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2017 is about to come to an end. It was a year where Bollywood saw actors doing multiple projects, some which really did very well at the box-office, while some just didn’t live up to the expectation of the audience. Owning to this, actors now are playing very cautiously before doing multiple projects at the same time. They are now involved in all aspect of the making irrespective whether the project is small or big. Today, actors are doing multiple films only if they find the content of the film good enough to live up to the expectations of the audience.
Let’s see what Bollywood has in store for us in 2018. Let us explore the actors who will be seen doing multiple projects and will have maximum releases next year. 2018 will see a mixed bunch of talented actors, associated with different genres of cinema.
Akshay Kumar:
The Khiladi of Bollywood ended 2017 on a good note by giving us the box-office success Toilet Ek Prem Katha. 2017 saw three releases of Akshay including Naam Shabana where he played more than a cameo, Jolly LLB 2 a surprising courtroom drama hit and Toilet Ek Prem Katha. In the coming year, Akshay has four major releases including 2.0 –the sequel to Robot where he will be seen playing a negative role opposite Thailava Rajnikant. Following this is R. Balki’s Padman inspired by the real-life story of Arunachalam Muruganantham, to release in January. Akshay will then be seen in a biopic titled Gold Indian, is a sports film directed by Reema Kagti and produced by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar. Gold Indian is a biopic based on the life of hockey player Balbir Singh Sr., who was on the team that won the first Olympic medal for India as a free nation in 1948. The next film to release of the superstar would be Mogul – The Gulshan Kumar Story, a biopic on the life of the music baron Gulshan Kumar – producer and founder of T-Series.
Vicky Kaushal:
Vicky started off his successful career with critically acclaimed film Masaan as a lover boy. He then went on surprising the audience with his negative performance in Raman Raghav 2.0. Though the actor didn’t see any releases this year, he will be the actor with the maximum number of releases in 2018 – 6 films. These films are Raju Hirani’s Dutt biopic where Vicky will be seen playing a character that is very pivotal to the film, following this is Ronnie Screwvala’s Love Per Square Foot which is a romantic comedy and centers around the house hunting drama in Mumbai. Then there is Meghna Gulzar’s Raazi opposite Alia Bhatt where Vicky will be seen playing an army officer, later he will feature in a film on the surgical strike, URI produced by Ronnie Screwvala, then is the sequel of Bombay Talkies where Karan Johar will be directing one of the quartets of the series for which Vicky will be playing the lead. And finally, Anurag Kashyap’s Manmarziyaan alongside Taapsee Pannu which will be produced by Anand L Rai.
Irrfan Khan:
Irrfan’s recent release Qarib Qarib Singlle, a road trip film changed the persona of a romantic actor in Bollywood. Irrfan’s knack for doing content-driven films always put him on par with all the actors of his league. Irrfan will continues to woo the hearts of millions across the globe with 5 releases next year. Irrfan will be seen in Ronnie Screwvala’s Karwaan alongside Malayalam heartthrob Dulquer Salmaan and YouTube sensation Mithila Palkar. Then there is Abhinay Deo’s quirky comedy film Raita with Irrfan Khan and Kirti Kulhari in lead pair. Then there is much talked Vishal Bharadwaj’s crime drama film on the life of women gangster Sapna Didi played by Deepika Padukone. Both the actors Irrfan and Deepika will collaborate after Piku where their equations were appreciated by the audience. Next year, Irrfan will see the release of his Hollywood film Puzzle directed by Marc Turtletaub which is a family drama. And that there is Anup Singh’s The Song of Scorpions which is a twisted love story with revenge and the redemptive power of a song. The film stars Irrfan Khan, Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani and Waheeda Rehman. The film already received a thundering response at its India premiere at MAMI Film Festival.
Anushka Sharma:
Actress turned producer Anushka Sharma didn’t have much to celebrate for her films released this year. Phillauri and Jab Harry Met Sejal didn’t live up to the audience expectations. But next year Anushka has 3 major releases to treat back her audiences with varied performances. She will be seen in the most talked about Raju Hirani’s film on Sanjay Dutt biography with Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal. Then there is mysterious love story Pari, with Anushka playing the titular role and it is also her 3rd production under her production company Clean Slate. After this the audience will be treated with Anand L Rai’s ambitious directorial venture Dwarf starring Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma. The trio was last seen together in the film Jab Tak Hai Jaan. Interestingly Shah Rukh will be seen playing a Dwarf in the film.
Taapsee Pannu:
The year 2017 saw 5 releases of Taapsee in various avatars from de-glam roles in Naam Shabana, The Ghazi Attack to a glamour’s avatar in Judwaa 2 and then in romantic comedy film Running Shaadi to a friendly ghost in Telugu film Anando Brahma. Taapsee did it all this year and she is all set to conquer the next year as well with 5 releases. She will be seen in a court drama film Mulk with Rishi Kapoor where she plays an advocate. The film is set in Lucknow and is loosely inspired by the true incident. Then there is Shaad Ali’s Soorma, a biopic on Indian Hockey skipper Sandeep Singh where she will be seen as a hockey player with Diljit Dosanjh and Angad Bedi. Soorma is currently in filming stage in Punjab. The mid-year 2018 will see two of most anticipated film of Taapsee, Prakash Raj’s romantic comedy film Tadka with Nana Patekar and Ali Fazal which is an adaptation of Malayalam hit film Salt N Pepper. And Vashu Bhagnani’s romantic film Makhna with actor Saqib Saleem. The latest entrant in Taapsee list is Anurag Kashyap’s Manmarziyaan opposite Vicky Kaushal is also slated to release next year.
