a lot of stuff that's going to come on the spy universe. We're going to see more and more films getting made under it. But we will talk about it at a more opportune time. For now, I can just say that Alia Bhatt is headlining a spy universe film.”

In the untitled movie, Alia Bhatt and Sharvari Wagh are expected to collaborate. They will appear in the action entertainment as super-agents.

Akshaye also talked about YRF's incredible success this year on Netflix with "The Railway Men," a blockbuster drama on the Bhopal Gas Tragedy that has become a global phenomenon! On Netflix, it peaked at number three! "The Romantics," a documentary series about YRF and its half-century influence on popular culture, has achieved international acclaim.

Akshaye said, “‘The Railway Men’ trended in over 36 countries, but you feel the success of content when you know people who don't speak your language, are watching the content and appreciating it. For me, that is a huge definition of success. We are a company that is not afraid to fail. We want to be able to do disruptive content.”

He added, “India loves movies. It's a big part of our culture, it's a big part of our team. And I think ‘The Romantics’ was a journey that every viewer went on. So everybody has a YRF story in their life. My parents had a YRF story from Yash Ji's times. I had a YRF story from Adi's times. So, like me, there are other people who all have a YRF story. There is a song that played at your wedding, which was from a YRF film. There was a time in life when you went to watch a movie and that was a YRF film, and you went with that certain someone who you might be with or might not be with, but you still have fond memories of.”

Akshaye further said, “I think, because of that connect, and connect with this company, and the studio has had it, it's a cultural connect with audiences. And that's what excited people and drew people to watch ‘The Romantics’, which would make them love it more. The sheer nostalgia here, to the youth connected to them, because again, there was a story about their family, or a movie that they had watched and loved. Not to forget, it also had Aditya Chopra making his debut on screen and that gave us an incredible number of eyeballs!”

Salman Khan's "Ek Tha Tiger" (2012), "Tiger Zinda Hai" (2017), and "War" (2019), starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff, were the first three films in the YRF Spy Universe. The films "Pathaan," starring John Abraham, Deepika Padukone, and Shah Rukh Khan, and "Tiger 3," featuring Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, advanced it. The next project, "War 2," is being directed by Ayan Mukerji and stars Hrithik Roshan, NTR Jr., and Kiara Advani.