Jab Khuli Kitaab trailer out: Pankaj Kapur, Dimple Kapadia, and Aparshakti Khurana starrer to release on Zee5 on March 6, 2026

Hindi ZEE5 unveiled the trailer of its upcoming film Jab Khuli Kitaab today, offering audiences a heartfelt, humorous, and refreshingly honest glimpse into one of the most poignant portrayals of mature love on screen. Written and directed by Saurabh Shukla and led by the stellar pairing of Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia, the film delves into the emotional complexities of a five-decade-long marriage disrupted by a truth long buried in silence.

The trailer offers a window into the quiet, familiar world of Gopal [Pankaj Kapur] and Anusuya [Dimple Kapadia], a couple bound by 50 years of shared routines, memories, and silent understanding. Their seemingly peaceful life takes an unexpected turn when Anusuya reveals a long-buried secret, shaking the very core of their relationship. Struggling to come to terms with the revelation, Gopal finds himself torn between heartbreak and dignity, eventually choosing to pursue divorce.

Their story leads them to a young lawyer, played by Aparshakti Khurana, where difficult conversations begin to unravel years of unspoken emotions, lingering pain, and buried affection. As memories resurface and truth come to light, the trailer unfolds as a moving and nuanced portrayal of love tested by time. With its blend of sensitivity, warmth, and honesty, it promises a compelling story about relationships, forgiveness, and the strength required to confront the past and rediscover connection.

Blending gentle humor with effortlessly flowing moments, the film stays light on its feet and ultimately makes for a genuinely enjoyable watch.

 

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Talking about his character Gopal, Pankaj Kapur said, “What makes Jab Khuli Kitaab truly special is Saurabh Shukla’s vision. It’s rare to find a filmmaker who chooses to shine a spotlight on older, mature love — and to do it with such honesty, humour, and tenderness. Saurabh has crafted a narrative that is not only refreshing, but deeply real. He reminds us that love doesn’t fade with age; it evolves, it complicates, it bruises, and it heals. It was a rewarding challenge to portray a man rediscovering love in the most unexpected way; I’m grateful to be part of a story that treats this stage of life with such dignity, authenticity, and emotional depth.”

Dimple Kapadia on playing Anusuya said, “Jab Khuli Kitaab truly felt like a project where all my boxes were ticked — a beautiful story, the opportunity to work with Pankaj Kapur, and to be directed by Saurabh ji, all while basking in the beauty and divine energy of the mountains. Anusuya is written with such depth and honesty that it was a joy to explore her many shades. What drew me to her is the simplicity of intention — she isn’t trying to break her marriage; she’s trying to be honest within it. That kind of honesty, especially after decades together, requires immense emotional courage. It feels great to portray such a nuanced character and im grateful to Applause Entertainment and Hindi ZEE5 for backing stories that are bold, intimate, and deeply human.”

Aparshakti Khurana added, “My character becomes the unlikely mirror through which Gopal and Anusuya begin to confront their past. The generational gap creates moments that are both comic and emotionally revealing. What I love most is how the film handles forgiveness and connection with such lightness, yet such depth. It’s a rare story.”

Jab Khuli Kitaab blends humour and heartache to offer a rare, sensitive portrayal of late-life love and the courage it takes to start over. With its layered characters, sharp writing, and performances from some of India’s finest actors, the film promises to resonate across generations.

The film will premiere exclusively on ZEE5 on March 06, 2026.

Also Read: ZEE5 announces Punjab-set series Shabad – Reet Aur Riwaaz, story tackles Mihir Ahuja’s passion towards football

Siddhant Chaturvedi teams up with Ishqiya fame Abhishek Chaubey for Ballia-based story

Actor Siddhant Chaturvedi is set to work on a deeply personal project rooted in his hometown of Ballia, marking a significant full-circle moment in his journey from small-town India to mainstream Hindi cinema. Known for consistently choosing layered and unconventional roles, the actor is now turning to a story that draws directly from his own lived experiences.

