New Delhi: Anurag Basu wants Aamir Khan to play Kishore Kumar in a biopic on one of Bollywood’s most celebrated singers. If all goes as planned, the film will be produced by Bhushan Kumar of T-Series, and so far, more than five meetings have taken place among all the interested parties. However, Khan, whose last film Laal Singh Chaddha tanked at the box office in 2022, has yet to sign on the dotted line.
Earlier reports suggested that Ranbir Kapoor was also in the race to play the actor-singer. Not everyone is convinced whether the biopic will actually materialise.
“Announcements about a Kishore Kumar biopic keep happening. But the key thing to remember is, no one can actually make it unless they have explicit permission from his family,” said film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh.
Khan is no stranger to biopics—having played freedom fighter Mangal Pandey and former wrestler and trainer Mahavir Singh Phogat in Dangal (2016). While Mangal Pandey: The Rising (2005) was a commercial failure, Dangal became one of the top-grossing Hindi movies of the decade. His Lal Singh Chaddha, a remake of the award-winning film Forrest Gump (1994), was a meta take on biopics.
Delays, doubts
Basu, however, has a reputation for delaying releases, as was the case for Barfi (2012) and Jagga Jasoos (2017). From reshoots and schedule changes to clashes with other films, Basu’s movies have never been made and released in one go. His latest, Metro In Dino, was also delayed multiple times—the release date has recently been shifted from September to 29 November.
“I think Basu should just concentrate on making the films he has already announced and release the ones that are completed. Kishore Kumar biopic can wait,” said Adarsh.
A producer who has an upcoming project with T-Series has his own doubts about the biopic.
“The only concern I have is, with Kumar being an actor and singer, what the music of the film would be like. I am most interested in knowing who would play Rajesh Khanna because Kumar sang many of his hit songs for him. I just hope it is not Akshay Kumar, who is the son-in-law of Khanna,” said the producer, who does not wish to be named.
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15 biopics in 5 years
The announcement comes at a time when biopics seem to be the flavour of the season. In the last five years, more than 15 biopics have been released both in theatres and on OTT platforms, with the latest being Kabir Khan’s sports biopic Chandu Champion (2024). The film was based on the life of India’s first Paralympic gold medal winner Murlikant Petkar.
Besides Chandu Champion, Ajay Devgn’s Maidaan was another biopic released this year. Both failed to make a mark at the box office, with Maidaan only making Rs 66 crore worldwide, against its budget of Rs 250 crore. A relatively low-budget biopic Srikanth (2024), starring Rajkummar Rao was an average hit with a collection of Rs 62 crore. The 2023 film Sam Bahadur, based on the life of former Chief of Army Staff Sam Manekshaw and headlined by Vicky Kaushal, raked in Rs 128 crore worldwide.
The biggest hit in biopics in the last five years has been Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022), which earned Rs 209 crore worldwide and became one of the most popular films of Alia Bhatt. On OTT, Shershah (2021) was the most-liked Hindi film of the year.
But most biopics, from Thalaivii (2021), based on former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, to Swatantrya Veer Savarkar (2024), have failed to make a mark at the box office.
Meanwhile, Khan is sorting through six projects to ultimately pick three films he will work on. Last year, cinematographer-director Avinash Arun announced that he was in talks with the actor for his biopic on special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam. His production house, Aamir Khan Productions, is associated with the film. Other projects he’s been offered include Rajkumar Santoshi’s untitled comedy, a sequel of Ghajini (2008), Tamil director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s next film, and Zoya Akhtar’s upcoming project, all of which are in various stages of development.
Khan’s next movie, Sitaare Zameen Par, where he co-stars with Genelia D’Souza, is slated for a December release.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)