Chamunda: Shah Rukh Khan turns down Alia Bhatt-starrer in horror-comedy universe?
Shah Rukh Khan has opted for exploring fresh genres and passed on the Chamunda role with Maddock Films.
Jan 10, 2025
Shah Rukh Khan/Instagram
Following the remarkable success of Stree 2 Shah Rukh Khan had a private meeting with Dinesh Vijan and director Amar Kaushik to explore possible collaborations. Since then, the filmmaker duo has met with the superstar on a variety of topics, including horror comedies, fantasy flicks, and adventure films, to gauge his interest in the genres that he tends to gravitate toward.
Shah Rukh Khan's reluctance to join Maddock horror-comedy universe
Bollywood Hungama reports that Maddock offered SRK one of his subjects, Chamunda for release in 2026. Reliable sources inform them that Maddock approached SRK with an offer to star in a film that will significantly influence their horror-comedy universe moving forward. Under Amar Kaushik's direction, Maddock was adamant about pairing Alia Bhatt with Shah Rukh in Chamunda. But that wasn't the expected result.
According to the source, SRK preferred to forge his own path with Maddock and Amar Kaushik rather than join an existing universe. He has challenged the pair to create something original and investigate uncharted territory in terms of genre. Chamunda has new potential titles, and the two are already brainstorming possible collaborations with King Khan for a future project.
Also, the source told the entertainment portal that Vijan offered SRK a number of subjects, including Chamunda but the two of them never clicked.
Maddock Films' universe expansion
Maddock Films has announced three new additions to their universe for 2025: Thama Shakti Shalini, and Chamunda. These titles will further enhance the Maddock Films universe. They are about to launch their most daring project to date—a cinematic world of horror-comedies that is both imaginative and interrelated.
From 2025 to 2028, Vijan plans to release two films annually from his universe. Vijan plans to release Thama on Diwali in 2025 and Shakti Shalini on December 31, 2025, which will initiate the second phase of the horror comedy superhero world. These two films will lead to the release of Chamunda on December 4, 2026, and Bhediya 2 on August 14, 2026.
The release dates for Stree 3 and Mahamunjya in 2027 are August 13 and December 24, respectively. An epic two-part story that will revolutionise the boundaries of horror humour in Indian cinema—Mahayudh—will climax the grand narrative of this universe once all the individual films have reached the marquee. Aiming to break barriers in genre and scope, it will unite superheroes from all throughout the Maddock horror comedy universe. Around Diwali 2028, on October 18, Pehla Mahayudh will make its theatrical debut, and Dusra Mahayudh will follow on August 11, 2028.
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