Indra Kumar plans studio complex

Project in Gujarat will include Disney-style park, hotels, shooting floors and even a helipad.

Producer-director Indra Kumar, along with his producer-partner Ashok Thackeria, is gearing up for a big announcement post the June 24 release of their film, Double Dhamaal. The duo has plans to set up a studio complex in Gujarat that has already got the thumbs up from the state’s Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Maruti International, named after their banner, will include shooting floors, five-star hotels for the stars, multi-cuisine restaurants, a helipad and an amusement park along the lines of a Disneyland.

HT Image

“Yes, we are really keen on the project,” admits Indra Kumar. “Talks are on and we’re optimistic that we will be able to finalise the location soon. It will be somewhere between Ahmedabad and Anand.”

The filmmaker also concedes that he’d love to reunite with his former muse, Madhuri Dixit. The actor, who collaborated with him on a trio of blockbusters, including Dil, Beta and Rajaand, was a co-judge on Sony TV’s dance reality show, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, aired late last year and early 2011. On the show, Madhuri had admitted that she was ready to come back to the movies.

“I’d gone to Madhuri with a script three years ago. She loved it but we couldn’t work together then because her kids, Ryan and Arin, were too young for her to leave them in Denver and fly to Mumbai. The deal fell through and the script has since become outdated,” sighs Indra Kumar. “But maybe once Double Dhamaal releases, I will be able to put together another project. If Madhuri is suited for it, I’ll go to her again. This time her children are older and maybe I’ll get her.”