YRF CEO confirms Alia Bhatt's entry into the Spy Universe

While speculations about Alia Bhatt joining the blockbuster YRF Spy Universe has been hitting headlines for nearly 6 months now Yash Raj Filmsrsquo CEO Akshaye Widhani confirmed this huge development today at FICCI FramesWhen prodded constantly to reveal one new development within the YRF Spy Universe Akshaye said ldquoIll share the worst kept secret in the industry which is Alia Bhatt is headlining a Spy Universe film and that the schedule starts later this year But you know talking about this spy universe we are actually just so thrilled and excited about having this IP in the studiordquoHe adds ldquoI think the YRF Spy Universe is a financial and cultural juggernaut And as one of the most prized IPs we take a lot of pride in it So theres a lot of stuff thats going to come on the spy universe Were going to see more and more films getting made under it But of course not going to share everything here But we will talk about it at a more opportune time But for now I can just say that Alia Bhatt is headlining a spy universe filmrdquoAlia Bhatt is set to team up with young and rising Bollywood star Sharvari Wagh in the yettobetitled film They will play superagents in the action entertainerThe YRF Spy Universe kicked off with Salman Khanrsquos Ek Tha Tiger 2012 then followed by Tiger Zinda Hai 2017 and War 2019 starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff It was taken forward with Pathaan starring Shah Rukh Khan Deepika Padukone and John Abraham and then Tiger 3 with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif Now the next project will be War 2 starring Hrithik Roshan NTR Jr and Kiara Advani and directed by Ayan MukerjiAkshaye also touched upon the super successful year YRF has had on streaming with The Railway Men about the Bhopal Gas Tragedy being a global hit show It trended at Number three on Netflix The Romantics a docuseries on YRF and its impact on Pop culture for 50 years also became a global success storyAkshaye says ldquoThe Railway Men trended in over 36 countries but you feel the success of content when you know people who dont speak your language are watching the content and appreciating it For me that is a huge definition of success We are a company that is not afraid to fail We want to be able to do disruptive contentHe adds ldquoIndia loves the movies Its a big part of our culture its a big part of our team And I think The Romantics was a journey that every viewer went on So everybody has a YRF story in their life My parents had a YRF story from Yash Jis times I had a YRF story from Adis times So like me there are other people who all have a YRF story There is a song that played at your wedding which was from a YRF movie There was a time in life when you went watch a movie and that was a YRF movie and you went with that certain someone which you might be with or might not be with but you still have fond memories ofrdquoAkshaye further says ldquoI think because of that connect and connect with this company and the studio has had it its a cultural connect with audiences And I think thats what excited people and drew people to watch the Romantics that would make them love it more The sheer nostalgia here as to the youth connected to them because again there was a story about their family or a movie that they have watched and loved Not to forget it also had Aditya Chopra making his debut on screen and that gave us incredible amount of eyeballsrdquo