From his breakout performance in Gully Boy to acclaimed turns in Gehraiyaan, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, and Dhadak 2, Siddhant has steadily carved a distinct space for himself as one of the most compelling actors of his generation. With this new film, he turns inward towards his roots, memories, and the place that shaped him.

Speaking candidly, Siddhant shared, “Abhi tak yeh official nahi hai, lekin mujhe lagta hai yeh wahi stage hai jahan main bol dena chahta hoon. Main apni roots par wapas jaana chahta hoon. Mujhe Ballia ki kahaani kehni hai. Wahan ki zindagi maine dekhi hai, jiya hai aur main wahi experiences screen par lana chahta hoon.”

He also spoke about his collaboration with Ishqiya fame filmmaker Abhishek Chaubey on the Ballia-based story, describing it as a powerful and exceptional narrative. “Abhishek Chaubey ke saath hum ek Ballia-based story par kaam kar rahe hain. Bahut hi kamaal ki kahaani hai, us par kaafi charcha chal rahi hai, aur mujhe lagta hai bahut jaldi yeh sabke saamne aayegi,” the actor added.

From being a boy raised in Ballia to becoming a recognised face in Bollywood, Siddhant Chaturvedi’s journey has been defined by perseverance and purpose. This project represents more than just another film—it signals a return to origin, memory, and identity. While further details are awaited, expectations are already high for a story that promises honesty, depth, and emotional authenticity.

Also Read: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Alizeh to lead Vikas Bahl’s 1990s-set UK Punjabi music drama: Report

Sumukhi Suresh joins Netflix Is a Joke Fest 2026 lineup as the sole Indian comedian

Indian comedian, writer and actor Sumukhi Suresh has been announced as part of the lineup for Netflix Is a Joke Fest 2026, where she will perform as the only Indian comedian featured in this year’s edition of the global showcase.

Set to take place across Los Angeles from May 4–10, the festival returns for its third outing as one of the world’s largest comedy gatherings. Produced by Netflix in partnership with Live Nation, the citywide event will host more than 350 live performances spanning stand-up shows, variety acts, podcast tapings, screenings and exclusive events across multiple venues.

Sumukhi will perform in Los Angeles on May 5, marking a significant milestone in her international trajectory. Reflecting on the announcement, the comedian shared her excitement about reaching a stage she once only imagined being part of, “If you would have asked teenager Sumukhi from Nagpur who was shy and underconfident that she would be performing at one of the most prestigious international comedy festivals, she wouldn’t have laughed at you — but would have 100% been in disbelief."

 

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“This is a milestone. A core memory. The fact that I watched lineups being announced at Netflix Is a Joke Fest and now I am on the lineup is thrilling. I can’t wait to bring my Indian multilingual madness in a stand-up bit for the audience in LA,” said Sumukhi.

The 2026 lineup also includes international comedians such as Zainab Johnson, Molly Kearny, Liza Treyger, Aurie Styla, Michael Longfellow, Chris Redd, and filmmaker-comedian Kevin Smith, among hundreds of performers representing stand-up’s global landscape.

The festival appearance arrives amid an expansive international run for Suresh. She is set to take her stand-up special Hoemonal on a multi-city United States tour from April 24 through May 17, following international performance in Dubai on March 28.

Hoemonal, which explores identity, relationships and gender expectations through Suresh’s candid, conversational humour, reflects her journey from India’s digital comedy boom to global live stages. She first gained prominence through sharply observed online sketches before creating, writing and starring in the acclaimed Prime Video series Pushpavalli, later expanding her presence across stand-up and television, including as host and mentor on Comicstaan.