Richa Chadha:
The Bholi Punjaban of Bollywood, Richa Chadha has come a long way from doing a cameo in Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye to her next release Fukrey Returns. The actress has proved her mettle by doing a variety of roles in different platforms says a lot about her skill as an actor. Other than Fukrey Returns which is going to hit the screens soon, Richa has some amazing line up for the next year. To begin with, Richa will be seen in Sudhir Mishra’s much-awaited film DaasDev a modern take on acclaimed novel and film Devdas which is slated to release in February 2018. And then there is an American-Indo joint venture film Love Sonia directed by Tabrez Noorani. The film has ensemble cast including Richa Chadha, Mrunal Thakur, Freida Pinto, Manoj Bajpayee, Rajkummar Rao, Anupam Kher, Sai Tamhankar, Adil Hussain and diva Demi Moore. The film is based on global Human Trafficking racket. Later next year Richa will treat the audience with Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani’s Three Storeys where Richa will don the role of a desirable woman. The story of Three Stories follows the lives of three different people in a residential colony and how their stories get interwoven.
Tiger Shroff:
Tiger Shroff is the boy every girl wants to bring home, or hold on to on that dark walk home through a rough neighborhood. The Heropanti actor also has few releases lined up next year. Tiger will be reviving his role in martial art action flick Baaghi 2 sequel to Baaghi released in 2016. The film will have loads of breathtaking action sequences as told by filmmaker Sajid Nadiadwala and director Ahmed Khan. Tiger will be seen romancing Disha Patani in the action flick this time. Tiger will also be seen reprising one of the most successful franchises of Hollywood flick, Rambo which will be an official remake of Sylvester Stallone by the same name in India. Tiger Shroff plays the iconic action character in Rambo. The movie will be directed by Siddharth Anand. The third instalment by Jackie’s cub next year would be Karan Johar’s much-awaited sequel to Students of the Year. Tiger will be seen playing one of the students in this successful franchise that launched Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt and Sidharth Malhotra in 2012. Students of the Year 2 will be directed by Punit Malhotra instead of Karan Johar.
Sushant Singh Rajput:
In an industry where outsiders easily fall into an image trap after the initial burst, Sushant Singh Rajput is trying to be different in each film. After a couple of debacles in the year 2017, the actor has few interesting lineups next year. Sushant is all geared up to play a dacoit in Abhishek Chaubey’s Chambal set in the 1970’s. The film is being produced by Ronnie Screwvala and has Bhumi Pednekar opposite Sushant. The film tries to capture the reality and the lives of dacoits in the ravines of Chambal. Sushant Singh will then be seen in Abhishek Kapoor’s directorial venture Kedarnath which is a love story set against the backdrop of pilgrimage. The devastating floods that hit Uttarakhand in 2013 form an important part of the film. Saif Ali Khan’s daughter Sara Ali Khan is making her debut opposite Sushant in Kedarnath that is slated to release on 21st December 2018. Sushant will be seen playing an astronaut in science fiction space film Chanda Mama Door Ke. It is being directed by Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan and produced by Viki Rajani. It also had R Madhavan playing the role of a test pilot in the film. As reported Shraddha Kapoor and Bhumi Pednekar are the female leads in the film. Last but the not the least, Sushant will be seen in Karan Johar’s action comedy film Drive which is an official remake of Hollywood flick with the same name. The film will be directed Tarun Mansukhani and has Jacqueline Fernandes romancing Sushant. As confirmed by producer Karan Johar, Drive will be the first instalment of a new film series.
Sanjay Dutt:
The Baba of Bollywood’s comeback film Bhoomi didn’t live up to the expectation of Sanjay Dutt’s fans but he is all set to woo back his audience with 3 releases next year. Sanjay has signed Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3. The third movie in the franchise will be directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia and will see Sanjay essaying the role of a gangster. Sanjay recently took his Instagram handle to share a picture of his look from the film, and boy, he’s totally nailing the badass look! Next film in row will be a romantic thriller, Malang produced by Bhushan Kumar and Omung Kumar. The film is directed by debutante Aarambhh Singh and is set in Varanasi. After Malang, the audience would get to enjoy the sequel to Dutt’s 1991 super hit film Sadak 2. It will be Sanjay Dutt and Pooja Bhatt reprising the lead roles in the movie being produced by Mukesh Bhatt. Sadak 2 will presumably reach the theatres in August 2018. The film will also have a young couple joining Pooja Bhatt and Sanjay Dutt.
