Have you heard? Vikramaditya Motwane reveals name of Sourav Ganguly biopic as Dada; Industry showers praises on Dhurandhar 2

Vikramaditya Motwane and Sourav Ganguly. Pics/Shadab Khan, PTI

Going back in time

This Sourav Ganguly stand was named in honour of the cricketer in January 2017 to recognise his contribution to Indian and Bengal cricket. Pic/Instagram

Vikramaditya Motwane has announced the beginning of Dada - the biopic on cricketer Sourav Ganguly with a post on Instagram of the black-and-white shot of the Sourav Ganguly Stand at Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata. Along with the picture he wrote, "Take your seats." The film is headlined by Rajkummar Rao. Going by the grapevine, Boman Irani and Gajraj Rao are in advanced talks to play Ganguly's father, Chandi Ganguly and as former BCCI President, Jagmohan Dalmiya, respectively.

When B-town can't stop gushing...

Aditya Dhar. Pic/Yogen Shah; Priyanka Chopra. Pic/AFP; Shefali Shah. Pic/Yogen Shah; Vicky Kaushal. Pic/Instagram; Ranveer Singh in ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge'. Pic/Youtube

Tareefon ke pull bandh rahe hain as Ranveer Singh and Aditya Dhar bask in the praise. Industry bigwigs - Shefali Shah, Priyanka Chopra, and Vicky Kaushal - are showering love on the actor-director duo of ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge'. Shefali took to Instagram with a video of Ranveer and her at an awards gala, reminiscing about their days on the ‘Dil Dhadakne Do' (2015) set, and wrote, "He has no filters. His ability to feel emotions and express them is absolutely childlike. Ranveer is simply one of the finest actors there is. And consistently so. His performances are so layered, and yet he makes it seem so simple and effortless." Priyanka praised her "dost" with whom she worked in ‘Gunday' (2014) and ‘Dil Dhadakne Do', and also lauded the filmmaker for his vision and artistry. She wrote, "Aditya, you're a man with a mission. ‘Dhurandhar' in every way is a revelation." Vicky shared on social media that he was "shocked" by the performances. "So proud and in absolute awe of the craft, hard work, and sincerity with which you have made this film. Nothing short of gold standard. You deserve every bit of this success. Congratulations bhai. @ranveersingh you inspire me brother. Your finesse and flair as an actor is unmatched. Honsla, eendhan badla (sic)." He also praised R Madhavan, and Rakesh Bedi, among others.

Rs 1435 cr
Global box office collection of ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge'

Small voices, left unheard

Saurabh Shukla. Pic/Instagram

While there is a plethora of options when it comes to gritty, comic, action, and dramatic content, veteran actor and director Saurabh Shukla laments the lack of children's films. Asked if the industry has lost its innocence, he says, "No, who says that? There was a child psychology, now [that] as a society, has changed. No innocence is lost. We are in an information age and kids are exposed to much more than what we were exposed to. But that's how life is. It'll go on like that."

Notable children's films

1993 ‘Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke'
2002 ‘Makdee'
2003 ‘Jajantaram Mamantram'
2007 ‘Taare Zameen Par'
2008 ‘Bhoothnath'
2011 ‘Chillar Party'
2011 ‘Stanley Ka Dabba'
2017 ‘Secret Superstar'

A debut made special

Ilaiyaraaja, Sivaji Ganesan and Dhaarshan Ganesan

Ace composer Ilaiyaraaja will score music for director DD Balachandran's upcoming Tamil film Lenin Pandiyan, which also marks the debut of Dhaarshan Ganesan, grandson of the late actor Sivaji Ganesan. Sources say Dhaarshan plays a police officer. The film also features actor and music director Ganga Amaran - Ilaiyaraaja's younger brother - in a leading role. Now that's a legacy line-up if there ever was one.