Her inclusion at Netflix Is a Joke Fest underscores the growing global visibility of Indian stand-up comedy and marks a significant moment of representation for Indian women on one of comedy’s largest international stages

Also Read: Bhumi Pednekar on bonding with Lisa Mishra and Sumukhi Suresh in The Royals, “It’s about how women just unknowingly understand each other’s experiences”

Sonu Ki Titu Ki Sweety re-releasing on March 6 as Holi 2026 sees no new Hindi film release

The 2018 hit Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety is set to return to cinemas on March 6, 2026, offering moviegoers a big-screen option in what is otherwise an unusually quiet Holi corridor for Bollywood.

For the first time in years, Holi 2026 will pass without a single major Hindi film release. Traditionally, producers have leveraged the festive holiday to secure strong openings, banking on extended weekends and celebratory footfalls. Over the past two decades, several successful films have arrived in cinemas around Holi, turning the festival into a dependable box office window.

However, 2026 marks a departure from that trend. Trade observers point to the ongoing T20 World Cup as a key factor behind the absence of new releases, with producers wary of clashing with a major sporting event that commands nationwide attention. A similar pattern was seen in earlier years when high-profile cricket tournaments led to a sparse festive release calendar.

In this backdrop, the re-release of Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety appears strategically timed. Directed by Luv Ranjan and starring Kartik Aaryan, Nushrratt Bharuccha and Sunny Singh, the romantic comedy emerged as one of the surprise blockbusters of 2018. Its music, dialogues and portrayal of friendship versus romance struck a chord with younger audiences, helping it sustain a strong theatrical run.

With no fresh competition in theatres, the film’s return could attract both nostalgic viewers and a new generation of audiences who may have missed its original run. The festive mood of Holi, typically associated with light-hearted entertainers, further makes the film a fitting choice for a theatrical revisit.

Also Read: Sidharth Malhotra-Parineeti Chopra’s Hasee Toh Phasee to re-release on March 6, 2026

EXCLUSIVE: Ameena all set to complete 100 weeks in a Mumbai multiplex; the curious case behind its 'run'

There was a time when it was not unusual for films to complete 50 or 100 weeks in cinemas. But as times passed and due to the shift in business models, increase in number of screens and rise of OTT platforms, it’s a feat even for a film to run for 50 days on the big screen. Hence, it’ll be a surprise for moviegoers to learn that a small-budget film, Ameena, is about to complete 100 weeks in theatres.

Ameena was released on April 12, 2024, that is, in the same week as Bade Miyan Chote Miyan and Maidaan. Since then, popular films and grossers like Stree 2, Pushpa 2, Chhaava, Saiyaara, Mahavatar Narsimha etc., have been released and none of them ran for more than 10 or 15 weeks (Bollywood’s biggest grosser, Dhurandhar, currently in its 13th week and will also complete 15 weeks). Meanwhile, Ameena is running non-stop at Mumbai’s extremely popular MovieTime Hub multiplex in the morning show. At present, it is running in its 99th week; on Friday, March 6, it’ll complete 100 weeks and thus create history.

An industry insider told Bollywood Hungama, “Ideally, if a film is pulling in so many viewers for nearly two long years, it would have become a talking point on social media, the way it happens with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) or the longest running Gujarati film of all time, Chaal Jeevi Laiye (2019). People would have excitedly discussed the film’s plot, themes, performances, songs etc. But how many people do you know who have seen the film? Have you ever seen any tweet or Instagram post/story about it?”

 

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Ground reality check

Last week, when Ameena was in its 98th week, Bollywood Hungama decided to watch the film to get a first-hand sense of the ground reality. As per a ticketing website, 20 tickets had been sold for our show. The pattern seemed unusual because all seats in the screen were available at a flat price of Rs. 100. In a normal scenario, patrons would book the back rows first. But in the case of Ameena, 18 tickets were booked in the first two rows, followed by two seats in the third row from the front.

