7 September 2023
Hyderabad

It looks like Dulquer Salmaan is keen on consolidating on the Telugu market he gained for last year’s super hit Sita Ramam. After signing Venky Atluri’s next, Lucky Bhaskar, earlier this summer, the Malayalam heartthrob, sources say, has green-lit another Telugu project. It will be produced by Sudhakar Cherukuri under his SLV Cinemas. He earlier pooled in resources for flicks like Dasara and Rangabali.

A source close to the development tells us, “The project with Dulquer is a contemporary love story with many heart-touching moments. While it’s too early to talk about the subject, it will, like Sita Ramam, be an indelible affair. The film has scope for another male A-lister and the makers are on the lookout to lock the name. As far as the leading lady is concerned, chances of a noted Bollywood face cast opposite Dulquer are high. Half of the film will be shot in the US, while the remaining half in India. Like with Dulquer’s earlier films, this will also be a pan-India affair and will be released in other languages.”

The source adds, “Ravi, who assisted Parasuram in the past, will be debuting as a director with the untitled project, which is scheduled to go on in front of the cameras next summer. The film involves extensive pre-production work. National-award winning tunesmith GV Prakash is tipped to compose music.”

Dulquer, who was recently seen in King of Kotha, also has a project, Kaantha, with Rana Daggubati (as producer) in his kitty. Selvamani Selvaraj, whose debut feature Nila (2016) won the audience award at the Cinequest San Jose Film Festival and subsequently went on to direct Netflix’s documentary series, The Hunt for Veerappan, will helm it. The actor is also believed to be playing a key role in Suriya’s next with Sudha Kongara.

-NAGARAJ GOUD