In the opening shot of Khaali Peeli's teaser, Ishaan Khatter is seen walking out of a prison confidently and asking for a 'maachis'. Tell director Maqbool Khan that the shot reminds one of the '80s heroes with their unbridled swagger, and he reveals that it is a deliberate attempt to set the movie's tone. "The film is a tribute to Mumbai. I wanted a masala film in which the city, complete with its old-world charm, is more than a mere backdrop. I have grown up in south Bombay and knew exactly where to set up the shoots," says Khan of the film, which also features Ananya Panday.

The Hindi film industry is at an interesting juncture where the lines between mainstream movies and middle-of-the-road cinema are blurring. But in his directorial debut, Khan wanted to pay tribute to an era of cinema that resonated with him. "Masala films are still a crowd-puller. I watched Raees [2017] at Gaiety Galaxy. When Shah Rukh Khan made his entry, the audience was so excited that I couldn't hear the dialogues. That said, when you make a film for the millennial audience that has grown up on Guy Ritchie's works, you have to adapt the screenplay."