This writer purchased a ticket at the booking counter and, as expected, was the only person inside the auditorium. None of the 20 people who had supposedly booked tickets turned up. The show, however, began as scheduled. It was stifling inside, as the air-conditioning didn’t seem to be switched on. During the intermission, when this writer requested a staffer to turn on the AC, he looked in disbelief and asked if the writer was watching Ameena. When the writer nodded, the kind staffer assured it would be done, and he kept his word. It left us wondering: Is Ameena being screened every day to an empty hall

 

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Bollywood Hungama kept track of Ameena’s bookings on the ticketing website over the next few days and noticed a pattern: every day, 20 tickets for the show ‘get sold’ in the exact same order –18 in the first two rows, followed by two seats in the third row from the front.

That’s not all. The Instagram handle of the film’s production house, Kumar Raj Productions, has shared a video of a man informing his followers about Ameena’s unbelievable run. Text displayed throughout the video lists three phone numbers that viewers can call to get free tickets for Ameena. When the film was in its 65th week, a post mentioned in bold letters that tickets to the film were available for free.

Producer speaks up

Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to producer-director Kumar Raj, who also features in the film in a supporting role. He was very jovial and spoke warmly to us. He began by saying about his plans for the 100th week celebration, “We are going to call the press, party with them and gift them a 5-inch gold coin. Everyone who worked on the film would also be getting some gifts.”

He claimed that there’s a lot of demand even from foreign shores to write about Ameena, “I got a call from Time magazine. I don’t know if it was genuine or not! They were excited about the fact that Ameena is the first movie in the world to complete 100 weeks in the last 30 years. For 5 weeks, they were after me. Finally, I gave them an interview yesterday. I don’t know if they are going to publish a negative or positive report! As long as they are writing about our film, I am happy (smiles). They claimed that they are going to publish a full-page story along with posters of Ameena.”

The posters of Ameena, splashed across newspapers, mention that they are inviting OTT platforms to buy their film. Names of prominent streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Zee5, SonyLIV, JioHotstar etc. are mentioned. Even Voot gets a mention, though it merged with JioCinema (which later merged with Hotstar).

 

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However, Kumar Raj said, “I started getting a lot of offers from OTT in the very first week itself. But I was clear, ‘Picture jab tak chalti hai, chalne do’. My film was also released in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada.”

He continued, “A famous distributor from down South has arrived in Mumbai. Tomorrow, he’s going to see the movie. He wants to screen this film in several cinemas. In fact, he asked me to send him a flight ticket so that he could come down to Mumbai. But I categorically told him to fly down at his own cost.”

When asked about the average occupancy of Ameena’s shows, Kumar Raj replied, “On the weekends, it is 75% full. During the holidays, the show is 100% sold out. We are getting a lot of repeat audiences as well. During weekdays, shows are approx. 30% full. This is a huge feat, as even the biggest of films don’t get such an audience. At times, when I watch a biggie in the theatre, there are barely 4-5 people in the auditorium.”

He added, “You can ask the team of BookMyShow. They’ll officially provide you with actual collections of the film.”

Kumar Raj also opened up about his earlier film, Tara: The Journey Of Love And Passion (2013), “It has amassed 16 million views on one of the websites (YouTube). It has won 600 international awards and has a mention in 35 book of world records. However, I don’t like to blow my own trumpet.”

Finally, we asked him about the belief in the industry that he’s himself buying the tickets of Ameena. He smiled and simply replied, “Kuch toh log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna.”

About Ameena and Tara

Ameena stars Rekha Rana in the lead role of Meena, a theatre actor. One day, she is brutally raped by three men. She fears that she may not get justice in the court of law and hence, decides to eliminate her rapists. Help comes in the form of a cartel of those directly or indirectly affected by rape. The other actors in the film are Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, Utkarsh Kohli, Manu Malkan etc. The film has been shot not just in Mumbai but also in Los Angeles, Senegal, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, as well as Cannes.

Meanwhile, Kumar Raj’s earlier film, Tara: The Journey Of Love And Passion also starred Rekha Rana. While Ameena aims to complete 100 weeks, Tara ‘ran’ for 50 weeks, in Mumbai’s now-defunct single-screen cinema, Imperial.

