It’s action time for Zayed Khan

He will play the lead in Kajal Nashkar’s directorial debut and his next production is an action comedy.

After his stint in the recently released action flick Tezz, Zayed Khan is readying to star in a suspense thriller. The actor has signed Kajal Nashkar’s yet-untitled directorial debut, which will also feature southern star Prakash Raj in a pivotal role. Confirming the news, Zayed says, “I’m playing the lead role in the film.” The actor will begin shooting for the film in July.

Despite rumours doing the rounds that Zarine Khan will play the female lead in the film, Zayed refuses to divulge any details. “The filmmakers will announce the film and the cast in two weeks, and then everything will come to the fore,” he says.

The actor’s next production venture will also be an action-packed movie. “It’s an action-comedy. We are in the process of hunting for locations. We have a few names in mind for the cast but we haven’t zeroed in on anyone yet,” says Zayed, who co-owns the production house Born Free with actor Dia Mirza. The duo made their production debut with the 2011 release Love Breakup Zindagi (2011).

Zayed also reveals that he wants to play a lead role in their second film, “I am dying to be in the film. I will also appear for an audition,” he says. Without giving away too much, Zayed says that the film will feature a strongly villainous character.

“The villain will be someone iconic like Mogambo, in a unique costume. Movies made back in the day would have a single scene that defined what the character was all about. I want to mix fresh and old-school ideas to create something Indian at heart but of an international standard,” says Zayed. Ask him if it was a mutual decision between him and Dia to make an action movie and he says,