SCOOP: This Eid, get ready for a long ride; Toxic's runtime likely to be approx. 3 hours and 20 minutes; Dhurandhar: The Revenge expected to be longer

Yesterday, March 1, Bollywood Hungama reported that Dhurandhar: The Revenge is expected to run between 220 minutes (3 hours 40 minutes) and 235 minutes (3 hours 55 minutes). The much-awaited film clashes with Toxic on Eid (March 19), and the face-off has sparked major buzz across the trade, industry and fans. Bollywood Hungama has now learned that, like Dhurandhar, Toxic too is likely to be a lengthy affair.

A source told Bollywood Hungama, “Toxic’s final length is yet to be locked, but it comes to around 200 minutes, that is, 3 hours and 20 minutes. The makers feel that there’s enough entertainment and mass-appealing moments in the film and that the audience won’t get bored or restless. Also, earlier, having a long film would lead to a negative perception. But it all changed with Animal (2023). It was 3 hours and 21 minutes long and ran very successfully. In recent times, Border 2 (2026) was released with a runtime of 3 hours and 19 minutes. Not to forget, the duration of Dhurandhar’s (2026) first part was 3 hours and 34 minutes. All these films were huge hits and it remains to be seen if Toxic also follows suit.”

However, the exhibitors were already at their wits' end over the clash and the news of the runtimes of Dhurandhar: The Revenge and Toxic have added to their woes. A single-screen cinema hall owner, said on condition of anonymity, sighed, “The distributors anyway were not going to be ready for show-sharing. But we hoped that it might be possible, especially if both films had concise lengths. But now, there’s no chance. It’ll be a challenge even for theatres with multiple screens to accommodate sufficient shows of both films.”

Meanwhile, it’s a crucial week as the trailer of Dhurandhar: The Revenge will be launched digitally on March 3, as confirmed by Bollywood Hungama yesterday in an article. As for Toxic, the makers have planned a grand trailer launch on March 8 in Bengaluru. Directed by Geetu Mohandas, it marks the return of Yash of KGF fame and also stars Kiara Advani, Nayanthara, Huma Qureshi, Akshay Oberoi and others.

Also Read: IMAX bets big on India: Ramayana, Toxic gets special mention in IMAX quarterly report amid RECORD $1.28 billion global box office earnings in 2025 from 1796 properties

MEGA EXCLUSIVE: Tiger Shroff's grand-scale spiritual action film with Neerja director Ram Madhvani and Mahaveer Jain gets a title - Vajra

Tiger Shroff celebrates his birthday today, March 2, and on this special occasion, Bollywood Hungama brings exciting news which will be lapped up by his fans. We have learned from reliable sources that Tiger’s upcoming film by director Ram Madhvani and producer Mahaveer Jain has been given a title.

A source told Bollywood Hungama, “The film is named Vajra. The makers, as well as Tiger, feel that the title is apt for the storyline and also because it's connected with our rich Indian culture.”

The source continued, “In Vajra, Tiger Shroff will be seen in a never-seen-before avatar, one that blends raw power with emotional depth. He is extremely excited about Vajra and its concept and is working very hard. He's determined to give the audience an experience that they'll cherish. Ram Madhvani and Mahaveer Jain are also going all out to mount their spiritual big-budget action film on a grand scale.”

In November 2025, Bollywood Hungama was the first to report that Tiger Shroff had signed on for Ram Madhvani and Mahaveer Jain's film. At that time, a source had told us, “It's a spiritual action thriller. This has never been attempted before in Indian cinema. It has an appeal and huge potential for a global audience and not just the moviegoers of the Indian diaspora.”

The source continued, “Tiger Shroff will be undergoing extensive preparation for this ambitious film. It will go on floors in the second quarter of 2026. A major portion of the film will be shot in Japan.”

Also Read: Tiger Shroff delivers energetic stage performance on Valentine’s Day eve in Delhi